One of the most basic acoustic guitar accessories is the guitar pick. Some guitarists choose not to use a pick but instead, use the tips of their fingers or finger nails to pick or strum the guitar.
Their are various shapes, thicknesses and materials used for the guitar pick with the most popular shape being a slightly curved triangle made of plastic. Thickness is measured in gauge, but they are basically thin, medium and heavy.
Materials used for guitar picks are plastic, rubber, felt, tortoise shell, wood, metal, and stone. The first plastic pick was made in 1922 by D'Andrea Picks. The most common picks today are made of celluloid, nylon, tortex, acetal, ultem, and lexon.
Thickness is usually determined by playing style and/or strings. A thin pick may produce a "click" or scrubbing sound and is preferred by guitarists who strum the guitar and use light gauge strings. The thick or "hard" pick produces a brighter sound on heavier gauge strings and is preferred by Bluegrass flat pickers for example, or lead guitar players.
Their are also "finger picks" that wrap around your fingers used in finger style playing, while some may use bare fingers. Basic finger picks are a set of three picks that are worn on the thumb, index and middle fingers. There are no rules for wearing finger picks, as some guitarists may only wear a thumb pick or maybe only use two picks. Finger picks can be made of plastic or metal. Some people wear a metal thumb pick and use plastic for the other fingers.
Some guitar picks are made with small protrusions to make it easier to hold, and some have a high friction coating. I prefer a heavy flat pick, but suggest that a beginner use a thin guitar pick because it is easier to strum the guitar and is more flexible.
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