I realized that I never shared the holiday card I created for April back in 2022. Her son was totally down for this fun idea and I went to work in Photoshop to make it happen. It was a little tricky getting the lighting right and finding that ventilation shaft photo background. I absolutely love how it turned out.
Yippie ki yay, Merry Christmas.
Also, Die Hard is most definitely a Christmas movie.
April’s holiday card for this past year was pretty awesome and I love how it turned out. She convinced her son to post in a bathrobe holding a soda can and I went to work in Photoshop to turn him into Uncle Eddie from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
I was able to include their two dogs in there as well and it was so much fun to work on. It was actually an interesting challenge to get the photos to match since any photos I could find of this scene from the film were quite grainy.
What a fun and hilarious idea for a holiday card, thank you, April!
Artists are often pretty easy to shop for. It’s even easier when you know what kinds of materials and tools they already love because they will always be appreciative of you restocking their supplies. I always have some art supplies on my wishlist; whether they are items I already use and love or items I want to try out, but maybe I’m not willing to spend the money on them yet.
There are lots of affiliate links in here and some that aren’t. If an item isn’t available on Amazon, then it’s not an affiliate link. Shopping thru Amazon links earns me a few cents and is greatly appreciated. If you shop from any non-affiliate link, then you’re just supporting an awesome, small business.
Pocket Palette - The first on my list are my Pocket Palettes; hands down. They are compact, convenient, and customizable. The creators of the Pocket Palette have made three different sizes: the Original Pocket Palette, the Demi Palette is a little smaller, and the Folio Palette is the largest of all three. I have two each of the Pocket Palettes and Folio Palettes; keeping my cool colors in one and warm colors in the other. The magnetic base makes it easy to remove pans for cleaning, refilling, and reorganizing your colors. Pans are available separately too in multiple sizes. I wrote more about my love of the Pocket Palettes a while back, you can read it here.
Collapsible Cup - For watercolor or acrylic painters who love to paint en plein air, there are lots of water brushes on the market that have a little reservoir of water in the handle. Honestly, I don’t love using those brushes. I much prefer to have a cup of water to use and I was thrilled to remember there are about a million collapsible cups on the market that will work. After reading reviews and thinking about how I would use it, I settled on a cup from Sea to Summit. It’s large and wider than most others, so the risk of it tipping over is less; which is nice since it’s usually perched on a rock or tree stump. It fits perfectly in my Art Toolkit too.
Pocket Art Toolkit - I bought myself the larger of Expeditionary Art’s Art Toolkit years ago and I have loved using it when I travel, hike, or whenever I need to take a few art supplies somewhere I will be able to paint. They added a smaller, Pocket Toolkit recently and it’s so stinkin cute. It works wonderfully with the Pocket Palette, a couple of travel brushes, pens, and a 4x6 sketchbook or watercolor pad. It will be my go-to for backpacking next summer. A while back I wrote about how my Art Toolkit helped me get back into plein air painting in 2020, you can read it here.
Wireless Speaker - For an artist who loves to listen to music or an audiobook when painting, consider a portable, wireless speaker for their studio space. I have one from Jabra and it does a wonderful job and can get quite loud when I need it to.
DaVinci Cosmotop Travel Brushes - I stumbled on these brushes at random a few years ago and I bought one to give it a try. They fold down so tiny and they are fantastic. They fit beautifully in my Art Toolkit and can easily be thrown in a backpack pocket if I need them on their own. The handle comes apart in the middle and the brush fits inside the handle where it’s protected.
Fingerless Gloves - My hands often get cold in the winter when I’m painting, and it causes my joints to hurt. I started wearing fingerless gloves when painting or working at my computer and it has helped a ton with joint pain. The fingerless part still lets me have the motor control and dexterity.
Pocket Tripod - I bought this on a whim when I saw it advertised on Instagram one day. It’s a little device that’s about the size of a credit card. It folds into a tripod that can easily hold my smartphone for when I take video of me painting or even just a way to get myself into photos. I have used it quite a bit! It’s lightweight, durable and takes up hardly any space. They are adaptable to any mobile phone too!
Travel Sketchbooks - You can never go wrong with a travel sketchbook. They come in all shapes and sizes, with simple covers or something elaborate with leather. If the artist you know does mostly watercolor or gouache, then I’d look for a book of watercolor paper, or at least mixed media paper. You can level up on your gifting game and head to Etsy for a personalized sketchbook with the artist’s name or a favorite quote on it.
Brushes - For anyone who paints, doesn’t matter if they use oils, acrylics, gouache, watercolor, or any combination, they will always be appreciative receiving paint brushes. If you can find out their favorite brand, then I’d recommend getting them. Watercolor brushes especially, can be prohibitively expensive, so when I can find a brush that does an amazing job and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, I am happy to share. My current favs are Princeton Velvetouch because they’re versatile, can be used with a variety of mediums, and are quite affordable. Trekell is another brand I really love and I recently bought vegan watercolor brushes from an artist I follow, Polina Bright, and they are so dreamy to use!
Apple Pencil - For any artist with an iPad Pro or any other model that’s compatible with the Apple Pencil, consider getting one. It opens up a whole new world of digital media for your artist and it fits wonderfully in a stocking.
Palm Rejection Gloves - For the friend or family member whom you bought an Apple Pencil for, consider spending a couple more bucks for a palm rejection glove. This is simply a glove that only covers the pinky and ring fingers and makes it a lot easier to draw on an iPad and not have your palm mess with your drawing. This is especially handy with drawing apps like Procreate.
Electric Eraser - For artists who do a lot of drawing with graphite or even a painter who starts out with pencil drawings, consider getting them an electric eraser. This thing is awesome at erasing the smallest of lines and smudges and it’s wonderful at getting very precise areas. Plus, it's really fun to use!
Markers - For most artists, you can’t go wrong with some nifty new markers. Whether they’re high-end brush pens, calligraphy pens, or more, most of us are happy to have them to doodle. My favorites are from Tombow and Copic, and I love my watercolor brush pens from budget brand Arteza. I love Zebra Fude and Faber Castell for waterproof markers where I can draw first and then use watercolor on top.
Mini Canvases - Painting on an itty-bitty surface can be a really fun challenge; especially if someone is used to paining on a much larger scale. It’s amazing how small canvases come these days. I have a few that are 4x4 inches on my fridge and even some that are 2x2 inches that I’m hoping to turn into ornaments. I have even seen some that come with little easels to display the little canvases.
Stickers - Support an artist and buy stickers of their artwork. As an artist myself, I always love to buy stickers from fellow artists. Sometimes it’s the most affordable way for someone to own a piece of art. Artists I follow who sell gorgeous stickers: Drawn To High Places, Block21Prints, Claire’s Wanderings, Karen Hallion, Sophia Trinh, Lizzy Dalton and MY SITE.
I hope this list helps a little when it comes to shopping for the artists in your life. If you are shopping for a young artist then obviously all of these apply to them as well, but for even younger, check out this post: 15 Gift Ideas for Young Artists.
If you’re an artist or creative, what would you add to this list?
I have had the privilege of creating some of the most creative holiday cards with Laura over the years. She comes up with some of the most fun ideas. Sometimes they are simple, and she does most of the work from a photography or Photoshop standpoint and all I’m doing is adding text. Sometimes it’s more elaborate and we have fun with Photoshop together. It’s an adventure each and every time.
2020 was quite a year, and her card reflected that sentiment exactly.
Laura did most of the Photoshop on this gem with the gremlins. How about a zoomed in look at those photos!
Click here and you can see every holiday card I’ve done for Laura. It turned out awesome. Thanks, Laura!!
Laura’s awesome holiday cards are always creative and they never disappoint; and this year was no exception. I also need to give her family credit for being so enthusiastic about these fun holiday cards.
She took photos of everyone in the family separately and I pieced them together in Photoshop. I LOVE how it turned out. The comic book theme with the text totally meshed with the silliness of the photo.
And how about a zoom in on those joyriding kids, freaked out parents, and a terrified pug!
Thanks so much Laura and a very Merry Christmas to you and your family!
Click here to see all of the fun holiday cards I’ve done for Laura and her family.
