A palette is essential to watercolor, especially if using tubes or pans of paint. This is where the colors are mixed, and water added. Palettes are not necessary for pencils as those are blended and mixed as used.
Tools for Painting
For watercolor there are a few recommended staples.
Please, experiment with each and determine what works best for you.
Masking tape can be useful to hold watercolor paper down when painting, as the paper can start to curl and warp when adding water. Tape can also be used in creating lines or shapes within an art piece. Just be careful to get a good quality artist tape. This reduces the risk of tearing paper and to ensure a good crisp line while preventing bleeding under the tape.
Masking fluid is best for blocking off area that are not to be painted, or to be painted later. Fluid is much easier to work with when wanting to mask off on the surface of the art piece. There is no chance of tearing paper or bleeding, as with tape. Simply ‘paint’ on the surface, allow to dry, paint, then peel off when paint is completely dried.