The Wonder of Watercolor: Beginner to Intermediate

Watercolor brushes:

Round brushes: # 2, # 8, # 12, #14

Flat brushes: ½", 1"

Acrylic painting brush:

Flat brush: ½"

Two water containers:

One for clean water; one for dirty water.

Palette:

For indoor painting, any type of watercolor palette with large mixing areas. Could add butchers tray for more mixing area (option).

If you plan to paint outdoor in the future, you might need a palette with lid (option).

Stock:

140 lbs. cold pressed watercolor paper.

watercolor board (option)

light weight illustration board (option)

Drawing Board or a piece of plywood

Artist tape or Brown paper gum tape:

For mounting watercolor paper on board. If you use watercolor board or illustration board, you don't need these tapes.

Pencil H or 2H, Design Kneaded eraser:

For sketch.

Paper towel:

For lifting out color and excessive water.

Watercolor or Gouache in tube:

I pick up colors that contain both cool and warm, light and dark for each hue, such as Cadmium Yellow Light, Cadmium Yellow Deep, Cadmium Orange, Yellow ochre, Scarlet Lake, Alizarin Crimson, Permanent Rose, Permanent Magenta, Cobalt Violet, Permanent Sap Green, Permanent Green Light, Winsor Green Yellow Shade, Cerulean Blue, Cobalt Blue, Prussian Blue, then add some neutral colors like Raw Sienna, Raw Umber, Burnt Umber and Titanium White.

For beginner, the simple way for choosing color is purchase a set of 18 or 24 tubes watercolor. After using them for a while, you will figure out which color you need more, which one you use little, and you might find some new colors you'd like to add.

Reference:

I will have some still lives or flowers in class, but I encourage you to bring your own favorite things, photos or some other reference, and camera if you like.