Best Products

Do you feel a bit lost in all the world of Art supplies? I TOTALLY hear ya. From the cheapo stuff that doesn't work very well, to the CRAZY expensive supplies that the pros use, it's hard to know what to get!! I mean, in the craft store the other day, I saw a brush that cost $50! ONE BRUSH! Yikes.

On the other hand, getting decent supplies are important--and worth the money!! Just imagine trying to bake the perfect souffle' or wedding cake with an easy bake oven. haha! Not gonna work, right?

Many times, crappy supplies can hold a person back from having a good art experience--but it's not their fault! It's the peice-o-crap supplies! πŸ˜†From my 10+ years of experience in teaching Art, I've figured out supplies that I love: aka, they work well and won't break the bank! (Hallelujah!) Many of these I use myself in my professional Artwork, cause they aren't just for beginners!

So, whether, you're looking for yourself or your kids, here are a few of the BEST affordable Art supplies that I LOVE for tweens, teens, and adults too! (Also, I through in some beauty supplies, cause makeup is artwork too! Just on the face!!)

Let me know if there's something else you'd like me to add to the list. I didn't put EVERYTHING on here, cause some products I just use whatever. (Like drawing paper.) But, for my tried and true favs, I listed them here. :)

*These are my Amazon Affiliate links for each item, and I will get a teeny-tiny percentage if you use these links, but you can also pick up many of these at any craft store.

Enjoy, and happy creating! 😁
🎨-Amy

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DOODLE BOOKS!!

Do your kids ever say, "I don't know what to draw." and they stare blankly at a page? Or, do they always draw the exact same thing over and over?

Well, I adore these books, because it solves that "what to draw" problem, in such a fun way! Each page has silly prompts for getting kiddos drawing and thinking creatively! I LOVE them. My son loves his. :) MAN, I would have been obsessed with this as a kid. Shoot, I'm obsessed with them now! (Maybe I should get one for myself now! Get my creative juices flowing...;)

Also, I so appreciate that the pages are thick. Like, they can totally use marker and it won't bleed through! So many coloring books you buy at the grocery store have flimsy paper that only crayons will work for.

Probably best for ages 6-11...or adult. haha!)

If you homeschool, you could have your kiddo do one of these every day as a fun art exercise, then write a story to go with their drawing for their creative writing practice! So fun and helpful!

The Girls' Doodle Book: Amazing Pictures to Complete and Create

                                                         
                                                                 


The Boys' Doodle Book: Amazing Picture to Complete and Create 


                                                                 

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Art for the Littles!

This tip is free, but if you grab a paint brush and a cup of water, your kiddos can paint rocks with water! Or paint the sidewalk in the summer! This surprisingly kept my little tiny kids occupied for like 15 minutes at a time. Which is a miracle for kids that young, haha!

For real painting, I'd totally go for a cheap Crayola watercolor set rather than poster paints, as far as controlling a mess. Watercolor is easy to clean off of a table. And, BUCKLE THEM INTO THEIR HIGH CHAIR WHEN THEY PAINT! haha! You don't want them running off with paints and spilling on carpet! Also, have a big t-shirt handy to put over them when they paint. It's totally ok to limit them to one or two papers. Cause if toddler "art time" drags on forever, it's TORTUROUS! haha!

Crayola Color Wonder Mess-Free Markers and Paper

Prepare yourself for a miracle. For two and three year olds who want to color and draw, but can't resist drawing on tables, walls, etc, I love these absolute GENIUS inventions--markers that will ONLY color on specific paper! Not on walls, or hands, or clothes, or tables...etc. :) I want to kiss whoever invented this right on the mouth. haha. It SAVED us with my youngest who BEGGED for markers!! These worked well for him. This kit looks like the best value, though you can totally order the markers or paper separate from each other. And, they make tons of Wonder Color Mess-free Coloring pages for this kind of marker, like the Daniel Tiger ones I included. Super smart!!!

                                                            

Ages 3-6 (give or take...you know your child's development better than anyone! If you have a two year old who likes to color, and you can trust with crayons, go for it! If your 7 year old is still working on coloring skills, these will be great.)

Here are two coloring books I love for younger kiddos. It's nice to have them start with simple line drawings to color, especially of daily object that they see. I feel like their attention spans do better, versus the very detailed coloring books of their favorite Disney or Pixar movie. In those books, they often are so excited to get them, cause, "It's Spiderman!" or "It's Elsa!" but they just flip to a page, scribble on it and they're done. There's too many details to color on each page, and it's overwhelming!

Not the case with these gems.These two awesome coloring books have simpler drawings, more suited to a young kiddo.  And, they are BIG, with tons of pages!

My First Big Book of Coloring is named exactly right...it should be a kiddo's first coloring book! My son LOVED it, and now I need to get one for my youngest two!

                                                                  


VERY BUSY COLORING BOOK is illustrated by the acclaimed author of tons of award-winning children books, including "The Very Hungry Caterpillar." This book is full of his classic illustration style, which I just love! And, it has stickers too! Booyah! (My boys are sticker obsessed, haha!) This book could go up to age 10, because there is a bit more detail. But, still good for littles. :

                                                                 


Make sure your kids get used to drawing early, instead of JUST coloring in coloring books. This pushes them to be creative and come up with their OWN drawings to color! :) You can also have them look at SIMPLE line drawings, like the ones in either of these coloring books, and start learning how to observe and draw what they see in front of them. Do this with them! :) Help them pick out the shapes in the drawings and go for it!


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Pentel Oil Pastel Set With Carrying Case

These are great Oil Pastels--tried and true! I always buy this brand of oil pastels for my students, and I love using them myself! You get 50 pastels, so a huge color variety. They are creamy and blend-able, and not too smudgy. A+!      

                                                              


Canson XL Multi-Media Paper

I love this all-purpose paper...you can use it for many different mediums and it isn't too expensive! I like using thicker paper when I do drawing projects, rather than the "sketch" paper, because that stuff is SOO thin! It's like if you erase too hard, you're suddenly through the paper and erasing the table, haha! Plus, there's 60 pages, so if you have a little artist like my youngest who goes through about 10 pages a day, then this will last you...almost a week! haha! (Actually, I make him use crappy paper, cause I'm mean like that. I mean, if he's gonna burn through paper like that, sheesh!)

                                                               

Erasers

I never use pink erasers on art work...sometimes they'll give you an awful pinkish smudge if it's a cheap one! And that is a freaking tragedy if you're working on a beautiful drawing!! And, kneaded erasers can be really great when you're using charcoal or chalk pastel, but they really don't erase as thoroughly when it comes to pencil lines. (But they are always fun to squish and play with, haha! Here are two options for erasers that both work well. :)

                                                              

                                                               


 Pigma Micron Pens

 These are the only pens I use in my art, because they are waterproof and fade proof--meaning I can make a line drawing with these pens and paint over it with watercolor and the ink will never bleed!! Plus, I love that they have different mm line widths written on the side, so I can make a delicate or strong line depending on what I'm drawing. They are awesome! Don't let your kids draw with them, though...cause the tips on the smallest .20 mm pens are fragile and easily bent!

                                                                 


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Winsor & Newton Cotman Mini Water Color Set 

This is the CUTEST little set ever and I use mine allll the time! :) Winsor and Newton paints are always awesome...super rich and vibrant! I always finding myself reaching for this over other paints, and I LOVE that it's so tiny and easy to transport. I literally worked on a watercolor project in an empty room my gym during Christmas break when I had a commission deadline... (Mommas with young kids, YOU KNOW the impossibility of getting a project done when kids are going bananas. So, thank you gym childcare, haha!)...and this was the trusty set I slipped into my gym bag with my watercolor pad, a few brushes and a little water cup! haha! I just love it, and the pigments last FOREVER. I wouldn't buy these for young kids...I prefer the set below because the color pans are bigger and easier for little hands to use.

                                                               



Yarka Student Semi Moist Watercolor

Ok, this is a freaking scream of a deal for these paints if you want to start a little less expensive, or want something for your kiddos to use that you don't have to worry about them messing up. They are soo good, especially for that price!!!! I love using these to teach watercolor classes...the paint is vibrant and not grainy, unlike some other cheap watercolor sets. Even first time students can get great colors with these! There are 10 colors, and they are all so pretty. My one complaint is that the lid isn't super sturdy and the brush isn't great, but I still feel like these are well worth buying still, because of the awesome paint! They totally don't have to have a lid. I have a bunch that I use to teach watercolor classes, and they have no lids! haha! They work great. :) Since these are semi-moist, they always remain a tiny bit tacky to the touch. Seriously a great set--and you can always buy a dollar mixing tray at a craft store if your lid breaks. :)

                                                               


Princeton Art Brush Set

Ok, I am so impressed with these brushes. I bought them by chance to see how they would do for my classes, and they are awesome! I litereally bought ten more sets! haha! I love the variety of sizes, especially since it has a decently large square brush for making washes. You can't go wrong with these! 

                                                               


Strathmore Watercolor Paper

PLEASE, for the LOVE of art supplies, DO NOT try to watercolor paint on paper that is not meant for watercolor! As a kid, did you ever try to watercolor paint on printer paper, and it's a total mess? The paper got all wavy? haha, yep! 

Watercolor paper is thicker and has a slight texture (called "tooth"...weird, I know!) This kind of paper is made to hold and take in water, unlike thin copy paper or drawing paper, which will just get all soggy and wavy. No good. Even the best watercolor artist would struggle on that paper! That's why you've got to spend a couple extra dollars. I swear, it's worth it! You can use multi-media paper, because it's a heavier weight than drawing paper, and that will work decently (multi-media paper is typically cheaper than true watercolor paper, so if you are buying paper for your young kiddos to watercolor, then definitely go with the multi-media!) but still I prefer paper made for watercolor for adults. Your painting will turn out so much better! So, no sketch paper or drawing paper. Ok? We good on that? Ok. :) 

I typically pick up Strathmore whenever I need watercolor paper. There's more expensive stuff, but this has never done me wrong...so why pay more? :) 

                                                                 


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Face painting!

For those who would like to try Face painting out and go NEXT LEVEL with their Halloween costumes! :) They are also soo fun to play with on your kiddos, for costume parties, to take to family reunions, etc. If you have any artistic inclinations, you can learn how to face paint by watching YouTube tutorials and PRACTICING!!! :) Face painting is SO freaking fun. I love it. :)

This is the kit I use constantly as a professional face painter. I like having all my colors in a pallet, so I'm not fumbling with 20 different paints containers. And, TAG paint is my FAVORITE. It's bright, easy to use, and just SO GOOD! You use these paints like watercolor--you get your brush wet, then swirl it over the pigment to load the brush up with paint. Then, away you go!!! :) In my kit, I've added a few split cakes to a second painting palette, but if you are just starting up, and you want to try just one palette, THIS is the one to get. You'll get a great price on a bunch of different colors! And...I just use regular multi-medium paintbrushes that I bought at Micheals. :)

                                                                 


This is the water container I use...I LOVE the little ridges you can use to get the color out when you're swishing out your brushes. I also like the little brush holders all around the container in different sizes! Very smart design.

                                                                 


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Beauty Products!

bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Moisturizer Gel

Ok, I am super pumped about this stuff. I have tried SOO many very light coverage bb creams and tinted moisturizers. Heavy and even medium coverage foundation has never appealed to me--I feel like it's too cake-y makeup-y looking. I'd rather just cover my bad spots and let my good skin areas shine through. But, I have skin that struggles (A LOT) so, I am to the point where I want a very LIGHT coverage all over, to even out my skin tone. But, it has to be hydrating, otherwise I am legitimately peeling and flaking a couple hours later. (my skin is such a drama queen!) 

I finally tried two products that were a little more expensive (at Ulta, rather than Walmart, haha)...the first one made my skin dry, so no-go, but THIS!! This STUFF is AMAZING!!!! I guess sometimes it's worth paying a bit more for an awesome product, imagine that! haha! This gel goes on and still looks like your skin, rather than makeup, but it evens out your skin tone and hides some redness. It's so light, I don't feel like I'm suffocating my skin. After I put this on my face, then I can just go hit the little bad spots with a heavier coverage cover-up and I'm good! YAY!!! It is hydrating and smooth to put on, and I can layer it a little in the bad areas. It's my FAV!!! I use opal, the lightest color they make. (Yeah, I'm freaking pale.)

                                                          

For stubborn spots and zits you gotta cover with the heavy duty stuff, I use this. It doesn't budge.

                                                         

I just bought a skincare kit that was WAY more money that I usually pay, but THIS IS THE YEAR that I figure out how to heal my skin!!! I am 100% fed up with my skin, which is always simultaneously super dry AND broken out. Guys, this has been YEARS of issues. I've tried all the cheap drugstore options, put out more cash and tried Proactiv and Rodan and Feilds, I've gone with several all-natural skin care lines and products, including oil cleansing, I've washed my pillow more often, ate differently, etc.

The only thing that has ever made my skin clear was pregnancy. haha. And, I'm not repeating THAT just for clear skin! (I'm barely staying sane with the kids I got! haha!..*sob*) Therefore, I know a lot of my skin issues are hormone related, but I can't take birth control to regulate my hormones because I get blood-clots from the hormones that elevate during pregnancy. (I had to take blood-thinner shots twice a day during pregnancy.) As I'd rather be alive with a leper face, than die with gorgeous clear skin, birth control is not a great option. So, NOW I'm throwing money at the problem. haha! If this skin care line is the salvation for my face, then I will TOTALLY share it with you guys! Cause I know I'm not the only lady enjoying zits and wrinkles at the same time. (freaking skin! *hard eyeroll*) If this skincare line doesn't work, then I don't want to spread anything bad, because I know it could help others--we all have different skin needs, and I'm not one to trash-talk another person's product and business. Many of us struggle with skin issues and it is sooo frustrating since there a gazillion factors that can play into it! Anyway, I reallllllly hope this stuff helps me.

Enough about skin. Let me confess, I am mascara and eyelashes obsessed. I used to run to the bathroom to re-curl my eyelashes during the lunch break at school. Ha! But I don't like clumpy, chunky, scary eyelashes. Just long and dramatic! Here are four mascaras I love. :) The first two are waterproof, and the second two are not.

This is just classic, awesome stuff. I love the wand with it's tiny bristles. It makes my (STUBBY) bottom eyelashes look longer than any other mascara!

                                                                 


This Lash Sensational was surprisingly awesome. I tried it on a whim and I LOVED it! It really gave length, which I think many waterproof mascaras don't. My only beef: I didn't like the wand very much. It's ok. Kind of weird. I want to take the wand from my mascara in the Maybelline one above and rinse it out, and use it to put this stuff on! Haha! I mean, that's a hassle, but a waterproof mascara that lengthens like this one, is worth a little annoyance!

                                                                 


This non-waterproof mascara was my go-to for YEARS. It really DOES make your lashes Full and Soft!!! :) If you're going budget, but still want a great mascara, I recommend this one. :) I also like the waterproof of this same kind, but I feel like the non-waterproof gives you a bit more length.

                                                                 


This L'Oreal Double Extend mascara is TUBE mascara! It is pretty freaking cool! If you haven't heard of it, it forms little tubes on each eyelash, so it won't smudge and give you raccoon eyes at all. Then, at the end of the day the tubes slid off with water. Crazy, huh???

So, a little recommendation on this one: Usually, when I put on mascara, I wiggle the wand from side to side as I go up from the base of my lashes to the tips. With this stuff, if you do that, you’ll get horrible clumps, because it immediately sticks the lashes together when you go sideways. So I put this mascara on brushing straight up my lashes, from the base to the tips, and I put the black on right after the white. I don’t let it dry in between. Like, white on the top lashes of both eyes, then black on the top lashes of both eyes. Then white on both eye's bottom lashes then the black. And if I do that, they look super good! It sets super fast—so, again, that’s why I would not wiggle it back-and-forth, your lashes will glue together!πŸ˜† But I still think it’s pretty cool stuff.

To take it off, use a makeup cotton pad to SOAK your lashes for about 30 seconds. Then, the mini eyelash tubes just slide right off. :)

I think it’s worth trying to see if you love it! I have a couple friends who only wear this now.

                                                                  


And, this is my favorite eyeshadow!!! I just use it for the mobile lids of my eye--below my crease. It stays ALLL DAY and is sooo shimmery and gorgeous!! Thanks to my cousin, Nicole for the recommendation. :)

                                                                 


So, I have very fine, limp, STRAIGHT hair. So, I am always looking to add volume!! I have figured out lots of tricks through the years, but these are the products I am using and loving right now for big hair. :)

Since I am growing out my hair, it is much harder to keep volume in it. For me, the shorter my hair, the fuller it looks. So, my best bet is to add some wave or curl. Problem is, I have such straight hair, that I have to wave or curl EVERY dang hair...or it looks silly to randomly have a super straight chunk. haha. I LOVE this straightener for making loose ringlet-y waves...it has very curved edges, so I don't get all the blasted lines in my hair like I used to with my regular straightener. (I've also been trying out different wavers and triple-barrel hair tools to find a FAST and easy way to make my hair wavy. I'll let you know when I find the BEST one!) I also LOVE that I can go like three days without washing my hair when it's wavy (probably cause my hair isn't lying flat against my scalp) and I don't even look like a greasy weasel!! YAY!

                                                              


Speaking of greasy weasel, this is what I use so I'm NOT one...even on my third day of not washing my hair! (Truly, motherhood has brought out the laziness in me. I used to wash my hair EVERY day. haha!) This brand of dry shampoo works great for me! Much better than the Suave or Tresemme' ones I used to use.

                                                              


This mousse is GOOD and it's fast to use cause you spray it in! I am super impressed by it. When I put this in my roots and blow-dry my hair with a round brush, it makes a major difference for my hair's fullness! I used to always use Tresemme' volume mouse, and that's pretty good, but this is better, and very worth a couple of extra dollars!

                                                              


THIS stuff is my tried and true hairspray that give me VOLUME. It's freaking magic. And it WILL make your hair absolutely stiff. I only use it at the roots to give volume. Maybe I should do a video tutorial to show you how I use it...let me know if you're interested in seeing that. :)

                                                             


 Ok, friends, I hope you found this list helpful!! 

That's what I have for now...I will keep updating this list, cause I have more supplies I love, but also, I am still on the hunt for a few BEST products that I need to find. Example: I am still looking for the best lip stuff...I like more of a stain, rather than a lipstick that smudges everywhere. And, I like more of a sheer look--but I can't handle gloss. Too sticky! I basically wants tinted chapstick where the color doesn't fade in two seconds, haha. If you have stuff you love, let me know!!! :)

What questions do you have for me? Any product you'd like a recommendation on? Cause I think it's sooo fun to try new products and go on a heck-bent quest to find the BEST!! HA!

Keep making and creating, my friends! :)
-Amy :)

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