Watercolor Kittens and Their Backs

We recently adopted Rocket, a white/grey long haired kitten so it inspired me to paint a variety of watercolor kittens and their backs since they’re so cute when they sit. This post is also to bring awareness to pet adoption as June is adopt-a-cat month.

Last year was the first time I decided to dedicate June to cats. This watercolor tutorial of blobby cats is a popular one and I also painted these cat paws with acrylic gouache during my livestream.

Supplies:

Paint: Ho lbein Artists’ Watercolor
Brush(es): Creative Mark’s Mimik Synthetic, round size 2
Paper: Legion Stonehenge Aqua Cold Press Watercolor Paper, 8″ x 10″
Washi tape
Jars of water
Pencil and eraser
Paper towel or cotton rag
All of my favorite supplies here

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Sketch kitten using circles

It may look a little strange, but use circles to establish the shape of the kitten. Start with a small circle for the head. Then draw a slight oval that’s a little narrower than the head. The bottom of the cat is a larger circle that is about twice the width of the oval. Add two triangles at the top for the ears, and that’s it!

Use a small brush

I’m using a round size 2 brush since my kittens are no bigger than 2-3″. If you drew larger circles, adjust your brush size accordingly.

Start with a light wash

With my small brush, I sketch out the shape and fill in with a light wash. I’m representing a variety of cat breeds and their colors, so I’m using some grey, black, brown, tan, etc.

While the light wash is wet, I like to use the wet-on-wet effect and drop in a little bit of saturated paint to make it a darker value. Or sometimes I’ll drop in a different color and let it mix spontaneously on the paper like in the calico at below.

Paint watercolor kittens in layers

Some cats have distinct markings like stripes and spots. And some cats will be long-haired. I like to add these details when the first light wash has dried fully.

Then with your round size 2 brush, make sure your paint is not too runny (and your brush isn’t too wet), begin painting the details. You always want to use less water in your paint and brush on layers because you don’t want to reactivate the previous layer.

You’ll also have more control over your brushstrokes so your watercolor kittens will look distinct and unique.