If you’re looking for a new hobby to wind down with at the end of the day and on the weekends, oil painting is a great way to relieve stress and bolster your creativity. But oil painting is a bit more complicated than painting with fast-drying acrylics or watercolors. You’ll also need more supplies. You’ll need paint, brushes, a brush cleaner, a medium like linseed oil and a bit of know-how to get started on your new artistic pursuit.

Oil paints dry slower than other paint, which allows the artist time to work with the paint before it hardens. If you’re comfortable mixing paints, you can buy individual tubes of the essential primary shades and colors: blue, red, yellow, black and white. However, most beginner sets of paint come with 24 tubes with a wide range of colors.

To start out, select one or two small brushes, medium brushes and large round brushes. As you begin to paint you’ll get a sense of your size, shape and material preference and you can expand from there. There’s no need to buy a comprehensive (read: expensive) paintbrush set when you’re just starting out.

One of the differences between oil paint and other paints, like acrylic or watercolors, is that you can’t clean your brushes with water. You’ll need to use a paint thinning solution called turpentine or an odorless mixture of mineral spirits to get all of the paint out. A jar for storing this substance is also necessary, ideally with a coil inside that you can rub the brush’s bristles against to remove paint.

Another essential for oil painting is what’s called the medium. Mediums are oils like linseed, safflower, walnut and poppy seed that are used to thin and soften the paint to an ideal consistency. Think of it like using water to thin watercolor paint. Beginners often get confused between the oil medium and turpentine.

When selecting a palette as a beginner, choose a surface that’s roughly half the size of your canvas to give you room to spread out and mix your paints. Palettes are available in different substances: wood, ceramic, glass, plastic and even disposable pages. Most starter kits for oil painting come with a palette or two as well as palette knives, which can also be used on your painting to create special effects.

One of the beauties of oil paint is that you don’t have to just paint on a canvas. Any surface treated with gesso (primer) can be painted on, from wood to thick paper. However, most beginners prefer a pre-stretched canvas. Many starter kits include not only a canvas but an easel to prop the canvas on while you create. Easels aren’t essential but make oil painting a lot easier.

When choosing oil paints, you’ll need to consider whether you prefer a matte finish or a glossy finish. Different sets will offer different sheens and the choice is up to your personal preference.

Some oil paint sets offer more earthy colors whereas others offer a diverse range of vivid pigments. A basic set of colors will be most versatile. Consider the subject of your painting as well as your personal style when choosing a set of colors.

Oil paints can be mixed and blended to create the color you need, so you don’t need a huge range of colors to begin with. The essential colors to buy are ivory black, titanium white, cadmium red, cadmium yellow, alizarin crimson and ultramarine blue.

For a comprehensive oil painting set for beginners, expect to pay between $30 to $60. These sets typically include two dozen paint tubes, an assortment of brushes, a palette, palette knives, canvas and an easel. The oil medium and mineral spirits must be bought separately.

Pencils are helpful to sketch directly onto your painting surface before you paint. Oil paint is opaque and will cover up even charcoal pencil. A gum eraser works on canvas during the sketching process. Investing in a smock to wear while painting is a good idea to protect your clothes from getting paint on them. Rags are also handy for wiping your brush bristles after you’ve dipped them in the cleaning solution.

Linseed oil is the most popular oil to use in oil painting. It gives the paint a higher gloss, makes it more transparent and dries a little yellow. Walnut oil dries with a little less yellow than linseed oil but takes longer to dry. It also makes your paint more fluid. Poppyseed oil is least likely to yellow but it can cause lower levels of paint to crack because it takes the longest to dry. Both safflower oil and poppy seed oil give paint a thicker consistency.

MEEDEN 46-piece Oil Painting Set: available at Amazon

Our take: An elegant starter kit for children and adults who want to try a hand at oil painting.

What we like: This set is a great value and includes a quality beechwood easel for your tabletop as well as 24 vibrant paint colors.

What we dislike: Doesn't come with an oil medium or brush cleaner.

KEEF Oil Paint Set: available at Amazon

Our take: An affordable oil paint starter kit with an assortment of colors and brushes.

What we like: Includes three canvases, 24 paint colors, a table easel and a wide selection of brushes. Perfect for kids and a great value for a gift.

What we dislike: Brushes are adequate for beginners but not recommended for more advanced painters.

Castle Art Supplies Oil Paint Set: available at Amazon

Our take: If you're just looking for standalone oil paints, this 24-color set is both budget-friendly and highly pigmented.

What we like: Beginners and more advanced painters enjoy the smooth consistency of these paints. The assortment of colors is versatile and vibrant for a large range of subjects.

What we dislike: Tubes are on the small side but a little goes a long way. 

Ana Sanchez is a writer for BestReviews. BestReviews is a product review company with a singular mission: to help simplify your purchasing decisions and save you time and money.

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