Paint Ribbons in Acrylics Easy & Fun

How to paint ribbons in acrylics. Ribbons can be added to many designs for an added touch of class. This tutorial shares how to paint ribbons two different ways.

How to Paint Ribbons one easy stroke at a time. Easy enough for beginners yet pretty enough for everyone.

Painting a blue ribbon with wording, How to Paint Ribbons

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Ribbons are not as hard as you think.  In my video I give you two ways that I paint ribbons. Both are easy and very pretty.

Paint Ribbons Get Started

Load your brush with your Ocean Blue (or medium color on your palette), start on the chisel edge and pull down flattening the brush to widen the stroke as you start to make the curve for the loop of the Bow.

Drag your brush along on around the loop and lift it back to the chisel edge. Then flip the brush over as you continue stroking and flatten on its other side.

Stroke towards the starting point letting the brush lift again to the chisel edge. (the video should make this very clear for you). Follow the same procedure for the next loop.

The flip of the brush makes a fold in the ribbon.  Once you shade and highlight the ribbon it will make it much more obvious.  Once you have the two loops make a small C stroke for the knot where they meet.

I went ahead and did a full bow with some tails wrapped around the stems to demonstrate where you would highlight and shadow.  

It is the details that make it.   Load your brush with Floating Medium.  Side load with a touch of White and blend it on your brush.  

Tap a bit of white on an area of the ribbon that is a wide spot and you want to look like it is coming forward.

Blend it out, it should fade into the blue as you get further from the initial tap of white.  This can be tricky and you just have to play with it.

Sometimes you need to let it dry and come back to see if it looks right.  Keep trying, you will get it.

If you don’t like how it turned out go back over it once dry with your blue and do it again.  Trust me, I have to many times, but then I can be picky.

Shadowing is the reverse. Again, load your brush with floating medium and side load with the darker blue.  Tap lightly, stroke in the darker color wherever the ribbon would be going under something and in the fold of the loop.

Remember, highlight the points you want to bring forward and shadow the spots you want to send back. The video should help a lot.  There is nothing like seeing it in action.

The video also offers an alternative way to paint ribbons that is very pretty but has fewer steps.

More Painting You Will Love
How to Paint Roses
Paint Lavender
Paint a Simple Daisy

Supplies

Brushes in this I used the #6 flat, but use the size brush that fits the size ribbon you are painting.
DecoArt Americana
Ocean Blue (my medium color)
Ultra Blue Deep (my dark color for shading)
Titanium White (my light color for highlighting)
FolkArt Floating Medium
Brush Caddy

Info You will find Helpful
Basic Supplies
Basic Strokes

Happy Painting!


Please enjoy and share!

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