I love this book of watercolor lessons. It is more than "how to paint a flower" or "how to paint a bird". It teaches techniques that you need to paint anything. There are projects progressing from beginner to advanced, and each one helps you build technique, skill, and confidence. I also especially appreciate the trouble shooting section at the beginning!

Thank you to NetGalley and Zeitgeist for the ARC.

This is a very good resource for beginning watercolorists. The photographs for each painting step are very helpful, and the instructions are clear. The small paintings are beautiful!

Wild Watercolor
by Karen Elaine
This is a delightful watercolor tutorial book that has step-by-step instructions for whatever level artist you might be.
There are several lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced artists. The front of the book has the supplies you will need and tips to improve your work. Most of the lessons are nature-inspired such as flowers, birds, and a fox in advanced. All the instructions are easy to understand and follow. I plan to buy this myself.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this wonderful book.

This is an excellent introduction to watercolor! I especially love how the author Karen Elaine walked us through step-by-step on how to layer the colors together for each piece. And I appreciate how she highlighted the different techniques being practiced.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zeitgeist for an eARC of this book! This is my honest review.

Thank you for my ARC, Netgalley!
This is such a a beautiful set of watercolor paintings and the directions are really well written. I loved the step by step directions and they were pretty easy to follow. However, I definitely need more practice and plan to do the other 2 sections of the book after the beginner section.

With 36 weekly progressively more difficult lessons, Wild Watercolor is like taking an art class in your home.

Beginning with a simple sky and concluding with an advanced Prickly Pear Cactus Flower, this book gently moves your skill set forward. Using a fully illustrated step-by step approach, the author teaches technique while also naming each one so the reader is ready for any future in person art classes they may take.

The beginning of the book includes a comprehensive look at the tools (papers, brushes, paints, etc.) that will be needed to complete the projects. Each project includes the exact paints and other materials needed too.

Overall, Wild Watercolor is an easy way to experiment with watercolor and advance your skills using a preprogrammed methodology. 5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Zeitgeist for providing me with an advanced review copy.

This was so helpful! As someone who has wanted to get into watercolor and not sure where to start, this book helped break down the basics and provided easy step-by-step instructions. I really appreciated the variety of projects, range of beginner to more advanced lessons, and the author’s relatable, encouraging tone. Also it’s beautiful—something to aspire to!

What a great guide. Step by step for beginners working on up to talented advanced painters. The material was thorough and easy to read. I felt I could do this! The best part was the author told us bit by bit what to add. as we paint. She even included "Let dry." when needed. I tend to make this mistake in my haste. Thank you Karen Elaine! 5 Stars!

Wild Watercolor by Karen Elaine

Rating: 5 Stars

I just finished Wild Watercolor: Weekly Lessons and Techniques for Stunning Creations by Karen Elaine, and I’m in love. This is the kind of art book that actually makes you want to pick up your brush—every page feels like a friendly nudge into something creative and calm.

At its heart, Wild Watercolor is a week-by-week workbook that guides you through watercolor practice with nature as its muse. Karen Elaine breaks things down into manageable lessons, pairing clear, step-by-step demonstrations with gorgeous visuals so you can follow along easily. The projects range from delicate flowers and fluttering butterflies to songbirds, twilight skies, and even foxes and sweeping landscapes. Each lesson focuses on core watercolor skills—things like water control, color mixing, and layering—so you’re not just copying pretty images but steadily building the confidence to experiment.

I especially appreciated how the book is structured by skill level. There are sections for beginners, intermediate painters, and more advanced artists, which makes it a great companion whether you’re just starting out or looking to sharpen specific techniques. The projects are practical too: 36 frame-worthy pieces that feel satisfying to complete and display. And the visuals—Karen’s vibrant, nature-inspired style—are as inspiring as the exercises themselves.

A few personal notes: the cover is absolutely charming and set the tone for what’s inside—inviting, lively, and joyful. The layout is very thoughtful; lessons flow logically, with plenty of visual guidance at each step, so you never feel lost. I liked how the book eases you into tougher projects while still being encouraging, which makes it perfect for a beginner who wants structure or a seasoned painter who wants fresh ideas and practice routines.

In short, Wild Watercolor is a delightful, well-designed workbook that blends instruction and inspiration. If you want a gentle, reliable way to develop a regular watercolor practice or simply want beautiful nature-based projects to try, this book is a fantastic pick. Five stars from me—it's a keeper on my shelf and a go-to when I need creative calm.

⚠️This review was written based on personal opinions and experiences with the book. Individual preferences may vary⚠️

Great tutorial book to set your own pace to. Lovely nature inspired images to create over and over again.

I ADORED this book. The step by step instructions and images are so helpful, and this has made things click in a way that other written books I’ve checked out have. Everything seemed so accessible and like I could actually make these paintings.

I can’t wait to give this a try and see when I get with it.

BOOK REVIEW: “Wild Watercolor: Weekly lessons and techniques for stunning creations” by Karen Elaine

This book is divided into three sections and each section has 12 projects:

🌸 Beginner (Weeks 1-12)
🌺 Intermediate (Weeks 13-24)
🌻 Advanced (Weeks 25-36)

The author is both a teacher and an artist and is passionate about teaching others how to create art! She lives in Arizona, where the landscape is constantly changing and creating new inspiration for her art! Art projects include things like:

🌵 Twilight Sky
🌵 Black eyed Susan
🌵 Rolling Hills and Monsoon Sky
🌵 Blue Butterfly
🌵 Dragonfly
🌵 Aspen Forest
🌵 Pine Trees on Snowy Hill
🌵 Anna’s Hummingbird
🌵 Sonoran Sunset

I think this book was very well done! Although I love many arts and crafts, I have never had much skill for watercolor painting. With this book, I am confident I can learn some new concepts and give it a try! 😊 I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to try a new hobby!

I rate this book as 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for my honest unbiased opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zeitgeist for an advanced reader copy!

This how-to guide for watercolors is a comprehensive beginner study without being overwhelming. The guide offers easy-to-read and approachable descriptions of techniques, color mixing, and more. I especially love the different tiers of projects to build the skills necessary to move on. As an amateur artist myself, watercolor has never really made it into my realm of expertise, but I can't wait to try this out with some paint and paper!

This is a great guide for beginners that takes you step-by-step and week-by-week from beginner to advanced. This is an easy guide to follow with visuals and steps that I recommend for anyone wishing to start watercolors. I've always wanted to sit down and learn how to properly paint with watercolors, and this was the perfect resource to do just that. This includes flowers, seasons, and the beach, with easy-to-follow instructions to create your stunning works.

This is a really enjoyable watercolour book. I love the way it flows from beginner lessons to more complicated painting styles. I found there were great ideas that I have taken with me into other painting activities. As a non-beginner, I still found that there were great lessons for me to learn in these pages.

I really like the layout of the book, how it progresses from beginner projects to more advanced projects. Even though I primarily do digital art, this book is still really handy for me, in terms of how to use watercolor brushes.

A very lovely book. It has sections from beginner to advanced. You can follow the weekly program or if you are eager to finish early, you can do multiple paintings. I also liked that the author gave color names in full. I need to add that, while its not the book's problem but more of a personal preference, the books topic is nature. There are many bird paintings and I am not really that fond of birds so I didn't try to do them. I think people who are into watercolor and who like nature and especially birds would like this book a lot.

Thanks to Netgalley, Zeitgeist and Karen Elaine for this advanced reader copy.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing to read the ARC for this book. It is a wonderful resource for people who want to explore watercolors.

I love crafts and in my past time enjoyed painting. Watercolor always interested me, but always looked to complex. I loved this book and how each week there were step by step SIMPLE instructions that I could accomplish and the end piece actually resemble what I was going for

Excellent book for beginning watercolorists, or those who want to improve their skills. Karen Elaine is a good teacher and I enjoyed the range of subject matter. I especially liked the organization of the book, with increasingly challenging projects.