Best Acrylic Paints For Beginners

Best acrylic paints for beginners uk


Thinking of trying out acrylic paints for the first time? Check out my top 5 acrylics to get you started.

If you’re into art like I am and are looking for the best way to spend your money and your time, Acrylic paints are the way to go. They are great for beginners and they are the best go-to for artists and crafters alike.

Acrylic paint is a favorite amongst many artists and crafters as it can be versatile and beginner-friendly for most surfaces. They come in many packages and brands. There are student grade acrylic paint and professional-grade paints if you are already a seasoned veteran. This guide may help you regardless.

Additionally, this guide will help you pick the best brands on the market for acrylic paint at minimal expense as I will share my experiences I have had through many months of trial and error. I will be listing some of the best acrylic paint I have come across and evaluate them for your ease and convenience so you can pick the best for yourself.

Ideally, you are looking for the best price as well as quality when looking for acrylic paint. You definitely want to stay away from anything not worth purchasing due to quality-related issues and they are not uncommon to find when it comes to acrylic paint sets.

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01) Magicfly 30 Colours Acrylic Paint Set 60ml

Magicfly 30 Colours Acrylic Paint Set 60ml main

Non-Toxic Rich Pigment Colours Craft Paints with 3 Paintbrushes, for Canvas, Wood, Ceramic, Fabric Model for Beginner Or Professional

 It’s not easy to get your hand on good artist quality paints in the acrylic medium for cheap but the magic fly 30 color acrylic paint set is a great student grade acrylic to artist-grade selection. With great reviews, this can easily be trusted as one of the best acrylic paint.

Features:

  • This set contains 30 tubes of rich pigmented artist grade paints.
  • Apart from being one of the best acrylic paint brands, these tubes of paint are a great selection of heavy body acrylic paint.
  • Their tubes of paint have a buttery consistency making them tremendously satisfying to paint with.

Description:

With all the compound colors present you are able to mix and match any color that you like with high pigment. You will have highly saturated paints for these are for beginners and professionals alike. Since all acrylic paint dries quicker than oil paint, it is needless to say they are a cut above.

Pros
  • Great fluid consistency
  • Has all the basic colors
  • Highly pigmented
  • Great for color mixing
  • Diverse paint colors
Cons
  • Not a set with much equipment
  • Dries too quickly

Review:

For heavy body paints and thicker paint, the issue at hand is pigments drying too quickly, however, if you are into thicker and heavy body acrylics, this might be what you are looking for. They are generally for more experienced artists and is a great professional acrylic paint.


02) Mont Marte Acrylic Paint Set

Mont Marte Acrylic Paint Set main

24pcs x 36ml Tubes – Ideal for Acrylic Painting – Brilliant Lightfast Colours with Great Opacity

Mont Marte is what you would think professional artists purchase from looking at their packaging and brand logos but that is not the case. Sure, even as a beginner, think of getting your hands on this paint set because they are just that good.

These are high pigment and brilliantly colored paints offered in 24 pieces of 36 ml tubes. You need not worry about how much paint you use because 36ml is a great size that will last you for a decent amount of painting. Mont Marte is one of the better fluid acrylics that can be used in decorative art and hobby arts.

Features:

  • It has great covering power and with proper watercolor techniques, you may achieve a semi-gloss finish with vibrant colors.
  • Among acrylic colors, this has one of the best finishes.
  • Great quality paints in each tube with high viscosity for quicker drying.
  • It can be thinned with water.

Description:

Comes with 24 compound colors that can be mixed within each other to achieve stellar colors. Includes incredible blue shade and any other color within the red green spectrum. Great for brush strokes as you can dip and think of colors according to your desires. You may want Winsor Newton if you want to go beyond the conventional entry-level acrylic set.

Pros
  • Highly pigmented
  • One of the best acrylic paints
  • Buttery consistency
  • Student grade friendly
  • Among professional grade paints
  • Excellent artist-grade paint
Cons
  • Not water resistant
  • May have fugitive colors

Review:

Although fugitive colors may be something you want to seek and achieve. If you’re an amateur artist, you may struggle. Other than that, this acrylic set of colors is incredible due to being high pigment and having bright and vibrant color. Being water-resistant is not their forte as they are tough to find in acrylic paint sets.

Excellent quality acrylic paint brand nonetheless.


03) RATEL Acrylic Paints Set

RATEL Acrylic Paints Set main

24 x 22ml, 2 canvas + 10 brushes + # 2 brushes + palette + palette knife + sponge, perfect for canvas, wood, fabric, non-toxic acrylic paints set for beginners, artists

Ratel is another brand name that is great among artist quality paints. This acrylic set comes with a wide variety of items that a beginner may deem incredibly helpful to start from the get-go.

Despite being cheap they are a great acrylic paint for beginners, quality-wise and quantity-wise.

Features:

  • Among acrylic paints they pack a series of useful tools and features.
  • These are categorized as heavy body acrylics due to being high viscosity.
  • It has a metallic finish which can have a slight semi gloss look.
  • It is great for fabric.
  • Unlike Chroma Atelier interactive acrylics these set of paints dry significantly quick.

Description:

Ratel provides artist quality acrylics. The set contains 24 tubes of paint which are primary colors that can be mixed to get excellent and vibrant compound colors. The acrylic set further contains 2 brushes, a palette, palette knife, and sponge that is compatible with most surfaces.

Pros
  • Non-toxic
  • Vibrant colors
  • Rich and creamy texture
  • Quick-drying
Cons
  • Coverage issues
  • Not beyond beginner artists

Review:

Although they may not be the best acrylic paint in the market, they get the job done for absolute beginners. If you’re looking for professional acrylic paint, definitely steer clear but if you’re not looking to play with it beyond simple hobbies, you may definitely pick these up.


04) Inklab Acrylic Paint Set

Inklab Acrylic Paint Set main

10 Colors Acrylic Crafts Paint Non Toxic for Artists Beginners Canvas Wood Painting, Large Capacity, No Fading & Rich Pigment, 120ml/Bottle

 Inklab is an obscure brand that specializes in art supplies. This pack comes in a set of 10 primary colors. It may not seem like too many but it can be used to mix and match to create great vibrant compound colors. It has enough acrylics paint to fill up a few jars due to the amount in the set.

Features:

  • Comes with 10 120ml bottles of non-toxic eco-friendly acrylic paint
  • Rich pigments and vibrant colors
  • Easy to use on any surface due to the nature of the acrylic polymer.

Description:

This set of 10 colors are just about enough, especially in quantity. Perfect for mixing and experimenting for beginners. The squeeze bottles assist in easy access for the pigments.

Pros
  • Versatile application on various surfaces
  • Good color blending
  • Rich pigments
  • Large capacity
Cons
  • Lack of color selection
  • Not a complete set

Review:

Good purchase if you’re looking to experiment just with colors. You can easily mix and match and experiment with colors. They may not be Winsor Newton but they will get the job done.


05) Kuyal Acrylic Painting Set For Beginners

Kuyal Acrylic Painting Set For Beginners main

Table Top Painting Easel Box, 48×22ML Acrylic Paints, Nylon Brushes, Plastic Palette Knife/Palette, Sketched Canvas, Canvas Pad, Acrylic Paint Pad (Painting Kit)

Kuyal Acrylic Painting Set is an obscure brand yet still effective in delivering quality products. Although they are not as reliant as Golden Fluid Acrylics, they are still budget-friendly and worth a purchase since you are not diving headfirst into professional equipment and materials.

They offer a full bundle jam-packed with all you might need as a beginner.

Features:

  • The Kuyal Acrylic Painting Set has high pigmented colors that come in a variety of rich colors packed into the box from all spectrums.

Description:

The set comes with nylon brushes, 48 tubes of colors, a plastic palette knife, canvas pad and an acrylic paint pad.

Pros
  • Abundance of equipment in the pack
  • Beginner-friendly equipment
  • Easels and canvas provided
  • Rich colors
  • Non-toxic
Cons
  • Too focused on novelties
  • Not too budget-friendly

Review:

If you have a few extra bucks to spare and are interested in the novelties the set has to provide, you may invest in it and get all the colors plus the equipment. The Kuyal set does not have much to offer so it may be a hit or miss.


What You Should Know About Acrylic Paints For Beginners

When you are getting into the world of acrylic paints, especially as a beginner, you will be tempted to go for a lot of novelty offerings that you may not need until later and spending a lot of money from the get-go just for a hobby may not be sensible.

There are a few great quality acrylic paint companies that you may be interested in if you really want premium, such as Liquitex Basics Acrylic Paint or Utrecht Acrylic Paint that have an outstanding reputation for what they bring to the table. You are free to explore those options too.


Conclusion / Roundup

In conclusion, being an artist by hobby or wanting to get into the world of painting, Acrylic paints are one of the most fun ways to inaugurate that spark you have for art since they are beginner friendly, affordable and accessible in countless brands as mentioned in the guide above.


FAQs

Which Acrylic paint is best for beginners?

So far all that has been are mostly glossy and metallic, most of which can also be found in Blickrylic Student Acrylic Paint or Winsor Newton which is ideal for beginners if you want a brand name that is well-reputed.

If you’re looking for the infamous alizarin crimson hue, most of these basic entry-level will not have that, either you will have to try to blend it yourself or purchase it from other sources.

Which brand can you trust?

You may visit reputable brands such as Winsor Newton. It is one of the oldest acrylics and general painting suppliers out there in the market.

If you are struggling with your paints drying too quickly as does most acrylic paints, you may purchase the Chroma Atelier Interactive Artists Acrylics which often retain their malleability for longer. Chroma Atelier Interactive Acrylics generally cost more but they are worth the extra dollars since you would want to learn to be more confident in the strokes of your brush.

For more reputable and well-known art supply brands in the world of acrylics, Graham Artists Acrylics and Winsor Newton is a great start to get more into hobby paint procuring for professional paints.

How to achieve different final textures?

To find different finishes you would have to venture out and expl0re the markets for the desired results, examples being satin finish and matte finish which have to be acquired by purchasing special coats externally. These two coatings however will not allow you to alter your paintings any further.

Acrylic Gouache is what you may use to achieve the Matte finish or the Satin finish.

How can I make my paintings last longer?

To make your paintings last longer once set you will need paint that is UV resistant that can be acquired by putting on a special coat that is available freely on the market.

Should beginners use acrylic paint?

Absolutely, acrylic paints are excellent for beginner paints since they are tremendously inexpensive and easy to get. Learning using acrylic paint is great as you have space for errors without being punished too much for making mistakes.


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Written By Adam Rushton

Adam has made a name for himself in the illustration industry and is a passionate blogger and writer on the subject of art, illustration and graphic design.

His artwork has been featured in countless publications and used for very well-known media projects. As a professional illustrator for over 20 years, Adams media outlets, a wealth of knowledge, and experience enable him to consult and advise artists and illustrators in this country (from York and Manchester to Southampton and London) and all over the world.