Drawing Sets: Boxes and Tins
Who doesn't love a gorgeous boxed drawing set? Funky tin pocket sets, timber storage boxes... and those big studio sets with every pencil in the range... sure to weaken even the strongest frugal willpower. Sets have their pros and cons: if you tend to combine unusual mediums, or use a lot of a particular colour, or use a mix of brands, you can end up having unused products or not having the space you need in the box.
However, you can easily replace individual items from loose stock, and tins are a great way to keep all your stuff organized. I like having my colored pencils laid out in their trays so I can see adjacent shades (I know many colored pencil artists prefer to keep them in jars of like color and shade) and I also keep my graphite pencils in a tin. That way I can quickly grab the one I need and they don't roll about and get dropped.
My most well-used product is a small watercolor travel box - the minimal color selection keeps things simple, and it is easy to toss in a bag when I travel.
Another option, of course, is to make your own boxed set. Trim down cardboard or foam boxes to make dividers (polymer clay makes a great palette - just make little wells in it with something like a pencil-top or thimble, and bake as directed) or repurpose a fishing tackle or sewing box.
Pictured: Winsor and Newton Watercolor Travel Set.
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Comments
Hi Helen,
My favorite sketching accoutrement lately is the Niji waterbrush – you just fill it with water and you don’t have to lug around your water supply for making watercolor sketches “in the field”. I just put it in my favorite cheap watercolor tin, in place of the brush that comes with it, and suddenly I’m ready to sketch anywhere. Just thought I’d share that. Thanks for the great post, as always.
Thanks for this article Helen. I have found that not all people who work in art shops are able to give the right advice to their customers.
Thanks, Peter. Yes, I’ve come across some that really don’t know what they are doing. I’m lucky that in the small town where I live, we have a little art shop owned and run by a wonderful woman who works hard to find great products, and listens to her customer’s needs. I’m also lucky that About’s editorial policies allow me to be as biased as I like when I write reviews – if I don’t like a product, I can say so! Of course, personal taste is always an issue, which I try to mention where appropriate. Everybody has their favorites!
Hi Anthony – thanks for the tip on the waterbrushes. I’d seen them on Dick Blick and wondered if they were any good. I shall have to order some to try. (By the way, in case you wonder why your post didn’t show up for ages… its seems I have a ‘moderate’ function for ’suspect’ comments that I didn’t notice! Must be the links…. so there you go, my first suspicious comment! Ha!)