Getting Started with Painting: The Supplies You Actually Need

Starting to paint can feel overwhelming — not because painting is complicated, but because the supply list looks endless. Walk into any art store (or browse online) and suddenly you’re choosing between dozens of brushes, surfaces, and types of paint you didn’t even know existed.

The truth is simpler: you don’t need everything. You just need the right few things to begin.

Let’s walk through what matters and why.

First — Choose Your Medium

Your medium determines almost everything else, so start here.

Acrylics
The easiest place to begin. They dry quickly, clean up with water, and work on almost any surface. You can paint thin like watercolor or thick like oils. If you’re unsure where to start, start here.

Oils
Slow drying and very forgiving. You can blend for hours (or days), which makes them wonderful for careful, gradual work. They do require solvents and a bit more setup, but many artists fall in love with them once they try.

Watercolors
Light, transparent, and less controllable — in a good way. Watercolor rewards patience and observation. Instead of forcing the paint, you learn to work with it.

Gouache
Think watercolor, but with the opportunity to be more opaque and velvety. Popular for illustration and design because colors stay flat and solid.

Pastels (Soft/Chalk and Oil)
Pastels sit somewhere between drawing and painting.
Soft (chalk) pastels create beautiful, dusty blends and luminous color, but require a gentle touch and a protective fixative.
Oil pastels are richer and more direct — you can layer and smear them almost like thick paint, often without brushes at all.

You don’t need all of these. You just need the one that matches how you want to work.

Brushes: You Only Need a Few

Brushes multiply quickly, but most beginners really only need three:

• A flat brush – for blocks of color
• A round brush – for lines and detail
• A medium-size general brush – for almost everything

Better quality brushes matter more than having lots of them. A few good ones will teach your hand far more than a big cheap set.

(If you choose pastels, you may barely use brushes at all — blending is often done with fingers or simple tools.)

What Do You Paint On?

The surface changes how the paint behaves.

Canvas – good for acrylic and oil, slightly textured, forgiving
Watercolor paper – designed to absorb water without buckling
Mixed media paper – flexible and great for experimenting
Pastel paper – slightly sanded or textured so pigment can grip the surface

You’re not committing to a lifelong identity here — just choose something that suits your medium and begin.

The Extras (Keep It Minimal)

You’ll also want:

• A palette (anything you can mix on — even a plate works at first)
• Something to hold your work (an easel is nice, not required)
• Water container or solvent
• Paper towels or cloth
• Fixative spray or glassine paper if working with soft pastels

That’s enough to start creating today.

How to Choose Well

A few principles help:

1. Pick the medium first
   Everything else follows.
2. Buy fewer, better things
   Three good brushes beat twelve frustrating ones.
3. Let your style grow before your supply collection does
   Your preferences show up only after you begin.

The Real Goal

Supplies don’t make art — but the right supplies remove obstacles.
When tools behave predictably, you stop fighting them and start seeing.

That’s when creating becomes enjoyable.

At Inner Life Crafting, we focus on materials we’d actually want to use ourselves — not just everything available. If you ever feel unsure what to pick, ask. Helping someone start well is part of the point.