The Intro Course
A beginners guide to contemporary botanical watercolour with Natalie Martin
Let me show you what watercolour is all about. We keep it fun, bright and contemporary. I guide you through a series of step-by-step exercises working towards a stunning final botanical painting.
The Intro Course
A beginners guide to contemporary botanical watercolour with Natalie Martin
Let me show you what watercolour is all about. We keep it fun, bright and contemporary. I guide you through a series of step-by-step exercises working towards a stunning final botanical painting.
Hello and welcome! My name is Natalie Martin, I'm an Australian watercolour artist that simply loves sharing my experience and knowledge.
Where else do you start but at the beginning? In this course I endeavour to make watercolour accessible, affordable and (most importantly) fun! We start at square one and gently progress through techniques and skills to build up your confidence before creating a final botanically inspired piece. We'll look at getting the paint moving fluidly on the page, how to hold your brush, manage water control, swirl and twirl that brush like a pro, relax into the process and so much more.
This course is beginner-friendly, so even if you’ve never touched a paintbrush before, you’ll be swishing and splashing like a pro in no time.
Watercolour is all about going with the flow (literally). Get ready to loosen up, embrace happy accidents, and watch your confidence soar.
Forget dry, boring lessons—this course gives you the must-know techniques in a relaxed and easy-to-follow way.
There’s nothing quite like watching colours dance and blend on the page. It’s mesmerising, a little unpredictable, and totally addictive.
No need to pack up your gear or stick to a schedule—paint in your pajamas, with a cuppa, whenever you feel inspired!
By the end, you’ll understand the fundamental techniques, control your brush like a pro, and create paintings you’re actually proud of.
Watercolour is like meditation with a paintbrush. Let go of stress, unwind, and enjoy a moment of creative play.
This is just the beginning! Once you’ve mastered the basics, the world of watercolour is yours to explore.
9 videos shot in High Definition with an overall run time of 90 minutes.
This course is self-paced and you receive instant access once checkout is completed. The beauty of this style online course is you can binge it all at once or take it in in bite size pieces. Whatever works best for you.
You are welcome to watch and rewatch the course as many times as you like.
• A whole lotta fundamental watercolour skills including brush control, water control, basic techniques, mark making and how to work from observation.
• An understanding of watercolour as a medium and other necessary (and unnecessary) materials
• A final project - a botanical inspired watercolour painting
• Courage to take on your own watercolour paintings
• Comprehensive 51 page Course E-Book loaded with extra tips and extension projects.
• Materials List
• Reference Images
If you think you missed the creative gene, think again! Watercolour is all about having a go and going with the flow.
If you get a little thrill from a perfectly blended petal or a juicy splash of pigment, welcome home!
Love the idea of painting in your PJs with a cup of tea? This course is 100% couch-friendly.
Need a break from the chaos of life? Watercolour is like meditation… but with more colour and fewer rules.
Whether you’re brand new to art or just want to try something fresh, this is the perfect place to start.
Imagine making your own handmade cards, prints, and gifts. This course = endless creative possibilities!
No pressure, no perfectionism—just pure creative play. If that sounds like your vibe, let’s go!
I've got a whole video in Welcome to Watercolour dedicated to materials (I do LOVE talking about art supplies), however here are some suggestions so you can get the ball rolling right away. Some of you may have dabbled in a little bit of watercolour before - work with what you've got. You can always build from there. I'm not someone that insists on you having the best-of-the-best from the very beginning, this is something we can work on as you develop your new hobby. If you're starting from scratch, I've got a suggestion for you too! Enter my Beginners Watercolour Painting Kit.
The perfect beginners starter pack. The Welcome to Watercolour Online Course + Beginners Painting Kit bundle saves you $19 and has everything you need to get started.
The Beginners Painting Kit includes a 24 colour set of Micador Brilliant Watercolours, set of 3 brushes, a pad of A4 watercolour paper, pencil and eraser. Just add water!
Already have some of your own supplies? Perfect! I'm happy for you to start with what you've got. I go into detail about the pros and cons of various materials in the second video of the course. Here's a list of your essentials:
• Watercolour paints
• Round brushes - size 10 or 12 and 4 or 6
• Watercolour paper
• Pencil and eraser
• Two water jars
• Palette (an old plate will do)
• Paper towel or a rag
• Surface to work on
• Computer, tablet or phone
I absolutely loved this course! Natalie explains the content in an easy to understand way. Step by step she guides you through the modules in a way that made me feel confident to attempt the final piece. And for once, I actually liked what I had painted. Thank you Natalie. You're super talented and a fantastic teacher!
Sharon
Natalie, for a complete beginner the course is fantastic. I just love practicing and revisiting the steps again. I am looking forward to choosing another course very soon.
Jennie
Thank you so much Natalie for creating this easy to follow introduction to watercolour painting.😊I loved the energy you brought to each lesson, and the gentle reminders to practise each step/stroke before moving on so to achieve your best results. I’m really looking forward to continuing my journey and have enrolled in Lessons in Layering. I’ve even been dreaming about watercolours!!! LOVE LOVE LOVED IT, THANK YOU
Deb
Natalie, thank you for your teachings, I love how you break down the lessons into bite sized pieces, and you are so generous with your knowledge. I am keen to progress my water colour journey now that I know I have your lessons to fall back on. I am looking forward to mastering all of the techniques from all your workshops to build up my skill set. What a beautiful, affordable gift you have given to your students.
Linda
love this course - it’s paced perfectly, perfect amount of information and I am having fun
Libby
I am really enjoying the courses - even though I've done a bit of watercolour your courses are giving me a great foundation which is what I am missing - I can't wait to do a bit more each time I sit down at the computer
Annette
Laidback but Very Instructional. I thoroughly enjoyed Welcome to Watercolours and have now subscribed to the Mixing of Watercolour Course. I quite enjoy Natalie's laid-back, easy-going and informative style of presentation.
Ross
It is a class to watch with pleasure, slowly moving from easy to more difficult, Natalie shares her secrets to combine Australian sun and colors in her hand/brush and scatter them at once on a flat cotton surface, creating instant magic. Thank you! Beautiful work!
Vesta
Great course to start me off. I had zero knowledge and skills before the self paced lessons. I did them all in a day and produced my first piece of art that is good enough to frame! I have previously showed no talent at all in 55 years. I highly recommend even if you do not have an artistic bone in your body. I feel so proud.
Samantha
Loved learning how to grip and move the brush for creating strokes. The videos were so easy to watch and follow. The chapters made it very easy to replay the exact session I wanted. I replayed them several times as I practiced what I’d been shown. Although I have now gone through the whole course, I will continue to replay as I practice. Great for beginners. Natalie is very natural in front of the camera.
Kathryn
Check out the trailer and see what Welcome to Watercolouris all about.
Choose your preferred enrolment below, whether you want the online course alone or to bundle it with a Beginners Painting Kit.
PLEASE NOTE: Your Teachable account will be automatically created with the email used at the checkout. Checking out with PayPal, Apple Pay or Shop Pay may override your supplied email address, please double check to make sure it is correct.
✔️ Unlimited Lifetime Access
✔️ 30 Day Satisfaction Gurantee
✔️ Instant Delivery
✔️ 51 Page E-Book included
✔️ Watch on your laptop, phone or tablet
Want to gift Welcome to Watercolour? We'd be delighted. A simple E-Gift card is the easiest way to go. Simply click the button below to get started.
The perfect beginners starter pack. The Welcome to Watercolour Online Course + Beginners Painting Kit bundle saves you $19 and has everything you need to get started.
If you choose to Gift The Online Course Bundle (great choice btw!) everything is arrives in the box including a code for the recipient to redeem their course.
*The course is also available on Skillshare (a subscription based platform). There you will find the whole Welcome to Watercolour course, as well as many other courses across other disciplines! You can subscribe to Skillshare and pay an annual subscription to access the entire library of Skillshare online courses. You will only have access to the course while you have a Skillshare subscription.
I would be delighted for you to gift this course. Due to the way the enrolment process works, please ensure you click on the 'Gift the Online Course Bundle' button. This will ensure the recipient receives everything they need in their Painting Kit including enrolment details.
If you'd like to gift just the online course, we recommend you purchase a Natalie Martin E-Gift Card that the recipient can then redeem for the course. Select the $59 E-Gift card and add a personalised message before you send!
The online course didn't meet your expectations? You are entitled to a full refund within 30 days of the initial payment for course. This includes any courses purchased through nataliemartin.com.au. It does not include Skillshare memberships.
I endeavour to make the enrolment process as simple as possible but yep, sometimes technical issues occur. You can get support a number of ways. First port of call is the Student Hub, the Frequently Asked Questions list all the most common requests. You can also contact us on the Live Chat via this website or shoot me an email.
Support is available 9am - 5pm business days (Australian time) and I aim to get back to all enquiries within 24 hours.
Here’s a list of frequently asked questions, it covers everything from what to expect once you’ve enrolled to forgotten passwords, to gifting, to accessibility. If you can’t find the answer you are after, just open up the Chat With Us box in the bottom right hand corner of the website and ask away. We will get back to you as soon as possible, we keep regular business hours.