Skip to main content

Some of My Favourite Watercolor Supplies

I often get asked about the materials that I use for my watercolor paintings so I thought I would post a version of my supply list online.

I never use student quality materials and honestly feel like nobody should. Working on student grade paper can make even a seasoned watercolor painter feel talentless! Professional quality paint and paper allows even the absolute beginner to feel like they are working with their materials, not fighting against them.

Student grade paints may be "cheaper" but they are filled will "fillers" so that it looks like you are getting more paint for your buck.  What you are really getting is a weaker pigment load so you use twice as much paint than you would if you had bought the professional quality.  The luminosity and handling also do not compare.  My advice, buy only three - four tubes to start and mix your own colors.  Your paintings will be more harmonious and you will learn so much about color mixing and how your colors work together. Then add pigments over time.

Brushes

I love the Allegro Watercolor Brushes from Opus.  I have several rounds ranging from size 2 - 18 but a you can easily get by with two round brushes, size 4 & 10.  If you treat them properly (ie NEVER let them stand in water, always clean after using & allow to dry flat) they will last you for years & years.  I have had mine for over 10 years and work like new.

Paper


The only paper I use for watercolor is Arches and for good reason, it is so forgiving and accepts the paint and water so well.  I like the Arches Cold Pressed 140lb paper that I buy in a full 22x30" sheet.  I can then cut to size either four 11x14" pieces or 11x24".  I also buy the paper in bulk when on sale, usually once a year and it lasts me all year.  Also, by buying the large sheet and cutting to size you save more than if you buy the pre-cut pads or in blocks.

Stretcher Board


I work very detailed and in many layers so I always stretch my paper to remove the gelatin sizing & to ensure a perfect warble free surface no matter how wet the paper gets.  The Incredible Boards are amazing and worth every penny.  I bought two 24x32" boards, one for when I paint full sheets and the other I used an exacto knife to cut into quarters so that I can paint 11x14" pieces perfectly. Again, if you treat these well, they will last you for years and years as the surface allows you to staple again and again.

Paints


Winsor Newton Professional Water Colors are the colors I use most. I also like Daniel Smith Watercolor professional watercolor paints.

My personal favourite starter palette is permanent rose, cobalt blue & transparent yellow.  My usual palette is:

permanent rose
alizarin crimson
french ultramarine blue
cobalt blue
winsor blue (red shade)
winsor green (yellow shade)
transparent yellow
cadmium yellow
cadmium red
burnt sienna

Miscellaneous Supplies 


·         Basic office stapler with staples for stretching paper
·         Palette (can use white ceramic dishes from the dollar store)
·         water container  (I use 2, 1 for clean and one to rinse dirty brushes)
·         green painters masking tape
·         staedler  pencils ( HB) - Staples also sells them in packs of 12
·         kneaded eraser


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Graydon Parrish Workshop - Fabric Study

Oil on Canvas Board and Set Up I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to take another workshop with the amazing, talented, generous, patient...I could go on, Graydon Parrish . This is the third time I have had the opportunity to take one of his workshops (see Workshop 1 and Workshop 2 for more info) and every time I am amazed at how much I learn yet how relaxed and fun the process is.  When I learn on my own, it is more like a battle of wills and frustration and as I tend to learn by realizing what not to do....and then learning by the process. The workshop was two weeks long during which time Graydon walked us through setting up the still life which he set up as a work of art in itself.  He showed us how to determine the colors of the fabric and how the light affects the hue, value and chroma.  He had us paint half a sphere and cube with the local color to better understand what we were seeing.  We then mixed the color strings we needed by matching the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tips for Storing Oil Paint Between Sessions

Well, that was fun, well fun like a long workout is when you are done ;) It definitely helps to have good music when paint mixing as sometimes it can seem like it can take forever to get the exact mix you are looking for.  It is so worth it though as there is nothing better than having all of your paint premixed in clean little tubes so that you can squish out fresh paint every time you paint.   I have thought of mixing while sipping a glass wine or martini but I am sure I would end up with very sub par mixes ;) I don't premix all my colors but I find it so helpful to premix a flesh palette as I may not get the chance to paint every day, especially in the summer, and there is nothing worse than mixing up your paint and then having to through it all out because it did not keep between sessions.  Also, as some days I only have an hour to two to paint and if I have all of my colors premixed, I get to spend almost all of the time painting rather than g...
1 comment
Read more

Quick, Portable Shadow Boxes from Foam Core

Portable Shadow Box I needed to come up with shadow boxes for my Drawing from Life class that are portable, have attached lighting, quick to set up & take down and reasonably cheap.  No small order!  So shopping I went.  I had a several ideas of what I could use, cardboard boxes, black fabric bins...but in the end I decided to go with black foam core.    The boxes are made from four pieces of foam core cut to the same size, in this case roughly 13x14".  I then taped three pieces together along the longest sides, alternating the side that I taped on.  This way the "boxes" fold flat like an accordion in seconds.  The third piece of foam core is the same size and sits on top.  I wanted to leave the top unattached to keep things portable but also, this way I can slide fabric over the back panel if I choose for different set ups.  The base is just black construction paper that I will cut to size.  The reason I chose pa...
Post a Comment
Read more