What to bring to outdoor painting classes

You can pick one medium to focus on or bring two.  Simpler is usually better.  Your choice.

Here are the materials I use for all my classes, indoor and outdoor:

Drawing Materials

  • #2 pencils or your favorite .9 mm mechanical pencils with HB or B lead
  • medium point marker (like a “Sharpy laundry pen)
  • 24 sheets of white, used or unused copier paper on a clipboard
  • Pen for taking notes (See below for the rest of the materials)
  • Sanford Tuff Stuff eraser stick
  • Pentel Clic Eraser
  • White “Magic Rub” type eraser
  • medium size paper stomp (shader)

Watercolor

Paints

  • Winsor yellow or cadmium yellow pale hue
  • cad. orange hue
  • perinone orange
  • cad. red pale hue
  • alizarin crimson hue
  • permanent rose
  • dioxazine violet
  • ultramarine blue
  • pthalo blue
  • pthalo green

Support

Arches cold pressed watercolor paper 140# to 300#

  • The maximum size of watercolor paper to use for en plein air painting is 11×15 inches
  • Do not by to use cheap or student grade paper, it will greatly limit your progress

One inch wide  3M/Scotch masking tape (#2050)

Palette

  • 12 x16 inches or bigger, with a large flat central mixing area
  • The Pike palette is the best. (the 11×15″, 20-well version.)

Easel

  • If you don’t have an easel it’s fine.  You can use a folding chair and a 16 x 20″ lap board.  Your watercolor paper and drawing paper taped lightly to the board.  Palette sitting on your supply box nearby.

Other supplies

  • Gallon jug with opening near the top for brush rinsing.
  • Paper towels to adjust and control water loading in your brush.  For cleaning palette.
  • Mist-type sprayer.  Don’t use the plant-type sprayers which produce heavier droplets.

Drawing

  • An HB, B, and/or 2B pencil
  • White magic-rub eraser

Brushes

Soft nylon, such as sablette, golden taklon, etc.

  • 3/4-inch flat
  • l/2-inch flat
  • 1/8-inch round, minimum

Acrylic

Support

  • The maximum size of canvas board or museum board to use is 9×12 inches.
  • To start in oil or acrylic, use 6 x 8 inches.

Paints

  • Napthol red light
  • hansa yellow light or azo yellow medium
  • acra magenta (Quinacridone Magenta) (Liquitex or Golden brand)
  • ultramarine blue
  • thalo green
  • thalo blue
  • dioxazine violet
  • titanium white

Brushes

  • 3/4-inch flat,
  • l/2-inch flat,
  • 1/8-inch round, minimum

Palette

  • A Masterson palette seal.
  • A pump type sprayer for fine mist, not a plant sprayer.
  • Gallon jug with opening near the top for brush rinsing.

Easel

  • 1/2 French or watercolor type, or box-type and chair (see above)

Oil

Paint

  • Cadmium red light hue or napthol red light
  • cad. yellow pale hue
  • alizarin crimson hue or permanent alizarin crimson
  • ultramarine blue
  • thalo blue
  • thalo green
  • dioxozine violet
  • thalo rose or permanent rose
  • titanium white (the white can be on alkyd based if you want faster drying)

Brushes

  • #6 bright (short bristles)
  • #3 or #4 bright bristle
  • #3 or #4 round synthetic
  • Small pointing knife or palette knife

Palette

  • Paper palette or wood palette with carrier

Supports

  • Canvas boards (Raymar.com has the best ones)
  • Museum mat coated with gesso
  • Flat box with lid for carrying wet painting

Easel

  • 1/2 French, or box and portable chair

Clean up

  • Odorless turpentine or mineral spirits
  • Rags or toilet paper roll for wiping brushes
  • Latex gloves
  • Plastic grocery bags to dispose wipes
  • Lidded jar with good seal for used thinner
  • Bar of paint soap to clean hands