If you're really in a budget pinch, here's my super affordable starter pack picks (I include the waterproof pen because ink and wash is an easier entrance than classic watercolor and outlines can save many a painting)
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Other countries have other affordable options. South Korea has Mungyo paints, Van Gogh is a bargain in Europe, so I understand, but I can't speak to prices anywhere in the world except the USA. Just don't spend a grocery store trip's worth on money on supplies as a newbie!
aug 31, 2025, 4:51 pm • 10 0 • view
Anyway, what really annoys me about the "It's okay to use affordable materials" discourse morphing into "LIGHTFASTNESS SUCKS" is that I see some influencers sniffing around who sell janky, non-lightfast supplies at pro grade prices and I know they are going to use it to sell tat to newbies.
aug 31, 2025, 4:54 pm • 10 0 • view
Prices have gone up. I previously would have told you not to spend more than $20 on a beginner set but $25 is the new limit THAT BEING SAID, do not spend $40, $50, more on a beginner paint set ESPECIALLY if it is a bespoke influencer-designed one with weird colors. You won't have the tools you need
aug 31, 2025, 4:55 pm • 10 1 • view
Most legit beginner sets will have a warm and cool version of each of the three primaries (I will not be litigating the definition of "primary color" here), plus a warm and cool brown and usually a warm and cool green. Optional extras that you should look for are a pink and a sky blue.
aug 31, 2025, 4:57 pm • 15 0 • view
With those colors, you can paint anything and follow just about any class that doesn't rely on gimmicky colors and brushes (you really only need a round, with an optional flat for washes). If a class starts demanding you lay down massive amounts of dough for the teacher's own brand supplies, run.
aug 31, 2025, 4:58 pm • 12 0 • view
What I mean by warm and cool colors: A red that leans orange and one that leans purple A blue that leans green and one that leans purple A yellow that leans green and one that leans orange Greens because they can be hard to mix I mention sky blue and pink because they cannot be mixed easily
aug 31, 2025, 5:04 pm • 11 0 • view
Your pink may also be your purply red (that's what I do) but many sets have all three. Most sets include browns because they are also a pain to mix. I also like beginner sets to include yellow ochre and payne's gray.
aug 31, 2025, 5:06 pm • 4 0 • view
So, my boring basic, get the job done, won't fail set has Pyrrole Red (warm) Quinacridone Rose (cool) Ultramarine Blue (warm) Phthalo Blue (cool) Hana Yellow Deep (warm) Lemon Yellow (cool) Burnt Sienna (warm) Burnt Umber (cool) Sap Green (warm) Phthalo Green (cool) Yellow Ochre Payne's Gray
aug 31, 2025, 5:09 pm • 7 0 • view
For myself, I don't use sap green all that much but tutorials do. I prefer Chromium Oxide Green but it's a beast and can overwhelm beginners. I also prefer Terra Cotta for my warm brown and add in Caput Mortuum for a purple-leaning brown. And I love Mars Black and Titanium White but that's heresy.
aug 31, 2025, 5:10 pm • 4 0 • view
Ooo and I forgot to add to my boring basic set: Cerulean Hue! The Hue is artificial and nontoxic (real Cerulean is a cobalt). You will want it for skies.
aug 31, 2025, 5:12 pm • 5 0 • view
Ha! I remember discovering the unhappy housewife art market back in the scrapbooking days. Are Somerset magazines still around?
aug 31, 2025, 5:38 pm • 1 0 • view
Looks like it is! There is also Victoria Magazine for all the 1990s ladies with delusions of aristocracy (I knew one who basically lived her life by the will of Victoria and it was like, ma'am, you were a cashier at Piggly Wiggly)
aug 31, 2025, 5:41 pm • 2 0 • view
I loved Victoria when it first came out, but when it became more about impossible recipes and actual rich American’s houses instead of pretty pictures of women walking through rainy woods, accompanied by scraps of poetry.
aug 31, 2025, 5:45 pm • 2 0 • view
Yes, it was fun for a while but then they also had their tie-in catalog to push. Very much dead tree influencer behavior.
aug 31, 2025, 5:46 pm • 2 0 • view
Well said. The browns and greens were critical when I was starting out (mumble, talk into hand) years ago. Today, there are certain flesh tones I can only get by mixing cheap-ass kiddie paints with premium higher-priced spreads. But don’t tell anyone.
sep 1, 2025, 7:35 pm • 1 0 • view
Yes, all manner of browns and flesh tones are a challenge for me to mix (muddy mixes aren't pretty browns and tans and peaches) so I tend to indulge in quite a few ready-made browns but most are single pigment so I will never be caught!
sep 1, 2025, 8:21 pm • 1 0 • view
Clever girl!
sep 1, 2025, 8:26 pm • 1 0 • view
Damn it. Now I’m worried I bought bad paint.
aug 31, 2025, 4:57 pm • 0 0 • view
What do you have?
aug 31, 2025, 4:58 pm • 1 0 • view
Oh it’s just some cheapie store brand acrylic. I’m just dabbling. But long term “wear” did cross my mind. More about cracking/peeling than light fastness
aug 31, 2025, 6:44 pm • 0 0 • view
In my opinion, acrylic is a lot more forgiving of cheapness than most other mediums but, yeah, the reds are probably going to fade in the sun over the years. But I think you're fine for dabbling.
aug 31, 2025, 6:46 pm • 0 0 • view
I have not tried their acrylic but I have to say I have Artist's Loft watercolor paper and it's terrible.
aug 31, 2025, 6:52 pm • 1 0 • view
These two paragraphs may be some of the best advice a beginner in the arts will ever get. (I’m also fond of “Is that a dog or a cow? Start over.”)
sep 1, 2025, 7:24 pm • 1 0 • view
love me some canson paper. great sketchbooks, accessible, good price point, and paper quality equal to higher priced items. However Im more of a M Graham wc and goaucge painter. But thats cuz Im not a fan of WN binder. Honey binders work better in my dry SoCal climate.
aug 31, 2025, 7:34 pm • 1 0 • view
Yes, I like honey as well. My go-to is the gum arabic-bound Da Vinci (local!) and it rewets like a dream but honey paints work well for me.
aug 31, 2025, 7:35 pm • 1 0 • view
I dont have the luxury of working with wet paint cuz it's gonna dry too fast, especially when doing plein air pieces. So M Graham and even DS ends up more cost effective for me. But cheap paint, if it matches ur intention, is great for practice.
aug 31, 2025, 7:36 pm • 1 0 • view