Making an Abstract

First, I generally make some kind of simple 2 or 3 colored design using a soft brush. This is the design I used this time.




Next, I selected the "Behind" tool, and I filled in the white with a few more colors in another simple design. I like to use contrasting colors a lot, but you can use whatever you want and play around with it.  Often times, I like to blur the entire image a couple times after that just to soften it all and make it look better with the other steps.

Now, I selected the "Difference" tool, clicked blend, selected a lighter color, and used a large soft brush to change the entire painting. I tend to do this with one long stroke, rather than clicking multiple times.

I then deselected blend, and selected the dodge tool, to lighten the entire painting. I generally go over it twice, with 2 different dark colors.

After that, I selected the "difference" tool again, and using a hard brush and no blend, I painted the whole painting with it in one continuous stroke. You can do this with any color you want, and experiment with what color you like the best. I chose a medium tan color this time. 

Next, I selected a darker color, and I went  over the painting again with the difference tool, changing the whole piece. 

I then lightened the whole image with a medium colored dodge. 

Next, I blurred the painting a few times, to smooth it out. Then, I selected the difference tool again, and chose a medium dark color and went over the painting three different times, covering it with one stroke, and then clicking again and covering it with another stroke, and then changed colors, and covered it one more time. 

I lightened it again after that, using a darker color and the dodge tool. 

When I made a design I liked, I selected the saturation tool, and I brought the saturation down. Usually, I like it darker and with fewer colors, but you can play around with it and do whatever you want. Every painting is different, and the steps aren't always the same, I basically just play around with colors and different tools and brushes until I find something I like. This is after I brought the saturation down:

Then, I lightened some areas of it with the dodge tool, a dark color, and a soft brush.

When the colors and highlights looked the way I wanted them to, I used the sharpening tool, and went over the whole painting twice, and I was done. Sometimes at this point in the process, I'll use the difference tool some more, and go over everything a few more times, it really just depends on what I think of the painting. I don't think there's really a right or wrong way to do it, almost every abstract painting I make is made a little differently using the same kind of tools, just in different orders. I like to play around with different colors and tools. I think my paintings come out looking a lot more complicated than they actually are.