There are just a few supplies you need when using acrylics for your next painting. You can use modest supplies to the most expensive and obscure painting supplies any artist can devour. Whichever way you decide to go you must have the basics. So, let’s start with the first need, the paint.
1. Acrylic Paint
One of the best places to get acrylic paint is from your local art supply store. If you don’t have a local art supply store you can always begin online. One of the most popular supply stores online is Blick Art Supply. I have been buying from them ever since grade school when my mom had to buy supplies for me while I attended a Fine Arts school.
The best acrylic paint to get is heavy body paint such as Golden or Liquitex. These are by far the most superior acrylic paints that you can find. You can feel the difference as you are painting. If you are just beginning and don’t want to spend a lot of money on your first set, I would recommend Basics, or Croma A2. Many of my students use these brands for their work in class. They’re just not as thick and robust as the Golden.
2. Brush or Palette Knife
Finding the best paint brush for acrylics can be a little bit overwhelming but if you know the basics you will do just fine. There are so many types of brushes made by different brands out there that the novice painting can easily get frustrated. I would suggest that you purchase brushes that have either a natural or synthetic bristle that has a good handle. I prefer long handle brushes for most of my paintings. The only time I paint with a smaller handle brush is when I paint small tight areas within a painting. There are eight types of brushes you can use with acrylic paint and each one can be use for a particular use.
3. Medium
There are several mediums out there for artist to use. Now I am not going to go into any of them but you have large amount of flexibility with the different types of mediums out there. There are mediums that will thicken your acrylic paint, mat your acrylic paint, gloss your acrylic paint and even give your acrylic paint more texture and consistency. Some of the best mediums for acrylic paints can be found here.
4. Jug of water
Always, I mean always, have water when you are using acrylics. You will need it when you are mixing colors, rinsing a brush or thinning paint. Now you can put water in cups or jars but know that sometimes they may spill when you are dipping your brush in the water. I like to use water basins because they are sturdy, wide and square. They’re not as high as a tall glass or cup, so tipping the basin over won’t ever happen.
5. Paper towel
Last but not least, paper towels can be used to dry your brush off, wipe spills and even wet paint from your arm when painting. This may sound intuitive but you would not believe how many artists forget this simple supply. I recommend getting a heavy duty towel that you find at your local hardware store. They cost about 5 bucks but it is well worth it. These paper towels are heavy and made for projects such as painting.
There could be more added to this list but these are the main supplies I recommend. Please don’t be offended if the list that I mentioned seem trite. My goal was to provide information for the absolute beginner.