Want to buy a small or inexpensive gift for an artist in your life? Here's a collection of gift ideas suitable as Christmas stocking fillers, birthdays, workshop presents, or any occasion you want to say "I love you" to an artist. (If you're shopping on-line, it may pay you to buy several things and keep some back for another occasion, to save on postage/shipping costs.)
Brush Roll
Photo Courtesy of DickBlick.com
Transport your brushes by inserting the handles into the various slots, then rolling the whole thing up, and tying it up.
Disposable Paper Palette
Photo Courtesy of DickBlick.com
Paper palettes mean you never have to spend time cleaning up your palette after a painting session, you simply rip off the top layer and throw it away. I find one particularly useful when painting on location, where cleaning a palett
Cards to Paint
Photo Courtesy of DickBlick.com
Giving a hand-painted gift is far more personal than any ready-made card, and is really a gift in itself. This set of blank cards and envelopes enables you to paint your own cards, whether for birthdays or festive occasions. Don't forget to paint the envelopes too!
Tube Keys
Photo Courtesy of Dickblick.com
If you're a painter who likes to try to get every last bit of paint from a tube, maybe you should try some Paint Saver Keys which make it easier to roll up a tube as you use up the paint. I tend to use the handle of a paintbrush to squeeze up the paint, but rarely manage to roll the tube up neatly.
Containers for Leftover Paint
Photo Courtesy of DickBlick.com
Save any leftover paint or specially mixed colors for use on another day by scraping it into a small, air-tight plastic containers. Or even squeeze out your paints directly into the containers and work from these rather than a palette; tidying up will be easy because you just snap on the lids and you're done.
Paper for Collage or Art Journaling
Photo Courtesy of DickBlick.com
Any artist who enjoys collage or art journaling will enjoy a pack of beautiful papers to work with. And there's no such thing as ever having too much!
