In the picture you posted the surface being covered is balsa sheeted foam. The easiest way to do this is to cover the wing panel using individual pieces. Cover the root and tip first with the desired color, then the aileron inset. Begin covering the bottom of the wing and then finish with the top. As far as the pattern in the picture I'd make up some templates. Keep in mind that when you are putting the covering down to apply the light color first then the dark color. Put the yellow on first, overlap with blue about 1/8-1/4" then apply the red. For the checkerboard I would make up the pieces on glass out of individual squares and then apply to the wing. I've used the skin technique and this also works well. Alot depends on how the covering is behaving. I've layed monokote over monokote before and it went on beautifully and at other times I've gotten so frustrated with the stuff I just wanted to throw the whole mess in the garbage. Some of the covering such as oracover can be seamed almost effortlessly with low heat, monokote from my experience works better with trim solvent.
I spend numerous hours doing a very intricate three color trim scheme on a 35% Giles only to have the plane destroyed when it ran out of gas on it's second flight. The only way I'd spend that kind of time covering a plane again would be on a plane that was going to be a display piece. My every day knock around giant scale plane now gets a covering job that is applied in a fraction of that time. If I destroy I don't feel so bad because I don't have that much time invested.