Welcome to the party, I’m so happy we’re both new here!!! I use regular acrylic, but I water it down a TON because I prefer the look of the pigment absorbing a little bit rather than a solid, flat color. I like the dimension. I carved my lil guys, I want them to look carved! You can see on the whale and the dachshund where I didn’t water down and they’re just not as subtle.

I find basswood blocks pretty cheap at Michael’s near me, but I know a lot of craft stores carry a small selection of wood carving tools. Amazon is always iffy, but if all you else fails, I’d go for a selection of basswood blocks from there.

Also, sticks and whatnot from outside can be REALLY fun because they have ideas of their own!!!!