For an overview of this class, including syllabus, inspiration, links and paper accumulation ideas, please visit the class page. This is just the shopping list.
Basic required supplies:
Glue of some kind, Modge Podge or PVA adhesive glue, about 10 or 16 oz.
Breyer or roller. Turns out many people like to have two—one for painting with and one to stick stuff down with.
X-acto knife—some people like to have their own self-healing cutting mat, but there are several for general use in the studio.
Scissors
sponge or bristle brushes—very cheap is very good.
Substrates—more on this below
Glue bowl of some kind.
Paper towels—the studio ones are terrible. Artists love VIVA!.
Paper collection of your own, again, back to the class page for more on this.
Glue stick.
Whatever mixed media supplies you have— watercolor, acrylic, Gelli plates, oil pastels, colored pencils, cheap or fancy acrylics, water soluble crayons, pretty felt tip pens, stamp pads, etc. Don’t buy, just bring what you happen to have.
Possible Substrates:
Cradled Art Boards: stout, won't bend, finished, ready to hang. Comes in large and small sizes. Buy at the art store. Canvas panels and stretched canvas don't work very well, because the surface for collage needs to be fairly rigid. Artist’s Loft is a cheap but good brand at Michael’s.
Quarter-inch MDF-- a substance a bit like Masonite. I buy it in sheets at Bruce Bauer and have them cut it to size for me. Suitable for small works, such as 10 x 10 or 16 x 16. Larger sizes will bend and warp as the glue dries. I'll bring some to class, and you can purchase them at cost, for a dollar or two a panel. They are great for working in series as well.
Heavy-weight paper, such as printer's paper, watercolor paper, or similar; this works well with lightweight papers attached to it. If you want to add heavy or three-dimensional objects or papers to your collages, I suggest the previous hard surfaces instead.
Nice to Have Supplies
An apron, and gloves, if you prefer to keep glue off your hands.
Store-bought, pretty handmade papers
Self-healing cutting mat, rotary cutter
Different varnishes and glues—buy these as you get interested in them, or as you need them.
Gloss/matte acrylic medium for lighter-weight papers.
Outdoor varnish for objects meant to live outside, such as polyurethane. I have polycryl— the water-based version in the studio for you to try.
Resin pouring (you tube video) as a final finish. Used to be very trendy, but rapidly falling out of fashion.
Self-leveling Gel from Golden Acrylics. For those who do not like brush marks or want a smooth final finish to their collages.
Washi papers or Origami papers.
Coloring Books, to find line elements to add to images.
Magazines.