The aim of this blog post is to help you understand what materials you need to start your course. When looking at the list, keep in mind that most of these items are one-off investments.
The basics
Your biggest investment is a drawing board. It is worth buying a high-quality drawing board because you will use it a lot during the course. A good drawing board will also last you for many years and well into your garden design career.
Remember your student discount
Always bring your student card with you when buying materials and if you are shopping online, check to see if there is a student discount. If you don't already have your student card, you can request one from the Online Learning Centre.
List of materials needed to start the course
The list below is a breakdown of what you will need when starting the course. This list isn’t exhaustive but covers the key items - you will receive a more detailed list before you start.
- Black pens with a variety of nib sizes (Black Ink Pens 0.25, 0.35, and 0.5mm preferred; e.g., e.g. Fineliner 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7
- Colouring pencils (e.g. Polychromos by Faber-Castell)
- Colouring markers (e.g. Promarkers by Winsor & Newton or Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen Brush)
- Mechanical or standard drafting pencils with 4 different leads (2H, 4H, HB, and 2B (or a clutch pencil)
- Note book
- Regular ballpoint pen
- A2 Drawing board with integrated T-square
- A2, A3 and A4 Plain white drawing paper
- A2 and A3 Tracing paper
- Cutting mat
- Triangular architectural scale ruler appropriate to your region
- Metal ruler
- French curves
- Set squares (30/60 degree and 45/45 degree)
- Circles template
- Masking tape
- 30m tape measure
Other materials
As you progress through the course, you may be required to pick up a few extra bits and pieces, but these will all depend on the nature of the design and project that you work on. Again, these are materials that you will use throughout your career in garden design.
Make sure you shop around and try to read as many product reviews as you can – sites like Amazon are great for this.
If you have any recommendations of shops or websites where you have purchased these items, please add a comment below.