Let's talk red!  It's a vibrant, impactful color.  My watercolor palette has seven red paints.  I used my book The Wilcox Guide to the best watercolors, to research and find the highest quality reds I could afford.  I also researched subsitutes for cadmium colors.  Cadmium is bad for the earth.   Many manufacturers are coming out with cadmium free colors, which is great.  I also have replaced Alizarin Crimson as it is a pigment that fades and can ruin a painting. 

These are my colors and I do recommend them:

Quindriconic Red - its a violet red and cool.

Rose Madder- its a violet red and cool.

Scarlet Red - its a orange red and warm

Cad free, Cadmium Red deep - it's a orange red and warm.

Permanent Rose- it's a violet red and cool.

Winsor red- it's orange red and warm

Bright red- it's orange red and warm

This watercolor painting is from a visit to Mission San Juan Capistrano in California.  I love plants, flowers and historical places.  There was really so much inspiration here.  

This bougainvilla was fun and challenging to paint.  Sometimes as an artist you are challenged by a color, or a subject.  This bougainvilla was challenging to paint. There were a few times that I felt like the painting was going poorly and I wanted to give up on it.   I learned so much about red and her compliments.  I am glad I did not give up on this one.   I encourage you, if you are working on a painting keep going, have confidence, it will turn out. 

Have a great day,

Christina