Watercolor Basics Kit

Watercolor Basics Kit
Greenleaf & Blueberry Artisanal Handmade Watercolors

This kit comes in a canvas zipper pouch and includes all items pictures above, which are also listed below.

This kit has been designed for:

• The watercolor beginner who is unsure which supplies to select
• To answer a question we frequently receive, which is, "Where do I begin?"
• The watercolorist who travels
• Anyone taking our forthcoming online watercolor course.
  
• Those wanting to invest in quality supplies, but who are happy to track down additional less essential extras to keep cost down.
• Those who enjoy a more minimalistic supply assortment.

All supplies fit into the included pouch for easy travel, transport, and storage.  These are the supplies I wish I would have had as a beginner that it has taken me years of painting and trial-and-error to distill.

The supplies in our kit were selected for their quality and purpose.  These should last you a good long while, especially if cared for properly, and, more importantly, these supplies should afford you an enjoyable watercolor experience, putting quality basics at your fingertips.

Below, I'll list each included item and why it was selected:

Greenleaf & Blueberry Kit Zipper Pouch
Made in USA with sturdy canvas for the bottom, organic cotton upper, and YKK zipper, we designed this bag to carry everything you need - including your sketchbook.  There is even room for more supplies as you add them, and even our Kit Add-On, should you wish to transform this into the Ultimate Kit.  Over the years, I have realized how convenient it is to have all of my watercolor supplies in one place, especially when I'm traveling.  It also keeps your supplies in better shape and prevents random items getting lost.

Greenleaf & Blueberry Anthesis Watercolor Palette
This is our ultimate streamlined watercolor palette that can mix any hue and tackle any subject.  It includes split primary palette options (six high chroma primary colors for mixing clean, bright secondary colors) as well as natural Ochres, and colors for convenience.  You can read more about the color selections here.  Make sure to view the color chart created from the six primary colors in the third picture in this listing.  Colors are housed in a Greenleaf & Blueberry enamel bijoux box with thumb loop.  Enamel is a superior mixing surface, where plastic alternatives can cause color mixtures to bead.  Bijoux Box priming pad is also included - you can read more about it here.

Color Mister
A simple item, but so wonderful to have on hand.  Use this to mist your colors with water before you begin painting.  It will give your paints a chance to moisten so that they readily jump onto your brush.  More importantly, pre-wetting your colors can save your precious fine brush tips from prematurely wearing out (scrubbing at dry pans can really accelerate this process).  

Travel Watercolor Brush, Da Vinci Casaneo Quill Size 2
After a lot of consideration, I decided that if you could only have one brush as a beginner, this is the one.  It being a travel brush means that it will be both easy to care for and easy to transport.  The tip of a watercolor brush is sacred and part of what makes nice round brushes so versatile - the point is what allows you to paint fine lines and details.  "Casaneo" refers to the type of bristles - these are synthetic bristles, meant to imitate natural squirrel hair.  They are wonderfully absorbent, but with better snap than natural squirrel.  This brush has an exquisite point on it.  The point combined with the absorbency makes an amazingly versatile brush, capable of making both nice broad washes and fine details.

Watercolor Sketchbook, Hahnemühle Watercolour Book 100% Cotton 120 lbs. Cold Pressed A5
A sketchbook is such a wonderful format for paper, and a classic artist's tool.  However, watercolor sketchbooks can be something of a rarity, and too many watercolorists (especially beginners) end up painting in sketchbooks that don't contain watercolor paper, leading to pooling paints, puckering paper, and loads of frustration.  This sketchbook is made by a company that has been specializing in paper for several hundred years and their quality is unmatched.  100% cotton paper has the right absorbency for watercolors, cold pressed paper offers enough texture to show your colors to full effect, and 120 lb. paper is thick enough to not buckle too much when not stretched or taped.

Pencil, Faber Castell 9000 H
These are high quality pencils with a hard graphite, as indicated by the "H".  Harder graphite means a lighter line.  A frustration for beginning watercolorists especially is painting over a graphite sketch that was done using graphite that was too soft, resulting in smearing and greying of the paints when the sketch is watercolored over.  Lighter lines are less noticeable when painted over, easier to erase or lighten, and they won't smear.  Just don't press too hard and score your paper!  

Metal Pencil Cap
A pencil cap will both protect the point of your pencil while it is stored to save you from sharpening it every time you sit down to paint, and it will also prevent it poking you through the bag.  Our kit bag is thick and sturdy, but pencil points in particular have a way of making it through any weave to surprise you!

Permanent Ink Liners, Sakura Pigma Microns Size 08 Black
Ink Liners are very useful for adding labels, notes, or signatures to paintings.  They can also be use to outline as well.  It is essential to use permanent or waterproof ink so that the watercolors will not smear the ink.  Pigment-based archival inks will prevent your work from fading.  We have included two because the tips can wear out on textured paper or paint.

Artist's Masking Tape, Nichiban #251 9mm
Tape is a wonderful tool in watercolor.  You can use it as a resist to protect the white paper while you paint and control where you paint.  You can also use it to tape single sheets of paper to a board, and also add nice crisp white borders to your paintings.  We have included two rolls.  This is my favorite tape.  It is gentle on the paper, while having enough stick to seal out wet colors and protect the paper.  Just remember to press it down when you apply it, and remove it gently to avoid paper tears.

Kneaded Eraser & Canister
Kneaded erasers are an unsung hero of watercolor painting.  Gentle on paper, endlessly reformable, and key in lightening graphite drawings before painting, this is another essential.  Keep it more malleable longer by storing it properly - I use a vintage film canister, and I have taken some care to source them for you too!

Gum Eraser
While gum erasers can be messy in that they can crumble, they are also very gently on paper, which is important in watercolors.  If you have a larger area you'd like to erase, use a gum eraser.  I have selected a high quality one that doesn't crumble to pieces and has a nice feel to it.

Pencil Cap Erasers & Storage Tin
This kit includes three white pencil cap erasers and a tin to store them in.  They are white because colored erasers of this kind can smear the paper with their color when they become brittle - a condition many of us don't realize until after we have smeared our paper!  The pencil included in this kit does not have an eraser (many sketching pencils do not), but I find it very handy to have an eraser on the end of the pencil, especially for little spot erasing.

Drawstring Storage Bags
While it can be quicker to just dump your supplies into your carrying bag, it can leave them jostling against one another in transport, breaking tips and getting everything smeared with a light layer of graphite.  I like to use small bags such as these to organize my supplies so I don't have to rummage, and to help protect my supplies so they aren't constantly crashing against each other like hand towels in the dryer.

There is plenty of room left in the carrying bag to add your own personal favorites as well!

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