How to Choose a Drawing Kit for Beginners | Start With The Essentials

Choosing a drawing kit for beginners is easier than most supply lists make it look. The core minimum is just four items: a pencil, paper, a sharpener, and an eraser. From there, you build as your skills grow. Starting small keeps costs low and forces you to master the fundamentals before spending on specialty tools you may never touch.

What Should A Beginner Drawing Kit Include?

The perfect starter setup covers two jobs: practice and finished work. A sketchbook handles daily practice, while a drawing pad of heavier paper is for pieces you want to keep. Your tools stay minimal—two or three graphite pencils, a plastic eraser, and a kneaded eraser.

The 92nd Street Y’s beginner class supply list recommends a specific core: graphite pencils across a range of grades, a Mars Plastic Eraser by Staedtler, a kneaded eraser, and a sharpener. Many beginners grab a large “all-in-one” kit with charcoal, pastels, and blending stumps. That is the most common mistake. Those kits push you toward tools you do not need yet, and you often overpay for media you will not use for months.

If you prefer a kit over loose supplies, look for one that includes graphite pencils, erasers, a sharpener, blending tools, and a sketchbook. Skip kits loaded with colored pastels, markers, or inking pens—those belong to a later stage. The Faber-Castell Do Art Drawing and Sketching kit, for example, covers the essentials without piling on specialty media.

What Kind Of Paper And Pencils Should You Start With?

Paper quality matters more than most beginners realize. Acid-free paper is the baseline—it resists yellowing and fading over time. For practice pages, anything around 60 lbs (89 gsm) works fine. If you plan to erase heavily or build up layers, step up to 90 lbs (147 gsm) so the surface holds up to abuse.

Size depends on how you work. A 9″ x 12″ pad is a practical practice size that fits on any desk. For finished pieces, the 92nd Street Y recommends a paper pad of at least 14″ x 17″, with 18″ x 24″ as the ideal for serious projects.

For pencil grades, ignore the full range at first. One YouTube beginner-supplies guide recommends just two or three pencils: a harder grade like HB for construction lines and light shading, plus a softer 2B or 4B for darker values. As you improve, expand into a fuller range—HB, B, 2B, 4B, 6B, and 8B covers nearly everything.

Which Erasers And Sharpening Tools Work Best?

Use two erasers from the start. A plastic eraser handles large areas and general cleanup, while a kneaded eraser lifts graphite in fine details and lightens tones without leaving debris. The 92nd Street Y class list points to the Staedtler Mars Plastic eraser specifically, paired with a standard kneaded eraser.

A portable pencil sharpener completes the four essentials. Any basic sharpener works—just avoid the tiny promotional ones that chew up graphite. Keep one in your kit and a backup at your desk.

The table below summarizes the starter kit versus what you can add later:

What Are The Most Common Beginner Mistakes?

Overspending tops the list. Multiple sources stress that beginners usually need only pencil and paper at first, yet most starter kits push dozens of specialty tools. Treat any supply list as a guide, not a requirement—the 92nd Street Y frames its own list that way.

Thin or non-acid-free paper is the second biggest error. Cheap paper buckles under erasing, yellows within a year, and tears when you work into it with softer pencils. Pay the small premium for acid-free stock, especially for pieces you want to keep.

Choosing the wrong paper texture also trips up beginners. Smooth Bristol-type paper suits detailed work and technical pens, but graphite shading and charcoal need a toothier surface to grab the medium. Match the paper to what you are drawing, not the other way around.

Finally, watch pencil grade numbers when buying. If a kit lists archival or fade-resistant features, that matters for long-term artwork. For daily practice pages, basic materials are fine.

When you are ready to buy, our tested rundown of the best drawing kits for beginners compares the top options side by side.