Colored pencils just make us happy—not sure why—and this (50)-pack is about as good a set as we’ve ever seen. Big surprise—they’re from Crayola®. Set includes pretty much every color you would ever want or need, in the classic round shape, 7” long. Nice cardboard box for organized storage, too. We can see your bird drawings and inspirational, colorful notes around the house already.

Your diary—that’s for you, but sometimes you want the world to see your message. That’s when you call on this giant. Our chisel-tip marker from Art Skills®, the latest in B.A.M. technology (Big Area Marker, it says so on the package), 6” long and 1-3/32” wide and the tip measures 3/4” tall x 1/4" wide. Designed for writing big words—not like “recalcitrant” and “contumacious”, but big in size for signs and posters. The ink is black, and washable, comes off most clothing and your skin, but might require a couple washings or a good soaking. We trust you can keep the ink on the signs, though.

John Singer Sargent didn’t use crayons for his watercolor paintings, but that’s only because he didn’t have them. He probably would have loved these (15) premium watercolor crayons from Faber-Castell®. The pigment-rich, washable paint is in the crayon itself, and the kit comes with a brush and storage tray. Crayons are triangular-shaped for more control, and their colors span the spectrum. Ages 3+.

Because cleaning brushes is the worst part of painting, we’ve been using this medium-point orange Sharpie® paint marker lately. Has oil-based ink, which dries fast and resists fading, abrasion and water—and it’ll mark on virtually any surface, from metal, pottery, wood and canvas to rubber, glass, plastic and stone.

Because cleaning brushes is the worst part of painting, we’ve been using this fine-point green Sharpie® paint marker lately. Has oil-based ink, which dries fast and resists fading, abrasion and water—and it’ll mark on virtually any surface, from metal, pottery, wood and canvas to rubber, glass, plastic and stone.

Also Resaltodores. Highlighters in English, but they’re also marked in French and Spanish, so it’s OK to highlight all three languages with them. Our each is a 4-pack of Promarx 5-1/2” wedge-tip highlighter markers in yellow, orange, magenta and purple, with pocket clips. (Clips de poche. Clips de bolsillo.)

Once upon a schoolmarm, chalk was the medium of choice for illustrating lessons. “Chalk talks,” remember? (OK, ask your grannie.) Return with us to those pre-Ted, pre-Power Point, pre-dry erase days and get this pack of a dozen 3/8” dia x 3-1/8” long sticks of soft, low dust, “premium ivory” chalk (although the manufacturer chose to call this shade "ivory" we think it is more of a yellowish hue, but hey, color names are pretty arbitrary, right? Lookin' at you Taupe). It is however a pretty and highly visible color on a blackboard.

Genuine, original, accept-no-substitutes brand-name Sharpie®s for when you really mean it and want a permanent marker. You pick the fine point red or blue, or the blue with a 3/16” bullet tip.

You'll never lose your chance to highlight something when you hang your highlighter around your neck. These have a 3/16" wedge tip (every true highlighter's choice), and come with a pocket clip and a detachable 18" lanyard. You pick yellow or pink. Bonus! This is a great price for a lanyard!

One pen, ten colors. Develop complicated note-taking systems, or just send colorful hate mail with this 6-1/4" long ballpoint with cartridges in black, orange, dark green, purple, light green, red, brown, magenta, blue and aqua. Slide the button of the matching color to write, push the top down to release it. Assorted colored barrels.