How to Paint by Numbers: A Beginner’s Guide (and the Steps I Forgot to Tell You)

Paint brushes, cup of water and napkin for a Paint by Numbers kit

The “Oops” Guide to Your First Masterpiece: A Beginner’s Guide to Paint by Numbers

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So, here’s the thing. I’ve spent the last few weeks raving to anyone who would listen about the therapeutic benefits of art. I’ve talked about the “flow state,” the joy of color theory, and how my living room is slowly turning into a DIY gallery.

But I realized something today as I looked at a half-finished canvas of a sunset: I totally got ahead of myself. I’ve been telling you why you should paint, but I never actually told you how to do it. I skipped the manual and went straight to the hype.

If you’re looking for a perfect starter project, I highly recommend the **Pink in Paris Kit** — it’s the one I’m currently obsessed with. But before you dip that brush, let’s walk through the actual “Day 1” steps to ensure your masterpiece doesn’t end up a mess.

1. The Great Unveiling

First things first: Unpack your paint by number kit and lay out the canvas, paints, and brushes on a flat surface. It sounds obvious, but workspace is everything. Don’t try to do this on your lap while watching a thriller. Find a kitchen table or a desk with good lighting. Lay everything out so you can see your “arsenal.” You’ll usually find a canvas, a set of little numbered acrylic pots, and three or four brushes of varying sizes.

2. The Secret “Smooth” Step

Most kits come rolled up in a tube, which means your “masterpiece” currently looks like a topographical map of the Andes. You cannot paint on a wavy canvas.

Unroll the canvas and carefully iron it on high to remove any wrinkles or creases. Turn the canvas face down (numbers against the ironing board) and run the iron over the back. This makes a world of difference. A flat canvas is a happy canvas, and it ensures your lines don’t get distorted by a stubborn fold.

3. Lockdown Your Art

Once it’s flat, you need to keep it that way. Tape the canvas to the flat surface. I highly recommend using masking tape (or painter’s tape). It has just enough “stick” to hold the canvas taut but won’t leave a sticky residue on your table or tear the edges of your canvas when you’re finished. This prevents the canvas from sliding around while you’re trying to nail those tiny details.

4. The Hydration Station

Before you touch a single paint pot, set up your cleaning station. Fill up a small cup of water and lay out a few paper towels. > Pro-Tip: Do not forget the paper towels! They are arguably the most important tool you have. Every time you switch colors, you’ll wash your brush in the water, but you must blot it dry on the towel. If your brush is too wet, the paint becomes watery and translucent, which won’t cover the numbers.

5. The “Genius” Hack (The Bonus Step)

If you take nothing else away from this guide, take this: Take a digital picture of your canvas with your phone before you start.

Think of this as your “Undo” button. Once you start painting, you will inevitably accidentally paint over a number in an adjacent cell. Without a reference, you’re playing a guessing game. Having a photo on your phone means you have a permanent reference sheet. Plus, you can zoom in on those tiny, microscopic spaces. It’s a 21st-century magnifying glass!

6. The Strategy: One Number at a Time

Now, we paint. Match each of the numbered paint pots with the pre-numbered area on the canvas. It is tempting to hop around because you really want to see that blue sky pop, but we highly recommend going one number at a time. Why? Because these are acrylic paints. If you open five different pots at once, they will start to dry out before you’re halfway through. Open “1,” paint all the “1s,” then snap that lid shut tight until you hear it click.

7. The Golden Rules of Direction

To avoid smudging your hard work, you need a flight plan.

• Dark to Light: Start with the darker colors first, then move to the lighter ones. It helps build the structure of the image and makes it easier to cover mistakes if you accidentally go over a line.
• Top to Bottom: This is the big one. Start at the top of the canvas and work your way down. This ensures your hand isn’t resting on wet paint you just applied.
• The Handedness Rule: * Right-handed? Go from left to right as you move top to bottom.
• Left-handed? Go from right to left as you move top to bottom.

Basically, you want to be moving away from the wet paint, not dragging your sleeve through it.

8. Master the “Tip” Technique

When you finally go to apply paint, resist the urge to dunk the whole brush into the pot.

Dip just the tip of your paintbrush and begin painting. Using just the tip gives you incredible precision. It allows you to stay within the lines of those tiny little shapes. More importantly, it prevents paint from traveling up into the “ferrule” (the metal part that holds the bristles). Once paint dries in there, your brush is ruined — it will splay out and never hold a sharp point again.

Using just the tip also conserves paint. You’ll be surprised at how much you have left over for touch-ups at the end!

Final Thoughts

Paint by numbers isn’t about being a perfect artist; it’s about the process. It’s one of the few times in life where you’re given a clear map to a beautiful result. You don’t have to worry about “what” to paint, you just get to enjoy the “how.”

Now that I’ve actually given you the instructions (sorry again for the delay!), go grab that kit that’s been sitting in the closet. Iron it out, take your reference photo, and just start with Number 1. You’ll be amazed at what you can create when you just follow the numbers.

Happy painting!