Cotman Watercolor Travel Set (12 Colors)
Great for your first set of colors. Student grade, but still bright, reactivates easily, and easy to carry. This was my first set of watercolors.

Sennelier Watercolor Travel Set (8 Colors)
When you’re ready to upgrade, this is an amazing brand. I absolutely LOVE Sennelier’s quality, plus tubes give you more bang for your buck!

Schmincke Watercolor Set (12 Colors)
Schmincke is my new favorite brand. Their quality and color range perfectly matches what I look for in a watercolor set.

#12 Round Silver Black Velvet Brush
If I could only have one brush, this would be it. Highly absorbent and responsive, Silver Brush Black Velvet brushes are made from a blend of Squirrel hair and a new type of synthetic filament called Risslon.

Synthetic Rigger Brush
Very useful brush using long bristles that allow you to make very fine marks. Vegan friendly.

Escoda Ultimo Alvaro Castagnet Set
This set was gifted to me, and I absolutely love it. Especially the #18 which I use frequently for washes. Very high quality brushes.

Arches 9×12 Cold Pressed Paper Block
100% Cotton Paper, 140# (300gsm). Incredibly sturdy paper, handles everything I throw at it!

Saunders Waterford 9×12 Rough Paper Block
100% Cotton Paper, 140# (300gsm). I love an extra bit of texture, and this is my favorite rough paper that I’ve tried.

Etchr Watercolor Postcards
100% Cotton Paper, 230gsm. My new favorite watercolor postcards.

Fabriano Artistico 9×12 Hot Pressed Paper Block
I’m not a huge fan of hot pressed (smooth) paper, but out of all the ones I’ve tried, this is my favorite. I mainly use it for gouache and for that, it’s really nice.

Seawhite of Brighton A5 Watercolor Sketchbook
If you just want a very cheap, good quality sketchbook for wet media, this one is great. I mainly use it for gouache.

Strathmore Watercolor Travel Journal 7×10
One of my favorite 100% cotton travel sketchbooks in portrait orientation. It has a soft cover so you can fold it easily.

Etchr Cold Pressed A5 “Perfect” Sketchbook
100% cotton paper. Made with heavier 300 gsm paper, this will handle all wet media and watercolor behaves beautifully.

Hahnemuele Beige Watercolor A5 Sketchbook
I love this one for gouache especially! It also looks great with ink and wash. I also have their grey version which is fun.

Saunders Waterford Rough Fat Pad
I already mentioned I love the rough paper, so having it in sketchbook form is even better!

Etchr Cold Pressed A5 Sketchbook
A slightly different experience (more rough feeling) than their “perfect” sketchbook.

18 Well Watercolor Palette
I have used a version of this palette for 4 years and still love it. Mine is a generic brand, but it’s the same design.

Portable Painter (Hands Free Painting Kit)
When you just want a super simple, portable setup, this is the best!

Sealable Travel Palette Box
Comes with it’s own water container, this is a great airtight palette.

Portable Painter Micro
An even smaller version! I also like this one for gouache.

Winsor & Newton Set (5 Colors)
I frequently use W&N and love the consistency and colors.

Schmincke Horadam Gouache
Unique color range and very high quality.

Holbein Primary Set (5 Colors)
Extremely high quality gouache.

Shinhan Designer’s Gouache
Very affordable high quality gouache.

Seawhite of Brighton A5 Watercolor Sketchbook
If you just want a cheap, good quality sketchbook for wet media, this one is great. I use it for both watercolor and gouache. These replaced my Moleskine watercolor sketchbooks (which I no longer approve of).

Fabriano Artistico 9×12 Hot Pressed Paper Block
I don’t like painting on really textured paper with gouache, so I always use hot pressed watercolor paper.

Etchr Hot Pressed A5 Sketchbook
I love how bright, smooth, and absorbent this paper is. Perfect!

Daler Rowney Brush Set
A great intro set, especially when paired with an A5 sketchbook.

Silver Golden Taklon Lettering Brushes
These are soft synthetic brushes. My new favorites. I recommend getting a variety of sizes or seeking out bigger versions in other brands.

Etchr Brush Set (10)
These brushes are great for detail work. I also use them for gouache and watercolor.

Sealable Travel Palette Box
Keep your paints moist between sessions with this airtight palette. Comes with it’s own water dish.

Redgrass Studio Palette
Lots of mixing space, seals shut and keeps my gouache moist between sessions. This palette is a prototype but you can pre-order one.

Portable Painter Micro
A really great tiny palette for painting on the go.

Watercolor Ground
Painting on a smooth surface? Prime any surface with this to help the paint stick better.

Guerrilla Painter 6×8 ThumBox
I absolutely love this little pochade box. It is the perfect size to fit in my backpack!

My main gouache palette contains these colors (All Winsor & Newton):

• Titanium White (“permanent white”)
• Zinc White
• Prussian Blue
• Ultramarine Blue
• Phthalo Blue (“primary blue”)
• Cobalt Turquoise Light
• Cadmium-free Lemon Yellow
• Cadmium-free Yellow
• Yellow Ochre
• Perylene Black (dark green)
• Winsor Green
• Cadmium-free Red
• Permanent Alizarin Crimson
• Quinacridone Magenta
• Burnt Sienna
• Burnt Umber
• Jet Black

My “play palette” contains these colors (a mix):

• Shinhan Lemon Yellow
• Schmincke Titanium Gold Ochre
• Schmincke English Red
• Shinhan Carmine
• Shinhan Moss Green
• Schmincke Helio Turquoise
• W&N Cobalt Turquoise Light
• Shinhan Ultramarine Deep
• Schmincke Delft Blue
• W&N Burnt Umber
• W&N Jet Black

Winsor & Newton Water Mixable Oil Paint Set
Includes 10 Colors + Modified Linseed Oil which you can use to thin your paint and extend the color. This is my most used brand!

Holbein Duo Aqua Set (4 Colors)
If you want to try this brand (which I love) this is a good test set.

Jackson’s Aqua Oils Set (8 Colors)
I really like this brand, I have a few colors and it has a nice creamy consistency that’s easy to use.

Ampersand Gessobord Cradled Panel
I really love the surface of these for oil paint. They are cradled which makes them easy to mount, frame, or hang.

Arches Huile Paper for Oil
One of my new favorite ways to paint with oil! Especially with the water mixable oils. I can use them almost like watercolor!

Jackson’s Art Board Canvas Panel
A really great option while you are learning because they are easy to store, travel with, and very easy to frame!

Jackson’s Black Hog Brush Set for Oil
These are very robust and handle lots of abuse. Since I’m constantly scrubbing my canvas and they have handled it really well over the last couple years.

Silicone Palette Knife
These silicone palette knives are great for blending and applying large amounts of paint.

Jackson’s Akoya Synthetic Set for Oil
These are a little more stiff which I find useful for certain techniques.

Liquitex Large Brush
These large stiff-bristle brushes are excellent for large work. I love using them for backgrounds and big expressive marks.

Jackson’s Mottler Brush
I really like this for laying in big areas of color. If you can, get a couple so you don’t have to clean them when you want to switch colors.

Palette Knife Set
A good set of starter knives.

Palette Knife
I frequently use a palette knife to apply thick paint, get interesting marks, and scrape lines into the wet paint. Also useful for mixing color.

Retouching Varnish Spray
For temporarily protecting an oil painting before final varnish. Also great for evening out the finish and bringing the colors to life.

Master’s Brush Cleaner and Preserver
A necessary part of clean-up to make sure the bristles are free of oil and last a long time.

Gloss Varnish
Protect your artwork and bring out the richness of the colors.

Sta-Wet Sealable Palette
Allows you to seal your wet paint and keep it “moist” between sessions. I recommend buying a glass insert (I use a glass kitchen cutting board) to mix paint on.

Metal Brush Cleaner Jar
The sediment accumulated from washing brushes sinks through the holes to the bottom of the washer pot, and helps keep your water or solvent cleaner for longer.

Liquitex Basics
Great paint for beginners, or when you need a lot of coverage.

Golden High Flow Acrylics
Really great for flowy, drippy application. Also perfect for glazes.

Golden Heavy Body Acrylics
Luxurious paints, great coverage.

Satin Varnish
Protect your artwork and bring out the richness of the colors.

Sta-Wet Sealable Palette
Allows you to seal your wet paint and keep it “moist” between sessions. I recommend buying a glass insert (I use a glass kitchen cutting board) to mix paint on.