Watercolor Kit Essentials - Starting the hobby of watercolor

Thinking about picking up watercolor as a hobby? Excellent! You'll love it. I've been doing watercolor for a few years now. I can't really remember what sparked my interest in this craft. It may have stemmed from an evening of YouTube binge watching where I happened upon this show called Colour in Your Life. Joseph Zbukvic, a master in watercolor, was the guest on the show and he did a demonstration that left me in awe. Since then I've dedicated many a free hours into creating my own artwork and style.

Anyway, I thought you could use a little laundry list of supplies you will need to get your watercolor habit off the ground. Just a word of warning though, once you start collecting art supplies it's like a drug. You always need more...even though you probably have plenty. You'll nervously search online art stores trying to figure out what bodily organ you can sell so you can buy more art supplies. I'm down a kidney and my gallbladder already and I think I can get a great easel for one of my lungs.

Paints & Palettes

Everyone has an opinion on who makes the best watercolor paints. Ask 10 different artists which watercolor paint is the best and you'll probably get 10 different brands. When starting out you don't have to go "hog wild" and spring for the $10.00 tubes.

Whoops, I'm getting ahead of myself though. When you're starting out I recommend getting a pre-made set. That's right home squeeze! They make kits that include all the colors you will probably need when starting out and you don't have to lose precious sleep looking at color swatches in search of that perfect blue until your eyes bleed. These kits usually include "pans" of colors, a palette to mix your colors and a brush. Pans are just hardened versions of what you'd find in the tubes which makes the mobility of the kit pretty sweet.

Here are a few sets I recommend you invest in (don't buy all of them, you just need one...jeeesh!):

• Winsor & Newton Cotman Water Colour Sketchers Pocket Box
• Sakura XNCW-24N, 24 Assorted Watercolors Field Sketch Set with Brush
• Koi Water Colors Pocket Field Sketch Box W/Brush

Here are the two palettes I use. I use this one when I'm a lazy ass and don't feel like leaving the house.

This mobile palette is one I use when I look like a creepy old dude at the park and don't want to cart around all my art supplies. (The brush is the Silver Brush Black Velvet Voyager - size 6.

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Brushes

Brushes can be one of the most important investments you make. You can spend a lot of time and money searching for the right brush for you. Lucky for you you have me as a friend. I will lead you to the promise land brother! Or sister!

Brushes come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. You have rounds, flats, brights, fans, quills, riggers... Not to mention the various bristle materials that are available like plastic, animal fur and synthetic blends. I sucked at picking brushes when I was starting out. I went "cheapo" and I quickly got frustrated with the results.

First lets tackle the size. You can get away with a large round brush, a medium round brush and a small script brush. The large round brush (size 10) will be used when you need to paint large areas in your picture. Simple enough. The medium round brush (size 8) will help you with smaller areas that need a healthy amount of color. The small script brush (size 4) will be your go-to when you need to do some finer detail. If you work with smaller pieces of watercolor paper you might want to add a small round brush (size 4) for some additional flexibility.

Bristle material really comes down to two choices. I recommend you lean towards the animal fur brushes or some synthetic blends that perform nearly identical to them. The common animal fur used in watercolor brushes is sable or squirrel/mink tail fur. I prefer the non-dead animal options especially since, from my experience, they are much cheaper and perform nearly identically. Save the squirrels...or minks!

Here are some non-dead animal options from Princeton Neptune and Silver Brush that are incredible:

• Princeton Neptune Synthetic Squirrel Brushes
• Silver Brush Black Velvet Brushes

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Paper

I get anxious when I see a blank sheet of watercolor paper. Anxious because I know that there's a chance I'm going to pour my heart into a painting then realize it looks like ass and have to throw it away. Luckily I don't do that often but it still scares me a little.

Like paints and brushes you will get many many opinions on what's the best watercolor paper. I personally don't have a preference in the brand. I normally like whatever is on sale. I do have four pointers for you.

Pointer number 1: You'll want a 300 gsm/ 140 lb. watercolor paper. What this means is a 300 gram per square meter / 140 pounds per ream. What this means is...umm...it means the paper is heavier, thicker and gooder for watercolor. Yep, I snuck a gooder in there. Heavier/thicker paper means it'll hold the water better and reduce the buckling that water can create on paper. While 140 lb. watercolor paper is optimal, you also have a choice of 90 lb. which is obviously thinner or 300 lb. which is heavier. You should be able to find 140 lb. at your local hobby store though.

Pointer number 2: There's another component of paper known as the finish. At least that's what I call it. The finish is measured by the smoothness of the paper. Three common types of finishes include hot pressed, cold pressed and rough.

• Hot Pressed means the paper will be extremely smooth like a baby's bottom...only there won't be poo on it.
• Cold Pressed means the paper will have some texture or some "teeth" as they say in the industry.
• Rough means the paper is extremely textured which can add some additional character to your painting if that's your desire.

Pointer number 3: Get watercolor paper that is acid free and consists of 100% cotton. It should say both on the cover. Cotton is stronger than plain wood pulp paper and dammit we are watercolor artists, we are the epitome of strength! Acid free means you can lick the paper all you want and you won't have an LSD trip. Wait. That's not right. Acid free means the paper will not yellow after it sits around for a while.

Pointer number 4: For convenience, look for watercolor blocks. Blocks are sheets of watercolor paper glued around the edges to keep them together so they form a...wait for it...block. You paint on the top sheet of the block. When you are done you run a palette knife or, like me, a butter knife around the edge and release the sheet you painted on. Then you can start painting your next masterpiece. The glued edges usually keep the paper tight while you work. Blocks of watercolor paper are in a variety of sizes so find a size you are comfortable painting on. Tip: If you are just practicing you can do multiple practice paintings on one sheet by sectioning it out.

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Accessories

Some artists can get by using just their paint brushes and paint to create their masterpieces. I need to create a rough sketch on the paper using pencil before I even think about adding any paint. When the painting is finished you may need to add some finer details which are easily done with an archive quality pen. In my picture above you'll see I use a normal art pencil, kneaded eraser, a black archive quality pen and a white gel pen. I also have a sepia (reddish brown) archive quality pen when the black pen is too overpowering. If you can snag a pencil sharpener you should have all the accessories you need to begin your career...living...hobby of painting.

Where the Magic Happens

The picture above is what my typical work area looks like. I tend to setup shop on the kitchen island because it's conveniently big, I have easy access to food and I like when my wife criticizes my work while I'm painting. Love you honey. (I lied, I hate it!)

Here's a little description of what you see in the picture:
A: Pad or block of watercolor paper
B: Brushes I'm using
C: Old rag for cleaning brushes or removing excess water
D: Watercolor palette - mine is always messy
E: Water for cleaning brush and mixing...and occasionally drinking when I think it's my coffee. Yuck!
F: Sketch supplies

And that, my friends, is all you should need to begin your adventure in watercolor. There are a number of videos on YouTube you can watch to get additional painting pointers. I believe it's important to jump in and learn by doing. Thankfully, paper grows on trees so if you mess up you can start over. (I used the "grows on trees" reference for comedic effect, if you were paying attention you should be getting 100% cotton paper.)

Some Study Material

Alan Owen - This guy's loose technique is awesome and accessible to everyone.
Peter Steeler - Love his technique. He can give you additional ideas.
The Mind of Watercolor - Steve Mitchell is an amazing artist. You can get a ton of ideas by just watching how he works.