For traditional illustration I like to use graphite pencils, colour pencils and ink. My most commonly used sketching tools are mechanical pencils. I find them convenient for using on the go with minimal fuss. I do however have a deep love for the line variation and textures produced from using wooden pencils.

Graphite pencils - 0.3 mm 2B, 0.5 mm HB, 0.7 mm 2B, and 0.9 mm HB mechanical pencils. I use Ain Stein pencil leads for all of these. For wooden pencils I enjoy Mitsubishi 9850, Tombow Mono100, and Blackwing. Most wooden pencils are enjoyable to use though.

Colour pencils - polychromos for most sketching and lineart involving colour pencils, and prismacolor for when I need a very soft lead (usually white).

Ink - for illustration line-art my current go to inking supplies are microns, pigma FB brush pens, and bimoji brush pens. For white ink I use Gellyroll 08 gel pens. When it comes to sketching I love drawing with ballpoint pens, especially in black, red, and blue. My most used inking supplies change occasionally. I do also use fountain pens and dip pens, but they are not what I reach for frequently at this moment.

Markers - sometimes for sketching and drawing I like to add tone or colour with markers. The alcohol markers I use are a mixture of ShinHan Touch Twin and Copic Ciao. I also keep a small range of water-based markers (Tombow ABT and Ecoline) and acrylic markers (Posca and Molotow One4All) for sketching. My most commonly used markers in all types are greys and black.

Erasers - 99% of the time I use kneaded erasers. I am not particularly loyal to any brand, but I do not like them to be too hard. I also use a Mono Zero click eraser for details, and recently added a larger click eraser by Pentel (ZE22) to my pencil case.

I use a variety of watercolours from a variety of brands. Some are everyday-use colours for me, and others I am exploring to widen my painting knowledge.

Please note that I collected these paints over the course of years and you do not need this many colours to start out. If you would like to know what I began with, check the relevant FAQ below. I remember how overwhelming it felt as a beginner to read what other artists used! We all build up our own unique collections over time based on individual preference and convenience. You can get a lot of variety out of a small number of paints to start with, if you make informed choices.

Currently I keep three active palettes: main, expansion/playground, and travel. My main palette features the colours I use for the majority of my painting practice. The expansion palette is home to the pigments that I use less frequently for specific uses and special effects such as heavy granulation. It is also where I keep pigments I am currently learning about. My travel palette is a selection of six colours I frequently use to create a limited palette.

Note: my actual main palette is currently an ocean away from me preparing for my eventual move, so I am using a stand-in main palette at the moment with a slightly different arrangement of colours. The paints in the stand-in main palette are listed below and will be changed once I am using my true main palette again.

Main Palette:

• Yellow Lake by Sennelier

• Transparent Pyrrol Orange (Old) by Daniel Smith

• Pyrrol Scarlet by Daniel Smith

• Rose Madder Lake by Sennelier

• Dioxazine Purple by M Graham

• Moonglow by Daniel Smith

• Ultramarine Deep by Sennelier

• Indanthrone Blue by Daniel Smith

• Prussian Blue by Daniel Smith

• Cerulean Blue Chromium by Daniel Smith

• Custom mixed chromatic black

• Phthalo Green BS by Daniel Smith

• Azo Green by M Graham

• Yellow Ochre by Daniel Smith

• Quinacridone Burnt Orange by Daniel Smith

• Brown Red by ShinHan

• Burnt Sienna by Daniel Smith

• Burnt Umber by Daniel Smith.

Expansion/Playground Palette:

• Hansa Yellow Light by Daniel Smith

• New Gamboge by Daniel Smith

• Azo Orange by M Graham

• Pyrrol Scarlet by Daniel Smith

• Permanent Red Deep by Mission Gold

• Perylene Dark Red by Schmincke

• Quinacridone Rose by Daniel Smith

• Quinacridone Violet by Schmincke

• Twilight Purple by Holbein

• French Ultramarine by Schmincke

• Phthalo Blue GS by Daniel Smith

• Cobalt Turquoise Light by Winsor & Newton

• Ocean Blue by Holbein

• Viridian by M Graham

• Terra Rosa by M Graham

• Quinacridone Burnt Scarlet by Daniel Smith

• Maroon Perylene by M Graham

• Neutral Tint by M Graham

• Lunar Black by Daniel Smith

Travel Palette:

• Azo Green by M Graham

• Azo Orange by M Graham

• Rose Madder Lake by Sennelier

• Ultramarine Deep by Sennelier

• Phthalo Turquoise by Sennelier

• Burnt Umber by Da Vinci

Gouache:

• Titanium White by Winsor & Newton

The paper or sketchbook I reach for depends on two things: the medium(s) I want to use and what I want to create. I try to balance having a variety available to fit my needs while keeping it within an amount I will actually use.

Everyday sketchbook - my favourite everyday sketchbook is the Royal Talens Art Creation with cream paper. For that sketchbook I mainly sketch in relatively dry mediums such as pencil and ballpoint pen. This is my go-to for studying, rough sketching, thumbnailing, exploring ideas, etc.

Inking and tight-drawing sketchbooks - for inking and sketches that I want to take to a more “finished” look I like to use white paper that handles a variety of mediums to my tastes. Currently I am enjoying a Leuchtturm1917 sketchbook, but I have also enjoyed the Alpha and Epsilon sketchbooks by Stillman and Birn. I prefer the texture of the Epsilon (I prefer smoother papers), but I found the Alpha handled ink and very light watercolour washes better.

Watercolour - Most of my current watercolour illustrations and paintings use 300gsm/140lb 100% cotton watercolour paper by Saunders Waterford or Arches. Hot pressed for illustrations, cold pressed for paintings. I have also used other brands, but I try to always stick to 100% cotton and 300gsm/140lb.

Drawing - I usually look for smooth paper with just a hint of tooth, in loose-leaf or pad form. I like to have white paper and toned paper around. For white paper some of my current favourites are Hahnemühle Nostalgie and Canson XL Bristol. For toned paper I am currently using Strathmore 400 Series Toned Tan paper and The Grey Pad by Hahnemühle.

I started learning using the 12 colour Cotman palette, a common student grade starting ground for a lot of new watercolourists.

My first professional grade watercolours were a split primary palette using the Daniel Smith Essentials Set. Some of those colours lasted me many years, such as the Phthalo Blue GS.

These are not necessarily what I would recommend to people starting out. The answer to that depends on a person’s location, goals, temperament, budget, and a variety of other factors. Location and frustration tolerance are two important factors in deciding on a beginner kit. Where you live determines what supplies are available to you and at what cost, while the amount of frustration you can tolerate can help you decide on whether to start with student grade or professional grade.