The lovely advantages to softening lines.....

What makes an interesting painting?  Negative and positive shapes, hard and soft edges, contrasts and shadows.....your eye is grandly entertained by all of these elements in a  painting.  

As a watercolor artist, I am a HUGE fan of softening lines.  I know I've written about this before, but I think that softening lines to create a sun-dappled look is so appealing in a  work of art.  

After I finished this Autumnal Meander painting (below) and let it completely dry overnight, I simply used clean water on a brush  to work at the edges of the hard lines in the trees ( I dabbed up the water with a tissue), softening up sunspots and lightening anywhere that I thought the sun might hit the branches and trunks.  

It IS a little bit time consuming, but it is totally worth it in your final product.  I am especially fond of softening up little circles whenever I paint foliage or florals.  It gives the painting a kind of ethereal feel.

Happy Painting, my friends!