Author: Jen

Where and how to buy a Diamond Painting

If you asked 5 people where to buy a Diamond Painting, you’ll probably get 5 different answers. There are a lot of 3rd party sellers and several sites that take you straight to the manufacturer. Some are in the US, some are in the UK or Australia, but ultimately 99% of all kits and supplies come from China. Hopefully, that will change as the craft grows, but for now…China it is.

Here are some of the most popular sites:

When you are looking to buy a painting, here are some of the things you need to decide: (drills are another name for the diamonds)

  • Full or partial drill
  • Round or square drills
  • Size
  • Design
  • What you are willing to pay
  • Form of payment
  • Shipping – cost and time

I will hit all these topics in detail on later posts and add links as I write them.

Here is what I recommend for a beginner: Start with one of the bigger sites (Amazon, AliExpress or Ebay) and buy a partial kit. These are usually very cheap and it will give you a glimpse into the craft.

Use whatever containers you have on hand to organize your beads, baggies, plastic cups, empty/clean medicine bottles, ice cube tray, etc… just something you can label and already have on hand. I don’t want you to spend a whole bunch of money on kits and supplies/storage and then find out you don’t enjoy Diamond Painting.

If you are like me and don’t ever listen to advice like that and think to yourself, “Jen, you’ll love this, just go ahead and buy 40 full square kits off AliExpress.” (I can’t do anything in moderation, especially buying craft supplies) If this sounds like you, here is my suggestion for you. Buy one (or a FEW…not 40) kit from Amazon. Find one with Prime shipping and it should arrive in a few days. If you buy one without Prime shipping or use one of the other sites, your order will be shipped from China and can take anywhere from 1 to 8 weeks. Trust me, waiting on China mail stinks!

Round or square? Most partials use round diamonds. A lot of beginner’s find round diamonds more enjoyable. They go on fast and can’t be put on crooked. Due to their shape, inherently there will be space between them but the color pattern on the canvas helps the colors blend and the gaps are not really an issue. Square drills are where most people will graduate to after completing a few round ones. They can be more time consuming to place due to the fact that you have to get them straight from the get go and they have to line up with neighboring diamonds so they cannot be put on crooked. The reason a lot of people migrate to square diamonds is because they make for a prettier image (in my opinion).

Design and Size? Size matters…but not at first. Don’t buy a huge diamond painting as your first one. Stick with something small, like 20 x 20 (cm) and choose a simple design like a single flower or animal. Anything with detail will be distorted in a small painting. Avoid that frustration buy starting small and simple and build up to bigger, more detailed paintings later.

Cost? Partials are usually cheap. Under $10…usually just a few bucks. Full drills start at around $15-20 and can go up to $150+. Start small and cheap until you know you want to continue with the craft. Rule of thumb…If a kit is under $15 it is probably a partial (even if it says full drill).

Form of payment? Some sites take Paypal and others only credit cards. Some people feel more comfortable using a prepaid credit card. I have never had any problems using my regular credit card but if you are uncomfortable using yours, a prepaid card is a good option. Some people have had problems with AliExpress using their bank cards. So far, I have not, if you run into that problem (asking for picture ID or document scans) contact their customer service to clarify the problem.

Shipping? Amazon has fast and usually free shipping. Some of the other sites have free shipping, but you will have to wait for your kit to come from China 1 to 8 weeks.

One other thing…Tools. MOST kits come with a bag of the tools you will need. This includes a hollow tipped diamond painting pen, wax for the pen, tweezers (in case you prefer that over the pen) and a tray. If your kit does not come with tools, you can improvise with a pencil and some wax and any flat container for a tray. Either use the tweezers to put the beads on or scrape some wax (dental or an unlit candle) with a pencil (or other pointed instrument) and use that to pick up the diamond and place it on the pattern.

I will write another post with details on how to actually do the diamond paintings, but this is a good start and will hopefully make you more confident ordering your first kit.

Getting started…

Here is some of what I see posted on Facebook:

“I want to start this hobby, but where do I start?”

“Where do I order these?”

“What is Diamond Painting?”

Let’s start with the last one. Diamond Paintings are made with small resin faceted pellets that most people call Diamonds or Drills. The are attached to a canvas that has a printed pattern on it and is coated with a sticky tape/glue. Each color diamond has it own symbol and DMC number (a standard way of numbering colors originating with counted cross stitch) and we use a special pen filled with wax to pick up each diamond and place it on its corresponding symbol. As you fill up the symbols, the pattern makes an image. The faceted diamonds cause the image to sparkle.

That is it in a nutshell. Easy but oh so complicated. There are different shaped diamonds (round/square), there are printed canvases and blanks canvases, there are patterns that cover the entire canvas (full drill) or paintings that have a printed background and only part of the canvas is covered with beads (partial drill), and so much more. This plethora of options make this hobby super fun, but somewhat overwhelming for new comers.

To get started, here are a basic list of steps:

  1. Order a Diamond Painting kit.
  2. Wait a long time if you are ordering from China or a few days if ordering from Amazon.
  3. Obtain some sort of storage system to store the diamonds (bags, plastic cups, etc).
  4. Open the kit and verify that you have all the colors you need and a set of tools.
  5. Find a spot to set up your work space.
  6. Using your new tools, put on one diamond and then repeat 1,000s of times (depending on the size of your canvas).
  7. When you are finished decide if you are going to keep, sell or donate your painting.
  8. Decide if you are going to frame it or not.
  9. Order more kits because now you are addicted to this wonderful craft.

Easy, right? I know, each step generates a wealth of new questions. We are going to tackle all that in this blog. So strap in and hang on as we travel this path together.

I love Diamond Painting

I am creating this blog because I love Diamond Painting and as more people learn about this craft, I see so many questions posted on Diamond Painting Facebook groups. While everyone tries to be helpful on Facebook, learning how to do things properly and efficiently is not always easy on Facebook. This blog is my attempt to share my knowledge of Diamond Painting and hopefully the knowledge of others, too. If you would like to write a guest post or have any questions, please contact me.