I am intending to publish on Painters on Line, A series of short videos on design in watercolour. These will also be alongside Blogs on various subjects within the overall scheme of things. So.......the first blog without a video. Entitled "Get in, Get out and STAY OUT" This was a very favourite saying of one of the finest Contemporary UK Watercolourists Edward Wesson. As he always said "Get in, Get out and Stay out" Meaning Get into an area of your painting. Do what you have to with the least amount of fuss. Then Get out...and Stay out. Dont go back into the area and fiddle faddle about adding this and that. All good paintings are spoilt with the pretext "I'll just do that"......... Dont go back into distant areas to add impact with stronger paint or you will invariably lose all the lovely soft aerial perspective you have created in the painting. Also if things go wrong, dont give up, Keep Painting. and above all else dont fiddle about with a finished subject. Leave it alone. If the overall painting has not quite worked out, let it dry, and appraise it again later. Somewhere in the painting you have finished and are not happy with, is a little gem. It might not even be apparent but its there. I keep a diagonally split mount that I slide together and apart over any such painting to see if I can crop an area that is very special and works for me. Try it. Remember the art of a good painting in watercolour is Economy and Abbreviation of strokes. Also another tip Clean water equals clean washes which equals transparent bright watercolours colours Dirty water equals Mud glorious Mud John Fuller