Day 7 – Mossy Rock Study

Controlled Cauliflower Effects

Technique level: Intermediate
Duration: ~25–35 minutes

Objective:
Explore how to intentionally create and control blooms (those cauliflower-like textures caused by wet paint spreading into drier areas). Instead of fighting them, today you’ll use them to mimic moss, lichen, and gritty rock textures in a close-up fragment of nature.

Materials:

• Cold press or rough watercolor paper (texture helps here)
• Round brush (size 8-10), and a small detail brush
• Pigments: granulating or bloom-prone colors (e.g., Green Gold, Ultramarine, Burnt Sienna, Cobalt Turquoise, Neutral Tint)
• Spray bottle or pipette (optional)

Steps:

1. Sketch a Chunk: Lightly sketch a close-up of a rock or mossy patch – keep it abstract if you want. Focus on the suggestion of form and surface.
2. Base Layer: Lay down a mid-tone wash (e.g., a neutral gray-green). While it’s still slightly damp, load your brush with a watery contrasting pigment and drop it into selected areas. Watch for the bloom.
3. Manipulate the Effect: Try different timings:
   • Drop pigment into wet areas = soft bloom.
   • Drop pigment into damp but drying areas = strong cauliflower edge.
   • Use a spray bottle or drop clean water into drying paint to push texture even more.
4. Let It Happen: Don’t fix or smooth – let the chaos form naturally. Once dry, go back in with darker tones or a dry brush to add shadows and crevices between moss patches.
5. Optional: Add speckles using a toothbrush or flick from your brush tip for earthy texture.

Focus:

• Timing is everything: too wet = smooth; too dry = stubborn edges.
• Observe how pigment type affects bloom shape (some pigments bloom more explosively).
• Think more in terms of “suggestion” than perfect shapes.

Bonus Tip:
Label a few sections as “early,” “mid,” and “late” bloom attempts so you can compare results. This is texture training – no pressure to make it pretty.