Let's talk art supplies!

creditcards

Tue, Jun 27 2023, 11:56 pm

amother OP wrote:

To any mother of a budding artist, I would advise two main things:
1. In most cases, more expensive supplies will yield better results. This is not true about everything. But cheap supplies are basically worse than garbage because not only wont they allow you to get the results you want, they really turn people off from art. Kids who try to color with wax crayons or Crayola markers will feel so frustrated that they won't want to color. They will conclude that the fault lies in them, when in fact, its the supplies. But if you get them higher quality crayons or markers, they will want to color and explore and get tremendous satisfaction.

2. The second thing I would advise you is to focus on developing her drawing skills as opposed to her painting skills. You need to have a good foundation in drawing and values before exploring color.

What markers and crayons would you recommend for kids to color with?

amother

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 1:10 am

creditcards wrote:

What markers and crayons would you recommend for kids to color with?

When buying supplies for little kids, it's somewhat of a catch-22. You don't want to spend a lot because the kids destroy and lose everything. On the other hand, the crayons made for kids are just horrible.

Crayola crayons (and even worse, Rose art) are waxy, they don't blend and they lose their point right away. So it's not enjoyable to use.

Having said that, there are some better crayons made by Caran D'Ache and Niji. They are marketed to adults.

Personally, I would recommend you introduce your kids to oil pastels. Pentel is very cheap and very vibrant. That's the brand I most recommend. You can get a pack of 50 for like $6. My second choice would be Sakura Cray-pas Junior oil pastels, and they are also inexpensive.

The only downside to oil pastels is that they are a bit messier than crayons, so you need to make sure the kid doesn't color on the walls and furniture. Also, it takes a bit of practice to learn how to color so the pastel doesnt smudge. I always keep a pack of wipes on the table for the kids to wipe their fingers.

A note about "Art Sets", the type that come in fancy wooden boxes or plastic cases, that people get your kids for their birthdays: Those sets are filled with junk. Even when they claim to be "artist grade"- stay away. The case falls apart right away and the markers are usually dried out when you open the package. You're better off getting individual art supplies that come in their own cases, or keep them in pencil cases.

Markers: Crayola washable markers are ok for the little kids for school. But if your child shows an interst in art, I would consider getting him alcohol based markers. They are more expensive and are not washable. But you can't compare the color vibrancy. They are much juicier than Crayolas and last much longer. They allow you to blend and make really proffesional looking drawings.

They come in nice fabric cases, and are double sided. One side is fine tip and the other is chisel tip or brush tip.

My favorite brand is Bianyo. Ohuhus are the most popular (of the affordable sets) but I find that they leak and splatter. I tested out about 10 different sets, and Bianyos are my favorite.

You can also get dual tip marker pens which are water based. They are fun, but not as vibrant as the alcohol markers. (Ohuhu is a good brand for that. Arteza even better but very expensive. )

If you are getting alcohol markers, you also need special marker paper so the markers don't leak through.

creditcards

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 1:44 am

amother OP wrote:

When buying supplies for little kids, it's somewhat of a catch-22. You don't want to spend a lot because the kids destroy and lose everything. On the other hand, the crayons made for kids are just horrible.

Crayola crayons (and even worse, Rose art) are waxy, they don't blend and they lose their point right away. So it's not enjoyable to use.

Having said that, there are some better crayons made by Caran D'Ache and Niji. They are marketed to adults.

Personally, I would recommend you introduce your kids to oil pastels. Pentel is very cheap and very vibrant. That's the brand I most recommend. You can get a pack of 50 for like $6. My second choice would be Sakura Cray-pas Junior oil pastels, and they are also inexpensive.

The only downside to oil pastels is that oil pastels are a bit messier than crayons, so you need to make sure the kid doesn't color on the walls and furniture. Also, it takes a bit of practice to learn how to color so the pastel doesnt smudge. I always keep a pack of wipes on the table for the kids to wipe their fingers.

A note about "Art Sets", the type that come in fancy wooden boxes or plastic cases, that people get your kids for their birthdays: Those sets are filled with junk. Even when they claim to be "artist grade"- stay away. The case falls apart right away and the markers are usually dried out when you open the package. You're better off getting individual art supplies that come in their own cases, or keep them in pencil cases.

Markers: Crayola washable markers are ok for the little kids for school. But if your child shows an interst in art, I would consider getting him alcohol based markers. They are more expensive and are not washable. But you can't compare the color vibrancy. They are much juicier than Crayolas and last much longer. They allow you to blend and make really proffesional looking drawings.

They come in nice fabric cases, and are double sided. One side is fine tip and the other is chisel tip or brush tip.

My favorite brand is Bianyo. Ohuhus are the most popular (of the affordable sets) but I find that they leak and splatter. I tested out about 10 different sets, and Bianyos are my favorite.

You can also get dual tip marker pens which are water based. They are fun, but not as vibrant as the alcohol markers. (Ohuhu is a good brand for that. Arteza even better but very expensive. )

If you are getting alcohol markers, you also need special marker paper so the markers don't leak through.

I'm concerned with my kids staining their clothing. Are the water based markers washable? Are pastels washable?

amother

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 1:56 am

amother Apple wrote:

I agree with this. I remember the first time I got quality art supplies and it makes a tremendous difference. Things start looking the way you want on paper.

I've had a number of times where the mother of a student didn’t want to spend the money on the recommended supply, so they bought a cheaper alternative. The kid struggled to make the same beautiful art as other kids and couldn’t understand why it wasn't working. Usually, the mother would end up getting him the better supply, so in the end she paid more.

Another thing to consider is that quality art supplies usually last longer than cheap alternatives.
When it comes to colored pencils, the main difference between a cheap brand and an expensive brand is the ratio of pigment to binder. When you buy cheap pencil, you are getting much less pigment in every stroke. So if you use a cheap pencil, you need to work much longer and harder to achieve a certain value, whereas the better pencil gives you that vibrancy in much fewer strokes. So ultimately, you end up keeping the better pencil for longer. Same with markers.

seeker

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 2:27 am

I'm going to beg to differ, there are a lot of art hobbyists in my family and none of them were turned off by Crayola markers and crayons in their early years. Even as a teen I appreciated Crayola crayons - not for everything but they have a nice feel and there's a lot you can do with them, though by then they were just one of many available materials.

You can tell when they're getting serious and ready for something better, and for sure when they're starting to want to emulate more serious artists you'll want to step up a notch. But I'm happy to have my primary age kids use inexpensive, washable materials.

Paint is a bit of an exception because there is really no comparison between washable poster paint and fuller bodied acrylics. But I'm not introducing those until the kids are big enough to use them responsibly anyway, they have enough to keep busy with until then.

seeker

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 2:32 am

BTW for student grade pastels my preference is craypas way over pentel. Lays onto the paper much more nicely with a smoother texture.

Strongly agree that "art sets" are worse than nothing. The worst part is the kids get all excited by the packaging and then it becomes permanent clutter because they hang onto the emotional memory of the excitement of getting it, but it's not worth using. I hate permanent clutter. Just buy a nice tackle box or something and fill it with Crayola when it's on sale in August. I was able to get a couple of these sets to disappear when we moved but not all of them. People think it's a great gift for the kid who loves art...

amother

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 8:23 am

seeker wrote:

BTW for student grade pastels my preference is craypas way over pentel. Lays onto the paper much more nicely with a smoother texture.

Are you referring to the regular Cray- Pas or the Junior?
I started using junior Craypas at some point when Pentel was out of stock. I found them to be very similar, except that Pentel was a bit creamier. I think the Craypas seems a bit sturdier so they break less quickly.

But we can each like different things.
I always tell my students that I can tell them what works for me. But ultimately, every artist will develop their own preferences based on their own techniques.

I know many artists love using mechanical pencils. I tried so hard to like them, but so far, I just haven't learned to get along with them. I also cannot stand sketchbooks, but apparently they work for many people.

amother

Wed, Jun 28 2023, 8:55 am

amother Yarrow wrote:

So by kids coloring with crayons, I understood that to mean 2-5 year olds, who in my opinion are way too young for quality art supplies. Crayons and markers have a shelf life of approximately 2.5 seconds for that age group in any case.

Many 2 and 3 year-olds hardly know how to hold a traditional crayon in their hands. Today they make crayons and markers designed to help them with their motor skills. I have bought crayons called "rocks", that forces the kid to grasp it in their whole fist. They also have markers that have the nibs very low down so that the kid holds it upright.

But if a kid loves to color, I think age 5 or 6 is not too young to get them better markers, assuming the kid could be somewhat responsible to replace the caps and keep the set together. I bought my son his first set of alcohol markers at age 5 and he takes great pride in it.
But really, I am focusing on ages 6-12, where kids are transitioning from preschool to grade school, but are still required to bring either markers or colored pencils to school. At that point, 90%(or more) of kids lose interest in coloring.

Firstly, the teachers and rebbeim don't give them too much time to color.

It's at that point that kids realized that it's not so much fun to color with crayolas. The markers are nice the first few times but then they dry out really fast.

So, many kids switch to colored pencils. But those have their own problems. They break and lose their point quickly, and also because of the small point, it takes too long to color a whole page.

For all of these reasons, I find that most kids lose interest in coloring, even the artistic ones. It certainly happened to me.

And yet, when you introduce them to artist grade supplies, it rekindles their excitement for coloring. Just my observation.