Suggested Materials

Choosing materials can be overwhelming. I’ve created an informal video to help, plus a written description and printable list.

Click on the list to view larger or download and print.

For Beginning Painters and Those on a Tight Budget

When you’re just getting started, it can be especially tempting to buy lots of different materials. It’s also tempting to think that if you just find the right materials, your paintings will improve. Trust me, your time is better spent practicing painting and your money is better spent on prioritizing better quality paper instead of more paint colors or brushes.

Paper: Professional paper responds to paint and water very differently than less expensive options. Don’t get me wrong, you can make a good painting on nearly any surface so it’s okay to use inexpensive paper. If you’re trying to learn how to paint a smooth, gradient wash or you want to get gorgeous granulation effects, you will have a dramatically different experience with high quality paper. At some point, you’ll want to make the leap, and there’s more info below under Intermediate to Advanced with tips on saving money. To start, just make sure your paper is at least 140# (that’s the weight), anything less will lead to excessive buckling.

Sponge: Learn to utilize the large cellulose kitchen sponge that’s on the list, it’ll give you the best nuanced control of water. I explain how in my free video lessons. Be sure you buy a cellulose sponge, not a natural sponge and not the kind used for tile grouting. They don’t hold water the same way.

Brushes: You really don’t need a big collection. They will wear out: when the tip is no longer sharp and pointy, it’s time for a new one. The old brush can be used for scrubbing and rough use to prolong the life of your new one. You may want a larger flat brush if you’re doing very large paintings, especially for large gradient washes (smooth transitions from dark to light, like in a large, clear sky). You may want a larger round brush if you’re painting very large shapes. Your brush should be big enough that the body can hold enough water/pigment to paint the shapes you’re making without having to pick up more paint excessively often. This is something you’ll get a feel for with time. Most painters will find what’s on my list above sufficient for most paintings.

Paints: Stick to basic colors until you have a fair bit of experience. Learning to mix what you want from warm and cool red, yellow, and blue is so important for having an easier time painting down the road. After you’ve done a lot of painting, you’ll have a better idea of which colors you are mixing the most often, and then you can consider purchasing tubes of paint that are similar, as a shortcut. If you don’t first learn how to mix the color you need, those shortcuts become crutches that don’t help you if you don’t understand how they work with your other pigments.

For Intermediate to Advanced Painters

There are no right or wrong materials. If you like what you’re using, there’s no need to change, though I do have a few suggestions. Prioritize quality paper, keep your color options simple, and learn to control water with a sponge instead of paper towel.

Paper: Choose a professional paper that is made from 100% cotton rag. If you’re on a budget, Windsor & Newton and Kilimanjaro (from Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff) are more affordable options that perform very well. I love 140# and 300# Arches cold press or Fabriano soft press, but that’s personal preference related to my subject and style of painting. It’s good to experiment and find what works best for you. High quality paper is typically sold in 22 x 30” sheets. This is a “full sheet.” Even if you don’t want to paint that big, you may want to buy your paper in sheets because it tends to cost less per square inch than buying the pre-cut pads. Some brands sell convenient, smaller sizes in pads, and some make watercolor blocks. Blocks are a pad of paper with the edges glued together. This supports the top sheet you paint on, and offers a surface that is partially stretched, so less prone to buckling. I’ve had blocks buckle when I paint wet, but that’s usually in the larger sizes, 10x14” or more. If buckling is an issue, see the section on stretching, below. When you finish the painting on a block, there’s a small gap in the glue - gently run a palette knife or fingernail between the top two sheets to release your painting. If you want to experiment with paper types, Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff sells a variety of sample packs that let you test different surfaces by one brand, or the same surfaces by a variety of brands.

Paints: I highly recommend minimizing the number of colors you use, at least for a while. If you have a solid understanding of mixing color from just warm and cool primary colors, you will have much better success when you use other premixed colors. If you don’t know how to quickly mix a close approximation of a color using just red, yellow, and blue, this is something to spend time on. It will make mixing with other pigments much easier.

If you are selling your paintings, it is important that you take care to use only permanent, lightfast pigments. Quality paint manufacturers provide this information on the tube. If you want a deep dive into information about pigments, I recommend this page. This is important because when an artist uses inferior materials that won’t hold up to modest light exposure over time, it gives all artists a bad reputation and perpetuates the myth that watercolor is an inferior medium that doesn’t last. For this same reason, be sure to use an archival quality paper.

Brushes: This is another place to experiment. As a beginner it’s easy to end up with unconscious habits. Pay attention to how your brush is laying down paint. Can you easily get a nice, fluid application? Can you get attractive dry brush marks? Can you make very small marks and very large ones with ease? Can you get the kinds of shapes you want to make, or are you having to put down a lot of marks to get the shape to work out? These can be indicators of whether your brush is working for you or not. I find my ideal brush to be a mid-size round with a fine point and good spring. I don’t like a limp, mushy brush, but some people do. I like a brush where the body can hold a sizeable amount of fluid and release it gently, allowing for large, wet shapes that can be controlled carefully at the edges. I can use my sponge to pull off a little water, and then that same brush can make long, smooth, fine details. If you only use round brushes, give other shapes a try, especially flats. Some shapes are easier to make with a flat brush, a 1” flat wash is a fabulous multi-purpose brush. You can get a smooth gradient wash, or turn it on it’s edge and get fine details. If I had to choose just one brush to use, that might be it. My favorite brands for rounds are Escoda Perla, Silver Black Velvet, and Princeton Long Round, but there are a lot of others I like and use. I’ve had the same Princeton 1” for over a decade, it’s my workhorse. I have some smaller flats in other brands, like Jack Richeson, which is another favorite for both flats and rounds. There are also mops, fan brushes, filberts, riggers, hake, and more that can be very useful. Experimenting is good, it gives you the opportunity to discover your preferences and what works best for you and your style of painting. If you’re a beginner, wait on the experimenting until you have some confidence with basic control of the medium. Otherwise you’ll have trouble identifying whether it’s your materials or your technique that is or isn’t working for you. The majority of my painting is done with my three favorite, basic brushes. A mid-size round, a small round, and a 1” flat. If you don’t have spare time or funds, it’s okay to stick to the basics - materials absolutely do not make the painter or the painting.

Sponge: If you don’t use one, please give it a good try. Paper towels pull a lot of water off your brush and make it hard to get nuanced water control. A sponge, wet and wrung out, offers a wider spectrum of control. I explain how in my free video lessons. Be sure you buy a cellulose sponge, not a natural sponge and not the kind used for tile grouting. They don’t hold water the same way.

Stretching Paper

Consider stretching your paper if you are experiencing buckling. A few brands sell paper in a block, with the edges glued down. I consider block paper to be partially stretched. 9x12” and smaller blocks resist buckling very well while larger sizes will buckle some if you work very wet. I work on Arches blocks from time to time, they are especially convenient when traveling. Heavier paper, 300# or so, is much less likely to buckle, but it still can, especially if you work very large.

Stretching paper can be a little tricky to get right at first. The idea is to wet the paper and let it sit long enough that all the fibers are fully saturated before securing it to a board. This will slightly expand the size of the paper before you tack it down, eliminating it’s ability to expand further while you’re painting. Uneven expansion while painting is what causes buckling. The stretching process usually takes 10-20 minutes, and the paper must stay consistently wet on both sides until it has completely flattened out on its own and is secured to the board.

You’ll need a sturdy board for stretching. There are many different methods and surfaces for stretching paper. You can purchase stretching boards that are built to fit full, half, and quarter sheets, with a built in system for securing the paper. If you usually work in these sizes, these premade boards are a great option. I often buy my paper in large rolls and cut it to custom sizes, so I prefer to use a plain board and staples. I like Grafix Art Board or Gatorfoam, and I’ve also used 3/8” mahogany plywood or thicker pine mahogany for oversize work. These boards are reusable and take staples easily.

I keep a large, shallow plastic tub especially for stretching paper so I know it is very clean. I fill it with a few inches of water, and dunk the paper in at one edge, slowly drawing the piece of paper through the tub to wet the entire sheet. I do not soak my paper, this removes the sizing, which affects how the paper holds pigment. I will sometimes use the tub faucet at home to wet the paper, but I’m careful to keep the paper from touching the tub. You want to get both sides evenly wet, then set it on a clean surface - I use my stretching board. Keep the paper right side up, so your painting surface stays clean (this is the side where you can read the watermark). Check the paper every couple minutes and repeat the wetting process as needed to maintain even saturation. You could use a spray bottle for this, just be sure both sides of the paper are fully saturated - it might take a while. Watch the back side because boards can soak up water. I will sometimes spray it down before I start so that it doesn’t soak the water off the paper too fast.

After a few minutes you will see the paper buckle, then eventually the bubbles will flatten out. Remember, if the paper starts to dry before it is completely flat, rewet it. Different climates and seasons affect the amount of water and time needed. After it’s completely saturated and flat, I center it on my board, then staple the paper to the board, about 1/2” in from the edges, keeping staples about an inch apart with two staples at each corner to support the paper. As it dries, it tries to shrink back to normal size, pulling on the staples, which is why you want them closely spaced. If they’re too far apart or too close to the edges, the force of the paper drying can make the paper tear along the staple holes. I then let my paper fully dry before painting, but if you work wet in your first layer, you don’t have to wait. Once your paper is stretched, you can completely soak it again and it will not buckle because you have already stapled it down at it’s fully expanded size. One tip here, it’s a good idea not to paint to the edges of the paper if you stretch the way I do. When you remove the staples, you’ll have small holes in your painting. I tape off the edges of where my painting will be, inside the staples, which gives me a nice clean edge on my finished painting.

When my painting is finished and I’m ready to take it off the board, I use a flat screwdriver or sturdy palette knife, and very gently ease it between the board and the paper, underneath each staple. A gentle wiggle will pull the staple up as you lift on the paper. I have found this better than going between the staple and paper, which more easily gouges the paper.