With many artists and watercolor painters, I find, for most, the skin to be very difficult for them to grasp in watercolor. Its scary to use such bold colors as blue on the skin, but I want to show how effective it is to give the skin that "glow" or "fleshy" appearance.

So lets begin! (fyi: I apologize for the poor quality images :P)

I am going to use the piece I am currently working on called "The Guardian of Hope".

A few things to think about before you paint.

First start with the Rose Doré. This color is vital to any illustrator who wishes to portray skin tones. Its hard to spend the money on such a small tube (about $10 US), but WELL worth it!

Mix the Rose Doré with lots of water to delute it. It will look more pink then red, but thats okay.

I apply the color where I know skin tends to run more red and also where my shadows are going to go.

Next I take the Dioxazine Violet, adding a good deal of water, and applying it where my shadows are.

In the areas I know are going to be deep shadows, I apply about one or two more layers of the same deluted violet.

After the Dioxazine Violet has dried I add water to the Cobalt Blue. I apply this only to the deepest shadows. This makes it richer and makes the skin less "ill".

After the Cobalt has dried I add a very deluted Yellow Ochre. The reason I use Yellow Ochre is because its more golden then Yellow Canary, which tends to come out more green then yellow. Plus it is too strong for the soft light I am wanting to portray.

Apply the Yellow Ochre over some of the Rose Doré and along some of the Dioxazine Violet. This will not only blend but create a transition.

Lastly, I continue to go back and forth building up the color. The order I usually go in is back to Rose Doré to bring out more of the flesh, then back to some violet and blue (sometimes in my tray I just end up mixing the two), and then to Yellow Ochre.

To make skin tones it takes a lot of layers. These layers give a more "oil" painting glow. Take your time building it up. It helps to know your anatomy and if you need reference as to where the skin is more red I suggest to look at JW Waterhouse's paintings, Mucha, or at yourself in the mirror.