A: I always hesitate to use the word 'better' regarding art supplies... it's always best to try out different brands or types of supplies to get to know their unique qualities. Then you can decide which is most appropriate for the piece you're working on or the type of painting that you do. Water brushes are great for their ease of cleaning (just squeeze to allow water to flow through the brush, blot, and you're read for another color). They're great for quick painting and for techniques where you need a constant water flow, like a wash or gradient. They're wonderful for traveling or crops, since they're easy to store with a set of paints or watercolor pencils or in the spiral of a sketch book, and there's no need to bring along a water container. On the other hand, the water flow can be difficult to control, and the nylon bristles tend to fray.

A: For small paintings and stamped images I think the brushes I use most are a #1 and #6 round brush (these come to a nice point), and a #4 flat shader (it's about 1/4" wide with a flat chisel end). For larger paintings, I would add in a #12 round, a 1/2" angled wash, and a #3 or #4 script brush (also called a rigger - these have long bristles for script and details). For more discussion about watercolor brushes, check out this forum thread.

A: I would recommend that you try one panel with just stamping and one with an embossed image to see which look you prefer. There is such a wide variety in white inks and how well they cover on dark cardstock - the embossing powder removes some of that margin of error by providing a bright and crisp white image, especially if you use detail powder. It would hold up to the extra smudged and sponged effects on the panel as well. (You can find our Chalkboard tutorial HERE.)

A: Stencils are so versatile and can be used with so many different applications of color, from spray mists to paints. They make great templates for doodling or repetitive stamping in open areas with a small stamp or liner pen. You can mask an image and lay a stencil over it, then mist to create a quick textured background. Create a raised texture on a background panel by spreading a dimensional medium like gel medium or texture paste through a stencil with a palette knife or plastic gift card. You can ink up a stencil, mist it, and use it to create a monoprint. You can even run stencils through your die cutting machine with cardstock or matboard for a subtle debossed design. You can find quite a few tutorials in our Resources section for using stencils - Glittered Stenciling, Stencil Monoprints, and Layered Gesso Background are a few of my favorites!

A: I think my favorite uses for gel prints are in mixed media and paper quilting. I have a wide wooden frame that I covered with torn strips of printed paper of all different colors and patterns - it made a beautiful base for more textured stenciling and stamping with metallic accents. To do paper quilting, I use a small grid die that cuts 7/8" squares - I can cut some diagonally and mix and match them to create a quilted pattern on inchie squares. For a tutorial on how to do gel printing, click HERE!