Paper & Supplies We Recommend

You do not need special equipment to colour. But a few small choices make a noticeable difference, and most of them are about paper rather than pens.

Paper matters more than pens

If you change one thing, change the paper. Standard 80gsm copier paper is fine for pencils and crayons, but markers will bleed straight through it. Moving up to 120–160gsm cardstock stops the bleed, stops the buckling, and makes even cheap markers look better.

Coloured pencils

Wax-based pencils blend smoothly and forgive mistakes; oil-based ones hold a sharper point and suit fine detail. For most people a mid-range set of 24–36 colours is a better buy than a 120-colour set of poor pigments — you will use perhaps a dozen of them regularly.

Markers

Alcohol markers blend beautifully and bleed aggressively; they need cardstock and a sheet underneath. Water-based markers bleed far less and are the safer choice for children. Brush tips give you line variation, bullet tips give you control, and dual-tip markers save you buying both.

Gel pens and fineliners

Useful for the last five percent — highlights, tiny details, and metallic accents on a page that is otherwise finished. Not a good primary tool for large areas; they run dry and streak.

What you can skip

Blending stumps, expensive branded paper, and enormous marker sets are all easy to want and rarely necessary at the start. Buy a decent pack of cardstock first and spend the difference on that.

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