Art & sketch

• Sketch pads and sketchbooks
• Watercolor paper
• Pencils and markers
• Featured types

Sketch pads and sketchbooks

US sketch pads are sized in inches: 5.5 × 8.5 for pocket sketching, 9 × 12 as the classroom standard, and 11 × 14 or 18 × 24 for bigger studies. Paper weight is often listed in pounds; around 60–70 lb (roughly 90–110 gsm) is typical for dry media, while mixed-media pads are heavier to handle markers and light washes.

Watercolor paper

The go-to weight is 140 lb (about 300 gsm), which handles washes without buckling too much. Cold press has a gentle texture and suits most styles; hot press is smooth for fine detail; rough has heavy texture for loose, expressive work. Blocks, glued on all four sides, keep paper flat while it dries.

Pencils and markers

A graded drawing pencil set (think 4H to 8B) plus a kneaded eraser covers sketching and shading. Alcohol-based markers blend smoothly for illustration and design, but they bleed through most papers, so use a marker pad or slip a scrap sheet underneath.