I don’t normally do seasonal posts, but I’ve just been inspired to put one together because really, what better gift to give than something that will encourage and support someone in exploring art and creativity, right?! 😉

And also, this time of year isn’t just about Christmas for me;  somehow most of my family have birthdays between October and December, so I have to really get my gift giving thinking cap on at this time of year.

Everything I’ve included I either use myself or am giving to someone, and some of these links are affiliate links, just so you know. 🙂

Ish by Peter H Reynolds is such an adorable and beautifully illustrated book, about a little boy called Ramon who loves to draw, but loses confidence after his brother laughs at him. And then he gets it back {I won’t tell you how or it’ll spoil the surprise. 😉 }.

I’ve bought this for my niece who is about to be five. Mainly because I want to get all cosy and read it to her, obviously. But also because I want anything I give my niece and nephew to be somehow positively reinforcing to their confidence and their feeling of having a place in the world that’s unique and important. This book is a fun way to do that.

Another fun gift for a little girl {and Paperchase makes more boy friendly designs too} – who didn’t love magic colour changing pens when they were little?! Plus, super affordable. Wins all round. Especially when given with a little notebook or colouring book.

You may know about my deep love of  Caran D’ache Neocolor II Crayons. Versatile because they’re water soluble, they last for ages and are perfect for making art on the go. Again, give them with a small sketchbook and maybe some aquabrushes, {see below}, and that is a gorgeous gift. {Well, I’d like it!}

I have these aquabrushes, although more expensive and no doubt better quality ones are available. But these have stood me in good stead, despite losing a lid.

These Seawhite Black Euro Spiral Hardback Sketchbooks are my favourite, especially the square ones. Lots of sizes, pretty strong paper for adding water to those Neocolors or holding layers of collage and gesso, and not too expensive.

Even though I’m not an art journaler, 1,000 Artist Journal Pages: Personal Pages and Inspirations has been a huge source of inspiration for me over the years. I bought it on a whim in an airport while travelling {not the best idea to buy non essential books to lug around the world but I’m glad I did now}, and found it full of inspiring ideas that I could try out or use as starting points. A good present for someone who sometimes needs a kickstart.

Golden Fluid Acrylic Paints  are expensive, because they are extremely good quality. I find that the small 30ml bottles make good gifts; you could give a ‘set’ of three colours you know someone loves, or just one as part of several small gifts together, as I’m doing for a friend this year.

An unusual colour such as this Iridescent Gold is lovely and adds a bit of sparkly specialness to the proceedings.

It would be remiss of me not to mention my own book. 😉 You can find out much more about it by clicking on the image. It’s available from both Amazon and my Etsy shop {which means I can sign it or write a note in it}, and is a great little introduction to exploring your creativity, including but not limited to artistically.

You can even receive a free sample chapter to check out suitability before purchasing it {also available by clicking the image}.

You may also like to consider giving someone you love access to a comprehensive artist membership!

The Happy Artist Studio contains full access to all my courses, a private and supportive community, The Way of the Happy Artist program, and monthly topics to explore. There are three payment options to suit different budgets. If you have any questions about it, I’m here to help!

You can find out more by clicking here or the image on the left.

Next time we’ll look at some more homemade, DIY style ideas for gifts, because making things to give might be more time consuming, but it’s also more fun. 🙂