These product recommendations are based on the art supplies and color tools I use regularly in my home studio (aka small desk area in my apartment). They are not based on social media trends. I will never recommend anything I wouldn’t use.
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My Favorite Color-Matching Tools
Shop my favorite, recommended color wheels, color cards, and other color theory tools. These are companion tools for the reprinted art education books and free art exercise worksheets.
Joen Wolfrom Essential Color Wheel Companion
Joen Wolfrom’s Essential Color Wheel Companion is a modern, CMY (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow) based color wheel.
This wheel contains 24 hues and is great for:
- Artists
- Graphic Designers
- Quilters and textile artists
- Interior decorating and design
- Any activity that requires putting together cohesive color schemes
Joen Wolfrom Essential Color Card Deck
Help students visualize color relationships with this lovely color card deck from Joen Wolfrom. Perfect for teaching color theory or for creating cohesive color combinations in your own art and design projects.
Joen Wolfrom Ultimate 3-in-1 Color Tool
Expertly plan your art and design projects with this comprehensive, CMY-based, color-matching swatch fan. Perfect for: art students
- professional artists
- graphic designers
- fashion designers
- interior design projects
- makeup artists.
Magic Palette Color Mixing Guide – 36 Colors
This color matching guide can help you with mixing watercolors, acrylics, and oils, and for color matching different surfaces. It has 36 color cards featuring 144 pure hues, tints, and shades. Each color is based on classic artists’ pigments such as Burnt Umber, Raw Sienna, Ivory Black, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Yellow Light, Cadmium Red, and Sap Green. It is a great basic guide and color mixing tool for artists of all levels, from beginner to seasoned professional.
Art Supplies
Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolor Paint Set, 20 Colors
This set contains 20 essential starter colors for beginners and professionals who prefer a more limited palette, although twenty hues is still a lot. Cotman colors are formulated for high transparency and provide outstanding lightfastness. For specific effects, use with Winsor & Newton watercolor mediums. I’ve been very happy with this set! I love that I can mix my own Payne’s Gray and many other beautiful colors using this one set.
Professional Artist Paint Brush Set of 12
This is a really nice, affordable professional-quality brush set. The bristles are high-grade nylon that hold paint well, keep their shape, and don’t shed. You can use them with watercolors, ink, oils, or acrylics. They work well on paper, canvas, and fabric. This set includes all the essential shapes: flat, round, fan, and filbert.
Winsor & Newton Drawing Ink Set, Set of 8, Henry Collection
I love these colorful drawing inks. They are perfect for adding color to sketches, ink drawings, or illustrations. They are fast-drying and permanent. This set includes: Canary Yellow, Orange, Carmine, Violet, Blue, Emerald, Nut Brown, and Black.
Winsor & Newton Drawing Ink Set, Set of 8, William Collection
Expand your color range with the William Collection of inks. This set includes: Sunshine Yellow, Deep Red, Vermilion, Ultramarine, Purple, Brilliant Green, Peat Brown, and Black Indian Ink. These inks are water-resistant and can be used with brushes, dip pens, and airbrushes. Did you know that professional illustrators have been using these inks since the 1890s? How cool is that?
6 Piece Glass Dip Pen Set for Drawing and Calligraphy
This lovely handmade borosilicate glass dip pen set has a unique spiral design that increases ink absorption and extends drawing and writing time. They have a comfortable grip and glide smoothly over paper. They are easy to clean too!
Drawing and Sketching Supplies
STAEDTLER Mars Lumograph Art Drawing Pencils, Set of 12
These are my favorite pencils for drawing and sketching. They are made of high-quality graphite, and the leads don’t break easily. They perform smoothly and blend easily (depending on the hardness). This set and brand have been my go-to for years.
Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils, 150 Count
Prismacolor is another brand I swear by. These colored pencils are smooth, highly pigmented, and lightfast. When it comes to working with colored pencils, unlike other art mediums, where you can do a lot with a limited palette, I found that I can have too few colors, which is why I recommend this larger set.
Mixed Media Sketchbook 9×12, Drawing Paper Pad
I really like these mixed media sketching pads. I can easily throw them in my bag and whip them out for quick pencil sketches. The paper is smooth and thick enough for ink and watercolor too. They also come in a 10×8 and 11×14 size.
If you like to use a lot of water (the wet-on-wet technique) when working on watercolor sketches, I recommend the new Luchetti True Flat Sketchbook, which is a whopping 600 gsm!
Classical Color Theory Paints and Supplies:
For the exercises given in The Theory and Practice of Color Revised Edition.
Assorted Foam Stamps for Painting
39 pieces featuring various fun shapes. Perfect for kids and adults alike. Use in your color classes for demonstrating key color theory principles.
PATIKIL 6 Pcs Tempera Cakes, Red
Non-toxic, water-based paint cakes in primary red. Ideal for classroom use for teaching color theory and basic color mixing principles.
PATIKIL 6 Pcs Tempera Cakes, Dark Yellow
Non-toxic, water-based paint in primary yellow. Ideal for classroom use for teaching color theory and color mixing principles.
PATIKIL 6 Pcs Tempera Cakes, Blue
Non-toxic, water-based paint in primary blue. Ideal for classroom use for teaching fundamental color theory and color mixing principles.
PATIKIL 6 Pcs Tempera Cakes, White
Non-toxic, water-based paint in classic, neutral white. Ideal for classroom use for teaching fundamental color theory and color mixing principles.
PATIKIL 6 Pcs Tempera Cakes, Black
Non-toxic, water-based paint in neutral black. Ideal for classroom use for teaching fundamental color theory and color mixing principles.
Modern Color Theory Paint Colors:
Prang Ready-to-Use Tempera Paint, Turquoise, 16 Oz.
CLASSIC FORMULA: Primary Turquoise Blue provides smooth laydown and bold, vibrant colors; dries quickly to allow for a wide range of craft applications such as posters, art and construction paper, plaster, and more.
SAFE FOR KIDS: Prang paint is AP certified non-toxic; great for kids ages 4 & up!
Prang Ready-to-Use Tempera Paint, Magenta, 16 Oz.
CLASSIC FORMULA: Primary Magenta provides smooth laydown and bold, vibrant colors; dries quickly for a wide range of craft applications on posters, art construction paper, plaster, and more.
SAFE FOR KIDS: Prang paint is AP-certified non-toxic; great for kids ages 4 and up!
Prang Ready-to-Use Tempera Paint, Yellow, 16 Oz.
CLASSIC FORMULA: Primary Yellow provides smooth laydown and bold, vibrant colors; dries quickly for a wide range of craft applications on posters, art construction paper, plaster, canvas, and more.
SAFE FOR KIDS: Prang paint is AP-certified non-toxic; great for kids ages 4 and up!
