Acrylic Painting Starter Kit

A warm red, a cool red, a warm blue, a cool blue, a warm yellow, a cool yellow, plus white — six colors that mix every color you need, and the warm/cool pair teaches color temperature (the secret to believable color). A 24-color set teaches nothing; a controlled palette teaches everything. Plus white (the lightener) and you can paint the world.

Acrylic paint is rough on natural-hair brushes (it dries in them and ruins them); synthetics are durable, hold their point, and are affordable to replace as you learn. A round (for lines), a flat (for fills), and a bright (for blending) cover most of a beginner's needs. Clean them immediately — acrylic dries fast and a dried brush is dead.

Value (how light or dark) is what makes a painting read; color is secondary. A correct-value, wrong-color painting reads; a wrong-value, correct-color painting does not. Paint the scene in black-and-white first (a value study) to nail the lights and darks, then paint in color over the correct value structure. It is the master habit.

Panels (canvas glued to board) for practice — cheap, rigid, easy to store. Stretched canvas for finished work. A beginner goes through a lot of practice surfaces; panels keep the cost sane. Prime any with gesso if you want a smoother tooth. Save the nice stretched canvas for the painting you want to keep.