Practical technique guides and free color tools for paint-by-number painters who want cleaner edges, smoother blends and a finish worth framing. Independent, free and with nothing to sell.
Click on the wheel to pick colors. Mix them, find harmonies, and build palettes for your next painting.
Six techniques that lift a paint-by-number canvas from flat to polished.
Apply a second color while the first is still wet. Gently blend where they meet for smooth gradients in skies and water.
Use minimal paint on a dry brush with quick strokes. Creates textured effects perfect for grass, fur, and highlights.
Dab the brush straight down to build up color with tiny dots. Perfect for foliage, stone, and pointillist effects.
Apply thin transparent layers over dried paint. Each layer modifies the color beneath for incredible depth.
Paint outlines first with a fine brush, then fill in. Clean boundaries make the difference between amateur and pro.
Warm colors advance, cool colors recede. Use this to add depth: warm foregrounds, cool backgrounds.
Color palette inspiration for your next paint-by-numbers masterpiece.
Track your painting projects and celebrate every section you complete.
Go deeper on the skills that make the biggest difference to a finished canvas.
How to mix, match and stretch the paints in your kit, and how to recreate a color that has run out.
Read the guide →What makes a design easy or hard - color count, canvas size, section size and subject - so you can choose your next challenge.
Read the guide →Keep cheap kit brushes in good shape during and after each session, and know when to upgrade.
Read the guide →Touch-ups, hiding remaining numbers, varnishing and framing your finished canvas.
Read the guide →Workflow habits that cut the time a canvas takes while keeping edges clean.
Read the guide →Work out canvas dimensions, aspect ratios and framing sizes for your project.
Read the guide →Occasional emails when we publish a new technique guide. Unsubscribe any time.
A paint-by-number kit tells you which color goes where, but not how to apply it. The difference between a canvas that looks like a coloring exercise and one that looks painted comes down to a handful of skills: controlling edges, getting even coverage, blending where the design allows it, and finishing the surface properly.
Start with coverage and edges - thin coats, a fine brush for outlines and patience between layers. Then experiment with softening boundaries in skies and water, and with mixing your own intermediate shades; our color mixing guide explains how. When you are ready for a bigger challenge, the difficulty guide shows what to look for in your next kit.
Good habits protect your results too: brush care keeps cheap kit brushes usable to the last section, and the finishing guide covers touch-ups, varnish and framing. Paintings by Numbers is an independent hobby site - we do not sell kits or supplies.