Ok. let me first tell you the guidelines by which you should choose tools for easier and faster learning, And then I'll give you a list of specific recommendations

For tools and materials to accelerate your learning by 2-3 times, you need to follow 3 conditions

1 Condition. You need to use materials that you enjoy interacting with. This will reduce stress and make learning a more enjoyable experience

But there is a nuance! These criteria are very individualized. Look...

• Some people find it stressful to draw on expensive paper (fear of ruining the paper)
• Others, on the contrary, feel stressed when drawing on cheap paper (unpleasant sensations from the sheet)
• Some people care about the shape of the pencil

And so on...

For example, my eyes hurt after an hour of drawing on the ipad, and if I tried to learn on it, I would definitely quit

Any additional stress will slow down learning. So first of all choose tools that you're comfortable with! So that your learning can be an interesting game and not a forced labor

2 Condition. Tools should allow you to correct mistakes

When learning something, we all make mistakes. For example, the pink pencil, which I use in this course, practically does not erase. And with it, you have to draw from the first time. So learning to draw with a colored pencil is a bad idea ❌

That's why we choose

• Pencils that can be erased
• Erasers that do their job well
• Paper that doesn't require a lot of frugality
• Watercolors that can be mixed and applied in many layers

And so on!

The important thing is that you can correct your mistakes

3 Condition. The tools have to be obedient

Typical situations:

• We want to erase a single strand of hair, but the eraser removes half of the face
• We want to draw a thin line, but the pencil draws a thick line
• We want to make an even fill with watercolor, and the paint stains clogged in the texture of the paper

Here I remember a little story: once in a children's store I bought watercolors for $1.5 (brush included). And tried to draw an illustration with it

I was so excited to see what will turn out...And I succeeded! But it was veeery difficult to draw!!!

A little less pressure and the drawing is spoiled. A little more pressure and the drawing is ruined....
A little more paint on the brush and it's ruined

That's why you should choose professional tools. 10 bucks saved on a tool can cost you 100 hours of practice

1. Thin eraser. For example Faber Castle or Mono Zero

It's always great to have it on hand in the process of drawing to erase little details or lines without affecting neighbouring areas

2. Kneaded eraser is very handy when you want to remove excess dirt and construction lines from the whole drawing. The best erasers are from FaberCastell

I usually run it all over the drawing, and then trace the outlines with brighter, clearer and neater lines. Or just tap one specifit place to lift excess dirt

3. Paper. Use any you like. I prefer to use a sketchbook. I like those with yellowish sheets. One such example is Art Creation by Talents

4. Thin mechanical pencil 0.3 mm. I recommend HB or H. Here are examples: Pentel or Tombow or other that are available for you

❌ 0.5mm and 0.7mm won't work for us!

1. A classic beginner's problem - is putting too much pressure on the pencil. An ordinary pencil draws ugly lines when pressure is applied. A mechanical pencil breaks the lead. So a mechanical pencil trains your hand not to press too hard

2. The mechanical pencil draws neat, thin lines. And because of this, it emphasizes all your mistakes. Yes, your first drawings drawn with a mechanical pencil will probably look WORSE than drawings drawn with a regular pencil. But think about this... To improve your drawing skills - you need to find and correct mistakes

3. A mechanical pencil does not need to be sharpened. It is always sharp, which is really important for beginners

4. The mechanical pencil is indispensable in drawing small details. Although I consider the mechanical pencil to be a student's tool. I still use it when drawing small details

Yes, but...

1. The first pencil you find won't work. And the most expensive one won't work. You'll have to go to an art store and choose a pencil for these specific criteria:

✔️My favorite pencils are

1. FaberCastell “Castell 9000 Jumbo” (H)
2. Tombow Mono-100 (2H)

I love everything about them: the way they feel in my hand, the way they interact with the paper, the sound of the lines they draw with

❌ I wouldn't recommend Winsor Newton pencils (and I don't use them myself) because even the hard pencils draw too greasy lines

2. When drawing with a regular pencil, you need to sharpen it every 10-15 minutes. In fact, before drawing each new picture, you should sharpen your pencil (if you forget, your progress will be slow)

3. Also you will need to control yourself so that you don't press too hard. If you are a beginner and are not yet used to drawing with gentle strokes, this can be a bit tricky

Yeah, like I said, it's all about liking the instruments you use.

But there are some limitations ...

1. Learning how to draw on an iPad does not automatically teach you how to draw with traditional materials. So you are depriving yourself of a huge amount of opportunities and experience. But! Once you learn to draw traditionally, you can draw on the iPad with no problems

2. The IPad hurts my eyes. I'm sure other people get screen fatigue too. I mean, after a couple weeks, the idea of drawing may start disgusting you, simply because you're doing it on an IPad and your eyes are tired (my story)

Hmmm... Maybe that's why I accidentally drowned my iPad in the bathtub the other day ....

3. Every year, digital drawing becomes more and more accessible widespread. And every year it is valued less and less compared to traditional drawing. So it's up to you

✔️My favourite coloured pencils are Faber Castell (Polychromos) and Koh-I-Nor (Polycolor)

They are optimal in terms of softness/hardness. They also rarely have broken lead pads

❌ I would not recommend Derwent pencils as they are very bold and smudge too much