a few of my favorite things
As a self-taught artist, my relationship with materials and various mediums is pretty intense. I get into a lot of bad relationships, then hop around a bit, until I finally end up with the paints I’m supposed to be with.
I’d love to share my favorite materials, tools, and brands with you, and hopefully save you a little struggle in your own search for “the one".”
Paper - Canson watercolor paper. It’s super affordable and you can get it anywhere, even Walmart. If you wanna buy REALLY nice, buy arches. But that’s pricey- I only buy arches for large commissions on paper. I’ve tried multiple others and I ALWAYS come back to Canson. It doesn’t buckle badly, and the texture is JUST enough to make my heart happy, while remaining super smooth for use with multiple mediums.
Watercolor paints- I mostly buy tubes of Windsor & Newton. Windsor & Newton watercolors have a huge amount of pigment, amazing texture and a LITTLE goes a long way. They also reactivate well once dried on a palette. I’ve bought a few big sets from Hobby Lobby, “Masters Touch” and they’re not terrible, just not the same for sure. I also love Ecoline watercolors, but they’re liquid, so extremely different to work with.
Modeling paste- I usually buy Golden or US Art Supply (I buy on Amazon) and mix it with everything. It really “bulks” up acrylic paints giving a thick, creamy texture that stands up off the paper/canvas. I even use it to smooth a canvas here and there to paint over with watercolor ground and get a more “paper-like” texture ON CANVAS. I’ve gone REALLY wrong with some other brands. Highly dislike how dry and crumbly the Liquitex modeling paste is.
Charcoal- I just love charcoal. I own a lot of different brands, but I don’t really think you can go wrong. It’s all black and messy and crumbly and amazing
soft pastels- I’ve recently fallen in love with Rembrandt. Has the same feel as charcoal, but you can get it in all sorts of amazing colors.I love the way it glides on paper, or creates a crumbling crayon effect on canvas. I always seal it with a workable fixatif to prevent smearing and smudging.
For Acrylic paint I LOVE Sennelier. The “extra fine” heavy body paint is just luscious. It’s the smoothest and creamiest paint I have ever stuck a brush in. Sennelier oil pastels are also amazing- heavy pigment and they are just ridiculously smooth. Only problem is, I learned recently that they never dry. Thats devastating to me. I’ve also fallen in love with Sennelier acrylic inks! I guess they’re just my favorite paints all around, sans watercolor.
My favorite brushes are Princeton. They’re pricey, but super worth investing in. Especially for watercolor. They have my favorite shape brush, the “dagger” brush in more sizes than I’ve been able to find elsewhere. They’re easy to clean and have super soft bristles.
BRUSH CLEANER! This is somewhat new to me. For so long I only painted with watercolor and got away with never truly having to clean my brushes. But, as I’ve experimented with new mediums, I’ve found that brush cleaner is a must have. My favorite is the Masters brush cleaner tubs. They come in multiple sizes (which I have ALL of) making it easy to take on the go or clean MASSIVE brushes. The tubs are basically a bar of soap in a sealable container that you slather your brushes in then rinse with warm water. Find them here!
I hope to add more to this list in coming months, so be sure to let me know if you have any questions I can answer. Hope this gives you some ideas as well as inspires you to keep creating.
