Day of the Dead Lady Painting
Celebrate Día de Muertos with a beautiful painting featuring a lovely sugar skull! This painting is the perfect addition to your Halloween and fall decor.

Other Things You'll Need

  • 11" x 14" Stretched canvas
  • Palette
  • Water basin
  • Paper towel

Instructions

  1. Basecoat your canvas in Butter Cream using a ¾” flat brush. Let dry.
  2. Prepare your palette by squeezing out a 1” diameter size amount of each color. Add more as needed.
  3. Referencing the project photo for placement, paint a large solid White circle for the skull using a #10 round brush. Paint a smaller solid circle on the center bottom of the larger circle and blend to create a chin.
  4. Before the white is dry, dab a small amount of black paint on the #6 round brush and paint two circles for eyes in a circular motion. The black will blend with the white creating painterly gray variations. Add Black paint to your brush as needed.
  5. Dab another small amount of black onto your brush and outline the head and chin. For the nose, paint an upside down heart. Paint a simple stitched smiling mouth. Again referring to the project photo. Rinse your brush.
  6. To paint the roses: Starting at the top of the head, color block the locations of your round rose shapes in Festival Pink with the #6 round brush, Use quick loose circular brushstrokes to fill in with color.
  7. Before the Festival Pink dries and using your same unwashed #6 round brush, add Magenta brushstrokes in a circular motion on each flower. Start at the center of the rose and work outwards. Begin with light pressure on your brush then add pressure to flatten the brush and then light pressure to finish the stroke. Vary the thick thin strokes around the flower similar to laying bricks. Rinse your brush.
  8. Before the Magenta dries and using the #6 round, dab a small amount of White on your brush and make a few highlight curved strokes on each flower. See project photo. Let dry.
  9. To paint the leaves: Using a #8 round, load the brush with Classic Green. Place the tip of the brush in the space between the roses, start with light pressure on your brush then add pressure to flatten the brush and then light pressure as you pull up to finish the stroke. Paint all leaves in Classic Green. Rinse your brush.
  10. Before the leaves dry, go back over the leaves with the same stroke in Gecko using the #6 round to create highlights. Rinse your brush.
  11. Using the #6 round, paint simple five petal flowers in Laguna Blue. When dry, add a Yellow center and tiny White dots over the leaves and tiny flowers with a #2 round.
  12. To paint the skull face decorations using the #2 round brush: Paint a Festival Pink scallop edge around each eye. When dry add White dots. Paint loose Classic Green vines with White dots. Add tiny Yellow daisies with Magenta centers. Add a Magenta and Festival Pink heart on the forehead. Paint a Classic Green and Gecko burst on the chin. Let dry.
  13. To finish: Using the #6 round dab a small amount of Black, paint a simple spider web in each corner with tiny dots along the edge in between each web. Before it is completely dry, go over the black lines with white for a painterly effect. Let dry completely.
  14. Please share your Day of the Dead Lady painting with us at #plaidcrafts!