Starting with watercolour can feel very exciting, but also a little bit overwhelming. With so many paints, brushes and papers available, it’s tempting to buy everything at once. But the truth is, you really don’t need a studio full of supplies to create beautiful botanical art.

In fact, beginning with a simple, focused set of materials lets you concentrate on what really matters: understanding the medium, building confidence and enjoying the creative process. Below, I’ll share a thoughtfully curated beginner-friendly watercolour toolkit including the paints, brushes and papers I use most often and recommend to my students.

Paint

There are so many paint brands and colours that you could fill your entire studio with different options. However, when beginning botanical art, it’s entirely reasonable to work with a limited palette based on primary colours. In fact, this approach is often more beneficial than starting with a large and complex range of pre-mixed paints.

Learning how to mix primary colours allow you to achieve a wide spectrum of hues, with a small set of beginner paints. It also teaches you the art of mixing colours, something that is key to achieving accuracy in botanical art.

Here are the paints I would recommend to a beginner:

Colbalt Blue – Sennelier

French Ultramarine Blue – Sennelier

Yellow Deep – Sennelier

Lemon Yellow – Sennelier

Winsor Red – Winsor & Newton

Permanent Alizarin Crimson – Daniel Smith

These paints are also excellent value for money, a single tube will allow you to complete many watercolour projects.

Brushes

A good quality brush will allow you to achieve smooth, consistent strokes without stopping to pick up more paint.

The shape and point of a good brush also make a significant difference. Brushes that come to a fine, reliable point allow for both delicate detail work and broader strokes within the same tool. This versatility is particularly valuable in botanical art, where you often need to switch between painting fine veins, soft petals and larger washes within a single subject.

My Brush Recommendations for Beginners:

Prince Neptune Round 1 & 2

Paper

The surface you decide to work upon is not only influential in your application results, it also determines how well your artwork will age as time passes.

Choosing an acid-free archival paper is important because it ensures the longevity and stability of your artwork over time. In watercolour and botanical art, where works are often intended to be preserved, the quality of the paper plays a crucial role in how the piece ages.

My Paper Recommendation for a Beginner:

I recommend St Cuthberts Mill Saunders Waterford Paper to artists in coloured pencil and watercolour, as it works beautifully with wet application whilst providing assurance that my artwork will age well, allowing me to enjoy my paintings for many years in the future.

Other Essentials

Here are some other items that you will come to rely on in your kit. These are generic and you may already have some to hand at home.

Low Tack Masking Tape

Two Water Jars

Kitchen Towel

Helpful Extras

Masking fluid preserves areas on the page that you do not want to be touched by watercolour, such as the natural white of the page or repainted areas. It is a great way to ensure a clean look to your finished artwork.

White gouache, an opaque, water-based paint adds a huge versatility to your watercolour work. It is primarily used to add bright, opaque highlights, cover up mistakes, or mix with transparent watercolours to make them pastel and opaque.

Next Steps…

Starting with a carefully chosen selection of materials allows you to focus on what truly matters: learning, experimenting and enjoying the process of painting. As your confidence grows, you can gradually expand your toolkit based on your own preferences and the direction your work takes. Remember, it’s not the quantity of materials that defines your progress, but how well you understand and use them. By keeping things simple in the beginning, you give yourself the space to develop strong foundations, refine your skills and ultimately create botanical paintings that feel both personal and rewarding.

If you want to learn more about watercolour, head on over to my Patreon to learn the joy of this medium with me. I have skills videos, over sixty tutorials and step-by-step guidance to achieve your confidence in this medium.