Recommended Supplies


Are you ready to get started coloring? Don’t know what you should buy? Want to have an idea of how much this hobby is going to cost you? Want to add some products to your wish-list?

The following guide should provide you with options in various price ranges, quality, and techniques. If you already know what you want, great! These lists can help give you other ideas. I have used the “recommended” tag for items that I can recommend for you. You will find the supplies broken down into the following categories:

FREE DOWNLOAD PAGES | COLORING BOOKS | COLORED PENCILS |MARKERS | WATERCOLORS | PENS | OTHER

Please note that although I do not know at present receive any kind of monetary kickback for these recommendations, I am looking into receiving commissions.

Designs


Just Color This website has 1,500 free adult coloring pages to download to PDF. Various themes, artists, difficulty levels, and styles. (I particularly like the Middle Ages theme!) Includes movie posters and TV series.
Super Coloring This website has hundreds (or thousands) of downloadable illustrations for coloring. I like some of the cultural themes like Mayan and Inca art, Celtic Art, giant city posters, swear words, and even philosophy!
Crayola Crayola has some 50-ish free images to download from their company website.
Loner Wolf This illustrator has some 18 free coloring pages that are explicitly designed for stress-relieving purposes.
Faber-Castell This colored pencil manufacturer has several downloadable pages available from their website, and they encourage you to share your final product on their Facebook page or Instagram.

Paper


You will get the best experience downloading free images and printing them at home if you use good paper. If you are going to use super-thick paper (like watercolor paper), then make sure your printer feeds the paper perfectly flat; otherwise, it might be an issue and cause a jam. Laser printers work better than inkjets.

65-pound cardstock Best all-around choice. $15.99 USD.
110-pound cardstock Best paper for colored pencils, gel pens, and some markers. Thicker than the 65-pound paper—the kind you see useful brochures printed on. $16.00 USD
Classic Crest 110 pound cardstock Best paper to use for alcohol-based markers. This paper is thick, very smooth, and non-coated. $27.47 USD
Kraft Paper Try something different and try printing on brown Kraft stationery. $13.99 USD

Coloring Books


Coloring books are illustrated books that allow you to add color or designs to customize them. You can find coloring books in thousands of subjects, so try searching for topics that interest you! These are some of the most popular adult coloring books and some of my personal favorites.

RECOMMENDED Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Coloring Book By Johanna Basford. The book that got the (current) craze started! $9.99
Color Me Stress-Free By Angela Porter. A Zen coloring book. $17.50 USD
50 Shades of Bullsh*t: Dark Edition: Swear Word Coloring Book By Alex Fleming. For those ballsy enough to pin it to your cubicle at work. $5.99 USD
RECOMMENDED Sloth Coloring Book for Adults I love sloths—$ 6.99 USD.
Disney Dreams Collection Thomas Kinkade Studios For lovers of both Disney. (Thomas Kinkade is NOT “Thomas Kincaid.”) $7.79 USD. Has a spiral bound option ($15.10 USD).
100 Flowers: An Adult Coloring Book with Bouquets, Wreaths, Swirls, Patterns, Decorations, Inspirational Designs, and more. By Jade Summer. Good paper for using alcohol markers.
A Fantasy Art Adventure By Jasmine Becket-Griffith. Big-faced, big-eyed female characters. $23.08 USD
Adult Coloring Book: Stress Relieving Animal Designs By MantraCraft. Fifty animal patterns in a mandala-like design. $5.54 USD.
RECOMMENDED Calm the F*ck Down An Irreverent Adult Coloring Book By Sasha O’Hara. Twenty-one pages with sassy quips like “Home are where the vodka is.” $4.99 USD
Cats Coloring Book: Realistic Adult Coloring Book By Amanda Davenport. For those that aren’t thrilled with illustrations, this might be for you. $7.99 USD
Splendid Cities: Color Your Way to Calm By Rosie Goodwin. Real and imagined cities. If you love to travel, you might love this too. $7.45 USD
RECOMMENDED Stress Less Coloring: Mandalas: 100 Coloring Pages for Peace and Relaxation By Jim Gogarty. $14.99 USD
Golden Girls: 100 Images to Inspire Creativity. By Disney Book Group. You can find all kinds of tv and movie-themed books. But the Golden Girls never go out of style. $9.48 USD
Justice League: An Adult Coloring Book By Various Authors. For lovers of DC superheroes. $12.78 USD

Colored Pencils


Colored pencils are a popular choice because of their relatively affordable cost, durability, the skill needed, and variety found in the sets.

Faber-Castell, 48 set 48 pencils. $24.02 USD
RECOMMENDED Prismacolor Premier, 48 set 48 pencils. $42.56 USD
Castle Art, 120 set 120 pencils. $47.99USD
Prismacolor Premier, 150 pack 150 pencils. $89.46 USD
Derwent Lightfast Colored Pencils, 72 pack 72 pencils, $172.00 USD

Blender Pencils


Blender pencils are soft, colorless pencils that allow you to mix two or more colors on the page. Blender pencils provide a different look than merely overlapping colors.

Prismacolor Colorless Blender Pencils Two pencils, $5.25 USD
Finesse, Artist Colored Pencil Blender Three pencils, $10.95 USD
Norocme Blending Stumps and Tortilions Paper Art Blenders Thirteen pieces: 6 blending stumps, six tortillions, one sandpaper pencil pointer. $5.99 USD

Pencil Sharpeners


As you use your colored pencils, they will become dull and difficult to use in complex coloring objects. Use a pencil sharpener to make the tip extra-sharp! Make sure you find a pencil sharpener that is sized to fit your pencil width.

Faber-Castell Grip Trip Sharpener 3-in-1 sharpener. $4.99 USD
Prismacolor Premier Sharpener 2-in-1 sharpener. $6.19 USD
Prismacolor Scholar Pencil Sharpener One size. $2.89 USD

Erasers


Did you know that there are many different types of erasers on the market? Check out these different types!

Tombow Mono Eraser This is a pen-style, precision tip eraser. With refill. $6.70 USD
Faber-Castell Kneaded Erasers Kneaded erasers allow you to work the putty-like clay to whatever size and shape you want. Super-absorbent. $6.09 USD
Prismacolor Premier Kneaded Erasers Pack includes three erasers: a kneaded rubber, an ArtGum, and a Latex-free plastic eraser. Suitable for any task! $8.00 USD
Mont Marte Electric Eraser Pinpoint precision. Electric allows you to erase and refine with light pressure. 30 refills. $9.99 USD
Ohuhu Electric Eraser Kit Twenty eraser refills plus a brush. $11.99 USD

Markers


ALCOHOL-BASED MARKERS
Alcohol-based markers have ink that works best for blending. Plus, alcohol-based markers have ink that sits on the page and doesn’t soak in as quickly as, say, water-based markers do.

Ohuhu 40 markers, dual tips, plus one blender marker; $19.99 USD
Artify 40 markers, dual tips, $19.99 USD
Artsy Magic 80 markers, dual tips, $29.99 USD
Croma Markers 240 markers; $338.00 USD
Art-n-Fly Blender Pens Three markers; dual tips, $9.97 USD

 

SOLVENT BASED MARKERS

Solvent-based markers typically come in two types: oil-based and acrylic-based. Solvents combine colored ink with a chemical, and each chemical has a different function. Usually, solvent-based markers have a pretty strong smell and often have permanent ink, so be aware if you want to use this kind of marker in your artist portfolio!

Morphone Metallic Marker Pens Ten oil-based markers, $9.99 USD
Overseas Paint Markers 12 oil-based markers, medium tip, $14.98 USD
Castle Arts Paint Markers 12 oil-based markers, medium tip, $15.99 USD
Artiqo Paint Markers 15 oil-based markers, fine tip, $15.99 USD
Artistro Paint Pens 30 acrylic extra fine tip markers, 30 acrylic medium tip markers, 15 oil-based fine tip markers, $84.99 USD

 

Watercolors


WATERCOLOR PENS/MARKERS
Watercolor markers combine ink with water. Watercolor markers are a little easier to use than watercolor pencils but still require that you have a small glass of water with you to dilute the ink. Using paper appropriate for water is essential if you are going to opt for this coloring method, so choose your coloring book accordingly.

Ohuhu Watercolor Brush Marker Pens 36 colors + 12 pages of watercolor paper + blending brush, $16.99 USD
Benicci Watercolor Brush Pens 25 colors + watercolor paper + pending brush, $17.97 USD
Arteza Real Brush Pens for Watercolor Painting 48 colors, $35.99 USD
Lanrenweng Dual Tip Brush Pens for Watercolor Painting 120 colors, dual tips + watercolor paper, $45.99 USD
Faber-Castell Dual Brush Watercolor Markers 30 colors, dual tips, $96.49 USD

BLENDING TOOL
Watercolor pens are easy to blend just by overlapping colors and adding water, but if you want to blend in a more precision-kind way, using a blending pen helps you control the blending process.

Arteza Water Brush Blending Pens Blending Pens, assorted tips, four-pack, $9.99 USD

Pens


GEL PENS
Gel pens consist of a particular pigment combined in a water-based gel. Gel pens typically write very smoothly, have vibrant colors, and often come in fun styles like glitter, metallic, and neon hues. They are a very popular choice for beginner artists. The ink dries relatively slowly, so be careful of smudging or running your wrist through wet ink!

ZSCM Glitter Gel Pens 24 GLITTER gel pens + 24 replacement inks, $5.99 USD
RECOMMENDED Arteza Gel Pens 60 gel pens (includes 12 glitter pens), 0.8-1.0 mm tips, $16.99 USD
Shuttle Art Gel Pens One hundred twenty gel pens, some are metallic and glitter. $18.99 USD
SouColor Gel Pens 60 gel pens + 60 replacement inks, including 21 neon and 39 glitter pens, $19.99 USD
Tanmit Gel Pens One hundred twenty gel pens + 120 replacement inks, includes glitter, metallic, neon, pastel, fluorescent, dye colors, rainbow, and standard colors. $21.99 USD
Castle Art Supplies Gel Pens 100 gel pens + tutorial book, pen colors include neon, glitter, swirl, pastel, and metallics, fine tips, $27.99 USD

 

REGULAR PENS

By “regular pen,” we mean pens that are easily found around the house or out-and-about. Regular pens typically come in ballpoint style, roller-ball style, and fountain pens. Although regular pens do come in various colors, the colors tend to be more limited than other types of writing tools. Mono-color coloring can be stunning with practice—like architectural drawings.

Pilot Dr. Grip Rolling Ball Pen Fine point, metallic grey. $7.44 USD for a single pen.
Parker Rollerball Pen A smooth and consistent flow of ink. $29.80 USD for a single pen.
Pilot Acroball Ball Point Pen Smooth and smear-resistant. Fine point. $8.48 USD for a single pen.
Pilot Acro Ink Extra Fine Ball Point Pen $9.99 for a single pen. Oil-based ink.
Pilot Varsity Fountain Pen Visible ink supply allows you to see how much is left—$ 13.99 USD for a 6-pack.
RECOMMENDED Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Fine point. $17.99 USD for a single pen.
Wordsworth & Black Fountain Pen Set Includes pen, six replacement inks, leather case, and instructions. $24.99 USD

 Other


OTHER TOOLS
These are additional tools that you might find helpful to take your art to the next level. These include fixative sprays, organizational tools, sandpaper, and more.

Fixatives SpectraFix SFX-31270 12 oz. Fixative Spray. Best for fixing pastel and charcoal drawings that smear. Pump bottle spray. $18.99 USD
Grumbacher Final Fixative Gloss Spray 11.75 oz Fixative Spray. Glossy. Suitable for use on pastels, charcoal, and graphite. Aerosol Spray. $15.95 USD.
Conda Artist Apron Neutral white with neck and waist straps. Pockets for holding your supplies. Useful if you will get messy with your art. $7.43 USD
Sandpaper Sandpaper Sharpener Sandpaper for giving your drawing tools a perfect, sharp point. 2 pieces. $3.99 USD
Organization Mont Mart 96 hole organizational holder Plastic, desktop. Suitable for pencils, pens, and brushes. $7.49 USD
ArtBin Marker Tray Organizer Plastic storage bin with holes for holding your pens correctly. Good for shelf storage. $19.59 USD
Quinshan Portable Bag Portable bag with zipper, with several layers of pages that holds your pencils, markers, and artist tools. Great for taking your art on the go!
Paint Thinners Mona Lisa Odorless Paint Thinner 8 oz bottle, mineral spirits. $7.49 USD
Gamblin Gamsol Odorless Mineral Spirits 4.2 oz bottle, mineral spirits. $9.63 USD
Gamblin Safflower Oil 16.9 oz bottle, Safflower Oil. $23.41 USD
US Art Supply Refined Linseed Oil 4.2 oz bottle, Linseed Oil. $10.96 USD

Let put these supplies to use! Click here to download my free adult coloring eBook and signup for my email newsletter!

Please note that the contents of this blog are for informational and entertainment purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Any action taken based on the information provided in this blog is solely at your own risk. Additionally, all images used in this blog are generated under the CC0 license of Creative Commons, which means they are free to use for any purpose without attribution.

Shawn C

Hi! I’m Shawn and I Love Coloring and Art and the people in it! I created this website as a resource to help those who are considering getting into adult coloring. My website is your one-stop destination for all the inspired instruction and resources you need to start and grow your adult coloring hobby. From geometric to floral to zen doodles and from time to time even mandala’s when I am in the mood. I have researched and gathered the information to help you in your goal of starting your adult coloring hobby.

Recent Posts