Art Fun Cheap

First of all let me make it clear that I am not a professional artist. This means that I paint for fun and relaxation and not for money. Painting is also a means to shamelessly extract flattering comments from friends and visitors to build your ego. That said, If you are interested in painting as [...]

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As far as easels go, whatever you might decide upon, make sure that it is definitely sturdy. The folding ones are a superb choice to invest your money in. An easel is not really an essential item, but these can prove very useful if you need to move around. These you can take anywhere to suit your needs.

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You need a firm support to paint on, a selection of colours and high quality brushes. Brushes are important! You need one that is clean, has a naturally good shape, and is flexible. With a good brush you can draw freely and not simply make a certain size brushmarks.

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By Artfang, guest blogger
Posing your model surrounded by a few props can add much interest, dimension, and appeal to a portrait and goes a long way to describing your subject. A prop can add appreciably to the composition of the portrait. Sketching a portrait with a prop, such as a hat or even ear muffs, obliges [...]

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By Remi Engels, guest blogger
Once you have hatched the primary value masses of your portrait it is time to blend and “remove” the lights with a kneaded eraser.
A stump is a cylindrical tool tapered at the ends and generally made of rolled paper. Stumping then is to smear or blend your hatchings with a stump. [...]

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To save your good brushes, use inexpensive applicators to apply glue or other substances that may be harmful or hard to wash out.
At Sally Beauty Supply, for example, I found makeup applicators that are perfect for applying chalks, glue, gels, etc. Much better than cotton swabs, they are firm and precise, with no stray fibers, [...]

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The brushes that come with cheap watercolors are usually just junk. Generally they are not worth even trying to use. (Save them to use for glue and other one-time uses.)
That’s why, as I mentioned in Cheap, Fun Watercolors, I was surprised to find that the brush that came with Coloriffic watercolors was quite good. That [...]

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