Recommended Supplies
Note: Many artists recommend supplies based mostly upon what they have used and become used to working with. I have somewhat of a passion for testing materials and supplies, and so I have to be a little bit un-modest here and say that I have a very extensive knowledge of watercolor supplies. I don’t say this to brag, but to make a point that the list here is what I feel is the absolute best bang for your buck, based upon years of research and testing. This is not simply a list of supplies based on a few things I have tried and habitually started using. I have tested countless brushes, pigments, and papers and spent hours and hours coming to my conclusions. I have taken budgets into account here, because I know money is always a concern. The supplies listed here are what I consider to be the most economical that will still allow you to enjoy the learning process. If you stray from this list, your frustrations will most likely result from the wrong materials rather than your lack of skill.
Paper: 2 full sheets of Arches 140 pound, natural white cold-pressed watercolor paper, cut into 4 equal pieces of 11 X 15”. Note: Please do not substitute this paper! The other papers that you can commonly get in the United States are not simply harder to paint on, but impossible to paint on! The wet techniques that I teach simply will not work on cheap paper. These cheap papers include Canson, Strathmore, and all the other brands that are commonly found in art supply and craft stores. Arches is the only one that will work that is also readily available in these stores. 95% of all professional watercolor artist use Arches. Coincidence? I don’t think so. ;)
Brushes:
1 #10 or #12 Round Watercolor Brush (The brush should be specifically for watercolor. You will know this by the handle. Watercolor brushes have shorter handles that oil brushes.) Recommendations: Cheap Joes Dreamcatchers (best bang for the buck), or Robert Simmons Sapphire Series, or Winsor Newton Scepter Gold II, or Robert Simmons Simply Simmons, or Princeton Connoisseur.
1 #2 or #3 “Rigger” or “Liner” or “Script Liner” Brush: same brand recommendationsas above.
(optional but recommended): 1 #6 Round : same brand recommendations as above.
Paints:
1 15ml tube of each of the following paints in the brands of Da Vinci, M. Graham or Winsor Newton , all from the Artist Quality Line. Please do not substitute brands, quality lines, or paint names. A color name by one manufacturer is often a completely different pigment from another manufacturer even though it has the same color name! Even within the same brand, a different quality line may give you a completely different pigment, even though the name of the color is the same. In short, color names mean absolutely nothing. They are completely arbitrary.
Either Cadmium Yellow Light (M. Graham and Da Vinci) or Cadmium Yellow Pale (Winsor Newton)
Raw Sienna (by Winsor Newton only!) less preferred but acceptable is Yellow Ochre (Da Vinci, M. Graham or Winsor Newton)
Either Burnt Sienna (Winsor Newton only) or Transparent Red Iron Oxide (M. Graham) or Burnt Sienna Deep (Da Vinci).
Either Quinacridone Rose (M. Graham) or Permanent Rose (Da Vinci and Winsor Newton)
Either Phtalocyanine Blue (M. Graham) or Winsor Blue Red Shade (Winsor Newton). A cheaper alternative for this pigment only is Winsor Newton’s “Cotman” series.
Either Ultramarine Blue (M. Graham and Da Vinci) or French Ultramarine Blue (Winsor Newton)
Neutral Tint (M. Graham or Winsor Newton) less preffered, but acceptable: Payne’ Gray (M. Graham, Winsor Newton, or Da Vinci)
Palette: 1 Master’s Folding Watercolor palette (20 wells) or another palette of equal size with equal mixing area.
Support Board: 1 piece of foam board, or other water resistant board, at least 13 X 17”
Water Transfer tool: 1 eyedropper or plastic squeeze bottle with narrow tip
Transfer Paper: 1 Sheet of Graphite Transfer Paper, at least 8 X 10”. Less preffered but acceptable is regular non-graphite transfer paper.
Paper towels
Tissue
One large water container for rinsing. I use a family size clear plastic peanut jar.
One smaller clean water container for wetting the paper, fading, etc.