Started painting with watercolor two months ago, buying the cheapest paper. The paint spreads everywhere, colors turn out muddy. Maybe it's really just the paper quality and not my lack of skill?
Paper plays a huge role here. Cheap paper doesn't hold water, the paint spreads and gets muddy precisely because of that. I'd recommend getting at least medium quality watercolor paper - you don't necessarily need the most expensive stuff, but something with a density of at least 200 g/m² and decent composition. Once you switch papers, you'll feel the difference right away, and yeah, of course this goes hand in hand with experience - as you practice more, you'll get better at controlling water and achieve cleaner colors.
It's definitely the paper. Cheap paper doesn't hold water well, the paint doesn't stay controlled on it and really does blur all over the place. Get some proper watercolor paper - like "Nevskaya Palitra" or something stronger - and you'll immediately notice the difference in color control. Then you'll be able to see where the problem is in your technique and where it isn't.
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