Lovely drawing supplies for kids — materials & tips for drawing together

Looking for something ready to give? A complete drawing set or a filled art case (sometimes called a drawing box) is packed with materials — ready to get going straight away. There are handy smaller sets and big cases with all sorts inside: colouring pencils, felt-tip pens, crayons, oil pastels and sometimes even watercolour paints and brushes. Ideal as a gift: your child gets everything together at once in a handy box or case.

With the youngest children it’s mostly about colouring freely and boldly. Choose materials that are sturdy, don’t break easily and sit well in a small hand: thick, short pencils and chunky wax crayons are ideal. It’s about the fun and the discovering — not the result. And a lovely colouring book can also be a nice encouragement to get stuck in.

As children get older, they want to work more precisely. That’s when slightly thinner colouring pencils are nice: they’re clean, last for years and are ideal for colouring neatly inside the lines as well as for loose sketching. A good set with lots of colours invites them to keep drawing. A fun extra: the Faber-Castell Black Edition has soft, opaque pigment made especially to stand out on black and dark paper too — a cool, surprising effect.

If your child really wants to learn to draw and sketch, graphite pencils are essential. The letter on the pencil tells you how hard or soft it is: an H pencil is hard and gives a light, thin line (nice for the first sketch), a B pencil is soft and dark (for shadow and depth). HB sits right in between.

Charcoal gives a loose, bold effect with deep blacks — wonderful for learning to shade and for making large areas dark quickly. It smudges easily (which is actually fun: shading with your finger or a blending stump), but it also means dirty hands. For the somewhat older, keen artist, a real discovery.

Two techniques in one pencil, and always a wow moment for children. First you draw just as you would with a colouring pencil, then you go over it with a wet brush — and the colours dissolve into real watercolour paint. That way you combine the ease of drawing with the feel of painting.

Lovely and creamy, colourful and very rewarding: with pastels you make a cheerful, atmospheric drawing in no time. Oil pastels are a bit greasier and stickier, soft pastels a bit more powdery and softer. Both are ideal for letting colours blend into each other — like the water around the clownfish at the top of this page.

Bright and bold: with felt-tip pens you make striking, cheerful drawings that look ‘finished’ straight away. Ideal for posters, comic characters and anything that’s allowed to be really colourful. Choose sturdy pens that colour smoothly and evenly — and glitter pens or a nice marker set make a drawing extra festive.

For crisp lines, details and ‘inking’ a drawing, fineliners are brilliant. Brush pens have a flexible brush tip: with more or less pressure you get a thin or a thick stroke — fun for colouring and for hand lettering. A favourite with slightly older children.

It’s also great fun to combine different materials — that’s how children discover how they react to each other. A few classics: draw with wax crayon and paint watercolour or Ecoline over it (the wax repels the paint, like magic). Ecoline is a liquid watercolour ink with bright, transparent colours: with a little water you can make lovely, glowing washes and colour transitions with it.

Don’t underestimate the paper — it really makes a difference. A sketchbook of their own gives children pride and an overview: all their drawings neatly in one place, like a growing portfolio. For pencil and fineliner, smooth paper works well; if you’re working with water or pastel, choose thicker (watercolour) paper that doesn’t crinkle or tear.

Our favourite drawing book is Basisboek dieren tekenen & schilderen (a basic guide to drawing and painting animals) by Julia Woning — I gave it to my son and it keeps him busy for hours: all the techniques (graphite, pastel, watercolour, acrylic) are covered, so you can keep going with it together for a long time. Officially it’s meant for age 12 and up (and adults): ideal for keen little artists who are already a bit further along and want to improve their skills and learn new techniques. Is your child still a budding beginner? Then Ik kan 1000 dingen tekenen (‘I can draw 1000 things’) is spot on! With a thousand simple examples, your child playfully learns to draw the most fun things — from animals and tasty food to vehicles and fantasy creatures. Wonderfully accessible, endless choice and guaranteed hours of drawing fun. Step-by-step drawing books are ideal for children who love learning to draw. In small, clear steps you build up an animal, a face or a kawaii character together — and the result gives a lovely sense of achievement. A nice, structured way to master new shapes and techniques, entirely at your own pace. (These are Dutch editions.) Want an extensive overview by age? See our blog with the best drawing books for kids.

Colouring books are ideal for young children and for children who most love colouring in beautiful pictures. Around a favourite subject — animals, unicorns, kawaii or a much-loved character like Hello Kitty or Pokémon — your child colours away happily inside the lines. Nice for on the go, and a lovely stepping stone to drawing on their own.

With drawing stencils a lovely drawing always works out — handy for children who are still a bit unsure, or who want to draw lots of figures quickly. You trace the shapes and then colour them in entirely yourself.

The little things that make drawing just that bit nicer. A good rubber, a pencil sharpener and a blending stump really belong in every drawing box.