WHAT SUPPLIES DO YOU NEED FOR SPRAY PAINT ART?

Have you seen street artists making their show by the beach? When I saw the spray paint artist for the first time, I had a strong impulse to try it by myself. Thanks to all kind artists who have shared their videos on Youtube, I have started to learn by myself. I have been checking different videos and articles to find out what supplies are needed. But most things I discovered personally, after I was in it for a couple of weeks. In this article you will find all needed basic supplies for making your first spray paint artworks. Good new is that many of them you already own - just look around your house or garage!

1. Half - Mask Respirator

Always always always. I did my first paintings without respirator (outside) and felt sick after a while. The aerosols are pretty harmful to your health. You want to have colorful painting, not your lungs. Get it in the personal protection equipment - you buy mask and filters separately, but some graffiti shops sell it as a one piece, too. I prefer to buy it separately as you can change filters after time and don't need to buy whole new mask. In the following video I am talking more about the respirator and show you what will happen to you if not wearing it ;). 

2. Gloves 

Wear disposable gloves. It is not easy to remove the paint from your hands, and almost impossible to remove it from nails just with water. I have heard that the chemicals are getting under your skin when spraying often, so protect your hands. (If your gloves are not too dirty, you can surely use them more than once). Get it in drugstore (I buy box of 100 pcs for about 6 USD).

3. Poster board

Special paper spray paint artists use. It is extremely important to have a glossy surface which will not absorb the paint - I have put together article and video just about poster board, where you can read more.

4. Cups, plates, pot - lids, round objects

Go into your kitchen and find old cup, plate, pot lid, anything round you will not need anymore. You will make planets with that (often object on spray art paintings). You can also use the lid from the spray can or spray can itself to make the moon or planet. 

Use the old cups and lids you find around your kitchen

5. Brushes

To make a palm tree for instance, is good to have a brush. When you finish the painting, wipe it with a cloth or sponge as much as you can, Otherwise it will harden when getting dry. On the other hand, when it happens it is not a catastrophe, as when you put it in the spray paint, it will "melt" again.

In that case I usually spray a bit of paint inside of the lid from spray can and leave the brush dipped in the paint for a while. Then it is ready for painting again. You can use different sizes and shapes of brushes to make tree needles and other textures, 

6. Cloth

Have a piece of some cloth (old T shirt will be great) in case you need to wipe your hands, brush or anything. Some spray paint artists also use fluffy socks for creating bush and leaves texture.

7. Sponge

For me it is the best material for making bushes or trees. Of course you can use it for space painting and make planet texture with it or nebula, try your own ideas for using a sponge. you can use a kitchen one, I also work with the sponge for washing cars as it has bigger holes and creates different structure. 

8. Palette knife

It is a special tool which spray paint artists use to create textures, shadows or objects by taking the layer of paint off with that, I have tried also other things like screwdrivers, spoons, knifes, but palette knife is unbeatable for that, Get it in art craft store ore bigger stationary (costed me about 5 USD). 

For me personally small palette knives work the best

9. Magazine and newspaper sheets

Great way how to reuse all that rubbish you get daily😀 You will create texture by taking the layer of paint off by using papers. You can also use plastic bags for that if you have them around. Try to recycle as much stuff as you can - it is great you don't have to spend your money for it and you use it for art instead.

10. Spray Paint Cans 

I usually buy 400 ml cans of various brands, as they offer different color shades. Spray paint artists typically use glossy paints, but when I cannot get some unusual shade (light pink for example), I sometimes get matte paint, too. Look at the lid of the can - whether it is matte or glossy, this is how you can easily recognize it. 

You can start with black and white, but it is likely to happen you will want to test different colors soon:). Black, White, Red, Blue, Green, Yellow are nice for beginning, and then you can get new shades later. (You don't need to spend all your money for spray cans at the beginning😀). Get them in hobby markets, in graffiti shops or online.

TIP: If your friends or family have no idea what to give you as a Xmass/Bday present, you can tell them that new spray can will make you happy. They will have no worries what to give you as a present anymore, they are sure it will fit you, it is not too expensive and it will still be a surprise as they will choose the color by themselves:) I love getting new cans as a present haha! Yaaay!🎈

You can see that on the first picture there are also protective glasses (number 11). If you spray often, the aerosols can be also harmful to your eyeballs, that is why some artist also wear glasses. I started to wear them always, as I feel more safe. 

Also I usually use knife, scissors, and other tools, find by yourself what works best for you. 

If you will make couple of paintings, you will discover new stuff to use it for your artworks. CDs, cardboards, fruit peels, bottle lids, there are many objects you can use to make your painting amazing. Just experiment and enjoy, as spray paint art is real fun! :)