Supply List
“Painting in Brilliant Color: Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor”
Instructor: Elizabeth Stallings
Note that supplies will vary slightly depending on whether the student is painting in oil, acrylic,
or watercolor. Basic supplies are described below. More detailed descriptions for some supplies
follow. Please read the entire supply list. Many starter kits for painting have most of the
supplies you would need for class.
All Students:
Table Cover
Easy Release Tape ($ Store masking tape works well!)
Paints, Brushes, Palette, Palette Knife (more information below)
Two very small containers or jars (paper bathroom cups would work)
Paper towels or soft rags (lint free, Bounty is good)
Ruler, Pencil, Ultra-Fine Black Sharpie Pen
Eraser
Sketch pad for sketching/taking notes (not large, max. 11”x14”, several sheets of plain paper
would be o.k.)
Oil Painters: Brush Cleaning Jar with a tight fitting lid, metal or glass (plastic will leak or start
to come apart). Fill with Odorless Turpenoid (blue can) for cleaning brushes.
“Liquin” Original Oil Painting Medium (contains a drying agent). If your paint set has a
“medium” included use it. Linseed Oil and Walnut Oil are also mediums (no drying agent).
Odorless Turpenoid, or other odorless paint thinner for fine art, do not use hardware store
turpentine: used for cleaning brushes and thinning paint.
Pad of canvas: removable sheets for practice (can be cut to size)
Six canvas boards: size 8”x10” or 9”x12”, for color practice
Acrylic Painters: a small spray bottle for water
Bottle or jar of acrylic gloss medium (recommended), or mat medium (used to thin paint or make
paint flow)
Plastic containers for water
Pad of canvas: removable sheets for practice (can be cut to size)
Six canvas boards: size 8”x10” or 9”x12”, for color practice
Watercolor Painters: “Frisket” or any brand masking fluid
Gum Arabic medium, plastic containers for water
Watercolor paper: any size (can be cut to size), minimum 140 lb. weight
See Page Two
More About Paints: a starter set of paints will contain plenty of basic colors to begin with, or
paints may be purchased individually. Please look at labeling carefully, as it’s so easy to pick up
the wrong type of paint. Water-Mixable Oil is an entirely different kind of paint and is not
mixed with Oil or Acrylic paints.
Basic recommended colors (if you have more that’s good!):
Titanium White
Ivory Black
Raw or Burnt Umber (or both)
Sap Green
Ultramarine Blue Cerelean Blue
Cadmium Yellow Light (lemon)
Cadmium Yellow Medium
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red Light
Cadmium Red Medium
Viridian (green)
Dioxizine Violet
Alizarin Crimson or Quinacridone Red
Watercolor paints may have different names: please use tube watercolors, not pan colors
Brushes: at least 3: minimum of small, medium and large. The numbers on the brushes will
vary by manufacturer, but generally a 4 -6- 8 or 6 -8- 10 combination would work. Brushes may
be bristle fibers or the softer synthetic fibers (it’s good to have both). The brush shape varies
with the intended use. Typically flats or filberts work well for oil and acrylic, rounds work well
with watercolor. Inexpensive brush sets at Hobby Lobby and Michaels will give you a
variety of brushes and are available in both bristle and synthetic. Choose brushes labeled
for the kind of paint you are using (oil, acrylic or watercolor).
Palette Knife: A metal palette knife with a crooked neck and a smallish triangular blade with a
pointed or slightly rounded tip (about a size 2 or 4). Plastic is o.k., if it comes with your set.)
Palette: Any firm surface for putting out dabs of paint and for mixing space. The ‘Masters
Covered Palette’ lined with palette paper, or slick freezer wrap paper, works very well for
transporting paint to and from class. An alternative is any firm, flat something (like foam core or
cardboard) covered with slick freezer wrap paper. Palettes with “wells” for the paint are
intended for watercolor. Acrylic painters may purchase the ‘sponge’ that sits under the palette
paper (helps keep paint wet).
Supply Questions? Please e mail Elizabeth at stallingsart@att.net
If you are uncertain about what supplies to buy, wait until after the first class to purchase
expensive supplies.