Are you looking to start drawing or painting as a hobby or fancy trying new materials? I’ve written round up of all my favourite supplies - from paints to paper!

I’ve been using art materials for as long as I can remember. From cracking through packs of printer paper with a biro as a kid, to the tried and tested go-to supplies that I use in my business today. Over the years I’ve curated a collection of staples and favourites, and I’ve listed them all for you!

Paints

Watercolours - These are great paints for beginners and confident painters alike. Watercolours vary from dry pans that you add water to, or in tubes which are better for mixing your own colours. My favourite brand is Winsor and Newton. Their Paynes Grey shade is a classic and super pigmented paint, and you could either treat yourself to a big palette with all the colours to play with, or if you want to try a smaller colour range and enjoy mixing shades, try a few tubes.

Gouache - My favourite medium! This is a more opaque version of watercolour. They dry in a matte chalky consistency and they’re great to use if you like painting in blocks of vivid colour. Daler Rowney offer sets of designer gouache that are great to get started with. You get black, white and the primary colours and I use them for my painting workshops. However, Winsor and Newton have more colours to choose from if you want to top up your range. I like to treat myself to several colours before I design a new collection to keep to a strong colour scheme in my work.

Brushes - You can keep things simple with brushes if you’re starting out. I use synthetic brushes which work best with watercolours. I have a chisel tip brush for painting blocks of colour and washes, a long bristle brush for lovely flowing line making, and for tiny details I adore my ProArte brushes (which I think are meant for miniature model painting, but they’re great with gouache!)

Pens

Fineliners - If you love to draw, I recommend Sakura Pigma Micron pens. They are the only fineliners I’ve used that don’t smudge when you erase pencil underneath. They’re also water resistant if you like to mix drawing with watercolours. I also recommend Staedtler and Faber-Castell sets which you can find in most stationery shops.

Markers - POSCA and Liquitex acrylic paint markers are super vibrant and perfect for drawing in block colours without bleeding through to the other side of the paper.

Brush pens - The Sakura Pigma pens I mentioned above also have a range of brush pens that create really interesting lines - I personally love materials that aren’t always predictable! And I love the Pentel brush pens that you buy refills for when they dry out. They’re like painting with thick ink and you can create amazing textures with them.

Paper

Seawhite of Brighton sketchbooks can never steer you wrong! Moleskine hardback books are also great for sketching on location and jotting down ideas. My ultimate favourite paper to paint on is Cass Art’s own watercolour pad (smooth). Beautiful stock, absorbent and the smooth flat texture makes it great for drawing and scanning too.

Where to shop?

I love Cass Art. They have the biggest ranges of brands and there’s always a sale and great deals on their website. They have stores too which I like to pop into when I’m in London, and there’s a small shop on my old campus in Winchester School of Art! Hobbycraft is also great, especially for in-person browsing and they always have a wide variery of surfaces and paper. WHSmith and Rymans also stock basic materials and sketchbooks too.

How do I use them?

Why not join me at one of my art classes? I teach online and in-person workshops using a variety of materials and subject matter! They’re open to all ages and levels and they’re a super chill time (you will have to put up with my jokes though!)