If you seek to start a new hobby, you might have considered painting.
Painting as a hobby is a relaxing activity, allows you to express your creative side, and offers you a beautiful result.
However, you are also probably concerned about the price of starting painting.
So, How Expensive Is Painting as A Hobby?
Painting can be a bit of an expensive hobby in the beginning when you require to initially purchase all the needed materials, including canvases, paints, and brushes. Like any new hobby, there will always be startup materials for the hobby. Therefore, unless you already have painting supplies, you will at least require to buy brushes, paints, and canvases. Generally, you will spend about $70 on a lower-end budget and more than $300 on a high-end budget.
However, over time you can reduce the painting expenses by using lower-quality materials as well as capitalizing on sales such as where you purchase your materials.
Keep in mind that you will be required to replenish your paints and canvases as you use them over time.
This can get costly as well. But this is not something that should make you give up on painting as a hobby.
Although there will be costs, painting can be one of the cheaper hobbies you can start.
Let’s dive deeper into the initial painting startup cost as well as the ongoing costs.
How Much Do Painting Supplies Cost?
1. The Cost of Paint
The main factor determining the cost of paint is the type of paint you choose to use.
The most commonly used paint types include oil, watercolor, and acyclic.
They all come with varying prices, with the oil paint being on the costly edge.
The paint quality you go with will also impact its price.
But keep in mind that buying high-quality materials will also save you money in the long run.
Oil Paint Cost
Oil paint is the most expensive compared to water and acrylic paints. Its cost also varies depending on the type of brand you choose.
However, although oil paints are more expensive, they take longer to dry so that you can achieve more use out of every paint layer.
This simply means that you can stretch the oil paints out longer on a larger surface area than watercolor or acyclic paints, which can save you some cash.
When it comes to the cost, five tubes of 150-200ml oil paint go for around $35 to $200.
You can also buy oil paints as a set. A 9-10 oil paint set each 37-40ml goes for about $27 to $100.
When you compare the price between buying a set versus individual tubes, five individual tubes with a total of 750ml paint costs about $65, while a set of 10 paint tubes with a total of 370ml paint costs about $100.
This is a significant difference in price between the set and individual tubes when considering the amount of paint you get.
Again, it is essential to compare the different brands and the amount of paint they provide to get the best deal.
Watercolor Paint
Watercolor paints are available in different forms.
These include; tube sets, tubes, and pre-formed palettes.
We would recommend you to go for tube and tube sets.
Although the pre-formed palettes can be very cheap, they often lack quantity and quality.
Five watercolor paint tubes at approximately 37 to 40ml each range from $25-$75.
Watercolor paints are cheaper than oil paints and will last longer, so you don’t have to worry about the small tube sizes.
On the other hand, a 5 to 12 oil paint set ranges from $25-$87.
Let’s compare the cost of watercolor tubes versus sets to help you make your decision.
5 individual tubes with a total of 200ml watercolor paint cost around $75, while a 6-tube set with a total of 84ml watercolor paint costs $50.
Generally, if you want to get into a painting hobby, you will mostly consider oils and watercolors.
Regardless of the option you choose, the paint cost will range between $25 to $100 or more depending on the type and brand of paint you buy. However, paint is not the only thing you will need.
2. The Cost of Paint Brushes
Paintbrushes are one of the essential gears that you require for this hobby.
While high-quality brushes will be more expensive, they will work better and benefit you in the long run compared to the cheaper options.
Therefore, if you have extra money to spend, this is the best place to spend it.
While canvases and paints are consumable and need to be replaced regularly, paintbrushes can last you long if well maintained.
This is why it’s recommendable to invest in decent paint brushes so they can serve you well in the long run.
However, you should make your decision depending on your needs and budget.
Like paints, you can either purchase paint brushes individually or a set.
For individual brushes, the prices increase with the size of the brushes.
A small brush can go for as low as $5, while a bigger brush of the same brand can go for up to $60.
There is also a price difference between natural and synthetic hair brushes. Usually, natural hair brushes tend to be more costly than synthetic ones.
In general, the price of individual brushes can range from $2 to $70, while that for sets ranges from $25 to $45 based on the type and brand of brushes.
As a beginner in painting as a hobby, you should find high-quality brushes that won’t break the bank.
3. The Cost of Canvases and Paper
If you are surprised by the diverse range of prices in brushes and paints, you will be more surprised by the wide range of painting surfaces and canvases prices.
Even more, you will have to choose from different painting surfaces such as papers, canvases, woods, and more.
Let’s look at the general price ranges for different options.
Based on the size and brand, stretched canvases cost as low as $2 to as high as $400.
Cheaper canvases will be smaller, while the canvases going for hundreds of dollars tend to be bigger.
With the high prices, it’s not recommendable to spend on high-end canvases as a beginner unless you can afford them comfortably.
However, if you want to paint big but can’t afford the high prices of a big canvas, you can opt for papers. Papers are also perfect if you are looking to do watercolors.
Even better, papers are cheaper and come in pads.
While you can only use a canvas once, pads have multiple pieces of paper that you can use for several different painting projects.
Watercolor and painting papers can range from $3 to $30 depending on the size and brand.
Bottom Line
We hope you now know how expensive it is to start painting as a hobby.
While you will require additional costs and expenses when starting painting as a hobby, the basic materials are brushes, paints, and paper/canvases.
For good quality materials covering your painting needs, you can expect to spend about $70.
On the other hand, if you opt for high-end materials and bigger canvases, you can expect to spend over $300.
Happy Painting!
Related
References
Why are oil paintings more expensive than watercolors?-Actingcolleges.or