August Bounty
Ahoy Mateys!
Barrrbara here, your friendly Pirate friend from the murky seas of the Art Supply world. I know how confusing and discouraging the aisles (and virtual pages) of an Art Supply Store can be and I’m here to help you navigate these turbulent waters with a little more ease so we can continue to practice our Creativity and in turn, better the world.
Since we’ve only barely begun, this month will stick to the basics. Rather has informed me that there’s a few supplies running out from her Shoebox Studio and she’s also about to take her kit on the road for 4 weeks. We’ll focus on restocking and simplifying her Kit so she can continue Creating while she’s on the road. If you’re lucky enough to be working from your own Art Studio, you might not need much, and that’s great! You also might not have used as much of certain materials as she did and not need any refills, and that’s great too!
The link provided goes to a list of materials from Blick.com. Rather is set up as an affiliate with Blick because she’s found they have the best bargains and most reliable quality. She receives a small percentage of every purchase made within 24 hours of following the link. Feel free to continue shopping Blick on your own accord - there’s a lot to explore! - or order the same supplies from a different vendor if you prefer. We also like to physically go to Art Supply stores, and in future months we will certainly visit some, but not this month. With travel and her studio moving, now is simply the time to restock and streamline the Shoebox Studio to make it suitcase ready.
Questions about anything are always welcomed… please email (rather@ratherbecreative.com) or call/text (if you have her number) with any thoughts or concerns you might have. We are here as the experts in Art Supplies, ask away!
Click HERE for this month’s bounty.
A few notes…
If you have the space to store it, bulk is always a better price. For example, school glue - if you have handheld bottles that are empty, consider buying a gallon of school glue. If you find yourself running through white acrylic paint but not very much of the other colors, consider buying a larger tube (or even a bottle) of white and smaller tubes of the colors.
Consider the space you have to store your supplies. Rather is keeping everything she uses in the Weekly Be Creative Sessions contained in one box - a Shoebox sized box (hence the name). For travel, she has upgraded to a plastic bin that will hopefully travel well. This bin was purchased from Target (or something like that) and has a latching lid. We highly recommend upgrading your box, but if the box the materials originally came in is what you’re using, that’s totally fine! When purchasing replacement paper/pads of paper, consider the size of your container or know that you have space to store your paper elsewhere.
Always be on the lookout for “Bobbly Bits”! When we begin going to physical Art Supply Stores is when we’ll start talking about making use of the things we find in discount bins - not everything that’s marked down is worth collecting! (A lesson we’re constantly learning). For now, continue collecting the things that catch your eye that might be otherwise thrown or given away (think wrapping paper, the fronts of greeting cards, tags, packaging, etc). Our collection will grow over the weeks and you’ll have plenty of heads up as we begin utilizing our Bobbly Bits more.
Enjoy shopping for things that bring beauty into the world! With the simple act of Creating, you are bringing more beauty into the world. Just like we take care to actually LIKE the clothes we buy and wear, we want to actually LIKE the materials we purchase. If you ran out of something, but you never actually liked working with it, don’t feel like you HAVE to restock just because you ran out. Collect the things that bring you JOY and the things you Create will put JOY back into the world!
What’s on the List…
15”x16” sketch board - this is the “pro” version of the board we fabricated during the Shoebox Studio. It’s not a must, but will be handy with travel and potentially painting outside.
Acrylic paint - a large bottle of white and 6 new containers of the primary colors + green - this is a different brand than we’ve used and might have a different consistency, but I like the bottles for traveling.
Yupo paper - this is a single sheet you can cut into pieces, it’s more economical. Feel free to shop the pads, and I noticed there was some non-Yupo-branded synthetic papers to browse that may be cheaper for playing around with.
Watercolor pad of paper - I chose this kids version because of the grrrrrrreat sale, also to try some new/different paper for exploring’s sake.
Watercolor tubes - these are the colors I’ve used the most of my palette - I’ll probably be replacing my pallete down the road and might consider one of the ones that sells refills for the pods… this will do for now. Koi is a nice middle of the road brand, very vibrant colors.
Blick paper - just one sheet being cut down into smaller sheets for travel, however buying in bulk is the way to go with paper if you have the space. **Or, purchase it locally so you don’t have to pay for extra shipping.
Tempera sticks - fun, mess free way of putting a lot of color down, these are like oil pastels on steroids, great for kids. Metalics just looked like fun and they seem to be discounted right now.
Glue - in case you don’t have it already, get two bottles and tint one black.
Prismacolor colored pencils - this is a great set at a steal of a deal! There is a vast difference between these colored pencils and the ones in the Shoebox, I consider Prismacolor to be Captain of the Colored Pencil crew. (**note, I did not buy this set - I have lots and lots of colored these pencils that I will stock my kit with**)
Micron pen - there’s two size options listed, feel free to shop the sets or other sizes if this tool interests you. These pens are great for little detail and are watersafe so you can draw something and then paint over it.
Any and all of it is completely optional… this is what we’re stocking our kit with for traveling the next 4 weeks. We will be using these Art Supplies when we meet weekly in the Be Creative Collective. Looking forward to exploring them with you!