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If you'd like to sharpen your drawing skills this summer, I've put together a list of supplies that will give you a great range of versatility to get creative with. I'm also including a little bit of watercolor and some related supplies you can get to venture into more flowing expression and color, and add depth to your drawing and illustrations. Let's see if we can make watercolor as popular as other aquatic activities this Summer! 🖌🌊
Please keep in mind that this article contains affiliate links to Amazon, so you'll be supporting my business with a small commission when you click on them and place an order. You can alternatively find many of these supplies or something very similar at your local art supply store too.
Let's start with the basics: pencils and paper. My all around pick is Canson Mixed Media Spiral Bound Pad with pages you can easily tear out if you create something frameworthy (to maximize your creative potential schedule regular lessons and watch as you begin creating masterpieces effortlessly). This is a great size too, not huge but big enough to really put yourself into the world of your drawing, it's 60 sheets and 9 inches by 12 inches. The paper is thick, durable, and great for everything from pencil sketches to marker and watercolor. Although technically student grade, this paper could be used for some professional projects as well.
However, if you do want professional/artist grade paper that will hold up to watercolor combined with drawing, try Arches Watercolor Paper, a classic and favored by many artists. Just a note, watercolor paper won't be the best choice for a lot of marker or fine detailed drawing. You can stick to a mixed media pad for that or try this artist marker paper by Canson.
That should be plenty of paper choices to get started with. I've heard many artists say that paper is one of the more important things to invest in, it makes sense and I agree since it's going to be the foundation for your artwork.
For pencils, I really enjoy the smoothness of this set by Faber Castell, or you can get a set with a few accessories like a blending stick and eraser included here.
You can use of course whatever pencils and Erasers you have at home, but for some more versatility check out this prismacolor set of 3 different types of erasers including gum, kneaded, and a white rubber eraser.
For an excellent sharpener for not only drawing pencils but other colorful art pencils, try this prismacolor one, or get this set that comes with prismacolor blender pencils.
The blender pencils will work to blend beautifully rich colors with prismacolor pencils. You can get the student grade version here, or I recommend a more complete set of prismacolor professional pencils here. These are more waxy than most other colored pencils and great for creating layers, depth, and rich colors.
To go along with prismacolor pencils, still in the pencil category, consider inktense pencils for a blend between a watercolor and ink effect once you add water with a brush. These are fun and very vivid.
For brush suggestions, check out my recent oil painting blog. Or, start with an artist grade set like this Velvet Touch one.
For a great intermediate watercolor set, which could be used from beginner to professional, consider this highly rated kit. It comes with two brushes and a small pad of watercolor paper. The only additional item that would be helpful for adding a little watercolor pizzazz to your summertime drawing is a palette so that you can easily mix those colors into the right amount of water before painting them on your paper.
I'll get more in-depth into watercolor options in an upcoming blog, for now a kit like the one above is a great option to start with. To add an illustrative quality and highlights to your drawing and/or watercolor, or for manga and anime style drawings, this set is the perfect starting point.
If you want more colorful paint pen options, there are many choices and styles, one trusted brand is Posca and I tend to prefer a fine tip like this for details and highlights.
Lastly, although there are of course many other drawing materials out there, we'll touch on alcohol markers. These add a great unique blending and color quality to any art piece and can capture the heart of both your inner child and inner artist alike. A professional set with a sampling of variety would be one of these options by Winsor and Newton. For a student grade choice with great reviews, try these Ohuhu markers.
One very last thing, which is not as important for most of the art supply mediums mentioned, but to prevent smearing on say a graphite pencil drawing, would be a fixative spray. Spray outside in a well ventilated area.
I hope these ideas for art supplies inspire your creativity and support you in making your imagination come alive this summer! ✨️☀️
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