There are both pot/cake watercolors AND tube watercolors. I personally recommend and prefer tube paint but I work with both in my studio. The difference in quality comes down to concentration of pigment. The better the quality, the higher pigment. You can even use "children's" watercolor with good results if you know how to use them, but they may fade with time and you will not get the vibrancy in color. Good Brands are Winsor-Newton, Grumbacher, but less expensive will do!

Brushes can be natural, synthetic or both. Natural bristles create softer loser strokes and synthetic tend to create sharper lines. I would have a variety. But at least 1 natural med, round.

Sizes to have on hand 

• Round: Larger, #10 or #12, Medium, #6 or #8, and a small: #1, #2 or #4, detail,3/0 is nice

• Flat: 1”, 3/4” & 1/2”

• Mop brush: large & floppy for lots of water

MY favorite palettes are Corelle plates (from Walmart) but other things work too: Large white ceramic tiles from the hardware store, ceramic plate ( found a great square one at the dollar store), enamel tray... I sometimes use plastic palettes but it's better to have a larger mixing area. Caution as some pigments can stain surfaces. Whatever you use, make sure it does not absorb water. Often the lid of a watercolor set is used as an extra palette. 

You need to buy "Watercolor paper" of no less than 140lbs. The heavier the better, but also the more expensive. 140lb should be just fine for our purposes. Especially when we are practicing technique and color mixing. you can find this at any art/craft supply store.

My favorite erasers are white, vinyl/plastic erasers and kneaded erasers. You can find packs of art erasers at any craft or art supply store. (PLEASE never use "Pink Erasers" on your artwork.) Any pencil will work!

I recommend a better quality artist tape to prevent tearing, but when you are beginning, good old fashioned white masking tape will do. (You need to tape your paper to prevent warping.) YOu can use water activated craft tape, but we will not be covering that in this class. 

You need a smooth, strong, rigid surface to tape your paper to as you work. A simple drawing board will work for now, but ideally a smooth thick piece of smooth wood is better. Some of the heavier papers can actually warp a thinner board. 

• Drawing Pencils

• Water Jar

• Paper Towels

• Small Spray Bottle

• Ruler

• Blow Dryer (a must)

• Sea Sponge (for textures)

• Table Salt (for textures)

• Masking Medium (not necessary but fun to play with)