David Bellamy recommends the half-pan boxes of Daniel Smith fine watercolours which he finds perfect for working outdoors.

'The Daniel Smith half-pan colours work so well: not only do they have a fabulous range of colours, but they are instantly effective in all conditions outside. There is no desperate scrubbing to get the colour working as there is, even with some colours in other top brands. This is a great bonus, especially when the weather is closing in on your high mountain viewpoint.'

Daniel Smith half-pan sets come in a range of inspirational colours including floral and desert to mountains.

Find your perfect set here

• Price: Sets start from £39

Alan Bickley recommends a Set of Four Chinese Painting Brushes from Rosemary & Co.

'This has to be the ultimate gift for artists who love calligraphy. Perfect for Chinese and Japanese painting as well as watercolour and ink. Chinese brush painting is the art of using single brush strokes to depict a letter or a single element in a scene, I find it a fascinating concept!

'Beautifully presented in a gift box, these quality brushes have an authentic bamboo finish on the handles - what an unusual and special gift this would make, certainly one that I would be delighted to receive'.

Take a look at these beautiful brushes here

• Price: £25.95

Add the word PAINTERSONLINE to the comments box when placing your order and receive a FREE brush too!

Valérie Pirlot recommends a copy of Vibrant Oils by Haidee-Jo Summers ROI

'This is a fantastic book about oils that covers so many topics in a fun, easy-to-digest way. Haidee-Jo is a talented and established artist who passes on all her knowledge so generously in this book'. 

Order from our online bookstore and save 20% on the RRP

• Publisher: Search Press
• Price: £12.79

Charles Evans recommends a Wooden box set of Lyra watercolour pencils.

'For all watercolour painters it’s handy to keep some watercolour pencils in your box. For quick colour sketches, or indeed full blown pictures.

'I always have a box of 24 handy. If you really want to spoil the painter in your life, Lyra have come up with this, a fabulous wooden box of pencils. Everything you could ever want. This would definitely be on my wish list'.

Spoil the watercolour artist in your life.

See this splendid wooden box set here

Or you could always take a look at smaller sets of pencils.

See smaller sets here

• Price: £279.95
• Smaller sets start from £16.50

Tim Fisher recommends the Sennelier soft pastels Half Stick set of 30 Plein Air Seaside

'These pastels would make the perfect addition to my Christmas wish list. The seaside set is perfect for creating seascapes, harbours and coastal scenes, with a good range of colours to suit most subjects. Ideal for those who wish to work plein air, I think that these are some of the finest soft pastels available today. The half sticks are chunkier and slightly larger, compared to breaking a standard pastel in half, thus providing good value for money'.

Order your seaside pastel set here

• Price: £39

Alan Bickley recommends a Katell A5 Handmade Leather Journal

'An absolute must for the artist who loves sketching. This vintage brown journal is covered in a rustic style leather and embossed with the Tree of Life, is secured with leather tie closures and a handy leather bookmark.

'This is an exceptionally thick journal containing 300 pages of good weight sustainable unlined and recycled Khadda (cotton) paper. This paper is handmade and has its own slight texture, which gives it a lovely surface for drawing on - I can think of no better gift and is something that will definitely be at the top of my ‘would love to have gift list’ this Christmas'.

Stop dreaming and order your Dreamkeeper Journal here

• Price: £25.95

Robert Dutton recommends the Derwent Tinted Charcoal Paint Pan Set

'What a fabulous gift this would make for someone! This innovative handy compact set of 12 great subtle charcoal paints (that’s right - charcoal paints) presented in the robust modern box are amazingly versatile. Used on their own to create both large and small en plein air and studio paintings and sketches, the media pushes charcoal into new and exciting creative territory with subtle tints, layered washes that all artists will just love!'

Treat yourself or a loved one to this brand new medium from Derwent

• Price: £21

Valérie Pirlot recommends Synthetic brushes from Rosemary & Co.

'I use Rosemary & Co synthetic brushes (my personal preference is filbert as I like a rounded edge, and with short handle as I paint from the wrist, close to the painting). They are perfect for applying impasto smoothly, pushing the paint around rather than absorbing it. I think they are the best quality around and at affordable prices. And a lovely family run business too. I have filbert sizes 0-6 and a few small riggers and pointed rounds too'.

Find the perfect brush gift here

• Price: Brushes start from £2.85

Add the word PAINTERSONLINE to the comments box when placing your order and receive a FREE brush too!

Alan Bickley recommends a Personalised Leather Artist Brush Roll

'This quality handmade brush roll uses premium leather, and would make an excellent gift for any artist. These are so useful to have, particularly when travelling or painting plein air.

'It will keep all of your brushes neat and tidy, and this compact brush roll is a must as it not only protects the brush heads, features 20 small and 2 medium sized pockets for larger flat brushes, but takes up so little space.

'Personalise it with a name or initials embossed on the front of the roll - such a thoughtful and useful gift to give any artist'.

Give the personal touch this Christmas

• Price: £71

Tim Fisher recommends The Herring Versatile easel

'This is one of the best painting supports I have encountered. Lightweight and fully adjustable it is perfect for indoor and outdoor use. I would also recommend one of the related products, the clip on metal tray which attaches to the front of the unit. This set up is perfect for a wide range of media such as oils, watercolour or soft pastel'.

Discover the Herring Versatile Easel here

• Price: £115

Robert Dutton recommends Drawing Dramatic Landscapes

'Looking for creative inspiration and wanting your drawings to become more exciting and expressive? Well, this book is for you! The 166 page book is packed with inspirational ideas and in-depth focus on so many different drawing media you’ll be wanting to see what exciting and creative drawings you can create too!

'The very first in the ‘innovative artist series by Search Press’ this very affordable fully illustrated soft back book forms the perfect gift for any aspiring artist'.

Save 20% when ordering from our online bookstore

• Publisher: Search Press
• Price: £14.39

Paul Talbot-Greaves recommends the Richeson Wet Panel Box

'These products are just great quality. I love my Richeson Sienna Pochade Box, which is actually a very cleverly designed easel with a glass palette. For some reason wet panel carriers are hard to find, so this one, in matching wood would make a perfect accompaniment to my pochade. Slightly pricey, but knowing the quality is good and with a great look, this is definitely on my wish list'.

Discover the perfect way of transporting your paintings to and from the field

Price: £75

Alan Bickley recommends a Bamboo Painters Box 

'What artist doesn’t need more storage space, I know that I do! We artists never have enough space for all our paints, bottles and equipment. 

'This large, quality hand made lacquered bamboo painters’ box is the answer, and would make such an excellent and practical gift.

'With a removable tray and wooden palette, it will hold a lot of materials, and the sturdy handle makes for easy carrying. It’s a generous size measuring 27 x 36 x 11.2cm. Nicely finished with brass hinges and clasps. This would make a thoughtful gift for the artist in your life!'

Discover the painters' box here

• Price: £46.89

Valérie Pirlot recommends a Desk Lamp Clamp

'I recently bought myself this clamp lamp. I was planning to use it for still life set up but realised the clamp perfectly fits on my pochade box so I'm now using it mainly to light my painting while on the easel.

'It's perfect when painting nocturnes en plein air or when painting inside when the light is not strong enough. I even used it while painting inside a circus tent recently! I love it! You can regulate the warmth of the light and the level of brightness. I plug it to my portable battery so I can use it when out and about'.

See how many uses you can find for this versatile lamp

• Manufacturer: Semlos
• Price: £13.99

Alan Bickley recommends a Jackson's Adjustable Artist Apron

'This heavyweight splash proof canvas apron will prove to be such a useful gift for any artist, whatever medium they’re working with. This quality garment has three different height settings to accommodate all shapes and sizes, as well as three useful large pockets. Available in brown or grey canvas.

'A really practical gift idea!'

Find the perfect apron for artists

• Price: £23.50

Valérie Pirlot recommends Michael Harding Non-Absorbent Acrylic Primer

'This might not sound like a fancy or pretty present, but it is the most important discovery I made this year in terms of painting material. I can't praise this primer enough: regular primers were absorbing so much oil leaving the surface of my paintings dull and begging for a coat of varnish. With this primer, all my thin washes of paints keep all their intensity and colours. The result is a painting that doesn't lose any of its vibrancy. It's a game changer!'

Order a 'game changer' here

• Price: From £16.80

Alan Bickley recommends a Solid Stainless Steel Palette/Painting Knife Set

'Designed with the oil and acrylic painter in mind, this top quality knife set comprises of a palette knife and two painting knives. Made from solid stainless steel, these knives have been carefully crafted in Italy and are both sturdy to hold and flexible at the business end.

'I’m well overdue some nice quality knives in my studio, and this set has the lot in respect of quality'.

Order this great set of painting knives here

• Manufacturer: RGM
• Price: £16.20

Valérie Pirlot recommends Oils by Norman Long

'I found this book suitable for all levels and really inspiring. The images are beautiful, the approach is refreshing, well explained and makes you want to pick up your brush straight away'.

Order this book for the oil painter in your life

• Publisher: GMC
• Price: £9.99

Alan Bickley recommends Atmosphere of Landscape, Fred Cuming RA

'Fred Cuming will need little or no introduction to many artists, and has been an inspiration in the development of my painting for some years now.

'Fred is one of Britain’s most respected oil painters who responds to mood and atmosphere generated by the landscape. His usual method of working involves making a collection of drawings, sketches and paintings which he then uses as inspiration to produce larger paintings in his studio. In this film he travels to St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall where he paints atmospheric views of the bay and the surrounding landscape. We then see him working on two large oil paintings in his studio.

'I already have this DVD, which is the very reason that I’m recommending it as a special gift for all landscape/seascape painters in oils'.

Order this perfect DVD here

• Publisher: APV Films
• Price: £28

Paul Talbot-Greaves recommends Rosemary & Co Ivory Long Flats

'I have a small collection of different types of Rosemary’s Ivory series and they apply oil paint to the surface beautifully. In my opinion these are the best oil brushes I’ve used and I certainly want more sizes on my wish list, especially the long flats'.

Find out more here

Price: Brushes start from £2.85

Add the word PAINTERSONLINE to the comments box when placing your order with Rosemary & Co. and receive a FREE brush too!

Or order an Ivory Pochade Brush set for just £36

Don't forget that a subscription to Leisure Painter or The Artist or a Studio membership makes a great gift for artists too!

• Leisure Painter and The Artist subscriptions start from £26.99
• Studio memberships start from £3.50 a month or £23.99 a year
• Studio+ memberships (with magazines included) start from £4.50 a month or £49.99 a year.

Subscribe here

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