• Start with a piece of watercolor paper (I use 140 lb Arches paper) torn to the size you want. 
• Tape your paper to a workable surface around each edge using a removable painter’s tape.  
• Paint a colorful watercolor wash and let this dry.  I used new Gamboge, permanent rose, permanent magenta and cerulean blue.
• With a pencil, draw some heart shapes, some large, some small.  Overlap some hearts.  Negative paint around each heart.  This means you paint the background around the hearts, creating heart shapes in your painting.  Let this dry.
• Draw a few more hearts and negative paint again around all the hearts.  You can negative paint these hearts several times to make a rich, glowing background.  Painting over your last layer is called watercolor glazing.
  Glazing and negative painting

Here are some fun ideas for Valentine’s Day Love!

• Now decorate the hearts in fun ways: polka dots, checks, stripes.  You can either use watercolor or colored pens and markers or a mix of both!  Have fun, doodle, think of your loved one.  Here is your opportunity to put a smile on their face!  PUT A BIRD ON IT!
• With an ink pen, draw around your hearts and outline the tape before pulling it off the edges.