Gift-shopping for an artist or creative person?
It’s a challenge, isn’t it?
If you don’t know anything about art supplies, how do you know if you’re purchasing something they can actually use?
Art supplies are expensive and nobody wants to waste money on junk or have your gift gathering dust in a closet somewhere.
So you search the internet for ideas… but wow! There are a lot of artist gift suggestion articles now, lists full of mediocre art supplies only a kid would love.
Where are the real presents for real artists?
We’re here to help!
It’s a challenge to buy art supply gifts for creative friends when you don’t know much about art. It’s even harder when the recipient is a beginner because they don’t always know what they need. Illustrator and art instructor Amy Shulke provides practical ideas for smart starter accessories and tools guaranteed not to gather dust or waste your money.
My name is Amy; I’m a professional freelance illustrator and art instructor.
I’ve been artistic since childhood and my family tends to give me art supplies for birthdays and Christmas.
Which means I’ve had 40+ years of smiling and thanking people for questionable stuff— things I can’t return but will honestly never use.
Can I share a secret? Here’s what the artist in your life is afraid to ask:
Would you mind if I exchanged this for something I can actually use?
Over the years, I’ve been given a lot of cute art supplies and fancy gift-box assortments.
Unfortunately, artists don’t use the cute stuff.
Professionals and serious hobby artists use higher grade materials which don’t come in holiday sampler packs.
So let’s buy a gift your artist can actually use.
I’ve created this Creative’s Gift Guide series to provide honest advice to non-artists.
Let’s look at the best tools and supplies I’ve purchased this year.
These products are not new on the market in 2022, I’m simply showing you the best of what I’ve used the most frequently this year.
I’m not sponsored by any art supply companies. I’ve bought all of these items with my own money.
If you want more information on the products, I’ve provided a link to the same place I purchased mine. I do participate in a few affiliate programs but my link does not affect your purchase price.
Remember, this article is just a starting point.
I strongly encourage you to shop around for the best price or find something similar but more suitable. And please, be sure to visit local independently owned art stores in your area! They’re full of great ideas.
Now let’s find your special artist a great gift!
Gift Ideas for artists who sketch, draw, color, or paint
I’m a mixed media illustrator which means I draw with pencil and then color my drawing with a combination of alcohol markers, colored pencils, watercolor, or gouache.
If you’re searching for a gift for a sculptor, potter, or oil painter, I’m afraid these products won’t be of much use to your special artist.
16. The Freedom of Choice
Let’s be honest— I’m an artist, not a psychic.
I don’t know your artist. I don’t know which mediums they prefer or which brands. I also don’t know what art supplies they’re running low on right now.
The Amazon Gift card allows your special person to purchase exactly what they want or need.
And I’m not suggesting Amazon because of the affiliate link.
The Amazon card doesn’t have to be used at Amazon! Yes, Amazon carries a lot of art supplies and excellent art books but my favorite art store is actually Dick Blick. Blick is strictly art supplies, everything from paint to storage to studio furniture.
And here’s the great part— you can shop at DickBlick.com pay with the Amazon gift card!
15. Amazing Drawing Pencils
Most artists spend some amount of time drawing, even they’re a painter or sculptor. So this gift if pretty safe no matter their preferred medium.
Pencils are made of graphite (not actual lead) but the problem is that graphite is shiny. There’s nothing more frustrating than to carefully work on an area making it a deep dark black, only to realize later that your black area shines like a bright white mirror from certain angles.
Faber Castell’s Matt pencils range from hard to soft which is great for gifting because you don’t know your special artist’s preferred pencil number.
They feel like a cross between a regular pencil and a colored pencil which has me thinking about mixing Matts into some of my colored pencil projects.
These pencils aren’t 100% totally matte, there’s still some shine to them, but it’s a vast improvement over standard graphite and they’re my go-to sketching pencils now.
BTW, I really love the 14B!
14. Quality Illustration Board
Artists, artistic crafters, and coloring fans are very finicky about paper.
The average person doesn’t realize that paper is more important than the paint, pencil, or markers we use. It’s very hard to get good results on bad paper, even if that bad paper is expensive and loved by millions of other artists.
We want to work on our favorite paper.
Since you don’t know which paper your artsy person prefers, how about giving them something to experiment on? These artboards are a heavy duty board bonded to a very nice top layer of excellent paper for ink or colored pencil.
Even if your artist doesn’t draw on these boards, they can glue their own finished projects to this type of board during the framing process.
I guarantee this package of artboards will not go to waste!
13. Amaze Them With Color
I have to say, this gift will look impressive under the tree.
Sarah Renae Clark is the queen of coloring pages and she’s developed a great set of tools for hobby colorers and artists alike.
One of the things all artists struggle with is color inspiration. Hobbyists are always looking for new color combinations and artists often need to recharge their creative batteries by looking at color stimulating references.
The Color Cubes, volumes 1 and 2 are beautiful boxes— you may not want to wrap them. Each cube contains 250 color cards plus details on the backside.
UPDATE: 11/2022 The initial run of Color Cubes from summer ‘22 are shipping now. I’d order asap to insure delivery by Christmas.
12. Big Block Eraser
If you’ve read my annual gift articles or visited my recommended products page, you’ll know I’m a big fan of Sakura’s SumoGrip erasers.
They’re described as graphite erasers but the black version works quite well with colored pencils. This is why a Sumo is listed on all my class supply lists.
My favorite has been the retractible click style which I think are now discontinued (2023?). Most polymer erasers break in half easily due to the force of erasing. The click style protects the eraser allowing you to use the entire eraser down to the stub.
The problem with the click version is that it’s small and it takes forever to clean the white background and margins of a finished piece with a clicker. This gigantic B300 version measures 3“ x 1.5”. It’s now my go-to for cleaning margins prior to framing. I expect it will break eventually but the size and speed of this eraser should make the eventual waste worth it.
11. A Change of Pace for Colored Pencils or Markers
If your special artist uses colored pencils or alcohol markers, they work on paper.
Always paper. Paper. Paper. Paper.
You can see how that could get boring after a while, right?
Give your pencil or marker artist a sample pack of Ampersand Bords. These are high quality sheets of particle board coated with surfaces which mimic paper. I’d suggest a sampler pack if your artist has never tried them before.
Claybord feels like working on hot press paper. It’s great for colored pencil but you can use alcohol markers (like Copic) on it too.
Pastelbord feels like working on a grittier, cold press paper. I recommend using soft colored pencils on it rather than the firmer pencil brands. Pastelbord also comes in colors which can help your artist mix it up even further!
10. Slice Tool
Students and regular readers know I’m a big fan of Slice tools. I’m dangerous with craft knives and box cutters so these ceramic blades are safer for me and my wild ways.
But I also love them for art. I use this version of the slice with colored pencils, scraping away blobs of pigment, lifting mistakes, or scoring the area to make whiskers or highlights on fur and hair.
Santa put a slice box cutter in my stocking last year and honestly, I think I’ve used this one tool more than anything else in my studio this year. It’s super handy!
This is likely not a gift all by itself but if you’re looking to add a little something to a package, I highly recommend this.
9. Golden Taklon Fiber Brushes
I’ve been playing with casien and gouache paints recently and because 90% of my brushes are extra soft for watercolor, I had to buy special brushes.
Trekell was recommended by a friend who specializes in gouache and she was so right! I love this brush set and I’ll be adding the bigger brushes to my collection soon. I find myself using the #2 cat’s tongue and the #6 bright most. I’ve been eyeing the wash and dagger brushes next.
For watercolor, I still think these brushes are the best value for students and hobbyists but they’re a little soft for gouache.
8. Gouache Paint
Okay, if you wantthe trendy, hot product which is taking the artsy-craft world by storm this year, it’s gouache.
What is gouache? First, it’s pronounced like “wash”, say “guh-wash” but all one syllable. Gouache is basically opaque watercolor, the grown up version of poster paint.
I use gouache in art school but dropped it after college because it’s mainly used in advertising. This year, I picked it back up only to find the rest of the world rediscovering it too.
Please don’t waste money on novelties like “gelly gouache”. Artist grade gouache is relatively cheap so there’s no need to buy kiddie paint. Excellent brands include Winsor & Newton, M. Graham, and Holbein. The set shown here is what I purchased.
This gift list is sponsored in part by:
Violeta-Ink is an authorized retailer of Copic Markers with excellent customer service and super fast shipping.
If your artist uses alcohol markers for illustration, coloring, or just sketching for fun, they’ll love a Violeta Ink gift certificate!
7. Watercolor Diary… and more!
If your special artist works with watercolor, I can guarantee they spend a lot of time drawing little swatch boxes. Watercolor looks totally different on paper than it does in the tube or pans we paint from, so every color must be swatched and tested. I’ve literally wasted hours of my life designing, hand drawing, and even digitally drawing swatch cards.
Now we have a pre-printed Painter’s Color Diary to keep track of all our swatches. I don’t think it’s the greatest watercolor paper ever but for swatching, I think this is great.
WARNING: THERE ARE TWO VERSIONS OF THIS DIARY! The Gray one is for oil and acrylic painters, the blue is for watercolor— they are NOT interchangable. Match the diary to the kind of paint your artist uses… or buy both?
If your special artist uses colored pencil: They can use the watercolor pad! Yes, colored pencil artists swatch too. Again, it’s not the greatest paper for colored pencil but for swatching? Oh ya!
6. Detail Pencils
I’m a mixed media artist and about 90% of my art involves colored pencil.
So what brand did I reach for most this year?
Readers may be surprised that I’ve used Pablo pencils far more than any other brand this year.
It’s because I mix Pablos with all my other pencil brands. Anytime I want crisp details or sharp edges, I reach for a Pablo. I’ve even colored a few pieces in 100% Pablo, which is unusual because I normally prefer softer pencils.
Pablos have a wide range of colors and they’re chameleons in that I’m always able to find a Pablo match for all my other colors.
I have the 120 set but I’ve linked to a smaller introductory set, perfect for gift giving.
Want more gift ideas? Click to see products we use and recommend:
5. Standing Work Table
My friend Elena at Violeta-Ink.com and I are both building teaching studio spaces to host classes. We compared notes and each purchased a standing demonstration desk.
A desk may be a bit on the spendy side for you, but if your artist has been thinking about a standing work table, you can help them with part of the cost.
I went with the Husky because of the wheels, drawers, and durable top. It’s a hand-crank height adjuster but I don’t mind because I won’t change heights much.
Elena chose the ErGear for it’s sleek style and automatic adjustment buttons.
4. Artist’s Fountain Pen
I released an urban sketching class earlier this year using an ink and wash technique with fineline pens and Copic Markers.
During the class, a student talked me into trying fountain pens again. I’m a grab n’ go kind of girl, plus I’m left handed, so standard fountain pens have never been a great fit for me or my lifestyle.
Having said that, I love this new Twsbi fountain pen! I’ve even been picking it up to write post it notes and to-do lists. It’s easy to load, no silly converter to mess with, and it was a cinch to clean when I switched from gray ink to this sophisticated blue.
I think I’ve been converted!
3. Art Book Inspiration
I always buy a few pretty art books each year. As I mentioned, I’ve been exploring urban sketching which also seems to be spiking in popularity recently. So it’s not surprising that my best book purchases this year are urban sketching related.
Ian Fennelly is my hero. He has a loose and cheerful style which I admire because I’m a very tight and precise artist. Someday I’ll fling paint the way he does. His book is self published so it’s not on Amazon.
The Urban Sketcher by Marc Taro Holmes was also a big does of eye candy. I highly recommend both books.
2. Copic Safe Fineliner Pens
Students and readers know that not all fineline pens are safe to use with Copic or other brands of alcohol markers.
Most drawing pens can damage the nibs of alcohol markers but they can also ruin an art project by smearing and bleeding.
I’m a big fan of Staedtler Triplus Fineliners which are Copic safe and come in a wide range of colors. The problem is they only come in one size, 0.3mm.
I’ve been using the Winsor & Newton Fineliners in black because they’re comfortable to hold and come in a variety of sizes. They’re less expensive than Copic Multiliners and feel better in my hand.
This year, I found the W&N pens in colors: Cool Grey, Indigo, and Sepia. The gray pen is practically black but I like the blue and brown very much!
The colors are all safe for use with Copic or any other brand of alcohol markers.
Last Year’s Tool of the Year: Blending Sponge
Blending stumps (called tortillions) and chamois rags have been around for years and they work great with graphite but unless you’re combining them with solvent, they don’t do much for colored pencil.
The Banana Sketching Sponge is different. It’s squishy and light yet it softens colored pencil lines beautifully. I’ve had my banana for only a few months but I reach for it constantly to gently smooth fade-away edges and soften transitions.
Yes, it’s silly looking but man, this is a GREAT tool!
UPDATE 12/22: Ack! It looks like the bananas are out of stock everywhere, including at the main Arrtx site. We’re watching and hoping this doesn’t mean they’re discontinued. I’ll also keep my eye out for similar products.
And my top Art Tool of 2022 is…
The tool I’ve used more than anything else, the product I most recommend for your special creative person…
Drumroll please…
Top Pick: Blackwing One-Step Long Point Sharpener
Really? But it’s just a pencil sharpener!
What’s so great about this sharpener?
Well, like paper, artists are pretty picky about our pencil sharpeners. And for years, I’ve been telling students to run out and buy this amazing sharpener here for use with colored pencils or graphite sketching pencils. It’s still a great sharpener.
But you’ll notice the red KUM sharpener linked above says “Two Step”?
Two step means you sharpen on side one of the sharpener, twist twist twist twist…
Then you have to move over to side two and do it all over again.
This Blackwing sharpener creates the same super-sharp long pointed lead in just ONE step.
I know it sounds like such a little thing but one step reduces the chances of breakage and it’s so much faster. Plus this thing is sleek, stylish, and offers replacement blade packs.
More Gift Ideas:
We’ll be updating our older lists with fresh links and current information for 2023 soon! In the meantime, you’ll find some good ideas here, even with a few dead links.
