Watercolor
Fine pigment suspended in a binder, which can be thinned with water. Watercolor dries quickly and is easy to apply using various techniques. Works can be gentle, washy and light, or bold, full of color and with definite lines.
Finely ground pigment suspended in a binder. It can be thinned with water, dries quickly, and is popular for en plein air.
Made of pure dry watercolor paint in a stick format. Apply wet with a brush or use the stick directly as a drawing implement.
Watersoluble pencils that behave just like watercolor. Achieve sharp lines and watercolor washes all with a single pencil.
Masking fluid and applicator tools for protecting the white of the paper when applying watercolor washes.
Brilliant, saturated, transparent watercolour in a versatile marker pen. Ideal for quick sketching and precision detail.
Concentrated, transparent inks with brilliant colour. Can be used for brush, pen, airbrush, calligraphy and more.
Accessories for watercolor painting, including varnishes, boxes, palettes, fixatives, and erasers.
A versatile and durable surface that allows watercolor to appear at its most luminous. Available in a range of sizes and formats.
Brushes ideal for watercolor, including the finest Kolinsky sables, travel brushes, and the latest technology in synthetic brushes.
We’ve put together a wide variety of gift ideas for artists of all levels of experience, and catering for all budgets.
We have hundreds of titles to help inspire and motivate your artistic practice.
Alter the drying time, sheen, texture, or transparency of your paint with a medium, without undermining its structure.
Why Choose Watercolor?
Also known as aquarelle, the beauty of traditional watercolor paint lies in its transparency. When a loaded mop brush glides color across the surface of the finest watercolor paper, the gum arabic binder helps to maximise the vibrancy of the pure pigment. Some paints benefit from the improved flow and vibrancy that a little honey can bring to a watercolor paint formula. The spaces between the colors allow the white of the paper to add luminosity to the final result.
Many beginner painters start with watercolor, but they’re also loved by some of the most successful professional painters. The best watercolor paints offer unsurpassed lightfastness and enviable color brilliance.
Our watercolor department offers the best watercolor paint supplies. Browse brands including Daniel Smith, Holbein, Jackson's, Schmincke, Winsor & Newton, and many more brands.
You’ll find everything you need to get started in watercolor at Jackson’s. Watercolor paint sets provide great value and offer an introduction to the many great ranges we supply. Watercolor paper, including acid-free papers made from wood cellulose - or the finest 100% cotton and linen papers - are available from St. Cuthbert’s Mill (home of Bockingford and Saunders Waterford), Arches, Fabriano and many more. Whether you’re a plein air painter or enjoy painting at the kitchen table, we have every kind of easel to suit every possible need. Tilting watercolor easels allow you to work both horizontally and vertically. Traditionally, sable brushes were the watercolorists' popular choice, with maximum liquid holding capacity. However, modern developments in synthetic brushes offer an excellent alternative, capable of showing your watery washes and vibrant marks at their best.
How will you approach watercolor? Botanical watercolor painters often ask us for the smoothest hot-pressed cotton paper, and tiny brushes to achieve the finest detail. Dynamic contemporary watercolor painters often take risks, adding watercolor mediums to control the behaviour of the paint, adding effects and textures. Masking fluid resists the paint and can help you keep light areas in your painting without fear of watercolor flowing where it shouldn’t. Opacity can be added with Chinese white, or combining gouache and watercolor. The crisp lines of a lightfast, permanent drawing pen contrast beautifully with watercolor in pen and wash techniques.