Hot press or cold press? 300 gm? Cotton? So many weights, types, brands …. There’s loads to learn about paper! Did you know that the wrong paper can make your watercolors dull, can make your waterproof ink not waterproof, can affect your pencil smudginess, your pen’s performance, and so much more? Selecting paper and sketchbooks can be overwhelming. We have loads of questions too — so we gathered up the smartest paper experts we could find to give us some answers in an event called Q&Art Live: Paper. We discussed how paper is made and why it matters, common problems, how to select the r ..read more

  The best supplies for urban sketching help you draw on location, working quickly with a range of materials. You can draw with a simple pen or pencil, but color makes everything come alive! One of our favorite instructors, Ian Fennelly uses watercolor and a range of materials in his Sketchbook Skool urban sketching workshops. In Paint a Pub: Introduction to Urban Sketching, Ian uses watercolors, markers and fineliners to add personality and a sense of whimsy to a classic English pub. We’ll break down six essential supplies for urban sketching and tools in the Paint a Pub workshop. Want t ..read more

Navigate the plethora of palette options to watercolor at home or on-location. There are as many watercolor palette options as there are colors. It’s limitless. Whether you like to draw and paint out and about in the world or at home using photos, it can be difficult to navigate the many watercolor palette options out there.  This is a guide to help you pick a palette for every situation: arranging your go-to colors, storing your entire collection, and traveling with your supplies.  Keep reading for my favorite options with large mixing areas, portable to-go sizes, huge palettes for ..read more

Helpful drawing tips in just a few minutes with Koosje Koene. Improve your skills and break out those art supplies, join us to learn drawing tips and techniques every week. Draw Tip Tuesdays are short introductions to a style, practice, or tool. From Urban Sketching to Drawing People, India Ink to Watercolors — fill your sketchbook and get creative. New videos added every Tuesday. Draw Tip Tuesday Video Roundup August 25: Beauty in the Mundane In the Sketchbook Skool community, people express often they would love to have more of a regular drawing habit. But one of the problems they point out ..read more

Color theory is the science behind visual harmony in your paintings or drawings. The right color settings help capture the time and scene, ensuring nothing is glaringly out of place. Think of a water beach scene in the Caribbean ⁠— I picture warm blues highlighted by the sun. Now consider the Maine coast on a foggy day ⁠— cool blues capture the moody wildness of the environment. So, how do you adjust color settings in paint, colored pencil, or markers to get the results you want? It all comes down to color theory. The Basics of Color Theory Color theory creates a logical structure for color mi ..read more

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It’s tempting to think that if we want to make art, we should, of course, begin by shopping. Full of zest, vim and vigor, we resolve to really get in the creative mode and, tail wagging, we prance off to the art supply store. We browse through walls of pens, shelves of sketchbooks, and bins of brushes. We consider locked racks of spray paint, spools of armature wire, lino knives and airbrush frisket. We stare blankly at tubes of yellow watercolor that arbitrarily cost a buck or a Benjamin. And finally we stagger home, our credit cards limp with exhaustion, clutching bags of random gear, unsure ..read more

Stop erasing and get a lot more done The basic pen vs. the pencil — it’s an age old art supply debate in the creative community. Which is the best for an artist just starting to draw or looking to improve? In so many cases, pens and pencils can be used together to make a noteworthy sketch or piece of art. But for beginners or students still gaining confidence in their drawing skills, there’s no better art supply than the humble pen.  Use any kind of pen — even those free ones you get from restaurants — as much as possible to gain confidence in your skills and stop obsessing over the imper ..read more

Hint: You don’t need much to be creative. Get back to basics with the basic art supplies every artist needs. I know a lot of artists and, no matter their skill level, we all have one thing in common: we hoard art supplies. Visiting an art supply shop (or e-commerce site) is like being a kid in a candy store. Yummy paint, bright colored pencils, greasy crayons, ink in all colors of the rainbow, the softest brushes ever, all kinds of sketchbooks, and pens, oh so many pens – we want it all. But what art supplies do you really need? During these confusing and scary times living in isolation, what ..read more