My favorite art supplies

No matter what kind of artist you are, whether that’s in a professional capacity or simply a hobbyist, having good quality materials is vital. All artists can appreciate good quality acrylic paints. When shopping for the best acrylic paints, you are faced with a range of brands and options which can be overwhelming.

Having good quality and reliable acrylic paints can make such a difference to your artwork – no matter what grade you’re working at. There are many things that go into finding the best acrylic paints for your needs and many artists find the whole process difficult to maneuver.

Here’s my favorite brands for ACRYLIC PAINTS

• Golden - You may purchase it on amazon.com, www.goldenpaints.com and/or any of your local art stores (Michaels, Blick Art Materials in USA). These paints are the heaviest and thickest ones i’ve ever used. Butter smooth and rich, realistic versatile colors, durable paints. I was able to learn how to apply these paints to make it look like an oils! I’d recommend these paints for advanced artists and for palette knife users. These are sold at higher price.

• Liquitex Professional Heavy Body - You may purchase it through amazon.com and/or any of your local art stores. Thick consistency, smooth and very true to description colors/opacity. Another advantage with Liquitex is its packaging. The cap is easy on and off, and doesn’t lend itself to gloppy paint stuck in the cap. Medium price.

• Myartscape - You may purchase it on amazon.com or www.myartscape.org

These paints are highly saturated with pigment. You will not be disappointed with the

intensity of these colors.These paints are so versatile, they can give the appearance of oils,

acrylics, and or watercolors. I like that they sell the paints in large bundles. Pricing is very

reasonable. Great costumer service.

• Arteza - You may purchase it through amazon.com or arteza.com. My favorite product is Arteza Metallic Acrylic Paint. They are highly pigmented and beautiful, work on many surfaces. This company also sells most of its products in bundles. Pricing is very reasonable.

Here’s something that will make your art SPECIAL:

Glow in the Dark paints from Art'n'Glow - You may purchase it on amazon.com or www.artnglow.com

Here's the code for you to get 15% off your purchase on their website: KRISTINA15

As you may have noticed some of my paintings Glow in the Dark! Well, thanks to Art'n'glow paints! You'll want to paint it over a light background color (white, or other very light colors) to be the most effective. I'm using two coats to make it the brightest in the dark. Reasonable pricing, excellent costumer service!

BRUSHES

I’ve received 15 Piece Paint Brush Set from a friend 4 years ago. I am still using them!The quality of the brushes is excellent. The brand is Myartscape. You may purchase it on amazon.com or www.myartscape.org.

I also use smaller brushes from CraftSmart i’ve got at Michaels. They work just fine.

PALETTE KNIFES

The palette knife is not just a tool for mixing paint on your palette. You can actually use the palette knife to create some pretty stunning effects in your paintings which are not possible with a brush. Some artists ignore the brush all together in favor of the palette knife. I use both brush and palette knife techniques as I like them both.

Below is what I look for in a palette knife:

A flexible but sturdy blade. A comfortable handle. A long, straight edge.

You do not need any unusual shapes. Just a standard-shaped palette knife in a few different sizes is more than enough.

You can purchase palette knifes in any local art store. I’ve got all of my knifes in art store when I was traveling to Moscow.

MEDIUMS and PASTES

That’s my favorite part! My paintings are very textured. All of the mediums I use are a bit pricey but I absolutely love using them. Here’s the list of mediums i use:

Golden Fiber Paste

Golden Glass Bead Gel

Golden Clear Granular Gel

Golden Soft Gel Gloss

Golden Crackle Paste

Golden Extra Coarse Pumice Gel

Liquitex Light Modeling Paste

Liquitex Black Lava

Liquitex String Gel

All of these products are available at your local stores, amazon.com and company’s websites.

VARNISH

All of my paintings are varnished. The first and most important function is to protect the painting surface from the environment and protect the pigments from ultraviolet light. Secondly, varnishes unify a painting’s surface sheen.

I only use one brand of varnish which is Liquitex Professional Gloss/Satin/Matte Varnish. You may purchase it through amazon.com and/or any of your local art stores.

RESIN

Art'n'Glow - You may purchase it on amazon.com or www.artnglow.com.

Here's the code for you to get 15% off your purchase on their website: KRISTINA15

Use our clear epoxy resin for all of your casting and coating applications. Cures crystal clear and hard as a rock. Resin is self leveling, self degassing, odor free, resistant to yellowing from UV exposure and it is food-safe. You can use it for various projects such as to coat tables and bars, encapsulate objects, cast figurines and jewelry, make resin paintings, coasters and more. I primarily use resin to coat my art and to make coasters.

Make sure to download the instructions from Art’n’glow website before you start using it.

Hope this will help you to make right choice!

Happy painting!

Photo credits Kristina Davini

www.kristinadavini.com

#painting #DIY #artsupplies