Painting Materials
• Pencil and eraser.
• Selection of soft pastels (See softness chart below). I use a variety of hard (NuPastel) and soft
(Terry Ludwig and Unison are my personal brand preference). There are many brands to choose
from and most brands are ok, I can help you use what you have. Rembrandts are a nice
beginner pastel brand. They are affordable, have a wide variety of color and are softer than
what is available in local craft stores. (No oil pastels)
Paper
• I highly recommend working on a sanded paper/board. There are a variety of colors usually
available with each brand. The color is up to you. Color of surface will be addressed during
lessons. Paper brands to explore are:
o Ampersand Board
o Art Spectrum Colourfix
o Art Spectrum Smooth
o La Carte – however, this brand is not suited for wet underpaintings
o PastelMat
o Pastel Premier
o Uart (my personal “go-to” brand)
• Regular drawing / multi-media paper does not have the proper tooth to hold the pastel. Painting
on it can become frustrating and will not allow you to layer colors.
Equipment
• Large drawing board (Gatorboard or sturdy foam core will do)
• Easel. Table top is ok, however, I work standing and highly recommend students stand as well
(unless, of course, you are not physically able to stand for long periods of time). You must be
able to prop your board upright. Working flat causes a variety of messes from clothing to
“making mud” on your painting.
Miscellaneous
• Artists Tape or clips. Needed to attach your paper to the drawing board.
• Wet wipes. I prefer Huggies. Please do not use household cleaning wipes such as Clorox wipes.
These are harsh on your skin.
• Plastic gloves or a barrier cream such as Gloves in a Bottle
• Notebook / drawing pad for notes
• Stiff bristle paint brush
• ** For Wave classes: workable spray fix, rubbing alcohol, tooth brush and plastic cup
• Some photographs you would like to use from your own stock.
* Please note: Unfortunately, the pastel products I recommend are not readily available in the
local craft stores (Michael’s,Hobby Lobby). While these stores have pastel products,
the papers do not have proper tooth and the pastels are very hard and will limit what you can
achieve. Most everything I use is purchased on-line. The sites I use and compare prices
between are:
Amazon
Dick Blick
Cheap Joe’s
Jerry’s Artarama
Fineartstore.com
DakotaPastels.com
Chart of Pastels by Softness / Brand
The following chart was created by Dakota Pastels with number one being rated the Softest.
#1 SCHMINCKE
#2 GREAT AMERICAN
#3 BLUE EARTH
#4 SENNELIER
#5 UNISON
#6 TERRY LUDWIG
#7 DIANE TOWNSEND SOFT
#8 TOWNSEND TERRAGES
#9 TOWNSEND THINLINE
#10 DALER-ROWNEY
#11 GIRAULT
#12 MOUNT VISION
#13 REMBRANDT
#14 ART SPECTRUM
#15 HOLBEIN
#16 NUPASTEL
#17 FABER-CASTELL
#18 CRETACOLOR