How to Paint an adorable watercolour baby chick – Step-by-Step with Video & Free Coloring Page

Easter was just around and I saw many artists coming up with painting videos of farm anials like duck, rabbits and so on. It encouraged me to put up a tutorial to paint a baby chick in watercolour. This video was intended to be beginner friendly tutorial of painting a bird because since the wings are not in the focus, painting the feathers on the body can be easy to learn.

Colour choices, painting techniques, painting soft feathers were some of the highlights for creating this video. With that said, let me give you a tour of this painting process.

We’ll start with the beak and eyes, gradually build up the soft yellow body, and end with cute little orange feet and a dreamy background. The best part? You’ll learn how to keep the feathers looking light, textured, and natural — just like a real baby chick.

This tutorial also comes with a free colouring page for you to simply download and start painting right away as well as a video tutorial by me demonstrating every step.

Before going through the process, if you want to download the colouring page then click here : 👉 Download free colouring page.

Materials I Used:

1.      Watercolors: Gamboge Hue, Violet, Indigo, Cobalt Blue, Cerulean Blue, Payne’s Grey

2. Round Brushes: Sizes 00 and 08

3. Clean water, tissue, and watercolor paper

   
   

I downloaded a free reference photo from Pixabay.

Painting Steps:

1. Eyes & Beak: I start small using a fine 00 brush, mixing muddy yellows and Payne’s Grey for soft detailing.

2. Layering the Beak: Start light, then use more pigment for depth.

3. Feather Time: After wetting the paper generously, I work from orange to soft greys, building the fluffy body using Gamboge Hue and custom greys.

4. Texture & Fluff: I keep pulling soft strokes outward with minimal pressure to get that feathery softness.

5. Feet & Shadows: I layer Cobalt Blue and Orange to build the feet and use contrasting colors for gentle shadows.

6. Background Magic: A dreamy wash of Cerulean Blue, Violet, and Indigo completes the painting.

   
   
   
   

   

   
   

Watch the Full Painting Process

Want to follow along in real-time?

👉 Watch the full YouTube tutorial here 

If you enjoyed this project, you’ll love the exclusive real-time tutorials, downloadable sketches, and reference photos I share on my Patreon. Every month, I upload new detailed painting guides you can follow along with at your own pace.

👉 [Click here to explore my Patreon tiers]

If you try this painting, I’d love to see your version! Tag me on Instagram (sneha_coloursoft) or leave a comment below.

Happy Painting :)