Peaceful Waters. Painting #2. The Oil Painting Journey Continues.

“Lets build a happy little cloud.
Lets build some happy little trees.”
― Bob Ross

One good turn deserves another! Peaceful Waters is my second oil painting. I painted it less than 24 hours after I did my very first oil painting. That one was fun and it didn’t suck so I did another one the very next day. I had the week off work for the holidays so it gave me time to play with my new gift that got me started on the road to becoming an artist. 

Join me while I follow along with Steve Ross, Bob’s son, as he takes us through a Q&A session addressing some common issues new painters face. In the process, he creates clear blue skies, an almighty mountain and lake lined generously with trees and bushes.

Let’s Get Started

In this post, I will talk about my version of Peaceful Waters. First, I will explain the inspiration for this subject; why I chose to paint this or follow this tutorial. Then, I will go over the colors and equipment I used and that you will need if you decide to give it a try. Next, I will expound a bit about the process and how to paint Peaceful Waters even if you are a beginner and painting with Bob Ross for the first time. Finally, I’ll wrap up with some lessons that I learned from painting this picture and things I could have done better or wished I had known. So come with me on a journey down memory lane as I join Steve Ross and recap my second oil painting. 

The Inspiration

Why did I choose to paint Peaceful Waters for my second oil painting? I chose it because it was a simple, clean scene that had all the basics and would be easy to follow along. The entire episode is sort of a tutorial in its own right. Bob and Steve address all the major points of a classic Bob Ross style landscape painting. Bob clearly explains what Steve is doing and how to create the basic features of skies, clouds, mountains, trees, and bushes. 

You can follow along with Bob and Steve, like I did, in this episode. 

Materials Required

Here are the colors and equipment I used. Again, everything needed to do this painting comes with the Bob Ross Master Paint Set

Whether you want to continue on your journey after painting your first masterpiece from the Bob Ross Master Kit DVD or painting for the first time, here are the colors and equipment you will need. All of this is included in the kit linked above. The kit includes everything you need to paint this painting in particular as well as many other spectacular Bob Ross masterpieces. Getting this kit will eliminate the anxiety of buying the right brushes made of the right materials or the right oil paints with correct firmness or pigment ratios. Everything you need is there and ready to go. 

Colors (included in the master kit)

• Alizarin Crimson
• Bright Red
• Cadmium Yellow
• Phthalo Blue
• Sap Green
• Titanium Hwite
• Van Dyke Brown
• Don’t forget the Liquid Hwite!

Additional Colors (not included in the kit)

• Yellow Ochre
• Prussian Blue 

Equipment

• 2 Inch Brush
• 1 Inch Brush
• #6 Fan Brush
• Large Palette Knife
• Script Liner Brush

Additional Items to Get Started

If this is your first time painting, you’ll need a few essential items.  The Bob Ross kit doesn’t include everything you need to get started painting. It does include all the brushes and paint you need but in order to paint your own masterpieces you’ll need a few more things. I have you covered however. 

Canvas

Stretched canvas is optimal here. You can paint on many surfaces but if you’re just getting started, I advise you to go with a basic stretched canvas.  Most already come ready to paint on right out of the packaging.  Above all, avoid canvas boards with this technique.

Easel

You’ll want a sturdy easel to hold your painting surface. The kit I mentioned above does include a carrying case which I used as a makeshift easel.  Beware if you do this, however.  The canvas is not secure.  You could also lay the canvas flat on a desk or table. With that being said, you don’t require an easel but it sure makes life easier!

Palette

The kit I keep mentioning over and over? There’s a reason.  It really is a great starter kit to kick start your new painting hobby.  You’ll need something to squeeze your paint onto. The kit comes with a small wooden palette. You can squeeze the paint directly onto it. However, if you want to keep your palette clean and smooth, you can put some palette paper on it. If you don’t have the kit, you can use paper plates or a piece of glass or Plexiglas. However, I highly suggest not using paper plates and use a hard flat surface. Therefore, a nice large palette will be useful.

Odorless Paint Thinner

The only small drawback with oil painting is the solvents required. You need to clean your brushes and odorless paint thinner or odorless mineral spirits work the best. To keep it contained, you’ll need a bucket. The Bob Ross company has the perfect thing. This bucket and screen combo will keep your thinner contained and secure. Surely after you clean your two inch brush, you’ll want to beat the devil out of it! But you certainly don’t want to do that in your home. Bob comes through again with a brush beater rack. Put this inside a box or waste basket and you can beat the devil to your heart’s content! 

How I Painted my Second Painting and Lessons Learned

When I first thought about starting a blog, my initial intention was to write about each painting, to include inspirations, mistakes happy accidents, or lessons learned. But then I started thinking that doing that would give away too much to the viewer or point out something that may have gone unnoticed. However, the purpose of this blog is twofold; Share my artwork and perhaps inspire beginners or anyone that just wants to try oil painting. So I will go into all the details. It’s easier to figure out lessons learned from each painting years later knowing what I know now. 

Peaceful Waters was my second oil painting.  I painted it on New Year’s Eve 2016.  This post was first published in summer of 2018.  Then I updated it in 2020 to add more substance and give you some more tips and encouragement to start painting. With all that being said, I have to go back and try to recall how I painted this one. So let’s take it step by step. 

Liquid White

The first thing to do with any Bob Ross painting is to apply the liquid hwite. The trick is to not apply too much.  I did a lot better with the liquid white in this painting than I did in my first one. I learned later that the best way to apply the liquid white is to dip your brush into the white then dab it all over the canvas. After you’ve dabbed it, then you start to spread it around. But, you don’t paint it on like you’re painting a fence. With this medium, you have to spread it around and scrub it in. Really get tough with it.  Don’t worry, you’re not going to hurt your brush. 

Make sure the medium is spread evenly. To do this, I use the light of the room or outdoors.  For example, I look at the canvas at different angles to pick out dry spots.  To check if you have applied the right amount, lightly press your fingers on different spots on the canvas. You should be able to see your fingerprint.  If you can’t, then you’ve put too much on.  Don’t worry.  Simply take a paper towel and lightly wipe the canvas.  The liquid white you need will remain on the surface.

Sky

This sky turned out better than my last one, in my opinion. The blue wasn’t too dark and the color got lighter as it went down the canvas. Was it better liquid white or better color application.  I honestly can’t recall what I did but I think it was a combination of both. 

In the video, there is a close up and explanation of how to paint in the sky.  Bob Ross talks a lot about the little X’s or criss cross strokes when putting in a sky. This episode of Joy of Painting shows a clear example of that. 

I feel like my clouds came out pretty decent. Perhaps the clouds in my first painting are just a little bit better, somehow, but clouds are always different. Painting happy clouds is really not complicated or difficult at all.  The fan brush makes it easy. The video shows a great example. Simply use the corner of the brush and move it in circles as you move the brush across the canvas. It may not feel or look right at first but we fix that with blending, which is done with the corner of the two inch brush. Look closely how Steve Ross paints clouds here. 

Mountain

The first thing that jumps out to me, regarding the mountain, is the highlighting. The paint “broke” for the most part and I think I did better than most beginners that try this for the first time.  However, I could have improved my knife work. That is to say I could have placed it and moved it better so the highlights would look more natural. Do you see the sharp, straight lines in the highlights? That is what I mean. To prevent this, what I’ve learned is you have to be a bit loose with the knife. Again, Steve Ross demonstrates this well. Pay attention to his knife work here. 

Let’s talk about the shadows here for a moment. I can notice one glaring happy accident. There is a small section of shadow that, one, looks like a rectangle, and two, is darker and more vivid than the rest of the shadows. Be mindful when mixing your shadow color to make it consistent. 

Foothills

I didn’t address this in my last painting but there is normally a layer between the mountains and the main shrubbery. In this case, Steve Ross adds these little foothills using the one inch brush. He adds two layers of footy hills, as Bob often calls them. They are not difficult to paint. 

I feel like my foothills look more like humps. I’ve since learned to flatten my foothills a bit more. If you try this painting, I suggest you offset the layers. What I mean is, try not to make the humps line up. What are your thoughts on these foothills?

Trees/Bushes

I think my evergreen trees improved slightly from the last painting. There were times when I used a bit more than just the corner of the brush. However, I think the overall shape and form improved. 

A little bit of mud mixing happened with the foliage highlights but overall I was pleased with them. Foliage highlights are something that took me a while to master but I eventually figured out what I had been doing wrong. 

There are different ways to achieve the right highlight effect. We will explore that more as we progress. However, the basic trick is to dip the brush in some liquid white or just a tiny bit of paint thinner. Then, load up the brush with paint. It only takes a very light pressure to get the paint to stick if it’s thin enough. Otherwise, you’ll get a bit of mud mixing like you see on the right side of the painting. 

One important note regarding the bush highlights. Be mindful of leaving some dark areas or else they will look flat. Also, I listed a couple of colors under the Additional Colors list. Those are simply colors that do not come with the Bob Ross Master Paint kit and I did not use them in this painting. They are colors that Steve Ross used in his painting. If you have those colors, definitely use them. 

To get a little bit of variation, I mixed up various shades of cadmium yellow and sap green as well as cad yellow and bright red. At the end of the day, I think these highlights look pretty good for only my second painting. 

Additional Tips

One thing that does stick out to me, and something that I had a tendency to do in my next few paintings, is that the bottom left of the mountain just sort of disappears. That is to say I didn’t extend the middle ground out to cover up the bottom of the mountain. Small details like that I tend to forget to cover up. So learn from me and pay attention to that if you give this a try.

Final Thoughts

Once again, overall, very pleased. My friends and family were shocked at how relatively well my first two oil paintings turned out. Heck, I was shocked myself.  I STILL surprise myself to this day! I’m sure you will too! 

When I write and edit these posts, I have to go back and try to step inside my head from the time I painted it.  It was still so new and I was having fun.  I wanted to do a good job but I didn’t approach it trying to do better or learn something new.  I just wanted to have fun doing something I’ve dreamed about since I was 10 years old. That’s a really good way to approach painting honestly. Just have fun and don’t try too hard. If you like it, you’ll eventually keep doing it and want to improve.  

I ended up sending this to my step father as a gift. It’s hanging up in his small, cozy home in the deep woods of central Maine. It looks perfect there!

If you’re just starting out, this is the perfect Joy of Painting episode to follow along with.  It is simple and has all the basics and makes oil painting far less intimidating. The video has a lot of close ups. Watch it a couple of times before painting and observe the close up shots carefully. Give it a shot.  

I hope you enjoyed this oil painting and find the tips useful. Subscribe to my blog to see more of my artwork and learn more about the Bob Ross method. You can also follow me on all my social media sites. 

Good luck and happy painting!