Painting a Coffee Shop Carnation: My Watercolor Journey from Inspiration to Completion
Finding Beauty in Everyday Moments
Hi, I'm Valerie Englehart, and today I want to share one of my favorite "found inspiration" painting experiences. While working at a local coffee shop alongside my husband, I spotted a gorgeous carnation bouquet that immediately caught my eye. I quickly snapped a photo (probably as an excuse to take a break from whatever I was supposed to be working on!) and knew I had to paint it.
This is the beauty of keeping your artistic eyes open – inspiration can strike anywhere, even during mundane coffee shop work sessions.
Setting Up: Tools and Initial Composition
My Simple Setup
For this painting, I used:
Size 8 round brush (my workhorse for most of the piece)
Size 0 round brush (for detail work)
Art of Soil paints (a Christmas gift from a couple years ago)
Student-grade watercolor paper
Plastic wrap (the secret weapon for texture!)
Compositionally Planning the Flower Placement
I wanted my main carnation positioned slightly off-center, following the rule of thirds. Compositionally, it's good to work in a rule of thirds, and I achieved this in two ways:
Three distinct sections: lower leaves, flower, upper leaves
Flower placement in the lower third rather than dead center
This creates a more dynamic, visually interesting composition than centering everything.
Color Mixing Adventures (and Mistakes!)
The Peachy-Pink Challenge
The original carnation was a beautiful mix of yellow and peachy pink, but I didn't have peachy pink in my palette. So I started with yellow, then decided to add red. That red turned out to be far more powerful than expected – probably should have tested it first!
Paper towel to the rescue! I dabbed up the excess and learned an important lesson: always test your colors first, especially when working with strong pigments. Instead of panicking, I worked with what was there, moving the existing pigment around to create a much more pleasing color.
The Beauty of Earthy Tones
What emerged was a lovely palette of earthy colors that felt much more natural and cohesive than my original plan. Sometimes our "mistakes" lead us to better places than our initial intentions.
The Magic of Plastic Wrap Texture
Why Plastic Wrap Works Perfectly for Carnations
Carnations are incredibly ruffly with wrinkled, textured petals – this is just one of my favorite ways to make texture. While the paint was still wet, I laid plastic wrap (cling film) over the flower and mushed it around, creating those characteristic carnation ruffles.
The key is working while everything is wet so you can move the plastic wrap around until you're happy with the texture.
Balancing Texture and Control
I focused the plastic wrap technique specifically on the flower, using weights to hold it in place while I continued working on other areas. This allowed me to:
Create dramatic texture where I wanted it most
Continue painting stems and leaves while the flower dried
Maintain control over the overall composition
Building the Supporting Elements
Creating Natural Stems and Leaves
Using the fine tip of my size 8 round brush, I painted stems and leaves while the flower edges were still wet. This wet-into-wet technique creates soft, natural transitions.
I started with gentle green pigments, then decided they were too weak and went back with stronger pigment. Don't be afraid to strengthen your colors.
Adding Variety and Interest
To create more visual interest in the foliage, I:
Added drops of water to disturb and blend colors
Introduced touches of blue for variation
Included hints of yellow to suggest sunlight
Created "ghost" leaves with lighter values for depth
Making Artistic Choices: Changing What I Saw
The White Flower Dilemma
Here's where I made a crucial artistic decision: in my reference photo, the flower was actually white. Painting white on a white background in watercolor is very difficult. I could have changed the background, but instead, I chose to paint what I wanted to be there rather than what I saw.
As the artist, I can do that. This is one of the most liberating aspects of creating art – you're not bound by photographic accuracy.
Adding Elements That Weren't There
I included little blue blooms and springy flowers that enhanced the composition, even though I wasn't entirely sure what they were in the original photo. The goal was creating something beautiful and cohesive, not documentary accuracy.
The Revelation: When the Plastic Wrap Comes Off
The Exciting Reveal
After letting everything dry naturally, I peeled back the plastic wrap to reveal the texture underneath. Honestly, it looked prettier than I thought! The plastic wrap had created beautiful organic patterns that perfectly captured the carnation's ruffled nature.
Even better, some of the blue I'd dotted into the leaves had migrated up into the flower, creating wonderful cohesion throughout the piece. It wasn't cut-and-paste looking – everything flowed together naturally.
Detailed Work: Negative Painting Techniques
Defining Petals Through Negative Space
For the detailed work, I switched to my size 0 brush and began painting negatively – painting around the petals to create their shapes rather than painting the petals themselves. This is often how I approach roses, and I had to be careful not to accidentally paint a rose instead of a carnation!
The key to negative painting:
Use the texture marks as guides for petal placement
Paint the darker areas between petals
Work in small sections, switching between brushes
Move some pigment into the petals themselves for natural variation
Working Intuitively
Much of this detailed work was intuitive rather than strictly following my reference photo. I used my imagination mostly, looking at my picture for inspiration but not treating it as the definitive guide.
Starting from the center and spiraling outwards felt natural for a carnation's growth pattern.
Artistic Philosophy: Permission to Experiment
Addressing the Inner Critic
During the painting process, I found myself thinking about artistic confidence and self-doubt. The only wrong answer is: "Oh, I can't paint. I can't do that. I don't have the talent." Wrong answer.
Whether you prefer super detailed work, capturing every wrinkle and ruffle, or loose, borderline abstract approaches – there's no wrong answer. Paint in a way that makes you happy.
Equipment Doesn't Make the Artist
The brushes I used were inexpensive ones I wanted to try, and I painted on student-grade paper. Don't be afraid to experiment with whatever supplies you have. You don't need expensive materials to create something beautiful.
Managing Artistic Decisions: When to Stop, When to Continue
The Detail Dilemma
After completing the detailed carnation center, I faced a choice: the contrast between my highly detailed flower and simple leaves felt disconnected. I could either:
Stop where I was (perfectly valid!)
Add detail to the leaves for better balance
Start over with a different approach
Preserving Your Work
If you're unsure about continuing, here are two options:
Put the painting away and try again on fresh paper
Take a photo or scan the current state before proceeding
This way, if you're not happy with additional changes, you still have a record of the earlier stage.
Following Through on Artistic Decisions
I chose to add leaf details using darker blue paint and my size 0 brush, working quickly and confidently. These strokes need to be quick and sure – paying too much attention makes me second-guess myself.
The result was better balance between detailed areas and a more complete composition.
Technical Tips I Learned Along the Way
Brush Management
When your brush isn't moving well, add more water
Remove excess water beads before detailed work
Keep brushes clean when switching between colors
Paint Behavior
Yellow has value limitations – sometimes that's okay
Watercolor gets paler as it dries
You can move paint with a wet brush on this particular paper
Composition Choices
Break up shapes that become too uniform
Use quick wavy lines to separate sections
Step back regularly to see the whole piece
The Final Result: Embracing the Process
Even though I don't usually work in this detailed, illustrative style, the experiment taught me valuable lessons about:
Balancing different levels of detail
Making confident artistic choices
Working with unexpected color results
Using texture techniques effectively
The finished piece has good value distribution, interesting linear elements, and tells the story of a moment caught in a coffee shop.
Encouragement for Fellow Artists
Whether you have incredibly supportive family or you're creating despite lack of encouragement – you can do it. You can paint. Use colors that make you happy, paint subjects that inspire you, and don't worry about curing cancer through your art.
I'm just trying to paint a flower I saw while working at a coffee shop, show you techniques that might help, and hopefully inspire you to pick up your own brushes and create something beautiful.