Painting Supplies List

For your convenience, I've compiled a list of painting supplies that I regularly use. Please note that this page contains product affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. There is no additional cost to you and your purchase supports the creation of more articles and videos.

Supports

For a comprehensive overview of canvases and panels, including instructions on how to make your own ACM panels, click here.

Frederix Acrylic Primed Cotton Canvas roll.

Acrylic Primed Cotton Canvas Rolls

Frederix Dixie Acrylic Primed Cotton Canvas is a heavyweight medium-texture canvas that weighs 12 oz raw and 17.5 oz primed per square yard. It is double-primed with an acid-free acrylic titanium gesso. I have mainly use it for abstract paintings and have found it to be a nice economical choice.

Oil Primed Linen Canvas Rolls

Artfix Oil Primed Linen is the crème de la crème of linen canvases as indicated by the price tag. This conservator-grade Belgian linen canvas is available in extra fine, fine, and a heavier "mural" texture. The fine texture, L64C, is actually very smooth in my opinion despite being a medium-heavy weight, and is a superb surface for painting details. These oil primed linen rolls are only suitable for oil painting.

Overview of Artfix's P154U polyester canvas.

Acrylic Primed Polyester Canvas Rolls

Artfix's heavyweight universal (acrylic) primed P154U polyester canvas offers a smooth and durable surface and is suitable for both acrylic and oil painting.

Why polyester? While research on synthetic materials is limited, polyester fibers are not only stronger and more durable than natural fibers, they are much less sensitive to moisture and temperature changes than natural fibers. A canvas made with polyester or a polyester blend will remain more taut and stable over time, reducing the risk of the paint film cracking as it ages.

$ Best of the Affordable Canvases

Every teacher and professional artist I know will tell you the same thing: buy the best quality supplies that you can afford. These cotton canvases made by Blick have some texture and are great for acrylic paint, heavier applications of mediums, and abstract pieces. The canvases are back-stapled to the frames, which makes it easy to remove if re-framing is ever needed in the future.

Specs: cotton, 10 oz primed, variety of depths, acid free.

Note: if you are looking for something even sturdier and with a smoother surface ideal for realistic work, check out the Masterpiece Tahoe and Elite Heavyweight canvases also listed here.

$$ Best of the Middle Priced Canvases

Masterpiece canvases are built to last. The Tahoe canvases have a supple and smooth finish, which is great for more detailed paintings. The construction of these canvases is extremely sturdy and like the Blick Premier canvases, the Tahoe canvases are back-stapled to the frames.

Specs: cotton, 14.6 oz primed, 1.5 inches deep, archival and acid free. For canvas depths ranging from 7/8" to 3-1/2" deep, visit the Masterpiece site directly.

Note: these canvases are about 2-3 times the price of the Blick Premier canvases. They are definitely worth the money depending on what you are working on and where your painting might end up. If you aren't sure what canvas is the best fit for what you are trying to accomplish, go to a speciality art store and talk to someone there and tell them what you want to do. Take canvases off of the shelves and compare them, see how they are constructed and how the different surfaces feel.

Masterpiece Elite Heavyweight Oil Primed Linen Canvas review.

$$$ Best of the Expensive Canvases

Masterpiece Elite Heavyweight Oil Primed Linen canvases are similarly constructed to the Tahoe canvases but are made with linen rather than cotton. Linen - especially Belgian linen - is more expensive than cotton and some artists prefer linen for its greater historical durability. Linen is made from flax fibers, which are longer, stronger, and more flexible than cotton fibers and have more natural oil in them, making them less prone to damage from humidity.

The Elite canvases are about twice the price of the Tahoe canvases. If you are looking for a very smooth linen canvas surface of the highest quality, go with the Masterpiece Elite Portrait Smooth Linen canvases.

Specs: linen, 18.3 oz primed, 1.5 inches deep, archival and acid free. Suitable for oils and water mixable oils. For canvas depths ranging from 7/8" to 3-1/2" deep, visit the Masterpiece site directly.

Note that there is also an acrylic primed version of this canvas, which is suitable for both acrylic and oil paint.

Masterpiece Ventura Hardcore Pro Canvas Panels review.

Best Oil Primed Linen Panels - Masterpiece Ventura Hardcore Pro Canvas Panels

These linen canvas panels are smooth with a slightly uneven texture due to the nature of the linen fibers. The linen benefits from the rigid stability of the support and the 1/8th inch thickness makes these panels easily frame-able. Sizes only go up to 20 x 24 inches.

Notes: This linen is alkyd-oil primed, so is only suitable for oil based paints. The linen offers more "tooth" than plain hardwood and hardboard alone.

Masterpiece offers canvas panel options. The Malibu, Ventura, Poiters Artfix, and Pau Artfix panels all have a lovely smooth finish. If you would like a medium texture, try the Santa Cruz panels. Be sure to choose the correct ground (i.e. acrylic primed or oil primed) based on the medium or mediums that you intend to use.

Artefex Lead Oil Primed Allinpanels are superb surfaces for oil painting, made with aluminum composite (ACM) panels laminated to a polyethylene core.

Best Lead Oil Primed Linen Panels - Artefex Allinpanels

Artefex's Lead Oil Primed Extra Fine Linen Allinpanels are made with very sturdy aluminum composite (ACM) panels laminated to a polyethylene core. Canvas is adhered to the panels with BEVA 371 film (a removable archival glue). There are a variety of canvas options to choose from, including acrylic primed linen and titanium white oil primed linen. My personal preference for oil painting is the lead white oil primed extra fine linen ACM panels; the texture of these panels is comparable to the Masterpiece Ventura linen. Allinpanels are available in standard sizes from 8 x 10 to 20 x 24 inches and Artefex is happy to make custom panels - even oversized ones - to your specifications. Be sure to choose the correct ground (i.e. acrylic primed or oil primed) based on the type of medium or mediums that you intend to use.

Artefex Copper Artists Panels

In addition to rigid canvas panels, Artefex also makes copper panels, which consist of a copper sheet and an aluminum sheet laminated to a polyethylene core.

Although relatively uncommon, artists throughout history have used copper panels for oil painting with great success thanks to their durability as a rigid support and low response to environmental changes, such as relative humidity (RH) and temperature.

Oil paint can be directly applied to these panels or they may be partially or completely primed (preferably with a lead alkyd ground). You may also use 300 gsm sandpaper or higher to sand these panels. Sanding is not necessary but if you want to reduce the shine, this is one way to do it, as well as create a little “tooth” if you don’t want a completely smooth surface.

Rublev Lead Alkyd Ground

Lead oil ground may be used on top of acrylic primed canvases prior to oil painting or on its own as a ground after sizing a canvas. It may also be directly applied to ACM and copper panels (see instructions via the link below). It creates a semi-absorbent ground ideal for oil painting. To create a smoother surface, mix 5 parts ground with 1 or 2 parts Gamsol (mineral spirits). Be sure to let the ground dry for one week prior to painting.

A note on grounds: Virgil Elliott, author of Traditional Oil Painting, remarked, "The alkyd-based grounds show every indication of outperforming even the highly permanent traditional ground of white lead in linseed oil." Read more here: https://artrenewal.org/Article/Title/technical-column-virgil-elliott

Golden Gesso

I use additional layers of acrylic gesso on canvases when I'm looking for a smoother surface to paint on and to prime hardwoods and hardboards prior to painting. I'm a big fan of Golden products and especially recommend their gesso and heavy body acrylic paint. If you're going to buy this you will also want to buy the 320 grit sandpaper to ensure an even surface after gessoing.

Note for those using unprimed hardwood or hardboard panels: apply sealer (Golden Gloss Medium) prior to applying gesso. Learn more here: https://ampersandart.com/full/priming-wood-panels-with-acrylic-gesso-or-oil-grounds

Note for those planning to paint with oils on top of acrylic gesso: over time oil paint becomes more brittle and less flexible than acrylic paint. If you are painting on a non-rigid support like a canvas the difference in flexibility may cause the oil paint layer to separate. This tends to be less of an issue with rigid supports such as hardboard. Golden maintains that their acrylic gesso is a perfectly fine foundation for oil painting and suggests applying at least three coats of gesso to control the penetration of oil paint.

Learn more here:
https://education.goldenpaints.com/technicalinfo_oil_over_acrylic

And here:
https://www.goldenpaints.com/technicalinfo/technicalinfo_gesso

Golden Gesso does not contain Zinc White, only Titanium White: https://goldenartistcolors.com/resources/black-and-white-gesso

Brushes & Mediums

Below are the staple colors currently on my palette. You can view and download these colors as a PDF or click on the individual paints below:

- Bone Black (PBk9)

- Titanium White (PW6) - PW6 is brighter, cooler, and more opaque than PW1; I often use PW6 on its own

- Lead White #1 (PW1) - PW1 is my primary white for blending as it does not overwhelm other colors

- Cadmium Yellow Light (PY35)

- Mars Yellow (PY42)

- Transparent Oxide Yellow (PY42)

- Cadmium Orange (PO20)

- Ercolano Red (PR102)

- Magenta (PR122)

- Phthalo Blue Lake (PB15:3)

- Cobalt Teal (PG50)

- Green Gold (PY129)

If you're new to oil painting and feel overwhelmed, try the limited palette example below, which has just 5 colors - also available as a PDF:

- Titanium White (PW6)

- Cadmium Lemon (PY35)

- Cadmium Red (PR108)

- Ultramarine Blue (PB29)

- Burnt Umber (PBr6)

I have also created a list of what I consider to be the best pigments available if you'd like to create your own unique color palette. You can access that chart and download it as a PDF here.

Below are the brushes, paints, and mediums that I recommend:

Silverwhite paint brush review. Best brushes for fine art painting.

Silverwhite Brushes

Some artists prefer to use natural animal hair or bristle brushes, however, I find that while those may hold more paint they don't maintain their tips especially in the smaller sizes. They also tend to shed more hairs into my work. I prefer synthetic brushes because of this and Silverwhite is the brand that I find myself coming back to. These brushes are not very expensive and have lasted me a long time. The smaller angular shader brushes in particular are superior to other brands. Short handled brushes are my preference - I find them easier to manipulate than long handle ones, which I find myself having to maneuver around.

Gamblin Refined Linseed Oil

For hundreds of years, linseed oil has been the primary binder for pigment in oil paint. If you look on the backs of most oil paint tubes, you will see it listed there along with safflower oil sometimes.

Refined Linseed Oil is an excellent choice for thinning paint (making it fatter) in the upper, or final, layers of a painting.

Note: it’s generally not recommended to mix large amounts of stand alone oil or any other medium with oil paint. A little goes a long way. Also be sure to follow the fat-over-lean principle for best long-term results (i.e. the leanest, least oily layer of paint should be on the bottom while the thickest or fattest and oiliest layer of paint should be on the top).

It’s also a good idea to get a designated oily metal trash can to dispose of rags or paper towels that are saturated with oil and oil paint. I have a good option listed in the section below.

Gamblin Gamvar Varnish

This is a great varnish that can be removed with Gamsol if needed. It is available in Matte, Satin (aka semi-gloss), and Gloss. Some artists prefer Gloss to deepen colors and if a less glossy look is desired will use additional dry brushes to "paint" over the varnish once it's applied, which will absorb excess varnish. I personally prefer using the gloss varnish mixed with a bit of satin.

Note: do not use this varnish for works with unfixed mediums (i.e. charcoal, colored pencil). Instead, use spray varnish. Winsor & Newton make a professional spray can varnish that I've also listed here.

Caran d'Ache Neocolor II Water Soluble Wax Pastel Artists' Crayons

These are my absolute favorite pastels. They are not oily and work similarly as watercolor pencils do. You can use water to blend and spread the color or you can use them as you would normal pastels.

The Strathmore Bristol Vellum paper works very well with these crayons and is also listed here. Have a good pencil sharpener on hand to keep the tips pointy.

You can also use these crayons on canvases. A rep from Caran d'Ache told me:

"Neocolor II works very well on both cotton and linen canvases. You
can easily set it if you have applied it with a brush.

If you dissolve the Neocolor II like a watercolor or gouache and paint
it onto the canvas, the best thing to do is to let it dry. Then you can
heat set it with an iron, which makes it permanent.

Remember to place a piece of scrap cloth on the painting as to not stain your iron. You also want to put something under the piece itself, so
that any your ironing board doesn't get stained. This techniques works extremely well.

However, always do a test first with a piece of scrap canvas, to insure
that you are happy with the results.

There are 2 fixatives that you can use to coat it afterwards, if you
desire. Lascaux is probably the best one of the two that are available
in the US. Again, test it on a piece of scrap to insure that you are
happy with the finish. Make sure to always do very light coats and allow
them to dry completely before adding another one. If the fist coat was
applied going right to left, do the next going up and down... Three
coats seem to be the magic number."

Art Studio Essentials

Recommended painting palette for oil painters.

New Wave Posh Neutral Gray Glass Palette

I use this palette, which measures 12 x 16 inches, to mix and store my oil paints. It is made with tempered glass and a neutral gray background that helps artists see color values accurately. It also handles solvents and doesn't stain. It is designed to fit inside the Masterson Sta-Wet Palette Seal, which helps my paints last for several days or more without drying.

Review of the Mabef M-02 double mast easel.

Mabef Double Mast Easel M-02

This extremely sturdy double mast easel is ideal for large paintings and sets of paintings. I can fit two 30 x 40 inch paintings side-by-side on this easel and it will support single paintings from about 36 x 36 inches up to about 96 x 96 inches comfortably. This easel can also accommodate canvases about 3 inches deep (the other easels only support gallery-depth, or 1.5 inches deep). Between the wheels on the bottom and the crank, maneuvering paintings is effortless. The crank can be removed or reinserted instantly and the handle can turn in on itself to be out of the way. There's lots of space underneath paintings for paints and the side drawers offer handy storage as well. If it's within your budget, I whole heartily recommend buying this easel.

Nitrile Gloves

Disposable gloves can help protect your hands from paint and common chemicals.

Notes: these are latex-free in case you have an allergy to latex. As far as safety goes, nitrile gloves are documented to be better than latex gloves at resisting paints, oils, and solvents. However, certain solvents and hazardous substances can permeate through some gloves very quickly. Depending on what materials you are using, you may want to do some research around heavy duty chemical resistant gloves and even respirators and other safety equipment in order to know how you can best protect yourself.

2 oz Glass Jars

Perfect for mixing smaller quantities of paint, and especially suited for mixing gouache paints. I like this particular brand (Vivaplex) because it's less expensive than the usual glass jars sold at art stores but great quality. The shape makes for easy clean-up as well. I prefer glass jars over plastic containers because paints seem to dry out more quickly in the plastic containers, the colors themselves are not as visible, and the plastic sometimes absorbs color and looks stained. None of these are issues with glass jars.

8 oz Glass Jars

Perfect for mixing larger quantities of paint, especially suited for mixing and diluting acrylic paint. I like this particular brand (Vivaplex) because it's less expensive than the usual glass jars sold at art stores but great quality. The shape makes for easy clean-up as well. I prefer glass jars over plastic containers because paints seem to dry out more quickly in the plastic containers, the colors themselves are not as visible, and the plastic sometimes absorbs color and looks stained. None of these are issues with glass jars.