This Doesn't Work, But

Irises
9" x 9" watercolor
Arches 100% hot press w/c paper

This doesn't work, but I sure had fun doing it. And I'm pleased that I know at least a few reasons that it went south.

I'm not sure I have the right color selection. I used phthalo blue, hansa yellow medium and light, quin rose, a little bit of scarlet lake, and opera rose. The purples/pinks especially do not sing and show light in the way I hoped. I need to experiment with a different color combination and try for more transparency in those purples and pinks.

The background competes too much with the flowers, and the background colors are too dark. A white or very warm, light yellow/green background might be best. Yellow is a complementary color to purple and it provides a nice but non-competitive contrast. 

Mostly, I needed a couple of underlying, unifying washes on those petals. It looks like I painted them one at a time, not giving a lot of thought to the whole. And that's exactly what happened.

Worth another try.