How-to Paint with Washi Tapes

Creating paintings can be intimidating for beginners. But don’t worry, you can create your own masterpiece with this incredibly simple technique. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to paint with washi tapes!

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How to Paint with Washi Tapes

Materials Needed

Watercolor Paper

You can use any watercolor paper that you have. However, if you are looking for a good one, I highly recommend the Canson Watercolor Paper. This comes in different sizes. What I have is the 9″x12″ paper. I love this size because I can use it for different projects and I can customize the dimension when needed.

Canvas

This painting technique can also be used on canvas. For this project, I used this 4″x 4″ canvas that is great for practicing or for creating small desk paintings.

Watercolor

If you want an affordable and good-quality watercolor, I highly recommend the Arteza set. This set comes in 25 vibrant colors and a paintbrush. This is perfect for beginners and occasional painters.

Acrylic

I’ll be using the Liquitex Acrylics for this project. This set has 48 colors however, it’s more expensive in comparison to other acrylic sets on the market.

If you want to start small, my alternative is the Arteza Acrylic Paint Set. This costs less than $15 and it comes in 12 colors. That’s a great deal!

Paint Brush

Brushes are expensive if purchased individually. My recommendation is to buy your brushes as a set. In this way, it would be cheaper plus you can get more with what you paid for.

Washi Tape

And of course, you need some Washi Tapes. If you’re a stationery lover like me, I bet you already have these somewhere in your drawer. But if you don’t, you can choose from several washi tape sets online.

White Pen (optional)

The Uni-Ball Signo is my favorite white pen. I highly recommend this pen if you want to clean up small mistakes or add details to your artwork.

Now that you have all the supplies needed, it’s time to get creative.

Let’s Start Painting!

Create a Border

If you’re using watercolor paper, be sure to create a border before painting. This avoids the paper from wrinkling and this also helps in creating a clean polished look.

Create Patterns using Washi Tapes

This is where the fun begins. Start by creating a pattern using your washi tapes. You can use simple designs such as horizontal and vertical lines or you can get creative by using abstract patterns. Play around with different washi tapes and use different widths to create a more interesting look.

For this example, I used 2 different types of washi tapes to create this abstract pattern.

It’s Time to Paint

Play around with different colors and strokes. For this painting, I used yellow and orange colors to create a gradient. You can also create more complicated designs such as galaxies and landscapes. It’s all up to you.

I created this piece using vertical strokes. My tip for beginners is to use the same brushstroke for the whole painting. By doing so, the painting will look seamless.

Remove the Tape

When the paint is all dry, it is time to remove the washi tapes. I find this process extremely satisfying. I am so excited to see how it all turned out.

Final Touches (optional)

This is where I use my Uni-Ball Signo Pen to fix the little details around my design. Sometimes, the paint bleeds through the washi tape, and because I am a perfectionist, I try my best to fix it.

We’re Done!

Here is the final product! I am really happy with how this painting turned out. I love all the shapes and colors plus, it’s extremely easy to make.

If you want to start simple, this pattern is for you. In this painting, I used diagonal and horizontal lines. Since this is a canvas, I opted for a dark metallic acrylic to create a bold statement piece.

My third example is a galaxy painting video tutorial. For this painting, I created a diamond-shaped pattern to achieve a more interesting look.

Watch on Instagram

I hope I inspired you in creating your own masterpiece using Washi Tapes. This is a simple and fast way to get used to painting and I am pretty sure you’ll enjoy it. If you try this technique, be sure to tag me on Instagram or Pinterest. I would love to see your creations.

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Favorite Supplies

Fineliner

Black Brush Pen

Colored Brush Pens

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