Using Low-Quality Materials

It is such a cliche; "Always buy the most expensive materials you can afford." Like most cliches It is based on a nugget of truth. The reason is that you will be wasting your time and neither will the finished piece look as beautiful as it could. It will, in all likelihood, not last as long either. If you are a painter in Oils, at least get the best Linen canvas you can afford, stretch it yourself. Never buy these horrible pre-stretched canvasses. They are fine for students to practice on but you are a professional. The same applies to watercolour paper; get some nice thick high-quality brand paper. In Oils, buy the best quality professional grade Titanium White you can. Cheap white will 'yellow' after only a few years, likewise any other colours you mixed with it. When my budget has been tight, there are some 'essential' colours after white which I spend as much as I can on, the cheaper versions simply are not as good. [...]