Pattern Development - White Floral Holiday

 

The holiday season brings with it so much inspiration, from the vibrant greens of winter foliage to the deep reds of berries and the soft whites of snow. I wanted to capture that festive, cozy feeling with hand-painted watercolor motifs that come together in a beautiful botanical pattern.

I started with simple watercolor paintings of holiday botanicals, removed the background in Procreate, and then opened them in Photoshop to create the repeat pattern.

Follow along in this 1 minute video as I work through the process of arranging the motifs. I’m considering color, scale, shape, and flow.

TIP: After I finished the video, I added a slight stippled texture in the ground. Textural backgrounds help watercolor motifs to blend with the ground color rather than appearing to sit on top of a flat ground.

If you struggle to create great watercolor pattern designs, let me know the areas that trip you up. I will try to address them in future posts.

Start by downloading this #freebie, 5 Tips for Watercolor Pattern Design. This PDF download will help you get started making great designs with watercolor motifs.