Watercolor wreaths add elegance and artistry to any project: snail mail, wedding materials, and bullet journals, to name a few. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how relaxing wreaths are to draw! Put on a good podcast, have some hot tea, and go to town on making a beautiful watercolor wreath of your own with this tutorial!

Everyone loves a watercolor wreath, and I’ve got the Google Analytics to prove it. The Woodland Watercolor Wreath tutorials are among the most popular posts on the TPK blog, and the Watercolor Holiday Wreath Tutorial goes viral every December! Today, I want to show you how to make an elegant nest-like wreath! It combines several different branches and colors to make a harmonious border that is relaxing to make and interesting to look at. Ready to get started?



1. Make a Pencil Draft

Every successful piece of art or calligraphy starts with a draft! Use your favorite pencil to sketch out an oval or a circle, then make a draft of your calligraphy or hand-lettering inside.

2. Start “Nesting”

As I mentioned, this watercolor wreath reminds me of a nest. You add branches here and there until the piece looks full and finished! Here’s a “cheat sheet” chart of the different branches you can make, and the steps you’ll take to create them:

With the chart above in mind, start by creating any of the branches above. It’s easiest to use the watercolor calligraphy technique to draw the branches! However, you can use a tiny paintbrush if you’re uncomfortable using a dip pen.

After you have illustrated the first little piece of the wreath, add another piece. It’s completely your choice which style of branch you draw next!

Continue building the wreath by adding an illustration here and there. Try to let the flora overlap! Overlapping branches gives the watercolor wreath an abundant, rich look.

Once you’ve worked your way around the circle, you can go in and add some dots in any color you like. I personally love glittery Arabic gold, so I’m dotting that around my piece. There’s no rhyme or reason to the dots; you can put them anywhere around the watercolor wreath.

3. Write Text

Many watercolor wreaths exist to frame text. In my case, I wanted a piece of artwork to put in our bedroom, so I chose to write a quote from Singin’ in the Rain! It’s just a little reminder to start the day off on the right foot. Whatever quote you choose, write it in watercolor calligraphy! Once the watercolor dries, you can erase any pencil draft lines.

I love this watercolor wreath! I’ve used it to make greeting cards, place cards, and framed artwork for my home. It can beautifully accentuate any piece!

The secret to making a beautiful wreath? Just keep the “cheat sheet” chart in this blog post in front of you, and build up the wreath with branches from the chart until you’re satisfied with how it looks!

Other Watercolor Wreaths

If you’re a watercolor wreath kind of person, then — first: hi, you’re amazing, and welcome to the club! Second: I’ve got a wealth of tutorials you’ll love!

Here is a list of watercolor wreath tutorials on the TPK site:

I hope that you enjoyed today’s tutorial, and that you have time to peruse some of the other TPK watercolor wreath tutorials as well! After all, weekends with watercolors are the best kinds of weekends. Have a good one!

Warmly,