subject: How to Prepare Your Painting Area ? [print this page] You may be a messy painterYou may be a messy painter. If so, wear a painting shirt, which can just be a shirt you don't mind getting dirty, to protect your clothes. Watercolor doesn't stain as badly as other paints, but it still may remain on a white shirt. Save your best clothes for a different day than paint day. If you get paint on the table, just wipe it up with water and a sponge.