The all-time art supplies in 2022, from sketchbooks to pastels

Hand dipping paintbrush into a watercolor palette

These are the best sketchbooks, pencils, erasers, pastels, watercolors, acrylics, oils, brushes, and canvas to buy in 2022.
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  • The best art supplies can be expensive, only you lot don't have to spend a lot to get great materials.
  • We've rounded upwardly the best essential and beginner art supplies you can buy online.
  • Our list includes pencils, pastels, watercolors, paint sets, sketchbooks, canvases, and more than.

As someone who's been cartoon since I could hold a crayon, I've been through my fair share of graphite pencils, sketchbooks, and paint sets. I've tried dozens of different brands over the years, and some are withal my favorites.

Whether you've been painting for years, are going off to fine art schoolhouse soon, or just want to get into drawing for the first time, you need quality fine art supplies. And while professional person artists may use pricey supplies to create their masterpieces, y'all don't necessarily have to beat out out on the fanciest pastels or canvas.

In fact, there are plenty of. more affordable options that can serve you just as well, if you lot know how to employ them to your advantage. To help, we rounded up many of the basic art supplies you need in your studio in one handy guide.

Learn more about how Insider Reviews reviews and researches hobby-related products.

Here are the best art supplies you lot can buy:

The best sketchbook:Strathmore Sketchbooks, $12.76 from Amazon
Strathmore makes splendid sketchbooks with all kinds of paper, including drawing, watercolor, pastel, charcoal, and more.

Best graphite pencils: Staedtler Pencil Mars Lumograph 12-Slice Set, $12.82 from Amazon
Staedtler comes with all the graphite pencils you need to draw like a pro.

All-time charcoal: Cretacolor Charcoal Drawing Set up, $29.41 from Blick
The Cretacolor Charcoal Cartoon Set has every kind of charcoal you need to create beautiful work.

All-time colored pencils: Prismacolor Quality Art Set, $46.99 from Amazon
Prismacolor Quality Fine art Set includes 48 colored pencils that are rich in colour.

Best erasers:Prismacolor Premier Kneaded, ArtGum, and Plastic Erasers, $2.48 from Blick
Premier will erase any mistake yous make.

Best pastels: Sennelier, $45.17 from Amazon
Sennelier makes the absolute best oil and soft pastels, merely Van Gogh, Koh-i-noor, and Prismacolor are fine alternatives.

Best watercolors:Winsor & Newton, $36.88 from Amazon
Winsor & Newton makes wonderful watercolor paints and sets, while Derwent makes excellent watercolor pencils.

Best acrylic paints:Liquitex BASICS Acrylic Paint Tube 12-Slice Set, $23.79 from Amazon
The Winsor & Newton 2190517 Galeria Acrylic Paint 10 Tube Set are great starter kits for painting.

Best oil paints:Winsor & Newton, $19.99 from Blick, Gamblin, $88.50 from Blick, and Williamsburg Handmade, $10.28 from Blick
Oil paints represent very unlike toll points to satisfy whatever budget.

Best paintbrushes:Da Vinci, $12.95 from Blick
Da Vinci makes slap-up brushes for watercolor, acrylic, and oil painting.

Best canvas:Fredrix, $120.57 from Blick
Fredrix makes good canvas, and it's virtually always cheaper to stretch your own canvas than to buy pre-made ones.

All-time sketchbook

Amazon

Strathmore makes fantabulous sketchbooks with all kinds of paper, including drawing, watercolor, pastel, charcoal, and more than.

Pros: Sturdy sketchbooks, not bad newspaper quality, paper types for unlike media, affordable

Cons: Larger sizes cost more, specialty papers accept fewer pages

I've used Strathmore sketchbooks for years. I typically buy the ones with recycled newspaper, simply I've also used the pastel, charcoal, and watercolor pads for when I need a dissimilar texture. No matter which media you choose, these sketchbooks can handle it.

The standard paper will warp if you use watercolors on it, but for any kind of pen, pencil, marker, or another drawing implement, information technology volition practise the job — it's a adept thickness and weight.

When it comes to Strathmore's watercolor newspaper, it's sturdy and stiff plenty to stand upward to lots of water. The charcoal and pastel newspaper notebooks both have a wonderful texture to them that really works for the softer media and good blending. Strathmore's prices are fairly reasonable, likewise, then you can sketch away.

Here are other Strathmore products we recommend:

This versatile felt-finished paper is ideal for mastering watercolor techniques or finished pieces.

The Strathmore charcoal pad is the ideal foundation for charcoal and pastel, and information technology's free of acid.

For graphite pencil, colored pencil, charcoal, sketching stick, marking, soft pastel, mixed media, oil pastel.

Best graphite pencils

Amazon

The Staedtler Pencil Mars Lumograph 12-Piece Gear up comes with all the graphite pencils you demand to draw like a pro.

Pros: Bold graphite pencils, 8B to 6H range, affordable, long-lasting

Cons: None

If y'all depict with graphite pencils, you know that not all graphite is the aforementioned. This Staedtler set comes with 12 pencils in different hardnesses from 8B to 6H. For the uninitiated, the higher the number in front of the B, the softer the lead. Conversely, the higher the number in front of the H, the harder the atomic number 82.

Most people volition utilize 2B, HB, and B the most, but if you need deep dark blacks that blend well, you'll need 4B and up. For difficult, light lines, H pencils are perfect.

The pencils come in a can for safekeeping, and they're easy to sharpen and comfortable to hold — even when you depict for hours on finish. I've used dozens of graphite pencils, simply Staedtler's are the best for the toll.

Best charcoal drawing set

Amazon

The Cretacolor Charcoal Drawing Set has every kind of charcoal y'all need to create beautiful piece of work.

Pros: Big gear up with many pieces, includes charcoal pencils and compressed charcoal; comes with an eraser, charcoal sticks, and a charcoal block; affordable

Cons: None

If you lot're merely getting started with charcoal or you desire to try a new medium, this charcoal set has everything you need, including pencils and compressed charcoal.

Each pencil is labeled with its hardness level, and the kneaded eraser is a great blending tool, but it tin also erase any mistakes fairly well.

All-time colored pencils

Amazon

The Prismacolor Quality Fine art Prepare includes 48 colored pencils that are rich in colour.

Pros: Bold colors, lots of variety, long-lasting, eraser and sharpener included, affordable

Cons: None

The Prismacolor Quality Art Set comes with 48 colored pencils in beautiful, bright shades. Y'all'll likewise go a sharpener and a Latex-Free Scholar Eraser in the ready.

These colored pencils aren't similar the basic Crayola ones you used in elementary school. — they're high-quality, soft lead pencils with rich colors. You tin create extraordinary drawings with these Prismacolor pencils or color in an adult coloring volume to make a black and white pattern come to life.

All-time erasers

Amazon

The Prismacolor Premier Kneaded, ArtGum, and Plastic Erasers will erase any mistake you lot make.

Pros: 3 types of erasers, affordable

Cons: None

To err is human being, and here to fix your mistakes are Prismacolor's erasers. This three-pack gives you a kneaded rubber eraser, an artist gum eraser, and a latex-complimentary plastic eraser.

I personally merely utilize kneaded erasers, considering they piece of work with all media and don't shed eraser bits everywhere, but the ArtGum eraser is great for stubborn graphite and the plastic eraser doesn't shed, either.

Since this gear up gives you all three, you tin pick and cull which one you need based on the medium y'all're working with.

Best pastels

Amazon

Sennelier makes the accented all-time oil and soft pastels, but Van Gogh, Koh-i-noor, and Prismacolor are fine alternatives.

Pros: Beautiful oil and soft pastels, good multifariousness of colors, potent pigments

Cons: Sennelier's pastels are expensive

One of my favorite mediums is pastel. The rich, bold colors and easy blending make for the perfect drawing experience. Of all the pastels I've used, Sennelier'due south are the all-time. Its oil pastels, in particular, are stunning. The richness of the colors is unparalleled and you can experience the oiliness of the pastel. I lust over them every time I got to the art store.

However, Sennelier pastels are very expensive, because they are among the highest quality ones you lot can buy. Since non everyone tin can spend hundreds on them — myself included, alas — Van Gogh makes corking oil pastels for much less, Koh-i-noor sells wonderful soft pastel pencils, and Prismacolor makes great soft pastels for an affordable price.

I mostly use soft pastel pencils, considering the fine tip gives you more control over your drawing and fine item. However, when you're working big and you need to alloy, Prismacolor'due south pastels are perfect. Van Gogh's oil pastels are almost equally pigmented and rich as Sennelier's and they alloy very well. You tin can even thin them with linseed oil, just like you would for oil paint if you want a painterly expect.

Hither are the best pastels nosotros recommend:

Utilize on a diverseness of surfaces including canvas, paper, metal, wood, stone, even glass.

Sennelier Soft Pastels are actress soft pastels fabricated with pigments chosen for colorfastness and brilliance mixed just with natural binders.

Made with pure pigments, mineral oils, and wax binders for a remarkably soft and polish laydown with no grit.

Fabricated from loftier-quality, pure, micro-pulverized pastel pigments, encased in California cedar, thus creating less mess and dust particles than traditional soft pastels.

Composed of rich, creamy pigment that'south the artist's pick for blending and shading.

Best watercolors

Amazon

Winsor & Newton makes wonderful watercolor paints and sets, while Derwent makes excellent watercolor pencils.

Pros: Brilliant colors, good multifariousness in the sets, sturdy pencils

Cons: Loftier-end tubes are pricey

While yous may think nigh those plastic sets from elementary school, the all-time watercolors come in tubes like acrylic and oil paint. You can get good sets in plastic, of course, and there are wonderful watercolor pencils, as well. We've got picks for all 3.

The Winsor & Newton Cotman Water Color 12-Tube Set is all-time for the serious watercolor artist who wants a nice ready of colors, while the Sketcher's Pocket Box is great for anyone on the go who want a travel-friendly plastic set. Both provide rich, lovely color.

My favorite watercolor pencils are Derwent'southward considering y'all can get a nice diverseness of colors without paying too much. The watercolor pencils give yous more than control over fine details in your paintings, then they may exist a fun add-on to your supplies.

Here are the best watercolor art supplies we recommend:

Winsor & Newton Cotman H2o Colours are a range of water colours that are made to our high quality standards simply costs are kept to an economical level by replacing some of the more costly pigments with less expensive alternatives.

Cotman H2o Colours possess practiced transparency, excellent tinting force, and good working backdrop.

Derwent Watercolour Pencils tin can be mixed with water to create unique color flows and stunning watercolour effects.

Best acrylic paints

Amazon

Liquitex Basics Acrylic Pigment Tube 12-Piece Set and the Winsor & Newton 2190517 Galeria Acrylic Paint ten Tube Set are great starter kits for painting.

Pros: Strong colors, affordable options, high-quality options, sets offer good value

Cons: Small tubes, can get expensive

My beginning set of acrylic paints was the Basics set by Liquitex. The set comes with 12 colors that you can mix to your heart'southward content to create more shades. You really only need these basic colors to create every shade of the rainbow.

Of course, this budget set isn't that loftier-end, then if you lot're looking for something a bit amend, the Winsor & Newton 10-tube set up is a groovy choice. You'll pay more for higher-quality paint and strong pigments. You can't go wrong with either one, really.

Here are the best acrylic paint sets we recommend:

Each color is uniquely formulated to bring out the maximum luminescence and clarity of the individual pigment.

Galleria acrylic colour is a high quality acrylic which delivers professional person results and is ideal for artists who want practiced quality colour at an affordable cost.

Best oil paints

Amazon

Winsor & Newton, Gamblin, and Williamsburg Handmade oil paints represent very different price points to satisfy whatsoever budget.

Pros: Potent colors, affordable options, loftier-quality options, sets offer good value

Cons: Small tubes, tin can get expensive if you go with the high-end paint

The almost expensive art form you can get into is oil painting, but it's besides one of the virtually flexible. Oil paint is richer than acrylic and information technology stays wet longer for ameliorate mixing, blending, and use over the course of long-term projects.

Winsor & Newton brand a good oil paint that's suitable for beginners or artists on a upkeep. Gamblin falls in the middle, while Williamsburg'southward handmade oils are considered amidst the best. They're sold past tubes and not by sets, so yous tin can option the colors y'all demand.

The differences are in the richness of the pigments, the oils used to make the paints, and the procedure by which the paint is made. You can spend hundreds on small tubes of the all-time oils, simply these three options volition serve you well until you become every bit famous equally Picasso.

Hither are the all-time oil paints we recommend:

The Winton range has a uniform consistency offer excellent retention of brush and palette pocketknife strokes.

The Gamblin oil color set creates colors that are luscious, intense, and pigment-rich.

These full-bodied oils are handmade in pocket-sized batches with each colour treated differently to bring out its unique property.

All-time brushes

Amazon

Da Vinci makes cracking brushes for watercolor, acrylic, and oil painting.

Pros: Brushes for all media, relatively affordable, no shedding, sets offer skillful value

Cons: Existent hair and bristle price more

The master communication we take on brushes is don't become cheap terrible ones that shed all over your canvas.

No matter what medium y'all paint in, da Vinci Brushes has the brush you need. There are more brushes out there than can be put in a simple guide like this, just da Vinci'due south wares are relatively affordable and long-lasting, so nosotros've included them here.

Some of the brushes are synthetic, merely others are made from real animal pilus and bristle. In that location'south a lot of argument over what materials are best, but we've included a mix at different price points.

Hither are the best da Vinci brushes we recommend:

Universal brushes are a bang-up starter fix for beginners, young artists or teachers.

Excellent for watercolor, gouache, analogy, animation, restoration and rendering.

Maestro two interlocked hog bristle shapes are deeply set in their ferrules and concur their shape after vigorous use.

Best canvass

Blick

Fredrix makes good canvas, and information technology's well-nigh always cheaper to stretch your own canvas than to buy pre-fabricated ones.

Pros: Canvas is cheaper when you brand your own; practiced quality sheet material, available in primed or unprimed

Cons: Sail is expensive and time-consuming to make

If you're working in oil or acrylic, information technology'due south tempting to buy pre-stretched canvases and accept it done. However, you tin save loads of coin — peculiarly if yous paint on huge canvases — if you make your ain canvases.

To practice it yourself, you'll need wood for the frame, sail, a staple gun, and canvas pliers to stretch it properly. I've made canvases before, and it may exist hard work, but it's worth it.

Fredrix sells canvas in many forms and sizes. You can become it primed or unprimed if you prefer to do it yourself with a giant saucepan of gesso or if you lot just desire a raw canvas.

Here are the canvases and accessories nosotros recommend:

A medium weight all Polyflax with essentially greater force than cotton wool fibers. Medium texture with almost perfect uniformity.

Unprimed cotton wool sheet peachy for all artists. Includes 6-yards unprimed cotton canvas.

The Fredrix Canvas Pliers made from heavy-duty chromium plated metal with a spring return handle.

This framing kit allows you to create your own solid wood frame for your canvas from scratch, even if you have zero experience!

Art supplies FAQ:

What are the nearly essential art supplies?

While our list covers a range of art supplies, one of the most versatile is the Strathmore sketchbook, which works with a broad range of mediums — from pencils to pastels.

As for what you lot really describe with, pencils are keen because you can employ them to create stand-alone art or outline a piece before y'all use pigment or pastels.

What art supplies should I get as a beginner?

According to our guide on drawing for beginners, all you need to really become started is a sketchbook, eraser, and some pencils — you don't fifty-fifty necessarily need a whole set or even colored pencils.

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