A Few of My Favorite Things
- Lisa Wiertel
- Jun 22, 2022
- 3 min read
Did anyone else think of Julie Andrews when you read the post title?
I can't count how many times I have seen "The Sound of Music"
All that, just to start a blog post on some of my favorite art supplies!
I thought it would be fun to share my knowledge on what art supplies that I love. Believe me when I say that I have spent hundreds of dollars on art supplies that just didn't "cut the mustard"(i.e.come up to expectations)
Note: These truly are my favorite art supplies. I've included Amazon Affiliate links therefore if you get all excited and decide to buy one of my favorite things, I'm supposed to get compensated from Amazon. I have no idea how much that is but maybe in 2 years I will be able to buy a coffee at Starbucks with the earnings. Thanks Jeff Bezos!
Drum roll, please!
If I could coat the Earth in Liquitex Pouring Medium I would. That's how much I like it.
This water-based medium changed my life. Before learning about it, I was experimenting with many resin/polyurethane products. They always come with health warnings on the package that frankly can scare you to death. Seriously, I have a small house and it would be gutted with fumes when I used some of them. I hated to think that my kids, dog and I were breathing this stuff in.
Now, I feel like my lungs are safe with my Liquitex Pouring Medium. Goes on opaque and dries to a clear, glossy finish. It works great with all of Liquitex's other mediums and products.
It's also mistake friendly. I've been able to fix paintings where a wayward dog hair dried in the finish. That is hard to do with resin products.
My colored pencils of choice are Prismacolors. Make sure you get the set labeled "Premier" and not the Scholar brand of Prismacolors. If you have a little budding artist at home and they need a set of colored pencils, these are the ones to get. I honestly wish I could buy them for all of my students.
I remember when I was a broke college student and I had to buy the pencils individually because I couldn't afford a set. Then, I would bring it home and not want to use it!
Luckily, I have a large set of them and still find new colors that I want to use and purchase. Prismacolor pencils are available everywhere including Amazon. I love the way they blend and how I can sharpen them to a fine point to draw those little lines on birds' feathers.
The colorless blender comes in the sets and don't be like me and not use it. I use that sucker all the time now and keep extra ones on hand for when I need one. Helps to blend multiple colors of pencils together.
I keep telling myself that I am going to try out another brand of colored pencils, but I never do. I'm a creature of habit.
I used to use other erasers before I was introduced to this brand(Thanks Melissa!)
I buy them for my students at school to use and they call them the "high quality artist erasers". LOL!
Seriously, if you can only buy one eraser in your lifetime, buy these ones. You will not be disappointed. I even convinced my artist son to use them and he never listens to me(teenagers!)
Made in Japan, these are the best. paint pens. ever. Don't cheap out and use the imitations out there. They put Sharpies to shame even though I love a good Sharpie. :)
Posca pens come in different tips sizes. I have the extra fine set of 12 colors.
We used these at the library I worked at for our painting rocks workshops. They worked great.
I use them for my art journal and in some of my mixed media pieces.
Kids love them. When the tip gets worn, pull it out and switch to the other end. They have put up with a lot of abuse in my classroom. They are the best paint pens ever. Seriously, get a set or two and make sure you hide them in your classroom and take out for special projects.
I will be doing regular blog posts on my favorite things because I truly use a lot of artist "stuff". I'm a good resource for anyone that wants a recommendation on what to buy and what not to buy.
Feel free to ask questions.
As always, thanks for reading!
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