Mastodawn

Can anyone give me some advice about choosing materials for watercolor painting as a disabled person who has to spend most of my time in bed? I have paper, and can probably scrounge up a bed easel. But I've only ever bought supermarket paint sets, and I'm looking for something a little nicer. How do I get started with those cool little pans? I need a way to work without a water glass, if possible, don't want to spill in bed. I want to paint flowers and stuff like that. #art #watercolor #advice

penpencilbrush🇨🇦Feb 21

@temporal_spider These are ridiculously convenient and can be found online everywhere. Fill it with water and you're all set.

https://opusartsupplies.com/products/pentel-aquash-water-brushes

Pentel Aquash Water Brushes

Deborah Preuss, pcc 🇨🇦Feb 21

@penpencilbrush @temporal_spider absolutely. For watercolour in bed: perfect (I can attest! 😁).

Deborah Preuss, pcc 🇨🇦Feb 21

@penpencilbrush @temporal_spider but don't buy the cheapest ones: some work, some don't. They leak. Or they are blocked.

Pentel or Derwent are reliable - better with one or two of these than 6 leaky ones! Meeden is ok.

penpencilbrush🇨🇦Feb 21

@temporal_spider Watercolour palettes also available online every where... depends on your budget...

Student quality, but perfectly good
https://opusartsupplies.com/products/cotman-water-colours-sketchers-pocket-box-set-of-12

Professional quality, not , but just to see the $ difference...
https://opusartsupplies.com/products/winsor-newton-professional-watercolour-customizable-travel-tin-set-of-12

Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolour Sketchers' Pocket Box Set of 12

@penpencilbrush @temporal_spider This is a good paint set. Make sure you paint on acid-free paper, heavy enough to withstand the medium. Good paper can be as important as nice paint. :)

penpencilbrush🇨🇦Feb 21

@temporal_spider Then there's watercolour pencil sets which are fun and convenient.
Not meaning to promote this particular company, but just because I know where to find products there. Anywhere from Amazon to the brand websites can provide options.

https://opusartsupplies.com/products/derwent-inktense-pencil-sets

Derwent Inktense Pencil Set of 12

penpencilbrush🇨🇦Feb 21

@temporal_spider Here's an article about the various watercolour brands, not sure what's available in your area. They all have strong and weak points. Part of the fun over the years is trying different brands to see what you prefer. A lot of artists use some of each. :)

https://finearttutorials.com/guide/best-watercolour-paint/

The Best Watercolour Paint Brands: A Comprehensive Review

Discover the best watercolour paint brands, their properties and the differences between each in this comprehensive guide.

Fine Art Tutorials

neville park Feb 21

@temporal_spider You can get brushes with barrels that can be filled with water, like these (https://midoco.ca/products/yasutomo-niji-waterbrush-3pk)!

Yasutomo Niji Waterbrush 3pk

Mati Rangel Feb 21

@temporal_spider I am a starter too and my art teacher recommended me Nevskaya Palitra, it's amazin comparing to supermarket watercolors and has good quality/price balance. Be sure to choose a set with the basic colors.

james is here Feb 21

@temporal_spider i was gifted one of the Sakura field kit sets and it's perfect for limiting the mess. The included water brush solves the water issue - that does limit the technique a bit since it has a certain flow rate, but if you really wanted to add more water you could also use an eyedropper. You can also mix the pan color with watercolor pencils - those will activate just by touching the tip of the pencil to a wet brush, producing bold lines of color.
https://www.sakuraofamerica.com/product/koi-water-color-field-sketch-kit/

ratfactor Feb 21

@temporal_spider I second the recommendation for water brushes. Squeezing them just the right amount to get the brush wet without dripping takes a bit of practice, but is totally do-able.

There are a bunch of great watercolor pan sets that are a step up from supermarket, but are still quite inexpensive.

What I've done is start with a small, cheap Sakura Koi travel set and as the colors ran out, I've refilled with nice tubes. When the tube paint dries, it works just like the pans - wet and use!

ratfactor Feb 21

@temporal_spider Here's my current setup. I use this for all of my art. Koi travel set. Cheap synthetic brushes. Very compact.

Expensive tube paints normally not out, but shown as example - I only have to refill every couple months, if that.

A water cup can be glued to a piece of board or cardboard to make spills less likely. This is our little secret, but I just do a quick rinse on my cup and brushes after use. It's fine. Synthetic is very forgiving.

@temporal_spider i've also used the water-filled brushes, but there are other solutions like this water pot that won't spill even if tipped over (you have to overfill it and really try to get it to spill): https://www.atlantisart.co.uk/c-a-childrens-non-spill-brush-pot-extra-wide/
I mostly use watercolor pencils right now, so I'm not much help on the paints.

Loxley - Children's Non-Spill Brush Pot - Extra Wide

Atlantis Art Materials is the UK's Largest Art Materials Store. Huge range of art materials at competitive prices. Come in store or shop online. Unit 1/Unit 7 Bayford Street Industrial Centre, London E8 3SE - 0207 3778855 - www.atlantisart.co.uk

Atlantis Art Materials

@cathos that is an excellent idea! I will definitely use this.

Deborah Preuss, pcc 🇨🇦Feb 21

@temporal_spider @nev I can help - have tried out many different sets, looking for best bang-for-buck for students.
▪ What country are you in? That will help me recommend.
▪ Also: do you like to mix your own colours or have a palette with lots of pre-mixed colours (which won't mix as cleanly together, but will be pretty!)
▪ do you care if they fade over time? (In daylight, that is. In a sketchbook most paints son't fade).

@deborahh @nev Thank you so much for your time and ideas! I'm in USA, trying to avoid the evil Amazon (trying...)

The adult in me thinks I should limit my palette and learn to mix. The kid in me wants to buy all of the shiny new colors! So both?

There is seldom any sunlight in my room bcz I'm sensitive to light. I think I just want the pleasure of paint flowing onto paper.

Maija Koivula ⌘Feb 21

@temporal_spider Like others have mentioned, the brushes you can fill with water are nice, I have a whole set and use them frequently. The pencils are nice too, and you can paint the water on them with a water-filled brush, or use the pencils to add detail to a painting.

There are a lot of expensive quality water colour palettes, my teacher wanted all of us to graduate to Schminke, I don’t know what kinds you have available to you. I currently paint with Ukrainian company’s Rosa watercolours, which are lower mid tier in price, but just looking at colour wheels I’ve made with my paints, you can tell they’re packed with pigment.

I hope you find useful information to your situation and that you get to do some painting!

Manuèle Ducret Feb 21

@temporal_spider
The koh-I-Noor round stacking sets have been my daughter’s favourite paints for the last 13 years (she is 25). She takes them everywhere and use them daily with a simple water brush. The colours are beautiful, deep and stable (a small swap reference can be useful), the quality is excellent and the price amazing.
The stacking set means the slots are big, but each part is easy to hold and everything is stable on any surface.

https://artspices.eu/products/koh-i-noor-round-watercolours-school-set-48-colours?srsltid=AfmBOook4wfxPlhsg56GEFMGje7FRnjfkI3rwqYvfT96T9Ctq-HvGGlz

Koh-I-Noor Round Watercolours School Set, 48 Colours