This is a great beginner watercolor instruction book. I really liked the detail about selecting a brush. I also found the tutorials easy to follow.

A charming little book for the beginner to watercolour, this explains the basics quite simply. Along with colour theory and materials, there are step-by-step projects to paint along with. The author's style is colourful, loose and fresh. A lovely inspiration to those who want to start painting!
Thanks to the publisher for a digital review copy.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read/review this book! I will recommend this to family/friends.

Great book with so many useful tips, covers lots of techniques and exercises! 

Thank you Netgalley for this book.

I have recently gotten into water colors through my art journaling classes. This book is perfect for a beginner like me! It shows various brushstrokes, how to mix colors, and plenty of techniques to help recreate various projects.

A very useful book! I love how easy it is to follow the tutorials in this book. I also appreciate that while I am not a beginner in watercolor this book helped me paint something new. Since I am mostly a watercolor flower artist, I always try to paint something outside of my comfort zone, I had fun trying out doing artworks other than flowers. I haven't tried all the activities here in this book, but so far it's been an enjoyable experience. Will definitely try out the rest of the painting tutorials when I get the chance.

Modern Watercolor is a fun title designed for both beginners and experienced artists looking to try something new. After running through the basics the book demonstrates how to paint a variety of different subjects including landscapes, flowers, animals, faces and even interiors. Also included are several tutorials designed to help you test out your new painting skills. My personal favourites were the sunset design and step-by-step wreaths (my first attempt is pictured above) – perfect for framing your favourite book quotes!

One of the things that makes this book a great guide for beginners is the range of advice included, starting with a whole host of tips and tricks covering everything from brushes, painting styles, colour theory, mark making and materials. In addition the wide range of subjects covered allows readers to try out different ideas in order to discover what kind of artwork they most enjoy creating.

Not only is Modern Watercolor packed full of information and ideas to inspire readers but it is also visually charming with plenty of example images and pages adorned with decorative polka dot borders. If you’re looking for a new creative hobby I’d definitely recommend picking up a copy of this book and trying it out for yourself!

Easy enough for a beginner to follow along and enough substance for the non beginner to stay interested.

Nothing new here. Lots of books already published with the same information.

"Modern Watercolor" by Kristin Van Leuven has just been published on September 19th, 2017 so it's available now to purchase as a soft cover. I will also be giving away my review copy of this book in the grand reopening of Just Add Water Silly in the next few weeks so watch this space!

This is a lovely "how to" book for beginners in watercolor. Do you want to learn some simple techniques to get simple, solid results? Do you wish you had an easy to understand guide that explained all the buzz words you hear thrown around in the more complicated, traditional watercolor books? Do you find yourself a little confused when you go to other watercolor artist sites because you're not sure what they mean by split primary, color wheel, wet in wet, rigger brushes etc? Well then this book is for YOU.

I'm solidly an intermediate watercolor artist but I sure wish, when I started, I had come across this book before purchasing much more complicated, mind bending watercolor teaching tomes. I'll shamefully admit, I have dozens of books on "how to" on watercolor that I've only perused tangentially. In other words, I looked at the pictures and read the "what I use" section, other than that, they gather dust. When I was starting, all those more technical books with beautiful landscapes and boat docks were incredibly intimidating. Even today, I don't paint like that. Now I realize that means they're not my style... yet. Some day I may get there, but right now I love where I am.

In "Modern Watercolor" you'll find a fully and beautifully illustrated book. Kristin actually shows you the brushstrokes, paint mixes and step by step techniques to help the beginner up their game. The book is uplifting, colorful and so easy to follow. Each technique isn't just illustrated with photos, you get descriptions that are not nebulous but instead are "do this". For instance she first teaches how to paint a peony (above), then she shows how to use that technique to create a painting or even a patten (right). Kristin shows every step, she doesn't just assume you'll know how. She shows and talks about how to create each element then how to place them on the painting, why and how to finish that painting to it's best showing. The content is really easy to follow but also comprehensive.

Kristin goes into detail about how to make simple flowers, leaves, wreaths, animals, faces and even lettering. I was intrigued to see her use a water brush to create lettering, I'll be trying that and breaking out my waterbrushes again. I especially liked her description about why she makes a color mixing chart. I've never taken the time to make one but after reading her "why" I'll be doing it this week. This book even helps intermediate painters! 

If you want to move from confused beginner to a more knowledgable and confident artist, then investing in this book as a starting point is a great idea.

A great book about the techniques of watercolour painting...............

The perfect book for beginner watercolor artists looking for an easy introduction. It starts with supplies, techniques, and color mixing then branches into easy tutorials on painting cute patterns of plants and animals. Its not any information you couldn't learn through YouTube but I preferred having a hard copy of my information anyway.

A lovely inspiring book.  Full of beautifully illustrated projects and detailed instructions for different techniques.  It definitely makes you want to pick up a paintbrush and have a go.  Bursting with colour and something for everyone, beginners and the more advanced alike.  Thank you

This is a gorgeously designed book with many amazing page designs. The cover is a colourful creation and is like a firework display of colours before your eyes it stands out super well and would be eye-catching on a book shelf!
Has basic techniques and some mid-level techniques that will help you bring up your watercoloring skill. Above all, she tells you to practice and that is truly the only way to get comfortable in doing the techniques. Great book.

I'm enjoying a few art books this weekend, between academic assignments.

This one is such fun - why not try your hand at animals, flowers, landscapes, etc.? The text demonstrates different kinds of paints (granular, smooth, etc.) as well as brushes and other tools.

The pictures are great and instructions are easy to follow. This gives a jumping off point for your own creativity. It's a really pretty book with great colors and design. Enjoy!

This is the perfect beginners guide to watercolor. Covers beginner to an intermediate level. Like most of its kind, it starts out with a good review of the basics - supplies, paper, technique. What makes it stand out is the photo quality.  For one example, the section on loading a brush with paint is reinforced with photos showing exactly you need to do. It's a small thing, but it's reassuring for the beginner.

Where I think this book excels is that it makes you unafraid to break out your paint and try a few things. There are good instructions for making your own color mixing chart. There is a four-page spread on watercolor letters. My favorite part is that she takes you through making patterns (circles, ovals, triangles, rectangles, etc) or botanicals or animals or landscape and then shows you what they might look like in a simple project. 

There is something for everyone in this book, from simple techniques, right down to a mid century modern living room to a cozy cottage and more.

I just loved the Book Modern Watercolour by Kristin Van Leuven. This book is a must for a someone who would like to learn how to use watercolour paints. How to mix the colours to make other colours, how to use the brushes so you get the best out of you work of art etc. 

I found this book well illustrated throughout . Kristin explained briefly, what you need to start your watercolour picture and explained clearly with basic techniques on how to use watercolour paints, mix the colours to get new colours, how to use watercolour brushes to make cursive lettering, flowers, animals, shapes etc, how to use masking liquid etc. 
There are excellent clear photos throughout this wonderful book. I found the book so easy to follow. 
I loved Kristin's step-by-step on how to make several types of flowers - peonies, roses, pansies, tulips, and other small flowers, she made them so easy to do and looked so effective when you start to practise these on your paper. There was also a section of several types of leaves and foliage and how to put them all together to create wreaths which I liked for future homemade cards etc. I make etc. There was also a step by step section 
She also did step-by-step which was sketched first, for several animals fox, squirrel, chicken, pig, dog, cat, rabbit, beetle, butterfly, elephant, lion. These looked so effective and fun to paint. There was an excellent section on how to create different human skin tones by mixing colours. This is a must section if you want to get the colour of skin correct and i found in the past it is one of the hardest colours to get right. At the end of this wonderful book Kristin had a brief demonstrations for "abstract" landscapes which was of a lakeside, sunset and interiors  which was of a vintage and cottage living rooms. 
5 star review

Reviews on Amazon UK and Good reads x

If you are a fan of the beautiful watercolour illustrations that pop-up all over Instagram and Etsy, then you need to read Modern Watercolor by Kristin Van Leuven.
There are so many books out there that teach painting with watercolours, what makes this one different? Well the clue's in the title, Modern Watercolor is just that, modern! Most of the books on a similar topic feature projects that all look very traditional. Mountain ranges and fishing harbours all have a place in watercolours, but it's not what the young people are looking for! We want to paint colourful flower bunches, leafy wreaths and witty quotes. This is what we learn in Modern Watercolor by Kristen Van Leuven.
It's a beginners introduction into all things watercolour. From the different paint and brush options, to paper types and application methods, Modern Watercolor has you covered. Once you've collected your materials, you will see pages of easy to follow tutorials. This starts with the basics - different ways to apply the paint to the paper, through to colour mixing and layering. Lastly the book shows a range of lessons including how to paint different types of flowers, lettering, landscapes, animals and even home interiors.
I am not a complete beginner at watercolour, having taken some classes at school, but it has been a while. The first tutorials on how to use the paints are really fun and a nice introduction into experimenting with your ideas. I followed some of the floral sections in Modern Watercolor and found them really easy to follow. The instructions are thorough but allow you enough freedom to pick your own colours and brushes. I'm pleased with my first attempt and as the images are so small, it would be easy to pick up and practice often, unlike a full landscape.
Modern Watercolor is a great book if you're looking to learn the art of watercolours but don't want to paint traditional landscapes. The introductions to equipment and techniques are simple yet very informative. I love the floral and lettering sections as these subjects make the book modern. However, some of the other illustrated tutorials such as animals and interiors are not as strong. It is clear that Kristen Van Leuven is not as practised in these areas as she is in the lettering and florals, but I don't think that is a bad thing. If nothing else, it proves that you can't be brilliant at everything! Modern Watercolor is meant as an introduction and inspiration, and it certainly is that.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and tried several of the techniques of painting that the author described. Her instructions are clear and make sense.

"Modern Watercolor" is an art instruction book for using watercolors. Kristin has a loose (not highly detailed or realistic) style. This is a good book for a beginner at watercolor as she provided plenty of pictures and clear instruction. When showing how to make a flower or animal, she explained how to achieve the desired affect rather than just a brief summary of what she did. By focusing on the techniques, the reader can learn to use watercolor not just replicate her paintings. Overall, I'd recommend this book.

She started by briefly explaining what supplies you need, then she explained basic techniques (wet-in-wet, etc.), color theory, and color mixing. She showed how the different types of brushes make a wide variety of marks, what brushes are good for certain marks, how to make basic shapes (circles, squares, etc.), and how to use watercolor brushes to make cursive lettering. She also covered various ways to preserve white and remove paint.

She showed step-by-step how to make several types of flowers, like peonies, roses (top view), pansies, tulips, and small flowers. She also demonstrated several types of leaves and foliage and how to put them all together to create wreaths (for framing text) or floral patterns (a wallpaper type look). She also did step-by-step demonstrations for several animals (fox, squirrel, chicken, pig, dog, cat, rabbit, beetle, butterfly, elephant, lion) and discussed how to create different human skin tones by mixing colors. She ended with some brief demonstrations for "abstract" landscapes (lakeside, sunset) and interiors (vintage and cottage living rooms). The animals and interiors were sketched before being filled in with paint.