My Favourite & Recommended Watercolour Painting Supplies
With just over three weeks before The Art of Creative Living Retreat, I'm in the midst of gathering and preparing the art supplies for our creative adventures and painting dates.
We will primarily be using watercolour paints during the retreat and I thought it would be lovely to share my favourite supplies with you!
After much experimentation, I’ve discovered you can skimp on art supplies in other mediums, but if you want to have better results, more control over your painting and less heart-ache, my experience has shown it pays to invest in quality watercolour supplies.
There may be some cheaper alternatives out there that also provide excellent results, but I haven’t discovered them as yet! Where I have explored a mid-range option that worked well, I’ve included it below.
Watercolour Brushes
There's a lot of talk about watercolour brushes being so important. And, after experimenting, I can see why! When you have a brush that holds plenty of water and comes to a fine point, it makes a huge difference. And I mean a HUGE difference.
I've tried to get away with using cheap synthetic brushes, and while yes, they do make a stroke that is passable, I've found I have to reload the brush with more paint when I'm still just partway across the page. Whereas, a quality brush will hold enough watercolour paint to glide smoothly for multiple lines, without having to reload your brush.
Having a brush that consistently comes to a fine point is also hugely important (and rare amongst cheaper alternatives).
My favourite watercolour brushes are the Silver Brush Set. They are absolutely beautiful to work with!
I like to keep the little plastic sleeve on them when they are not in use, to protect the bristles and help keep their beautiful shape. These are the brushes we'll be using on the retreat and I can't wait for the guests to experience how lovely they are to paint with.
If you want to paint landscapes or larger works, a mop brush is a wonderful brush to have. They are great for adding skies and large areas of colour. I own the Princeton Neptune Mop Brush in size 6 and love it.
Watercolour Paper
For years I’d heard about the importance of working with 100% cotton paper instead of wood pulp paper when it comes to watercolour. But I didn’t really want to invest in the price tag of 100% paper. Then last year, while cruising the Queensland coast in our sailboat, I had a hankering to really focus on works on paper, rather than canvas, and learn more about watercolours. They just seemed (and have turned out to be) easier to use than my beloved oil paints in a small space while we are travelling.
So after watching copious YouTube videos demonstrating the different papers out there (I particularly recommend this video comparison), I took the plunge and invested in an Arches 100% Cotton 300gsm Water Colour Block – Cold Pressed 31x41cm (12X16”).
Wow. Am I ever so glad I bought it!
Painting on Arches 100% cotton paper is a dream. The colours are vibrant, it is more forgiving, it holds plenty of water so you can paint in layers without piling the surface and basically it makes even simple marks look beautiful. When compared to cheaper, wood pulp paper, it’s simply miles in front.
If you want to feel encouraged rather than despondent about your skills and ability, I highly recommend investing in an Arches Water Colour Block. It’s what we’ll be using at the Art of Creative Living Retreat, too! I’m excited because I know it will support guests to experience heartening, encouraging results.
I’ve found Arches 100% cotton paper is well worth the investment.
Sketchbook Watercolour Journals
Following on from choosing watercolour paper, is choosing a sketchbook or journal to work with on the go.
I initially bought the commonly used and often recommended Moleskin journal in landscape format. I loved painting with it up on deck, while we were sailing along and the size worked really well. However, the paper is wood pulp paper and after experiencing the difference working on 100% cotton paper made, I began to wonder if the price tag associated with a new 100% cotton paper journal on the market might be worth it.
Etchr Sketchbooks are designed by artists, for artists, and after looking at their products and being somewhat taken aback by the price tag, I decided to take the plunge and buy two sets – one set of their Perfect Sketchbook and one set of their Sketchbook Bundle.
Gosh. They are a joy to paint in!
It’s funny. The value I associated with paper has changed. I now look at the journal and see the additional price from Moleskin to the Etchr as well, well worth it. Each time I pull out the journal, I just tell myself the evening’s painting date is cheaper than buying a coffee out and it gives me sooo much pleasure.
In fact, with these lovely compact supplies, I have taken to painting in bed as a way to wind down at the end of the day! I just keep my Etchr journal and palette, along with the Silver Brushes in the bedside table. It makes it soooo easy and rewarding.
And, you guessed it… The Etchr Sketchbooks are what each of the guests at the retreat will be receiving as part of the art supplies kit.
They will be using the supplies during our 5 days on Magnetic Island and it’s also important to me that they get to take those same supplies home, so they can continue the supportive practices they develop while they are away.
Watercolour Palettes
When you want to get right into watercolour painting, it pays to invest in quality paints and set up your own palette of colours. So, instead of buying a set of colours, you can build your own collection.
Using palettes with individual pans, rather than squeezing out paint onto a disposable palette, means you will save materials and therefore money over the longer term. I’ll share my favourite paints next (and the brand that dries and rewets well in pans), but for now, let’s look at the different options I’ve explored with palettes.
For guests at The Art of Creative Living Retreat, I have chosen to go with Mijello Airtight Watercolor 18-Well Palettes. It’s turned out to be my personal favourite and go-to palette. I love that it’s airtight and the clasp/closing mechanism is firm – which helps me rest easy with it in my bag when I’m out and about.
If you want more paint colours, you can also get the 20-well version. I have one of these too, but I’m not so fond of the way it doesn’t firmly close like the 18 well palette. Probably if you weren’t keen on doing plein air painting (painting outside) and tucking it into your backpack, it wouldn’t matter so much. The larger mixing area is a great pro to weigh up this small con, however, so trust your own judgement of what’s important to you. 🙂
I also bought the Portable Painter palette, and I’ve enjoyed working outdoors with it. You can use the carry case to hold water to wash your brushes and I like resting it on my leg as I work. However, I am just as happy using the Mijello 18-Well Palette outdoors, as I love the airtight seal. It’s a relief to not worry about watercolour dripping through your things when some paints may still be wet from a painting session.
Watercolour Paints
After initially experimenting with Art Spectrum watercolour paints (one of my go-to brands for oil paints), I have made the switch to Daniel Smith watercolour tubes. Why? Because they don’t crack when I squeeze them into my palette and they rewet and work beautifully. Not to mention their colours are intense and well-priced as far as watercolours go.
To help me get a feel for their quality and the huge range of colours, I initially bought one of their nifty 238 Dot Colour Charts. It was great fun to have so many colours to play with! And I even painted some finished paintings while we were anchored off of Digby Island using just the pigments on the charts.
However, once I knew this was the brand for me, I began to set up a complete palette of my own. I drew a lot of inspiration from Jane Blundell’s website and colour reviews, and I’ve ended up with a palette full of colours that I not only love, but also work well for colour mixing, too.
Resources, Courses and Tips
If you would like some tips on setting up a palette, here are some resources I suggest.
Jane Blundell’s post about her palettes and colours. I will be giving Art of Creative Living guests a set of colours pretty close to her “Teaching Palette” at the retreat and to take home with them.
If you want help just getting started and starting small, Jane’s post here is a great place to start.
Skillshare
How to Prep a Watercolour Palette the RIGHT Way – a great class on Skillshare by Peggy Dean. The biggest thing I took away from this, is how important it is to use a little bit of very light sandpaper or even a course tooth-brush to scratch the surface of your brand new palette wells. Otherwise, the paint doesn’t adhere to the new shiny plastic and can (and in my experience will) fall out. Which is a real nuisance. So scruff up that plastic before you squeeze in your beautiful new paints.
How to Set Up a Custom Watercolour Palette – another great Skillshare class which helped me understand there are different colours that will suit different painters, depending on their prefered subject matter.
If you’d like to try Skillshare, you can join via my affiliate link and you’ll receive two months, free. Try Skillshare and get 2 months free.
Please Share Your Watercolour Tips
Do you paint with watercolours? Do you have tips to share? I’d love to hear them! Please let us all know about your favourite watercolour supplies, tips or tricks in the comments below. That way, we can act as a brains trust and enjoy painting with this magical medium 🙂
And would you love to come to the Art of Creative Living Retreat? There are just two places left! I would love to welcome you here and spend 5 days painting together with a group of other creative hearts in a tropical island paradise. Learn more about what’s included and book your spot here.
Thanks for reading and happy watercolour painting! I hope you find this beautiful creative practice gives you as much pleasure as it’s given me. It truly is a lovely way to come home to yourself and express your creativity, especially if you can set yourself up for success with lovely, quality supplies.
Be kind to yourself and nurture your creativity,
Nicola x
PS. I look forward to reading your thoughts and tips about watercolour painting below!