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What’s Amazon Prime Day?

Every year, Amazon’s Prime Day offers thousands of deals on the site’s products, from electronics to books and art supplies. This year, the 48-hour event will begin at 3 am PDT on Tuesday, July 11 and conclude at 11:59 pm PDT on Wednesday, July 12. NOTE THAT ALL TIMES ARE PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME.

What’s the Catch?

To get access to the deals (or most of the deals), however, you have to be an Amazon Prime subscriber.

Amazon Prime costs $14.99 a month or $139 a year. Its benefits include faster shipping on Amazon orders, discounts at Whole Foods, and access to Amazon’s streaming entertainment. You can also pick up a free 30-day trial of Prime here in time for the shopping day.

What Will Be on Sale?

Prime Day has deals across all of Amazon’s categories, including tools and tech for artists. Many of these deals are Lightning Deals, lasting only a few hours. A word of advice: Move fast, as the most desirable products will sell out quickly.

This year, Amazon has created a way to (maybe) get ahead of the line on deals. Its new “Invite-Only Deals” program will allow members to request an invitation to snag products that are expected to sell out. But you’ll have to go to that product’s page and click on the “Request Invite” button. Amazon says it does this for products where quantities are limited, and also that they will not be able to grant all requests. If you are invited, you’ll be able to buy this item (only one per customer!) at the deal price during the Prime Day Event.

And don’t forget to look elsewhere! Other retailers will be offering discounts to compete with Amazon Prime Day. For instance, both Target and Walmart have announced dramatic sales on various products—Target’s will run from July 9 through July 15, and Walmart’s will run from July 10 through July 13. Again, you need to be a subscriber to take advantage of the deals. It’s free to become a Target Circle member, but you’ll need to pay $12.95 per month or $98 annually for a Walmart+ membership (although like Amazon, Walmart has a 30-day free trial available).

What’s On Sale Right Now?

Amazon is offering early Prime Day deals right now, and we’ve found some great deals on our favorite products for the home and studio. Most, but not all, are only available to Prime members. See our picks below and check back in with us to find Prime Day deals and discounts starting at 3 am PST, July 11. Happy browsing!

Get 31{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off a two-pack of GE Lighting Smart LED Light Bulbs -BUY FOR $18.15 with a Prime membership

You can control these bulbs using voice control (like Alexa or Google Assistant) or, if you are out of the house, using the Cync app. You can also use the Cync app to set your bulbs to gradually turn on in the morning for a gentle wake-up.

Save 15{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} on an Apple iPad (9th Generation)-BUY FOR $279.00

If you don’t want to spend a ton of money on an Apple iPad, consider this model with a 10.2-inch Retina display, A13 Bionic chip, Wi-Fi, 64GB of storage, Touch ID, and a wide front camera with Center Stage. It’s now 15{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off.

Get 10{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off an Apple 2020 MacBook Air Laptop-BUY FOR $899.00

Apple MacBook Air laptops are very light and portable but packed with features, and this model is also an excellent performer with great battery life. It boasts 8GBs of memory, making it speedy and responsive, and a sharp display with excellent color accuracy. And, since it’s a Mac, it very easy to use.

Save 43{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} on a two-piece set of Samsonite Hardside Luggage-BUY FOR $201.30 with a Prime Membership

When you’re traveling, you want dependable bags, like these two from Samsonite: a 21-inch carry-on, which meets many restrictions for those traveling domestically, and a 28-inch spinner, for longer trips. The set even comes with a 10-year limited warranty. And the hard shells will protect your sketching gear and books.

Get 21{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off a Bissell Stick Vacuum-BUY FOR $26.99

Save between 30{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} and 41{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} on all Amazon Kindle models. Prices range from $167.97 to $365.97 with a Prime membership

Looking for an Amazon Kindle that you can take to the beach or on vacation to read the latest art novel? For the next three days only, members can find some great deals on select Amazon Kindles—Scribe, Paperwhite, Oasis—with discounts from 30{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} to 41{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948}. We especially like this $204.97 deal on the waterproof Kindle Oasis, which will let you both read and listen to Audible without worrying about getting it wet.

Get 20{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off a Keurig Single Serve Pod Coffee Maker-BUY FOR $152.37

Get your day in the studio with a cup of coffee!. This compact Keurig lets you brew one 4-, 6-, 8-, 10-, or 12-ounce cup of coffee. Plus, you can increase the strength for a bolder cup of coffee.  It also has a hot water on-demand button, which is great for instant soups or oatmeal.

Save 50{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} on an Echo Show 5 smart display-BUY NOW for $44.99 with a Prime membeship.

These types of consumer-targeted IoT devices offer a lot of services these days, all in a rather simple interface. The Echo Show 5 is one of the best, providing you with the ability to set timers, schedules, playlists, etc. Photos are a big part of the fun—the Echo Show allows you to display photos from various albums, and it also has a built-in camera, for you to check in on things at home. You can use it to make video calls, too, and it includes privacy features, to control what others can see.

And don’t forget these early deals, which are still available:

Get 43{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off a 50-Inch Hisense 4K Smart TV-BUY FOR $299.00 with a Prime membership

Save 75{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} on a 43-Inch Amazon 4K Smart TV -BUY FOR $99.00 with a Prime Membership (Invite-Only Deal)

Get 56{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off an Amazon eero Pro Mesh WiFi Router-BUY FOR $69.99 with a Prime Membership

Get 55{8cf42eee1263fb36ad60c6660cad5304004dad224debe245ba4d38f99dbf0948} off JBL Over-Ear Noise-Cancelling Headphones-BUY FOR $89.95 with a Prime membership (Invite-Only Deal)

Stay tuned to this page for more up-to-the-minute information on great deals for artists!