As of recent dates I have been interested in "taking my art seriously." I would normally use cheap materials -- A4 printing paper, knock-off sketchbooks, Crayola products, and so forth -- but would like to expand and test the waters with professional tools. However, I realized: I don't know anything about what's reliable and what isn't! So I'd like to know what artists here think, as I know many work with professional tools and can give me some decent feedback so I can make a queue and later, my purchase.

First, materials I currently possess but do not use in excess.

Canson Sketchbook Paper
I've had a few sketchbooks from Canson -- my favorite being the 9"x12" (22.9 by 30.5 CM) Universal, spiral-bound sketchbook.

KOH-I-NOOR Woodless Colored Pencils
I've had these for a while and I enjoy them. (As I'm told by someone else who recently attained some, they are rather cheap in the art stores.) They color very smoothly and blend well. However, they also have the tendency to be too easily overworked -- too much layering/blending makes the colors look bad. (Especially black!)

Prismacolor Markers (Over 100 count.)
These my mother bought (way under-priced) from a packing-and-shipping company she worked for. This company would give workers a major discount, especially on orders that were filled but canceled or "ditched." Naturally, my mother brought a bunch home. Since no one else in my direct family is an avid artist, they wound up in my possession.

I will be the first to admit that I'm not sure just how to use these. Knowing they're expensive (and one set apparently being upward of $100 or more), I'm afraid to use them. When I do use them, I love them. But I also know that they will run out of "ink" rather quickly (that's marketing for you), demanding a re-purchase that I just cannot afford.

Crayola Colored Pencils -- 50 pack
These I've worked the most with, being a "poor artist," and am most comfortable with. However, I know these will not get me very far. (Though amazing things can be done, it takes a lot of time -- which I don't always have.) The pack I buy (50 ct.) is only about $7.

I've had Prismacolor Pencils (Verithin) before. At a pricing of $15 of my hard-earned money, they sucked. Upon my first use they were breaking left and right, demanding a constant sharpening. By the time I had them for a week, each one was only about 3 inches in length. These I will never purchase again for that reason.

I also had both a graphite and charcoal set. These are currently playing a prolonged game of Hide-and-Go-Seek, and I do not remember the name. (These were purchased one or two years ago, $10 each, from the local Hobby Lobby.)

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Materials I'd like help with ...

- Paper. What are some of the "best" kinds? Bristol, card stock?
- Colored Pencils.
- Watercolors.
- Acrylics.
- White Gel pens.
- Markers?
- Graphite/Charcoal sets?

All help will be appreciated -- thanks in advance!

Hi Carrie,

I can't comment on everything here, but let me make a few quick points:

- Prismacolor Verithins are quite different from the regular Prismacolor colored pencils. The regular ones are the first choice of many or most serious colored pencil artists. I love them, and we have several CP artists here at Drawspace, all considerably better than I, all of whom use those pencils. So don't judge the brand by that one line; give the regular ones a try.

- Prisma markers are very nice; they're used a lot in commercial art and illustration. There are a few video demos on prismacolor.com showing them in action -- see if you can track those videos down, and you'll be amazed.

- Canson paper is not too bad; depends what you buy. There's really no "best" here -- everyone has their own preferences, and there are plenty of discussions here at Drawspace you can search for. For "good" drawings, you'll want to use something heavier than what comes in a spiral sketchbook.

- I personally love Derwent graphite pencils, but the inexpensive "General's" in craft stores are perfectly good too.

I purchased a Dahle 133 pencil sharpener several months ago and love it. It is especially nice for the colored pencils, as I said I have used it for a long time now and it still sharpens really nice. You can adjust it to sharpen to a point or a blunt tip. It also adjust for different widths of pencils. It was only around $15 , I think I picked it up at Hobby Lobby. I use the Prismacolor pencils and have not had any problems with breakage using this sharpener and it doesn't eat the pencil up like some sharpeners, you think it hasn't sharpened because it just takes a couple of turns and you have a sharp tip. I like it better than some of the expensive electric and battery sharpeners.

The first set of pencils I tried was General's, and I was actually very happy with them. It's the constant sharpening that deters me from normal pencils now. Lately I've been sticking primarily to mechanical pencils.

Carrie,
I use regular Prismacolor pencils, and although I'm no great CP artist, there's no doubt they look better than Crayola.

I also use a spiral-bound sketchbook, and as Ernest says, it's just not that great for "really good" drawings. From now on I if I'm planning to do a serious drawing I'll buy some serious paper, although there's so many different kinds to try out and see which I like best.

The markers sound like fun. You should just try them out! Yes they'll wear out eventually, but at least then you'll know if you like them or not. If you do, then give someone a "hint" what you'd like for Christmas or birthday. If not, no big loss.

Good luck with your experimentations! Don't be afraid to use whatever you have on hand, if it's been used up then it's been used well.

For Paper I use Stratmore 400 sketch and drawing paper I use Steadtler pencils as for colored pencils I to use the crayola brand and Reeves Watercolor pencils

But just a tip no matter what paper you use get the spiral bound not the paper that has a glue binding
And for charcoal pencil I don't have a favorite but I know I personally hate the paper wrapped pencils

I pretty much use Winsor Newton for everything apart from pencils, for which I generally stick with Daler Rowney and Cretacolor. I also occasionally use Conté A Paris crayons.

*chuckle*
There's special place in **** for whover designed that "peel and sketch" system. You keep having to cut the "pull" string so it doesn't get in your way and the paper layers never peel off properly.

I have used the "regular" Prismacolor pencils for years and really like the way they blend but don't "bloom" as easily as other colored pencils. On the subject of art supplies and tools, sometimes it's just a matter of what works for you. I have a tool I made from a Bic pen that I removed the cartridge and replaced it with copper speaker wire to remove blooming (a build up of the wax of colored pencil). I use it to scratch out some of the color and allows me to add more color to get just the right hue.
On the subject of the Verithin pencils; I've never understood the concept. You either have a point on the pencil or you don't