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Hello beautiful people…

So it’s time for Thursday Talks again and today’s topic is something about which I get the most queries. So I thought why not go ahead and pen down all the things you need to kick start your watercolors painting journey. With so many new brands coming up with new art supplies almost every other day, it has become difficult to decide on what exactly one should buy. This becomes even more difficult when you are just wanting to embark on a journey with watercolors.

If you are someone who is keen to start your watercolors art journey, this write up would be surely helpful for you as by the end of it you would have a list of all the basic art supplies needed for your happy journey with watercolors WITHOUT burning a hole in your pocket.

So without further ranting, I’d come straight to the points-

1. Watercolors-

First and foremost, obviously is the question which watercolors should you go for. There are thousands of options we see around us today and hence we are not sure what exactly is the best for us. I would suggest you going for Camel Artists’ Watercolors tubes. You can just start with a set of 12 colors which retails for ₹185 and you can get some discounts from Amazon or local stores too. Each tube contains 5ml of product. It has all the basic needed colors and the colors are nicely pigmented and vibrant. The consistency is perfect and if you squeeze out extra on your color mixing palette, you need not worry as these can be easily reactivated by adding few drops of water.

2. Papers–

Next important question is what papers to go for as watercolors papers are crazily priced these days. Trust me guys, I feel you. Spending so much on papers as a beginner when you always fear of just ruining your artwork isn’t a good idea at all. But you really need not spend it all on buying those 100% cotton sheets just because everyone else is using them. I’d recommend going for 25% cotton 300gsm cold pressed Watercolor sheets from Brustro. You can buy a pack of A4 size sheets which retails for ₹396. A pack consists of 24 sheets. As a beginner, I’d suggest you to divide your A4 sheet into 2 equal parts which would give you 2 A5 sheets as painting on A4 directly is a little intimidating. I even used to divide it into 4 parts making 4 A6 sheets from 1 A4 sheet and enjoyed painting as a beginner.

I know, I know, that one question which is right now erupting in your head is how can I do heavy washes for landscapes and galaxies on 25% cotton paper? The answer is YES YOU CAN. All you have to do is wet your 25% cotton paper once ,then allow the water to soak in completely and then go ahead and rewet it. Now your 25% cotton paper is ready for heavy washes. If you still don’t believe me, I am sharing a galaxy artwork done on Brustro 25% cotton watercolor A4 sheet.

3. Brushes-

Brushes again are something that have no upper limit to it. If you are a beginner and still learning you would see the artists you look upto using their favorite high end brushes but again you just don’t need to spend on those brushes at all. There are so many amazing brushes brands in the market you can go for. But I’d suggest something that’s easily available in stores near you or online. You can buy camlin S-66 (round brushes) in sizes 0,6,12 and S-67(flat brushes) in sizes 4 and 12 and you are good to go.

4. Masking Tape-

Next up is masking tape which we all use for those crisp white borders and I personally love that white border in my watercolors landscape and galaxies. I have super amazing option for you guys. You can buy the “Asian Paints” masking tape. It will cost you around ₹20 per tape and one roll will last you long. I usually buy a pack of 6 as it just costs me ₹120. These are easily available in any hardware stores. Its available on Amazon too but the prizes are high there so I won’t suggest you to buy from Amazon.

5. Color Mixing Palette-

Color Mixing Palettes are an essential but you need not spend a penny for this one. Yes, you read it right. Any old dinner plate lying around in your kitchen makes the best color mixing palette ever. If you have some paints left on your plate just cover it with another plate and you are good to go. I’d suggest you going for a white plate so that you can see the exact color.

6. Board-

You would also need a board to stick your paper to. Although you can always stick your papers to table but I’d recommend using a board as it gives you freedom to rotate your paper when needed and also allows you to tilt your paper for the most beautiful gradient washes. But you need not buy those expensive cutting mats for this purpose. All you can use is your exam boards.

7. Some other basic stuff-

The above mentioned things are the most important but apart from these you’d need some old cotton cloth (don’t waste money on paper towels) , 2 glasses for water ,one for clean water and one to wash your brushes (head towards your kitchen to find some old glasses), pencil,eraser,sharpener,ruler and scissors (to cut your papers into A5 or A6), some normal art papers for practicing various strokes and swatches so that you don’t ruin your watercolor paper directly.

Once you have all the things listed here,you are good to start on with your journey with this beautiful medium. Just remember one thing, the magic is in you and just those expensive art supplies won’t make your artwork beautiful.

Hope you found this helpful. If you have any further questions you can reach out to me on my instagram @kalaavi_by_pallavi.

Happy creating ❤