My Favourite Tools and Materials
Here’s a list of the tools and resources I use and love – whether I’m painting, stocking up on art supplies, making videos, writing, or running my business behind the scenes. I only recommend things I truly stand behind.
This page is a work in progress, and I will add to it as I find more things I love!
Some links may be affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you!).
Art Supplies & Materials
These are my favourite supplies for making art – with a focus on quality, versatility, tactility, and ease of use.
Wood Panels
These are my favourites for quality, sturdiness, and the light colour of the wood {as I don’t prime my panels}.
I’ve tried lots of acrylic brands, and always come back to Golden for the quality and pigment. My favourite colour of all time is Iridescent Copper Light Fine for adding some shimmer.
Walnut Ink
A beautiful chocolatey colour that dilutes to sepia – I love this as an alternative to black.
I always return to Seawhite for sketchbooks because they make so many different sizes and shapes {including the concertina, which I absolutely love}, and the paper is thick enough to withstand quite a bit of enthusiasm.
Schmincke Granulating Watercolours
My favourite watercolours, which separate into two colours when dry. Beautiful effects, and last for ages.
Liquitex Freestyle Brushes
Brilliant for covering large areas quickly, and for making sweeping gestural and expressive marks.
As the name suggests, intense colour, and can be used both wet and dry. Versatile, tactile, and great for both painting and sketchbooks.
I’m not fussy about brands for my acrylic and water based painting, but I do like da Vinci as an inexpensive option.
Kuretake Watercolours
A more recent discovery, and a total joy. I love the colours in the Art Nouveau set {there are other options}, and the paints are deliciously creamy. They act like both watercolour and gouache, depending on how much water you add.
Even though I use fluid acrylics, I like to dilute my paints further with airbrush medium, which doesn’t separate out the pigment as adding too much water can. I do also add water, but I like to have airbrush medium for a particular consistency.
Creamy consistency, lush colours, just beautiful to use. I also love that they were invented because Picasso wanted oil paints in a solid form.
Natural Brushes
For oils, I love Rosemary and Co – a UK based company that makes beautiful handmade brushes. Not the cheapest, but very high quality and will last a lifetime with care.
I love blind contour drawing, and these pens, available in different weights, are great. Also waterproof, so I can paint over my drawings.
I’ve always loved charcoal for its tactility and potential for expressiveness. Yes it’s messy, but hands can be washed! I’ll often use this for under drawings, or for emphasising areas in paintings.
Yes I’ve already mentioned Seawhite’s sketchbooks, but my favourite of all time is the concertina sketchbook they make, so it needs its own mention! Available in A5 and A4, it’s great for travel, and deeply satisfying to open out when finished.
Lovely quality and size, comes with a waterbrush, and a great size for travel or plein air painting.
Software
From cataloguing my art to selling it online, and other software I find essential, these are my favourites.
Artwork Archive
I love Artwork Archive so much I’ve partnered with them, so when you use my link, you get 30% off your first year with them. Brilliant for cataloguing your work, creating specific links for galleries and collectors with available work, sending invoices, setting up a simple website, and much more.
I use this for selling my art online. It’s a really robust shopping platform, and although it has a bit of a learning curve, is worth it for the fantastic functionality. You can choose from a huge library of templates, and add apps to customise it to your needs.
A surprising choice perhaps, but you can get so many art and studio supplies on Vinted, both new and used. With my link, when you list 3 items, we’ll both get £5 to spend on Vinted, then another £10 each when you make a sale. Costs nothing to join, and a great way to make a bit of money for more art supplies!
If you create courses, you’ll need somewhere to store your videos. Livid is a great alternative to Vimeo, which I used for a long time but has become increasingly expensive. I have nothing but good things to say about Livid so far – superb customer service, easy to use, and offers good savings.
Studio Organisation & Tech for Filming
This isn’t all essential, but these are the tools I find very helpful for organising and filming in the studio {and beyond}.
Versatile IKEA shelving unit – comes in different sizes and configurations, and you can add doors, drawers, and baskets. I also added castors to mine for easier moving.
A Pondering Chair
I don’t have a specific recommendation, but I do strongly advocate for the concept! Mine was found locally second hand via Gumtree. Click the button to read more about why it’s something I recommend.
I used my Samsung Galaxy phone camera for filming courses and YouTube videos for a long time before upgrading to this little camera, and it’s well worth it. This one is waterproof, shoots in 4k, has a great wide angle view, and is very versatile in terms of angles and filming possibilities. {There are different bundles available.}
Really useful for when you want a specific angle or there’s nowhere flat to put a tripod. Wraps around things, and can be angled by bending the legs.
Makes filming while walking or moving about smooth and natural. Extends to become a selfie stick so you can walk and talk with your face framed by the view.
Good audio is crucial when filming – these magnetic bluetooth mics are very easy to use with your phone and provide good, clear sound.
I used my Samsung Galaxy phone camera for my YouTube videos for a long time before upgrading to this little camera, and it’s night and day. This one shoots in 4k, has a great wide angle view, is waterproof, and very versatile in terms of angles and filming possibilities. {There are different bundles available.}
Books & Courses
My favourite ways to learn and discover, whether for art, business, or anything else that interests me.
Drawing and Painting People: A New Approach by Emily Ball
I bought this in 2013 and it remains my favourite art book of all time. Not just for figurative artists, it contains practical exercises, examples of both Emily and other artists’ work, and tons of thoughtful writing about the process of art and being an artist.
A huge range of courses on all sorts of topics, from painting to business, crafts, writing and more. I’ve used Skillshare to learn about painting techniques, making and editing YouTube videos, and developing the craft of writing so far. Get 1 month free with my link.
