My Top 10 Favorite Art Supplies of 2023!

It's that time of year again! Time to take a look back at the year, and reflect on my favorites. Come along as I talk about my ten favorite art supplies of 2023!

Materials (affiliate links)
Pan Pastels-
Stonehenge Aqua Watercolor Paper-

Other Materials Mentioned:

Related videos:

Please note: Product links used in description are often affiliate links, this means I earn a small profit when someone uses my link to purchase a product. However, there is no additional charge to the person who is purchasing the product.
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Music:
Piano sound in the beginning is my own.

Editing programs:
Corel VideoStudio Ultimate 2023
CapCut
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Let's be pals, find me on social media!!

[ladyinblack]

I love really love all 3 of them. Polychromos, Luminance and Holbein. I have 12 of the Derwent Lightfast also. But the other 3 are my go to. Nothing wrong with Derwent Lightfast either, but I like the muted colors of the Luminance.

[creativespark]

I just found your channel today, and I am binge watching your videos while arting today. I have been following the art community on YouTube for about 13-14 years now--HOW DID I NOT FIND YOUR CHANNEL BEFORE!?

Your content is great, your personality is awesome & relatable, and your art is beautiful!!! I am soooo glad I found your channel!

Also, I watched a video you did about 6 months ago, and you mention you were a holbein brand ambassador and did workshops in that video. Are you still brand ambassador and doing workshops for holbein or other companies? Would love to see/hear about it!

Anyway, I am glad I found your channel!

[dianaromig]

One of my newest favorites for 2023 is handmade watercolors from Masha Watercolors and Beam paints. I too have the Holbein gouache but haven’t had success putting them in a palette so I’m going to push myself to use them straight from the tube to decorate the fronts of my swatch and watercolor journals ❤ Great product suggestions 🎉

[MrsBarnabas]

Hi, Shana. I enjoyed this video - a lot! I'm not a great fan of 'favourites 20-- - ' because I see so many 'favourites' which as as pristine as the day they were packaged! I've seen you use all of these this year, and it makes it sooo much more real!

My favourites for 2022 and 2023 have come as a complete surprise to me!!! At base, I've always been a watercolourist and graphite plein air artist who dabbles occasionally with other media, but last year, due to 'circumstances', I could 't get out as much, so set myself and a student a sketchbook challenge. I chose an Art Creation 13 x 9cm (tiny!) sketchbook, and for most of the 160 page challenge, used pencil, fine liners and /or my very mixed-brands watercolour pencils, wet and dry, or watercolour. (I've never been a fan of coloured pencils but have used the w/c version a lot, wet and dry over the years).

So doing the same challenge this year, but with a different student and a different size Art Creation sketchbook (12 x 12cm / 4 x 4"), the same mix of equipment, and still loving them - even plein air with the w/c pencils in a Hahnemühle 250gsm sketchbook with some dodgy sizing!

Two years ago, I wouldn't have believed the work I'm doing with those watercolour pencils used dry. One of my favourites is of two long ribbons across both pages, one with a bow in it, using just two colours (Ultramarine and fuchsia, a glorious pinky-mauve) which took over five hours and a lot of layering and blending!!! Is this really me???

Well, it seems so, but a lot of the improved technique this year has come from watching artists like you and Scottish Gem of the Colour Cave, here on YouTube and a fast learning curve as a result.

Thank you! 🤗

[cazkiwinz]

You can refill those “disposable” Pigma Microns when empty if the nib is still good, just pull the nib with tweezers and syringe Indian/Bombay ink in… which - bonus - is both cheap AND waterproof!

[rayne]

Encaustic board was the best idea for Pitt Pens. It’s the best tip I have ever heard and I got it right here. I love it!!!

[SketchesnScrubs]

Really inspiring list! Thank you for sharing ❤❤❤

[starvingartistscollective]

Great list Shana!! I also have those Paul Rubens bought that 'flower' 1/2 set and the same colour selection as a tube set for that pinkness is so 'girly' that I haven't had the heart to use the cloth! Bit of old T-shirt instead🤣🤣 TFS!!

[ChantelleArts]

.these look fantastic, might have to pick a couple of them ❤❤❤

[charlotteboy]

Some of my new favorites for this year are neocolor crayons (1 and 2), which i like to use dry on the stonehenge black wc paper. I also embraced ink with watercolor this year, so using de atrementis ink in a fountain pen, with Jazper Stardust handmade watercolor and fabriano artistico paper. Also found a weird combo of supracolor watercolor pencil on white pastelmat paper. Ill put inkense pencils as my 10th supply.🎉

[Mostlymid]

And there they are, the very first thing on the list, my very favorite art supply of all time, PITT PENS! I've loved India inks since I was first introduced to them in high school and the FC Pitt Pens are the most versatile form of that medium. Thanks for the video 😊

[piscesillustrations]

I need to get some of those Faber Castell Pittman markers. I didn't know they had some that big. I hope I can find them some where. Thanks for sharing this video!

[Art_by_Nicole]

I have bought a lot of supplies this year. I caught myself thinking in a store, while looking at art supplies: ‘I’ve got that one, that brand, this brand sucks, this and that I love.’ I realised: I sound awful! So spoiled! 😳🥴
And I was so busy with colours (studying, trying, hurting my hands, try again) that I only made one whole piece with graphite 😱 I want to learn realism in colour and I learn the best by tutorial. I tried so many times on my own, but I just can’t do it. And now I have all kinds of supplies and I am only more confused which to use 😵‍💫

I vote for Shana as a teacher 😬😁

[loati]

Im hoping to save and get the 20 portrait set of luminance. They look like a nice range of natural colors to complement my polychromos
Maybe it only is because of the artists I personally follow, but I've been noticing that in the end, after the hyped has fallen down a bit, people use the luminance more than the lightfast. I often see artists use polychromos combined with luminance

[nancyloomis]

I use that stay-wet pallet for gouache and I've had no mold issues. I have some Holbein gouache...would like to have more, but with the price, I hold off.

[nancyloomis]

I've used Micron fine liners some, but my faves are the Molotow black liner pens, but they are on the high side. They have a .05, smaller than 1.0 or .5...gives an almost hairline line. Maybe Micron offers that super small size? Not sure.

[SmillyDonut]

I haven't made a lot of art for myself this year, so I don't have a ton of favourites for the year, but I've been really enjoying coloured pencils for sketching and quickly getting colour notes in. Hoping to get myself some artist grade pencils next year. I've also been really enjoying using a smaller sketchbook for planning out art ideas and such, so my 6x8 hardback Art Advantage sketchbook has become a fave for the year. And pencil tins. I've been really liking having tins to keep my coloured pencils in. I much prefer having the flat open space as opposed to a floppy pencil case and I've begun to prefer have them out of the boxes that my pencils come in. I think those are the supplies I've been really enjoying this year.

[teresamazotti]

Awesome!! ❤ The only thing I am not a fan of is the Luminense Pencils. I find them scratchy and difficult to blend. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

[grahamekellermeier]

Artist quality is expensive at Xmas bought a set of 100 lightfast, 100 Inktense, 72 cromaflow didn't get much change from a thousand dollars Australian.

[scottmantooth]

*fantastic review of supplies...i use a lot to things with my texturing and distressing techniques...such as the Brusho Crystal Colours but i've also found that Rit fabric dye crystals also provide some unique shades as well if used carefully...they are also a LOT cheaper... another question to ponder...what watercolor paper cardstock would you recommend for printing AI generated art?...i ask because i've gotten fairly good at writing the prompts that assemble some really good images...granted my prompts are more akin to geeky word salad but then i do have a wonky left handed dyslexic brain...it would be interesting to see how one might paint over an ai art images to make it more impressionistic...just a thought...*