Watercolour Guide
Buying watercolours can be overwhelming because there is such a wide variety available at a lot of different price points, from $3 sets at the supermarket designed for kids right through to professional artists sets that cost hundreds of dollars.
With this style of colouring in you don't need to buy something very expensive and can pick up a brush and paints for under $12.
Due to the nature of watercolours, even with a set of 12 colours you can get a huge variety of colours.
There are two types of watercolours you can purchase, both with pros and cons. I use both regularly and don't have a favourite, but for quick set up and pack down, I would say the sets are most suitable.
Types of Watercolour Paints
Watercolour Pans/SetsDescription: Solid, dry blocks of paint that are activated with water. Pans are usually stored in a compact case, making them portable and easy to use.
Pros:
Easy to control the amount of paint used.
Compact and travel-friendly.
Great for beginners.
Cons:
Colours can be less vibrant compared to tube paints.
Takes a bit longer to activate, especially when dry.
Ideal For: Beginners, travel, and those who prefer a tidy, easy-to-store paint option.
Watercolour Tubes
Description: Paint in a semi-liquid form that is squeezed onto a palette and mixed with water. Tubes offer vibrant and intense colours. You will need something to store the squeezed out paint, as you can reuse this once dried the same way as you would use a watercolour pan/set.
Pros:
- More vibrant and intense colours.
- Easier to mix and blend large quantities of paint and keep it the same colour consitency.
- Great for creating washes and large areas of colour.
Cons:
- Can be messy; requires a palette.
- More difficult to control paint quantity, leading to potential wastage. However if you store the paint in a palette it can be reused.
Ideal For: Artists looking for intense colours and those who want more flexibility in mixing.
Paints I use and recommend:
Faber-Castell Watercolour Pan 12 Set
This set creates lovely vivid colours, has a lid that you can use as a palette and comes with a lovely brush.
Faber-Castell Watercolour Pan 18 Set
This is the same set as above with more colours.
Kuretake Gansai Paints 24 Set
This set doesn't come with a brush or palette. The colours are lovely and vivid and I enjoy using this set.
Reeves Watercolour Paint Set tubes 12 Pack
You will need a palette to squeeze the paints onto and store them, as you can reuse the paint once it has dried.
White Watercolour paint
I've found that using white watercolour paints, or paints that have a lot of white in them can go over the lines of the artworks. I have a lot of different watercolour paints and I've only found that one colour, a pale, milky blue has caused this issue, and a set of dry palette pans that were very cheap.