Chalk Supplies

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Chalk Supplies

The following list of suggested items outlines what a chalk artist might find useful when heading to a festival or chalking on their own.

Chalk

Large Bright Chalk

Large chalks are great for getting a base down.

• Prang Freart
  This chalk is soft and large. The colors are very vibrant.
• Prang Ambrite
  This is a smaller version of the Prang Freart and has a larger variety of blues and greens.
• Eternity Arts
  These chalks are drier than the Prang, but come in a wide variety of colors. There are easily a 100 colors to choose from.

Large Chalk (lighter and lower quality)

• Crayola
  Crayola are good for skintones and filling in background color. They lack the vibrancy of Prang but they are easy to wash from the ground and are kid safe.
• Sargent
  Sargent colors are very pale and great for highlights. They aren’t vibrant but are good for filler.

Chalk Pastels (for shading and small details

• Koss
  Koss is a hard chalk pastel that will go very far on just about any surface. It seems to be a popular brand at chalk festivals and comes in packs of 24 and 48 soft pastels.
• Alphacolor
  This chalk is soft and pillowy. It gets eaten by the concrete very quickly and is probably best used as an accent.
• Artist’s Loft (Michaels Store Brand)
• Blick Chalk Pastel
• Mondo Llama chalk pastels from Target
• Mount Vision

References

Reference Image

Come prepared with an image to draw. Using a grid on your reference image can help with placement and proportions on the large scale. To grid you can use a program like paint or photoshop or you can simply draw lines directly on your printout

Programs

If you’re planning to do a 3-D or forced perspective picture you can use a variety of techniques. One thing some of our mements use is a program for helping to map out a grid – http://www.bionware.com/Sidewalk3D.php

Health

Knee/Wrist Protection

The ground is hard and long days will leave your knees and wrists aching if you don’t chalk smart. Gardening pads, large sheets of cardboard, carpet squares, knee pads (left over from when you were into roller-blading) are useful for protecting your knees and wrist from the hard ground. You can also stand or kneel on pads/sheets of paper to avoid smearing completed work.

Blending tools

Blending tools save your fingers and your time. They can make it easier to push the pigment into rough pavement or help cover large areas very quickly.

Chalkboard eraser, foam brushes, carpet square samples or sheets of foam can be used for blending large areas of color. Blending sticks are helpful with small details. Sand is helpful on rough ground as is using toothbrushes.

Finger protection

Disposable gloves,band-aids, kitchen gloves, liquid bandage to protect your fingers

Sun protection

The sun is hot and will burn you. Protect yourself with sunscreen, hat, or umbrella.

 Tools

Measuring tape, Rulers

These help with marking off your grid and getting proportions right. Rulers can be used as straight edges.

Snap line (Chalk line)

Make your grid with straight lines using a ruler or chalk line. Rulers can be used for marking straight lines and blocking parts of your piece

Dewalt chalk line with top loading works okay. The compact 30′ chalk line is great for travel and has an excellent string that hold chalk well.

Duct Tape or Painters Tape

It is nice to tape off a border of your work. Also used for framing holding down tarps. For protecting against the elements, Gorilla Tape really is the best for holding things down and keeping the wet out.

Tarps

Sheet plastic/drop-cloth and duct tape to cover your piece should we have an unexpected rain shower in the middle of the day

• for rain Rain Protection
• for overnight coverage to protect from rain, pedestrians, wind, etc.

Tempera Paint

• Gallons available at School Box
• Sugar water can be used as a cheaper alternative in situations which prohibit the use of paint

Paint Rollers and Paint Trays

• Available at Home Depot, Ace Hardware, or similar store

Containers to store chalk

Stay organized. If you’re traveling, using something like an art bin to hold just the right amount of chalk works. Take the time to pack it away with everything you’ll need so you don’t have to go hunting for supplies when you get to your location.

• Storage Box
• Container Store – these totes are pretty handy at keeping both tools and chalk in one place for the on the go artist

Cleanup

Baby wipes

These are good for cleaning off your hands between colors and cleaning your face. In a pinch a moist baby wipe can pull away an errant line.

Trash bags or grocery bags

for discarding used hand wipes, plastic gloves, food wrappers to keep your area clean!