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List

of

Materials

  • A palette that must have a lid, (ie Cheap Joe’s Piggyback palettes with 17 wells at $12 or 30 wells at $20.)

  • Your own assortment of water color paints squeezed out onto your palette.  (Do this before you arrive.)  (See the colors below.)

  • An assortment of brushes from smallest to largest.  (See specifics below)

  • Masking fluid, a mask lifter (or pickup), and an optional camera.

  • Ordinary sponge, a natural sponge, masking tape, toothpick, and paper towels

  • An ordinary pencil (mechanical is good) and a kneaded art eraser

  • A water container, a little spray bottle for water, a piece of a bar of soap

  • Graphite paper for transferring a drawing. (Only Sally's or Saral brand)

  • Professional watercolor paper (Arches) at least 140 lbs. and at least 12” by 16” in size.  It’s okay to use rough or (preferred) grain fin.  It must be cold pressed; do not buy “hot press.”  The paper must be either attached to a watercolor block of papers (do NOT cut it off) or taped to a backboard to keep it flat. 

  • Several black Micron pens (sizes 05 and 01 are nice)

 Suggested Colors 

These colors are my suggestions.  If you are purchasing your first paints, this list provides a good guideline.  I urge you to purchase Winsor Newton or another professional grade paint such as Jerry’s Lukas 1862 Watercolors or Cheap Joe’s American Journey.  (Do not buy student grade paints, e.g. Cotman or Grumbacher.  Although they are cheaper, the color is transient and has different mixing qualities.)  Your paints are an expensive investment, but they last a long, long time.

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MUST HAVE:

Cadmium or Winsor yellow (or another bright yellow)

Yellow ochre

Quinacridone gold (or burnt sienna)

Schmincke translucent orange (may have to order on line) (or Cadmium Orange will do)

Winsor red or Cadmium red (or another hot red) 

Alizarin crimson (or another “blue” red) (a cool red)

Permanent Rose

Violet (Winsor)

Ultramarine blue

Cobalt blue

Olive green (best olive is Lukas 1862 at Jerrys Artarama or Winsor Newton)

Burnt umber

Payne’s gray

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NICE TO HAVE:  Shadow Green by Holbein, Sap Green, Cobalt Teal or some bright turquoise, opera, Chinese white, & brown madder.

 Paper 

  • Arches cold-press, 140 pound, grain fin paper is the best!  (NOT the bright white)

  • Buying it in a block (about $50 at Cheap Joe’s for 20 sheets of 12” X 16″) saves the aggravation of stretching and flattening the paper.  

  • You could buy one large sheet of Aches and cut it.

  • Do not cut the paper off the block until your painting is finished.  

  • DO NOT buy any paper (even Arches) that comes in a sort of tablet with only the top attached by glue or by a spiral wire.  This paper is cheaper and not as good as the more expensive professional paper.

  • DO NOT buy cheaper paper!  You cannot have success on lesser quality paper.

 Brushes 

  • Here you can save money; natural hair brushes aren’t necessary.  Joe Miller’s Golden Fleece, Creative Mark,  or Loew Cornell brushes are fine.  

  • Buy a selection of different sized brushes, including a #1 rigger.   For example, buy flat brushes in these sizes:  1/8″ and 1/4″ and 1/2″ and 3/4″ and 1″.  Buy round brushes in these sizes: #8, #6, #2.  

  • You must also have scrubbers (get a pack that has 3 sizes in it).

  • Cheap Joe’s at www.cheapjoes.com (800-227-2788) or Jerry’s Artarama (800-827-8478) are probably the best, cheapest, most reliable, and most comprehensive art suppliers in the country.  You can request a catalog, and they mail quickly.

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