Ready to channel your inner Da Vinci but worried about the sneaky toxins hiding in your palette? We’re with you—which is why we’re here to paint a much prettier picture using non-toxic art supplies.
Traditional art materials, with their mesmerizing shades, sometimes come at a hidden cost: potentially harmful chemicals.
But eco-creativity knows no bounds, and many eco-friendly art suppliers have taken up the mantle to ensure our artistic tools don’t compromise our health or the planet’s.
So that’s what we’re painting here today for you. A roundup of our favorite options that are mostly handmade with safe materials and ingredients, using low-impact dyes and pigments.
To paint an even clearer picture of the best brands, we’ve launched a new Brand Rating System that expands our search criteria to a much broader range of factors, like chemical and water use, climate commitments, and charitable actions. Our explainer has all the details if you want to learn more.
We independently research all featured brands and we ask them to confirm their claims. In many cases we personally review recommended products. This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you buy something. Learn more here.
Our Art Supply Picks For Chemical-Free Creations
Stabilo‘s FSC-certified 3-in-1 Woody Colored Pencils glide effortlessly on paper, combining colorful hues and safety in every stroke.
eco-kids allows your budding Da Vincis to mold and shape their world with toxic chemical-free clay, paints, and much more.
If you’re looking for washable non-toxic paint for kids, Honeysticks’ natural watercolor paints are natural, food-grade, and free of common allergens.
Index: Safe Art Supplies
- Eco-Kids Jump to brand
- Natural Earth Paint Jump to brand
- Honeysticks Jump to brand
- Ecoline Jump to brand
- Stabilo Jump to brand
- Crayola Jump to brand
- Ecojot Jump to brand
- Wee Can Too Jump to brand
- Stockmar Jump to brand
Eco-Kids
eco-kids Art Supplies
Price Range: $8–$19
The name might hint at it, but eco-kids is a champion in providing all-natural, safe art supplies for kids and young creators.
Their eco-dough breaks the play dough mold with a formula that doesn’t contain any of the synthetic ingredients typical of conventional play dough. Every batch is not only biodegradable but completely safe for young hands.
They also offer a range of other kid-safe natural art supplies, like chalk and plant-based finger paints. Made with non-GMO natural ingredients (like potatoes, rice, and beans) and organic fruit and vegetable pigments.
About eco-kids
eco-kids is devoted to producing play materials that are secure for children of all ages, even those with particular allergies and sensitivities. Wholly derived from nature, their offerings are devoid of toxins and synthetic additives. They’re mostly handcrafted with love in Raleigh, NC, where 90% of their magic happens.
They emphasize reducing plastic use and have made strides in ensuring natural ingredients and low-waste packaging—making them a top choice for zero waste school supplies. eco-kids also continuously collaborates with events, schools, and other entities that mirror their green ethos.
Natural Earth Paint
Natural Earth Paints’ For Kids & Adults
Price Range: $6–$99
Discover the palette of Natural Earth Paint. Whether you’re after their watercolors or acrylic paint for kids and adults alike, they’ve crafted an authentic symphony of colors using pure plant and mineral pigments, infused with organic elements.
Steering clear of usual acrylic polymers and oil-based paints, they’ve formulated a biodegradable version that’s not just environment-friendly but also free from harmful off gassing emissions.
Their Natural Acrylik set for seasoned artists is a testament to rich, lasting shades, ensuring your creations stay luminous over the years—and we should know since we’ve personally tested them! Not only do they glide on your medium smooth and easy, but we appreciate how incredibly easy they are to blend and achieve that perfect color.
While you’re immersed in their hues, consider using their vegan and cruelty-free brushes. Designed with sustainably-acquired wooden handles, they’re sealed with a plant-based, non-toxic varnish.
About Natural Earth Paint
Natural Earth Paint products—which also includes varnishes, Gesso, face paint, and more—are devoid of toxins, heavy metals, solvents, and unnecessary additives.Crafted meticulously in Germany, their offerings underscore the importance of responsibly sourced pigments.
Their sustainability manifesto further resonates with a range of zero waste products. Even if you shop outside that collection, all products can be shipped via their Zero Waste Shipping option, making every bit of your order, even the tape, recyclable.
Honeysticks
Honeysticks’ Paint For Kids
Price Range: $15–$40
Few brands are sweeter than Honeysticks’ kid safe paint. Their Natural Watercolor Paints bring the purity of nature to every artist’s palette by refusing any inclusion of paraffin wax, fragrances, or fillers. They’re also free of the top eight allergens—milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans.
Concocted using food-grade ingredients and non-toxic colors, the watercolor discs feature cellulose, dextrose, food-grade pigments, silica, magnesium stearate, and gum Arabic, ensuring a rich and smooth application.
Housed in a durable metal tin, this set not only promises vibrant colors for your art projects but also champions natural ingredients and eco-friendly packaging.
To complete the set, the accompanying paintbrush is crafted from natural wood and bristles. You can also shop for beeswax crayons and bath colors.
About Honeysticks
Honeysticks stand as a beacon of environmental responsibility and child safety. All products wear the badge of compliance with global safety benchmarks, including ASTM D 4236 and the Graphic Materials Group Standard.
Ethically crafted by hands in New Zealand, every order ships without plastic, nestled instead in recycled and recyclable materials.
Ecoline
Ecoline’s Art Supplies For Professionals
Price Range: $10–$65
Ecoline blends the brilliance of color with sustainable artistry.
Crafted for the eco-conscious artist, their Liquid Watercolor Sets feature dye-based, transparent watercolors that offer brilliant saturation, making them ideal for dynamic lettering, expansive color fills, sketches, and the finishing touches to any artistic endeavor. If you happen to leave a bottle open, the non-toxic, odorless formula can easily be reactivated with just a touch of water.
In addition to watercolor paints, they also sell watercolor brush pens and inks.
About Ecoline
Royal Talens, the umbrella brand behind Ecoline, has taken significant strides to lessen their environmental impact by working to decrease electricity consumption, transition to renewable energy sources, optimize transport logistics, and embrace resource-efficient packaging.
Stabilo
Stabilo’s Art Supplies
Price Range: $10–$100
The Woody 3-in-1 Pastel Pencils by Stabilo aren’t your average colored pencils. Designed for artists spanning all ages, these pencils offer huge versatility as both a colored pencil and a watercolor tool.
Just a dab of water transforms the solid hues into a watercolor masterpiece, allowing artists to dabble in varied techniques without switching tools. Not only can they be used on diverse mediums like paper, cardboard, and glass, but they’re also perfectly safe. Plus, they’re made of FSC sustainable forestry certified wood and are finished with a water-based varnish, further minimizing chemical usage.
Stabilo also offers fine-point non-toxic markers, gel pens, highlighters, and all of the above specially designed with easy grips for little hands.
About Stabilo
Their approach to preserving the environment is holistic, from recycling programs that handle plastic and cardboard waste to the use of energy-efficient systems within their facilities. Stabilo’s eco-journey also includes collaborations with various organizations, fostering sustainability not just within their business but also in education and arts sectors.
Crayola
Crayola’s Markers & Crayons
Price Range: $5–$107
We probably don’t need to introduce you to the name Crayola, but we will introduce you to their Ultra-Clean line of washable markers. For all your artistic ventures, from coloring books to intricate DIY crafts, these markers are safe for artists of all ages. Despite their vibrant hues and color-fastness on paper, these colors can easily be washed off skin, clothes, or even freshly painted walls.
Crayola obviously has a huge range of other art supplies—non-toxic crayons, colors pencils, finger paint, you name it, and they’ve colored it—but as of now, only their markers and Ultra-Clean Crayons fall into the non-toxic category.
About Crayola
With a keen focus on reducing waste, conserving energy, and minimizing their carbon footprint, this household art supply name is painting a greener future. Crayola recently rolled out an impressive recycling program that zeroes in on plastic waste, and has converted many of their facilities into energy-efficient ones.
Ecojot
Ecojot’s Art Supplies
Price Range: $18
For artists who truly care about the environment, Ecojot sketchbooks check all the boxes. Not only is it made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper, but it’s also processed without chlorine. It uses vegetable-based inks and glues, so it’s safe for all your creative ventures.
About Ecojot
From introducing measures to cut down on waste to investing in energy-efficient machinery, Ecojot shows promise in their commitment to sustainability.
Wee Can Too
Wee Can Too’s Art Supplies
Price Range: $7–$35
When it comes to introducing art to the youngest members of the family, we highly recommend Wee Can Too.
Their Veggie Baby Finger Paint is some of the best non-toxic paint for kids of all ages. Not just colorful but also mindful, this finger paint encapsulates the goodness of organic, food-based ingredients, ensuring that they’re as safe on canvas as they are on a dinner plate.
These vibrant shades are formulated free from wheat and dairy and come in a convenient powder form, letting you decide the consistency. Just add water, and let your child’s imagination flow.
About Wee Can Too
Wee Can Too is a tale of two moms, Sarid Ditton and Nichole Groat, whose love for their children transcended into an eco-conscious endeavor. They weren’t just satisfied with any art supply; they envisioned a world where the youngest artists wouldn’t just create but also interact safely with their tools.
Their products, crafted meticulously from fruit and vegetable powders along with plant-based ingredients, mirror their commitment to organic artistry.
Stockmar
Stockmar’s Art Supplies
Price Range: £1–£49
For those aiming to blend their artistic flair with a commitment to safety and the environment, let your imagination take flight with Stockmar.
Their Beeswax Crayon Sticks, celebrated for vibrant colors and high-quality, ensure an environmentally conscious and safe coloring experience without harmful residues, PCBs, or heavy metals. Made with a unique blend of paraffin, vegetable wax, beeswax, and carefully chosen pigments, these crayons offer an unparalleled coloring experience. Their special composition ensures a strong, radiant stroke without compromising on blendability.
While some may argue for a greater beeswax content, this intentional choice guarantees the desired translucence and quality while responsibly conserving a natural resource.
Choose between standard paper wrapped sticks, or forgo the wrapping with their Color Blocks.
About Stockmar
Originating from close ties with Waldorf education and inspired by Goethe’s theory of colour, the Stockmar spectrum has been developed through rich collaboration with teachers, art therapists, and artists.
Not only do their crayons boast rich colours, but their unique ingredients, including European-sourced synthetic-organic pigments.
Why Choose Natural Art Supplies?
At the heart of every artist lies a deep passion for creativity. Yet, in the midst of painting, sketching, and sculpting, we sometimes overlook what’s hiding in our trusty tools.
But why should art supplies be non-toxic?
Many traditional art supplies house not-so-friendly chemicals that might just be putting a damper on our artistic expressions.
Imagine the rush of inspiration being disrupted by the realization that your art materials (paints especially) contain chemicals and heavy metals like lead, cadmium, arsenic, or chemical solvents.
It’s chilling to think that while we’re creating, we could be exposing ourselves to known carcinogens and heavy duty industrial toxins.
Highly toxic metals like lead are particularly menacing to young ones, as they can significantly hinder neurological, developmental progress, and immature immune systems.
By embracing safer art supplies with certifications from reputable bodies such as the Art & Creative Materials Institute (ACMI), we’re waving goodbye to harmful ingredients and saying hello to safer creativity.
And it doesn’t stop at just personal safety. Picking planet-friendly art materials ensures we’re backing brands that keep sustainability at the core of their palette.
