The harder pencils cannot be treated like the softer pencils. Eg Irojiten, Pablo and Polychromos are supposed be layered again and again starting with light pressure and sharp tips to get into the tooth of the paper - this is one of their strengths, even though one's wax based and the others are oil based or oil-wax blend. Self-labeled "colorists" do not seem to understand this, they're too accustomed to grabbing soft cores and blazing through an area with maybe 3-4 layers maximum and they're done with that area. She took the Irojiten and went straight to HARD pressure in ONE layer and BLUNT tips - and you could see from a distance that the coverage was bad. Irojiten is seamless when properly used, those blocks should be solid vivid blocks with no bloom at all or splotches, I know them very well and only the neons behave like Crayolas (that's because of the nature of neon pigment pencils - they're always like that no matter the brand). I'm surprised she didn't tear the paper with the green. I've torn off little bits of paper when first becoming acquainted with sharp Irojitens. Look how solid and strong the Pablo did on one hard layer. That is high pigment + medium softness. They have less pigment than Coloursoft? That is a joke. The real reason the gamsol did not spread the pigment out that "far" for the Irojiten and Pablo is partly BECAUSE they are so densely pigmented. The gamsol moves pigment around by dissolving the binder. If there is less binder, then the pigment's not going to be able to be moved that far by a liquid solvent. Eraseability is also a factor. Some brands really get in there and saturate with a vengeance, especially with moderate to high pressure - can't be significantly removed without damaging the paper. Irojiten is one of those brands. Look what happened to the squares after the pigment was moved by the solvent. The Prismacolor squares were blotchy and weak AF. The Irojiten squares were still pretty strong after she put the brush to them - most of that pigment simply stayed put. This test has nothing to do with the density of pigment in their cores or the overall layering and blendability of the pencil. It's just about how they react to gamsol. And I am grateful she put a lot of effort into showing us this with so many different brands
That was a lot of testing and you deserve big kudos for going through all the effort. Your consistency of doing them all at the same time with the same paper/control/materials was beneficial.
+Kyralae Bredi, I'm glad you found the process helpful. I try hard to make my tests as accurate as possible. Thanks so. IHC for watching and commenting.
As much as I understand the comments that this test isn't accurate, I think you are right that at least two things were consistent, the paper and the solvent. And she never claimed it was THE way of testing it, but A way of testing it and it was understandable for everyone. There are some very detailed and technical replies here which goes above the average persons head or simply doesn't really matter to them. Though they do teach me more about pencils, pigments, dye etc, I think this was a perfectly fine "average daily use" kind of video and I enjoyed it and admired the amount of work done. 8h in 3 days for a video, I don't know if I could be bothered tbh lol. I have 2 oil-based pencils (one Prisma but none of the once shown here), I saw one of them fly by (in the box with a car on it). I guess I'm content that they scored anywhere between 11 and 89, so at least they are not the very worst. I didn't get that impression either but I am slowly building up my stash of color material and all I need is some Gamsol and a brush. And if I can't find it (typical) a new box of Vaseline. I have my gelpens and never had a clue they could be used for layering but I now know how (different video) I love watching these things to just learn more and be awed by the effects a simple thing like Vaseline could even mean for pencils. It's why I quit using markers. I know there are methods there too but pencils to me seem far superior to markers as far as blending, burning, layering and whatnot goes. Today I will get my baby oil and see what effect that gives. Sorry for the off topic ramble 😬
Just as an FYI for everyone, the Blick colored pencils are actually made by Koh-I-Noor. Not sure if it's the same formulation or not but they are made for blick at their studios.
Wigglytuffy Smith Okay, I know what you say has some validity, if not, a lot in how these things were tested, but the way you've been reacting has stripped almost all of it away. Seriously. It costs nothing to give nice constructive criticism. You don't need to act like it's their own fault for not knowing. That will NEVER get someone on your side. Instead, why not try something like "I'm sorry, but there was a mistake in the way you were testing these colored pencils. You did not take into account (insert different factors here). If you want to fix that, I would recommend testing them in this way. (Insert different way of testing)." It requires nothing but thinking before you type. If you put in the effort to actually help, there are a lot of people who would more then happily give what you say a try at the very least. Lashing out is not helpful. And if you don't want to do it to help the creator, then tell them or comment so that other people can see it, and it can help them.
I absolutely love how far you deep dive in these tests and with so many brands! You've put in a lot of work! And I know making videos is even more time and energy consuming than most people know. Thank you for this info!
+Zoe Hong, thanks for watching...wow! I'm a big fan of your channel Zoe and love watching your videos too. I'm gearing up to start reviewing markers soon and really value your video insights as I have been putting together a method to test markers. Thanks for everything you do for the RUclips art community.
Col-Erase pencils definitely wouldn't be my first pick for coloring, but in terms of sketching, especially for illustration work and comic layout, they're amazing since they don't smear at all and you can get in a lot of detail. Great video, I appreciate the time you put into it!
I can't believe you would go through all that work to make a video, the dedication is real! Like you said, people have many personal reasons they chose a specific brand, and they should. Nobody should just buy for a brand name or something. Some artists look for lightfastness, some look for softness, some rather have a pencil that behaves more of a certain way that works with their style. I do work with Gamsol as main method of blending, and different brands reacts to it differently. Polychromos for example, tend to stick on to the brush, so the color would lighten a lot after applying the solvent. Prismacolor doesn't stain the brush, but pigments do tend to clump together with Gamsol. I blamed the wax for it, but I don't get the same problem with Luminance which is also wax based. You did surprise me with the Blick pencils. I never tried them, but they must have reacted nicely with the Gamsol to be on #1 pencil. I mean for someone who works with Gamsol, Blick pencils could be a good choice.\ Still I must point out that CraZArt pencils are HORRIBLE! AH I had students bringing them in my class, and for the sake of everyone's safety, I said no to CraZArt pencils.
+ooXChrissieXoo lol...I love that...for their safety. Thanks for your comment and your insights...I really appreciate it. I can't wait for everyone to see what I am planning to do next!
A more important consideration for making comparison of pigmentations than any subjective evaluation on how far the colors stretch out when diluted or the amount of solvent is that the pencils do not contain the same pigments. The pigments themselves have different characteristics, therefore diluting different pigments cannot yield information on how pigmented the pencil is. A pencil could have a very high degree of pigmentations of a pigment that does not spread out much when diluted.
Interesting and useful test. What follows is for your education. I am a scientist by trade (mostly chemistry). In general, solubility is a very important factor in chemistry. What this test mostly demonstrates is that different pencil formulations have different solubility in Gamsol. That is, what you are actually testing is solubility in Gamsol vs the ability of the solvent to break the bonds of the [medium+pigment] to the paper and spread out the color on the paper. According to the MSDS, Gamsol is "hydrotreated heavy naptha petroleum". Gamsol is a complex combination of hydrocarbons obtained by treating a petroleum fraction with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst. It consists of hydrocarbons having carbon numbers predominantly in the range of C6 through C13 and boiling in the range of approximately 65°C to 230°C (149°F to 446°F). ExxonMobil (and others) sell hundreds (perhaps thousands) of tank cars of this a year of this stuff under the tradename Isopar. There are about 10 different Isopar types (or blends) - and mostly for formulation with personal care products. By the boiling point range, Gamsol is Isopar L. Acetone, Isopropanol, Heptane (sold as Bestine), and MEK (Methyl Ethyl Ketone) - are all commercially available solvents (in any paint store, hardware store, and a lot of grocery stores) that perform the same function as Gamsol but work differently with different pencil manufacturers. I know, I've tried them all out - as well as a few others I haven't mentioned because what is available to me through the lab is not available to most artists. Gamsol works fine for some pencils, not so well for others. Acetone works well for other pencil brands - though I don't like working with Acetone in my home studio. Bestine (heptane) works pretty much like Gamsol - which it should - it's almost the same thing in terms of what it will solubilize. MEK is nasty stuff. I tried it just to see if it will work. It works OK - for some pencils. But every day? No thanks. Isopropanol - should be at least 91% - 100% is best is you can get it in a grocery store - works OK - sometimes, for some pencils. Very similar results are obtained with Methanol. Odorless Mineral Spirits are very very similar to Gamsol - except they haven't been refined as well and have a residual odor. Might as well use Gamsol since it has ZERO smell. Anyway, keep up the good work. :)
I love this comment, this is like talking to the cast from The big bang theory (comedy series). I gotta admit, I only got half way down and felt like the girl neighbour across the hall. What ever you said...I think you are correct...lol
I think I get the point, or at least could follow what you are saying. If I'm correct, this test basically only showed how different pencils react to Gamsol plus the type of paper/medium involved. Different paper gives different results for the same pencil, thus what would score nr 1 on one type of paper using Gamsol could score much less or vice versa on a different type of paper. Same with solvents. And every mixture of pencil, solvent and medium/paper type will give you different results due to the characteristics of each components involved. This would be the "average person" type of conclusion, IF I'm correct about what you mean/are trying to teach us. I purposely ignored the hydrocarbon explanation tbh because I felt it didn't really needed to be used for my interpretation. Now, am I a Penny or a mixture of a Penny and, say, any nerd besides Sheldon? (I liked the comment above me lol) 😁 Oh and you like Gamsol best. If all else was wrong at least I should be correct on that one lol.
To help people out here, imagine doing this test with paints instead. If you try to use water to thin/drag out oil paints, it won't work very well. It'll work great for acrylics, because the "stuff they are made from" dissolves in water. Oil doesn't. Likewise if you test a "water based oil paint", it'll work better too. So you're not testing how much pigment is in the color, rather just how well the water dissolved it.
I just love that Koh-i-noor wood less pencils (progresso) made it to your list. 12 years ago (and even before and now) when I went to first grade in elementary school here in Czech Republic where Koh-i-noor is from, they were the must-have for us and now artists use them for art. I'm glad that they're still as great as they were before. Their pigmentation is amazing and you can still use them when they break. Perfect for kids and everyone else.
Interesting video and a lot of work went into this. Not sure if this is how you actually test which pencil has the most pigment at all. I also noticed that for some brands you pick the top pencil they have, but for others not. Bruynzeel, Derwent and Caran D'ache have way better pencils available that lay down a lot of pigment on your paper, but I'm sure even they would fail your test, since laying down a lot of pigment and reacting to something like Gamsol are two different things. We now know which pencils react best to this kind of solvent and that's cool.... but that doesn't mean that pencil also has the most pigment. That you can clearly see without using any solvent at all.
+Benjamin A, I appreciate your perspective...yes...there are some potential flaws in this test, but like I said...I have to start somewhere. I'm excited to do another group test like this to see what else we can learn.
As a fellow hand problem person I really appreciate you showing the good hand health measures, both the breaks as you went and taking three days rather than pushing on until you couldn’t move your hand. Thanks for the good example.
I guess what you really tested was the solubility of the colored pencil leads. The mixes might not dissolve in mineral spirits, they might be better in water. The pigments might still be bound as you try to spread them. Either way, this is an incredible amount of work!
I'm glad that you said about human error and impossibility of being completely objective in such a test. One thing that I noticed was the difference in colour density left behind on the original test square after applying the solvent. Some squares were still densely coloured, which suggests that there is still plenty of pigment left there. Perhaps the pencils are made of different materials that react to the solvent differently. For people who just want to colour and draw for their own pleasure, rather than being artists or art students, it would be helpful to know ease of use and how to use on different paper textures. For instance: some people want to layer colours, while others want to get a quick shot of colour in one stroke; some people like intense opaque colours, while others like a paler wash of colour. I like the texture of the paper to be seen, but I know that some people want dense colour through which you can't see the bumps of the paper. You have a lot of different brands of pencils, so a comparative overview of the most popular would be interesting. :)
One thing to consider is that they don't all blend the same. I find that solvents dissolve Polychromos for example a lot easier than Prismacolors with the huge amount of wax.
+Ramo, yes...it is an imperfect test...I wish I had the time and energy to repeat it a few times and then average all the scores. But alas...I don't think my hand or my sanity or my family would allow me to do it lol 😂
It is a can of worms, a bottomless can! I'd take the top, say 15 pencils and the 15 worst pencils and repeat the test with only them using different solvents. Easier on the hand and family, while giving more meaning to the tests!
I admire your tenacity in getting this test done, but the factors aren't even, as you said, and looking at the swatches before and after applying gamsol gives me a different view. Because you discounted a color for the odd way of reacting, I believe that the rest of the pencils could also have differing ways of reacting to the gamsol. The Luminance pencils look more intense than any others, before and after, even if the pigment didn't pull out as far. The pulled out pigment and the pigment left in the square was nicer, brighter, smoother than most/all of the others too. Anyway, it's a fair general idea, so thank you for that.
Indeed - actually the school pencils of Jolly are very famous (got exported to the US, New Zealand, UK and whole Europe....) There are no Jolly in the test ... now I'm confused, did I missed them ?! And the LFI is the actual cost factor of those Pencils and Faber Castell as well as CaranD'Ache are the TOP on that.
Wow, Jennifer, thanks so much for taking the time to do this wonderful comparison! 💕🌟💕 It was so much fun watching this, and, like you, I was a bit surprised by the results. 😯 😊💕 Btw, I love my Gamasol and have been using it for years! 😍😁💕 Thanks bunches for all you (and your magnificent support team 😁👏👏) give to us! Hugs from Carol, Columbus, Ohio 🤗😊
@@beangus3092 have you had a look at Amazon? Price wise it's easy to compare by sorting them inexpensive to expensive. I've seen boxes of 260 dollars. Way too much I would spend on a box, no matter how good they may be. Unless I start to be more advanced, I won't even see much difference anyway right nowb😜
Oooh - I just bought the Blick pencils this weekend at one of their brick & mortar stores (so they're not ONLY available on the website). They're open stock, which is a plus. They have some smaller sets of pencils - but many of the colors are included in that 72-pencil set. I appreciate that you tested all the brands the same or at least as much the same as you could. I wonder, however, if the results were more dependent on how Gamsol-soluble the fillers are in each pencil rather than the amount of filler. I would think also that wax-based & oil-based pencils would function differently with the odorless mineral spirits. When I (completely subjectively) judge colored pencils in regards to how pigmented they are, I look more at how much pressure I need to apply in order to achieve the desired color saturation. I know paper type has a HUGE impact on how well pencils perform -- but as long as I am trying pencils on the same kind of paper, I can cross-judge. If, with a single layer, I have to press hard to get just a bit of color or press super hard to get bright, vibrant color, I don't consider the pencils to be highly pigmented (and I'm likely not that fond of the pencils). If, with a single layer, I only have to barely touch the paper to get just a bit of color or apply medium pressure to get bright, vibrant color, I consider the pencils to be highly pigmented.
As I am picking up coloring once more after 65 years, it is interesting to me that there are SO MANY types of coloring pencils (and pens) and quite by accident I spent a lot of money for the Woodless Kohinor and enjoyed them a lot. Then, because we travel a lot and I was away, I rushed into a store and bought the Prang to have in the RV. I've been using them a lot lately since I earned my CZT in The Zentangle Method and now I think I will go back and pull out the woodless and compare them. Thanks for all this hard work and I know it cannot be quite as precise as mixing ingredients for a cake, but it was very interesting. I'll tune in again!!
Not sure if this is necessarily the best way to judge the pencils. A particular pencil might have high pigment but with a filler that doesn't necessarily break down as well with the mineral spirits. Conversely, another pencil with less pigment might have a filler that breaks down more readily and is able to spread further. So, the results might not be representative of the true pigmentation or quality of the pencil. More important is how well the pencil lays down the colour and how well it blends.
You are perfectly right! Some are working well Vaseline others with baby oil and others mineral spirit or Gamsol, even with Holbein Meltz! But she is doing her tests according to her own ethic rules and she is working very hard with honesty! 😊
I did not see another solvent used, wax and oil respond differently to solvents. I use Gamsol and CP's Powder blender. One for oil based and another for wax based. Thanks for the tremendous amount of time You put into this. Gamsol users ( and I am one ) will and do appreciate your time, and especially the sore hands. ( and the results are beneficial ) I could not have done this. Nice video. Thank You so much!
This was a great video. I appreciate your attempts to apply scientific method to assess the quality of the art supplies we spend so much money on. Your hard work is appreciated. I was surprised like you were by some of the results. I too enjoy coloring with the Tombow recycled pencils and thought they would place higher, the same for the Prismacolor Premiers. I was particularly confounded by the Blick and Koh-I-Noor Polycolors as rumor has it that they are the same pencil, apparently not. The Prismacolor results weren't really surprising when I thought more about it. I've seen videos when people use Gamsol with those pencils it doesn't work as well, or they have to use more solvent. Perhaps, the same test with different solvents or a uniform amount would be interesting. This may not be the best test if the Gamsol cause the different binders to react strangely with the pigments. I don't really use solvents with my pencils, so I don't really know. Sorry for the long reply, but I found this test really interesting and would duplicate it if I had all the pencils. These are just some thoughts I had while watching. Again, you did an awesome job!
+Msboochie2, I love this comment and all your thoughts on the test. I am glad to hear that I'm not the only person who thinks this way. I am busy trying to think of more methods of testing to apply to all of them...maybe with less burnishing 😉
Yes, I agree. While I may not have as much background experience with art as both of you & those other women dissing & bashing you . I have had 2 years of art school under my belt, I didn't go as far as the Colour course, which I see would have been very involved, but I'm sure entertaining. I'm very glad that you made this video, I now have a better idea of which coloured pencils I want to try first. I do have some of those you tested & some surprised me, too. I have learned a lot today, including from some of them bashing you, but I would've preferred hearing about it, in a more tactful & mature manner. Which shows, just because you "may " have more knowledge or understanding, doesn't make you better. I'd much rather have a conversation with you & MsBoochie2, about art than I would with those other women, ranting and raving. I appreciate your humility and humbleness. Thank you very much, ColouringBliss, for doing this video, I truly enjoyed it. I look forward to more videos. You have my vote. 😀😍
+Tina Rice, thanks for the list. The Irojiten made it into this video and I have a couple of the others in my Amazon cart already. I will look for the others...so much art fun!
Coloring Pages Bliss I wanted to know what you thought of the Tombow's pencils. I know it didn't make it on the lists. I plan to go to Blick's pick up Studio Pencils. We have a store in San Diego. It used to be called The Art Store and pick up some Studio Markers. I want to get a gray set of pencils because I like monotone images. By the way, you did a great job with testing all of these Colored Pencils. I saw a video on the Holbein Pencils. They're suppose to like the Faber Castell Polychomos and Pablo Colored Pencils (oil based). The woman started with a small set of 36 she got on eBay because these Pencils in a small set are hard to find. I did see a set on Amazon that has 150 pencils and it's $304.92. She also said what was nice about these pencils. She could blend them with the Faber and the Pablos because they are all oil based pencils.
The pencil shavings in this video were gorgeous, Jen. They looked like little piles of colorful confetti. Did I just come up with an idea?! I think I might have! We can use pencil shavings as party decorations or packing material. 😁 I always appreciate your videos. You have so many ideas and share so much useful knowledge with your viewers and I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you put into each video and also enjoy your chattiness. I watch and re-watch a LOT of your videos because they're so informative, I know I don't garner every little piece of info by watching just once and I have really learned so much from you and improved both my sketching and coloring skills, which brings me great joy and a sense of accomplishment. You're a real gem, lady! Thank you so, so much for all you do! Stay blessed & blissful! ❤❤
I also use CARAN d'ACHE, your No. 2, the permanent model "Pablo", but it's a bit counterproductive to move a permanent color with a brush. I prefer the "Supracolor" model, the water soluble. As intended, I dipped the pencil's head in water. Picment density becomes 10 times higher, and a brush can move the color 10 times longer into a evenly distributed in decreasing density.
+knudplesner, ooooo I can't wait to try those. I told myself I can't start collecting the water soluble pencils until I have finished reviewing the ones I have. There are so many beautiful water activated pencils...it's hard to wait. 😊
I am not sure your measuring pigment content but the pencil's color movement by Gamasol. Perhaps blendability? Some pencils may have more pigment but are not blended by Gamasol. Fillers do have a lot to do with this aspect of pencil contents. I think you did an equal testing but you are correct about this being only 1 aspect of pencil strength. Good Luck with future videos! I did give you a thumbs up!
There is no way the blick pencils were the most pigmented, just compare them to the luminance, if you are considering to buy colored pencils i shouldn't advise you to rely on this video at all.
This is my first time visiting your channel. I thought for sure the Caran d’Ache would be in first place. I’m glad that the pencils I own at least scored in the top 10. I have the 132qty Prismacolor Premier set. I’ve wanted a Faber Castel Polychromos set and Caran d’Ache set for the longest time. Just have to save up. I’ve been drawing since I could hold a pencil/crayon. My deciding factors for buying pencils is smooth consistency, layering & pigment. They must work well together. Love your thoroughness. Subscribed ✔️
I applaud your trying to be consistent…..I think the inherent oils and waxes in the different pencils were a factor that made comparisons difficult. I think the Derwent Colorsoft ( my faves) came in high because of the low wax/oil content, and for that reason I tend you almost always use a light sanded paper.
I applaud you for all the effort, because you did put in a lot of work. So Kudos to you for that! Although I feel like this test was mislabeled and mishandled. It is certainly true that this test really shows how well Gamsol works on THIS specific type of paper. Not actual pigment "concentration". Now before anyone says "why not show a better way to do it if you're so smart?" I'd like to say that there are some ways to do it, and that's in a scientific lab with actual controls in place as well. A good way to do it (for anyone curious) is to try atleast 3 different solvents and then a control experiment with NO solvents because all experiments should have a control. Why 3 Solvents? Just to reduce the error that comes from using one solvent to test these different types of pencils. Instead of using paper, because ultimately paper is such a HUGE factor in the solubility of the pigments, it's best to take the same amount of the core out and dissolve that in the solvents and then try calculating the concentration of colour in the solution. Paper chromatography or titration may prove to be useful here. Paper chromatography can actually show how much of it is the binder and how much of it is the pigment. HOWEVER, a test like this across so many different brands with pencils that will all behave so differently on everything from the type of paper to the technique to even the solvent...there is certainly a lot of room for error. Thus I feel this test itself is rather unnecessary to begin with. I do agree with you on the fact that this is NOT the only criteria to judge a pencil with. So it makes one wonder what the point of this test is in the first place..Anyways I'd like to get into details about the problems I have with this test (this is not meant to spread hate but to offer a more logical explanation on the topic for anyone curious) Every pencil is formulated differently, with a different binder which ofcourse behaves differently with Gamsol. Setting that aside there's the factor of whether or not ACTUAL pigments were used in each of these coloured pencils. I'm pretty sure that about 75% of them are mainly dye based because ofcourse real pigments are expensive and brands that are super cheap, can't afford to sell pencils with real pigments at 50 pencils for $5. Also a factor to consider is the staining property. Certain dyes and pigments will stain more than others. Pthalo blue will always stain a lot more than say Ultramarine blue. Then there is the hardness. Softer pencils will disperse a large amount of colour more easily than a harder pencil. Not only that but an oil based pencil for example being fairly translucent would also disperse pigment differently compared to a more opaque pencil like Luminance or Prismacolor Premier. Some food for thought. IGNORING ALL of this, if we just take a moment to see how you calculated the ratings, there is big flaw there. Basically you're taking two readings from each colour and then you're just adding them up and averaging them. The problem is that the strongest pigment reading is not at all the same across all the brands. So say one of the brands has a larger strongest pigment reading but another brand has a smaller reading (however that smaller area is much higher in colour concentration than the brand with a higher reading) The calculation is not taking this into account at all. It also doesn't take into account the fact that not every colour in a brand is consistently giving the same results. So if ONE colour ends up getting a very high reading with two others getting more average reading, it'll tip the scale higher in favour of that brand. It doesn't really showcase that it's actually a more consistently highly pigmented brand in general. So the takeaway from this is that it's not a true test nor representation of pigmentation. The fact remains that it is always best to try different pencils and see which YOU prefer for your purpose best. Generally all artist grade pencils will have a higher pigmentation than cheaper children's grade pencils. But if a cheaper pencil serves your purpose well, there's no problem in that. To anyone who read till this far, thank you for your time and I hope this was helpful in someway.
I agree also another factor is your own eyes ! Every one sees colours slightly differently and when this factor is taken into account then this test is only for personal use and certainly no good to others. I see colours a lot more vivid then most other people’s. I did like the test and taking the time to do it I appreciate this but the whole thing was totally inconclusive.
Wow! What an excellent effort...even allowing for any differences in your method, such as consistency in amount of pigment put down, or even inconsistencies in determining pigment values after using the Gamsol, you have given viewers an idea of where to perhaps start, or at the very least, perked their interest to do their own follow up research of various brands...yeah, well done and thumbs up.
I'm thinking that using Gamsol as your means of testing skewed your results in favor of the "waxy" brands and against the "dry" brands. But I give you full kudos for TRYING to come up with a way of objectively testing this. All brands, after all, CLAIM to be highly pigmented in their advertising copy, even low-end scholastic brands.
+Astrin Ymris, you could be right. I am working on coming up with another test to run to give us another way of looking at the pencils. It is very upsetting to me when I read the phrase "artist quality" on a pack of cra-Z-art colored pencils! 😡 thanks for your comment.
Great video! I was wondering if you could add prices though? I do a ton of art and love the caran d'ache brand (my #1) but I also know how expensive the Luminance pencils are (averaging 400$ for a pack of 76). They're gorgeous artist pencils and whoever loves to draw and sketch will most likely enjoy them. However, for the fans that enjoy coloring books and/or the beginner learner, I think it would helpful to see the price points so they don't get disheartened when they realize some pencils cost more than most phones lol
Not sure how helpful this test is. The gamsol breaks down the wax and fillers to get to pure pigment but it is the amounts and types of wax and fillers that determines how much pigment we can access when actually using the pencils. A pencil may be heavily loaded with pigment yet contain enough wax and fillers to interfere with the pigment that reaches the paper. Likewise a pencil may contain less pigment yet show more color payoff on paper if it contains less wax. It may feel less smooth in use than highly waxed pencils yet the color may be more intense.
Thank you for the different comparisons that you do - they are a help. I also find that the different brands of colored pencils react differently on the type of paper that is used. I was surprised at where some of the brands ended on the list in the blending such as the Colorit Brand, one of my favorites (but I have not used it for blending with Gamisol. I only have used the Prismacolor Premiers in blending with Gamisol - like the effects with this brand).
Thank you for all the tedious work you did on this video! The results are so helpful for your viewers. This is the first of your videos that I have seen and looking forward to watching others. Thanks again.
Well, since you asked, no, I don't think it is a valid test. A test like this would only be valid if all pencils had the exact same ingredients and only the amount of pigment varied. Depending on how pencils are made, reactions to OMS will vary, and therefore it is impossible to determine pigment content simply by comparing how far OMS will allow you to drag out the pigment.
You Did a "monumental" work testing all that pencils. I just was stunned that Caran D`Ache wasn`t at the top list and my favs (Prismacolor Premier) placed at the bottom of the top ten.... Oh well :D You did a very useful video, thank you very much....BRAVA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And thanks a lot for your effort & patience :D
@@aliyahmiller4334 From what I know, Prismacolor Scholar is the student version. They are good and vibrant for a student colour pencils, but it's not as good as Prismacolor Premiere, which is an artist coloured pencils.
Aliyah Miller I know you don’t need this reply anymore, but from my experience, they’re very similar to the premier brand. I’ve done tests with the Scholar & Premier. Basically your only problem would be only having 48 maximum
But does not this depend on how many layers and how hard you deposited the colored pencil's pigment?? Wax vs Oil based colored pencils?? This is still very subjective, as you are determining what mark is strong and which is not.
You are so right on the money with your comment. She doesn't test them the way each pencil is supposed to be used. If she used the pencil the way they're supposed to be used she would have very different results. Thank you for posting this comment because your right.
+GWENNETH SIMMONS, exactly what I said in the video 😉 I hope I eventually find a way to test pencils that is truly scientific...in the meantime, I will keep trying what I can.
+loricat, there is no specific way a colored pencil is supposed to be used...that is the joy of art. In fact, many professional artists use blending solvents and agents with their colored pencils to achieve the look they are going for. It is exciting to see the possibilities 😊
Does it affect the test that she dips into the gamsol 4 - 5 times for red, then only once for the remaining 2 colors for that brand. Results are a washed out pale red square while the other 2 are nearly opaque. I noticed this on the second pencil test on the 1st page. Each pencil deserves the same testing parameters.
I have been watching your videos for a few months. I find them all enlightening. I click on other videos about drawing but most of the time I don't watch them for long. I find that your videos more information and... I just like watching them a lot. Thank you for all the work you put into each one. I have been coloring adult coloring books for years but I didn't have a clue how to blend or shade and make the pictures look nice until I started watching your videos. I am learning but now I have much more knowledge of how to accomplish more beautiful pictures. Thank you again.
Truthfully using a typing/printer paper is not an accurate way to show pigmentation, because pencils have different binders in the leads and the paper greatly affects the way the pencil reacts to the paper...a binder that dissolves easily with gamsol will naturally blend further than one that resists the gamsol...which doesn't prove pigmentation but rather the solvent's ability to react with the binders...you will find that some pencils blend better with oil rather than gamsol. Furthermore if you used a cold pressed watercolor (cotton) paper you would find different results as well, because the paper has binders that allow colors to "set" on top of the paper which in turn allows for a more fluid result with pigmentation... which will give you a more accurate result for the pigmentation representation...things to just consider...which will change the outcome of your experiment
Thanks for your feedback. As stated in the video, i use high quality paper for my testing and I’m careful to be consistent with this paper from test to test so that can get dependable results. You are very right that every paper makes a big difference in the results.
An interesting take. However, just because you put down thick layer and use OMS to drag the color out isn't really true reflection of how they might be used in artwork. Nor is lightfastness addressed (can be a high rank but can also fade when given as a gift or sold)
I noticed that the colors, especially the red, sometimes seemed to become a different color when thinned. Some of the red stayed red and some of it changed into orange or magenta. That's a game changer when it comes to blending. It would be interesting to know what the different companies use to make their colors. I found out that some pencils are made with graphite and clay, others are wax and oil.
Thank you for taking all the time you put into this testing! Like you said, this is one factor in the choosing of which colored pencil brand to use. I don't understand all the controversy about this video. If some viewers don't like the method used then why are they watching? Just change the channel. This was a very thoughtful thing that you've done and I for one appreciate the time you put into it! I've noticed that all these comparison videos are done with good intentions to aid your viewers in one way or another. Keep up the good work! 😁
Like you, I'm surprised by some of the results. Did it matter if they were wax or oil based? The Koh-I-Noor woodless were one of the first pencils I bought, probably 7 or 8 years ago, before I really knew how to use colored pencils. That user error made me put them away, thinking it was the pencil. I recently pulled them out and was so pleased to see how well they worked, especially on a smoother paper! So I have two of the top 3 now. Trying hard not to jump to the Blick site to order theirs. lol I have a question that you might be able to answer, one that's been bugging me... Why are really sharp pencils better at putting down pigment than duller pencils? I find myself struggling to get color down, but once I sharpen it, it's not a problem. I don't get it. One would think that a duller pencil, with more surface, would give you more color. I've been doing a bunch of coloring recently and I'm seeing my pencils disappearing due to the sharpening. I'm starting to panic! lol Thanks for your thoughts.
+Irene Grau, that's a good question. It has to do with the tip of the pencil easily traveling into the tooth or texture of the paper. The blunt tip is sort of sliding across the top of the tooth and not filling up the texture. Instead of sharpening every time, try 2 things...rotate the pencil slightly as your coloring to present a different edge to the paper...secondly, use sand paper to gently bring a point back to the tip instead of sharpening every time. I hope this helps.
Ah, that makes sense -- and probably why a duller pencil seems to do better on a smooth coloring page? I do rotate, but I didn't realize I could use sand paper to refresh the point. I'll try that. Thanks!
One tiny tip transfers all the pressure that you put on the pencil on to a 10th millimeter of surface while a blunt tip transfers the same amount of pressure on to 1-2 millimeters of surface. Obviously that affects the strength of the color immensly. A razorsharp tip imaginarily only fights against one tooth of the paper while a blunt tip fights against a whole army... Its comparable to a thin sharpened sword needing hundred times less strength to cut into flesh compared to an old and blunt one...
Besides there is to say: If you are using wax based pencils like prismacolor they will get smaller very fast, thats normal. Others than wax based pencils do not have that problem in such dimensions... Ive drawn a Mr. Popo face from Dragonball on an A4 sized sheet of paper and it ate up 2/3 of a new black prismacolor pencil. (Dont ask me why I color a white sheet fully in black pencil instead of using black paper. By now I wouldn't be that stupid lol...) Just in case you bought yourself some first wax pencils... there is nothing to effectively do about it. But single pencils aren't that expensive anyway.
One of the things I would have liked to have been noted in your wonderful test process would be whether you are working with a wax or oil base. Thank you for taking the time to create this wonderful video.
crucibelle I have reviewed both. They are identical. The company might SAY they are different but the cores are exactly the same. Exactly. Have you tried them?
+crucibelle, this is similar to the information I have received. I am hoping to get more details before doing the full review on their beautiful pencils.
As written they are both from the same manufacturer Koh I Noor Hardtmuth and they are 100 % identical. Why? Frankly speaking, I know the production. This is truly another paid advertisement from Dick Blick. Fake!
Nicely done. Seems like a very fair assessment of each brand of pencil. I was also surprised that the Blick pencils were the number one rated. I’ve always been partial to the Berol Prismacolor for a number of reasons... price, availability, pigmentation, blendability, and colorfastness. I may have to try out the Blick’s! Thanks
@Coloring Pages Bliss: I've loved Prismacolors for years, but their downfall in quality caused me to shift to Polychromos. I expected them to do well on this test, because the cores are still great, but I was surprised that you didn't disqualify them for the sharpening issues like you did another brand.
+Astrin Ymris, the other brand actually beaks...like while coloring I could feel the core snap inside the wood 😳. That's how poor the quality is on that brand.
I feel like Prismas quality has gone down hill over the years. They were my absolute favorite for years and the last set I bought was a huge disappointment and didn’t act anything like my older ones. Have you noticed that too?
I'm looking at a few (or several) videos on colored pencils, and found your channel and subscribed. This was a great way to see many different brands and it didn't cost me a penny to get some ideas! Thank you! Still, the best part of the video is your adorable dog! 💟
I feel like you did fine when it comes to the human factor, I understand that it's there and it's gonna happen and I appreciate that you pointed it out. My biggest problem with this is the fact that color erase isn't a wax base pencil. A lot of those aren't wax based pencils so they're not going to react well to the mineral spirits. Color erase is a clay base pencil and is used for different things than regular prismacolor. I still did appreciate this test though and I appreciate all the time that you put into a. :)
I appreciate you using constrictive criticism, giving your opinion with politeness and leaving a compliment. Some were asses to her and thank you again.
luminance looked the most pigmented to me because the color dragged out is actually really vibrant and consistent, its stays true to its color and doesnt cause discoloration because of too much scattering of the pigment. This test doesnt really say much to be honest.
One of my Mom's friends bought me those, one of those "friends" who likes to give stuff to poor friends and look magnanimous. She also gave me a "brand new" Fitbit that was registered to someone else's computer and was unusable. I don't think I'm going to be so intimidated by Lady Bountiful's cast offs any more. Even though I already feel bad writing this.
They are way better now, I tried them a few year ago and they were awful and now the 76 box is actually pretty decent, I tested it against others and no one tell which one was which
What a huge project! Thank you so much for doing this mammoth experiment and posting for all to see. There were a few big surprises for sure! Awesome information!
This was awesome! Colored pencils, I just recently realized, are my favorite medium to play with. I love my Color Collection by Conte but I can't wait to afford to buy more brands. Thanks for all the time it took for you to do this and yes I feel like this was a pretty legit test. :)
I ordered the Blick Pencils and was disappointed in them. They are more like the much cheaper brands. The price for 72 of the Blicks was around $60.00 Money would be better spent on Prismacolor, DerWent or Polychromos. Sorry I bought the Blick. Not good advice here.
Really? You think Blick is #1? Looking at your test swatch, the pigmentation fell off quickly and then faded away and yet you think this is #1. Don't think so.
That was really fun. You really did a systematic review. So I don't have to buy a crappy set and then have it pile up in my stash! Nicely done. Thank you
I appreciate your hard work and effort. However, I am not an artist. I use colored pencils for coloring books. Most of the people I know who color don't use gamsol. More of my groups use baby oil or vaseline as fixatives and we don't use that all of the time.
+Coloring Pages Bliss, Yes, TOO many possibilities! You'd go crazy trying to test all of that! Maybe a smaller sampling of pencils. Reconsidering my earlier post, I agree with Shayna Renolds, above, use fewer pencils, and 2 or 3 different blenders like what she recommended, above. Maybe just baby oil, rubbing alcohol, and powder blender. That would be not so tough, except you thought you were testing something else and it's hard to revisit a difficult project when you thought you were done with it!
I think Cray-Z-Art bumped up their game recently because I bought some for my kid and had to borrow a few for some art projects and wow what a difference! They are WAY MORE pigmented now and were standing up to Fabre Castell Goldfabers, I dont if they changed formulas but I was pleasantly surprised
Thank you, that was a lot of work. I was pleased to see the Polychromos come high on the list. Have never heard of some of the brands, but will definitely consider the Blick pencils.
Very well done! I'm happy to see Caran d'Ache Luminance is one of the best. That's the brand I decided to use to follow up my Karisma Colour Pencils. Until now I only needed two new (Luminance ) pencils. Most of the Karisma pencils are still in usable shape. It's such a pity Karisma pencils aren't made anymore.
Wow! Excellent test-I’ve looked at so many “reviews” of art supplies that ultimately boiled down to the reviewer’ s opinion. This is, by far, the best, least subjective, most logically demonstrable that I’ve found. Thank you! 👍🏼
OMG... this is just what I needed.... after taking the Art Institute (draw this "thing" and send it in found in magazines years ago) correspondence course... I finished and did well enough to be offered a job.. BUT... My family at the time was in great need and I went to work building swimming pools to help support my mother and father through a hard time. So after a career in the concrete industry... laborer, finisher, form setter, foreman, Business Owner.... I am RETIRED and back to my first love... ART.. but wow how things have changed because of the technology. Sorry, I said all that just to say THANK YOU for helping to decide what products to invest in rather than purchasing low quality products only to find they don't fill the need.... I see two sets here I will be ordering... KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK it is so helpful for us newbies.
I was working in Pen and Ink sketches in the past and used watercolors to fill in or highlight. Now I see you can get water color pencils... very excited to see whats out there. ...
The harder pencils cannot be treated like the softer pencils. Eg Irojiten, Pablo and Polychromos are supposed be layered again and again starting with light pressure and sharp tips to get into the tooth of the paper - this is one of their strengths, even though one's wax based and the others are oil based or oil-wax blend. Self-labeled "colorists" do not seem to understand this, they're too accustomed to grabbing soft cores and blazing through an area with maybe 3-4 layers maximum and they're done with that area. She took the Irojiten and went straight to HARD pressure in ONE layer and BLUNT tips - and you could see from a distance that the coverage was bad. Irojiten is seamless when properly used, those blocks should be solid vivid blocks with no bloom at all or splotches, I know them very well and only the neons behave like Crayolas (that's because of the nature of neon pigment pencils - they're always like that no matter the brand). I'm surprised she didn't tear the paper with the green. I've torn off little bits of paper when first becoming acquainted with sharp Irojitens.
Look how solid and strong the Pablo did on one hard layer. That is high pigment + medium softness. They have less pigment than Coloursoft? That is a joke.
The real reason the gamsol did not spread the pigment out that "far" for the Irojiten and Pablo is partly BECAUSE they are so densely pigmented.
The gamsol moves pigment around by dissolving the binder. If there is less binder, then the pigment's not going to be able to be moved that far by a liquid solvent. Eraseability is also a factor. Some brands really get in there and saturate with a vengeance, especially with moderate to high pressure - can't be significantly removed without damaging the paper. Irojiten is one of those brands.
Look what happened to the squares after the pigment was moved by the solvent. The Prismacolor squares were blotchy and weak AF. The Irojiten squares were still pretty strong after she put the brush to them - most of that pigment simply stayed put.
This test has nothing to do with the density of pigment in their cores or the overall layering and blendability of the pencil. It's just about how they react to gamsol. And I am grateful she put a lot of effort into showing us this with so many different brands
Yeah, I definitely would not use this as a decision maker for which pencils to purchase. Just shows their reaction to gamsol.
...on that paper
IKR! Also you rlly put your heart into his
Heather Leisure - I agree with Blossom - 200% True.
Exactly! I was thinking this the entire time!
That was a lot of testing and you deserve big kudos for going through all the effort. Your consistency of doing them all at the same time with the same paper/control/materials was beneficial.
+Kyralae Bredi, I'm glad you found the process helpful. I try hard to make my tests as accurate as possible. Thanks so. IHC for watching and commenting.
As much as I understand the comments that this test isn't accurate, I think you are right that at least two things were consistent, the paper and the solvent. And she never claimed it was THE way of testing it, but A way of testing it and it was understandable for everyone.
There are some very detailed and technical replies here which goes above the average persons head or simply doesn't really matter to them. Though they do teach me more about pencils, pigments, dye etc, I think this was a perfectly fine "average daily use" kind of video and I enjoyed it and admired the amount of work done. 8h in 3 days for a video, I don't know if I could be bothered tbh lol.
I have 2 oil-based pencils (one Prisma but none of the once shown here), I saw one of them fly by (in the box with a car on it).
I guess I'm content that they scored anywhere between 11 and 89, so at least they are not the very worst. I didn't get that impression either but I am slowly building up my stash of color material and all I need is some Gamsol and a brush.
And if I can't find it (typical) a new box of Vaseline. I have my gelpens and never had a clue they could be used for layering but I now know how (different video)
I love watching these things to just learn more and be awed by the effects a simple thing like Vaseline could even mean for pencils.
It's why I quit using markers. I know there are methods there too but pencils to me seem far superior to markers as far as blending, burning, layering and whatnot goes.
Today I will get my baby oil and see what effect that gives.
Sorry for the off topic ramble 😬
@@ColoringBliss wow I'm so impressed with you thank you for doing that you are amazing
Circle jerk. If the results don't show, sorry but it's not worth it.
Just as an FYI for everyone, the Blick colored pencils are actually made by Koh-I-Noor. Not sure if it's the same formulation or not but they are made for blick at their studios.
Oo I have blick student grade pencils. No wonder they're so smooth and vibrant!!!
Man I love these videos
Wigglytuffy Smith Okay, I know what you say has some validity, if not, a lot in how these things were tested, but the way you've been reacting has stripped almost all of it away. Seriously. It costs nothing to give nice constructive criticism. You don't need to act like it's their own fault for not knowing. That will NEVER get someone on your side. Instead, why not try something like "I'm sorry, but there was a mistake in the way you were testing these colored pencils. You did not take into account (insert different factors here). If you want to fix that, I would recommend testing them in this way. (Insert different way of testing)."
It requires nothing but thinking before you type. If you put in the effort to actually help, there are a lot of people who would more then happily give what you say a try at the very least. Lashing out is not helpful. And if you don't want to do it to help the creator, then tell them or comment so that other people can see it, and it can help them.
SuperRaeDizzle hi rae
❤❤❤I love your videos rae
SuperRaeDizzle hey Rae
You are awesome 🙃
SuperRaeDizzle I love your channel!
I absolutely love how far you deep dive in these tests and with so many brands! You've put in a lot of work! And I know making videos is even more time and energy consuming than most people know. Thank you for this info!
+Zoe Hong, thanks for watching...wow! I'm a big fan of your channel Zoe and love watching your videos too. I'm gearing up to start reviewing markers soon and really value your video insights as I have been putting together a method to test markers. Thanks for everything you do for the RUclips art community.
Oh hey, I didn't know you watched my channel. :D I'm really looking forward to how you'll be testing markers!
Thank you for your comment Zoe!
I think everyone saw Cra-Z-Art coming in last from miles away.
There is some from 99 cent store even worse than that
I think even noobs knew that it's sad.
i was actually thinking roseart would come in last, but im not sure if she tested rose art or not, soooo
mhm
Cra-z-art is horrid
Col-Erase pencils definitely wouldn't be my first pick for coloring, but in terms of sketching, especially for illustration work and comic layout, they're amazing since they don't smear at all and you can get in a lot of detail. Great video, I appreciate the time you put into it!
I can't believe you would go through all that work to make a video, the dedication is real!
Like you said, people have many personal reasons they chose a specific brand, and they should. Nobody should just buy for a brand name or something. Some artists look for lightfastness, some look for softness, some rather have a pencil that behaves more of a certain way that works with their style.
I do work with Gamsol as main method of blending, and different brands reacts to it differently. Polychromos for example, tend to stick on to the brush, so the color would lighten a lot after applying the solvent. Prismacolor doesn't stain the brush, but pigments do tend to clump together with Gamsol. I blamed the wax for it, but I don't get the same problem with Luminance which is also wax based.
You did surprise me with the Blick pencils. I never tried them, but they must have reacted nicely with the Gamsol to be on #1 pencil.
I mean for someone who works with Gamsol, Blick pencils could be a good choice.\
Still I must point out that CraZArt pencils are HORRIBLE! AH I had students bringing them in my class, and for the sake of everyone's safety, I said no to CraZArt pencils.
+ooXChrissieXoo lol...I love that...for their safety. Thanks for your comment and your insights...I really appreciate it. I can't wait for everyone to see what I am planning to do next!
A more important consideration for making comparison of pigmentations than any subjective evaluation on how far the colors stretch out when diluted or the amount of solvent is that the pencils do not contain the same pigments. The pigments themselves have different characteristics, therefore diluting different pigments cannot yield information on how pigmented the pencil is. A pencil could have a very high degree of pigmentations of a pigment that does not spread out much when diluted.
Interesting and useful test.
What follows is for your education.
I am a scientist by trade (mostly chemistry). In general, solubility is a very important factor in chemistry.
What this test mostly demonstrates is that different pencil formulations have different solubility in Gamsol.
That is, what you are actually testing is solubility in Gamsol vs the ability of the solvent to break the bonds of the [medium+pigment] to the paper and spread out the color on the paper.
According to the MSDS, Gamsol is "hydrotreated heavy naptha petroleum". Gamsol is a complex combination of hydrocarbons obtained by treating a petroleum fraction with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst. It consists of hydrocarbons having carbon numbers predominantly in the range of C6 through C13 and boiling in the range of approximately 65°C to 230°C (149°F to 446°F).
ExxonMobil (and others) sell hundreds (perhaps thousands) of tank cars of this a year of this stuff under the tradename Isopar. There are about 10 different Isopar types (or blends) - and mostly for formulation with personal care products. By the boiling point range, Gamsol is Isopar L.
Acetone, Isopropanol, Heptane (sold as Bestine), and MEK (Methyl Ethyl Ketone) - are all commercially available solvents (in any paint store, hardware store, and a lot of grocery stores) that perform the same function as Gamsol but work differently with different pencil manufacturers. I know, I've tried them all out - as well as a few others I haven't mentioned because what is available to me through the lab is not available to most artists. Gamsol works fine for some pencils, not so well for others. Acetone works well for other pencil brands - though I don't like working with Acetone in my home studio. Bestine (heptane) works pretty much like Gamsol - which it should - it's almost the same thing in terms of what it will solubilize.
MEK is nasty stuff. I tried it just to see if it will work. It works OK - for some pencils. But every day? No thanks.
Isopropanol - should be at least 91% - 100% is best is you can get it in a grocery store - works OK - sometimes, for some pencils. Very similar results are obtained with Methanol.
Odorless Mineral Spirits are very very similar to Gamsol - except they haven't been refined as well and have a residual odor. Might as well use Gamsol since it has ZERO smell.
Anyway, keep up the good work. :)
I love this comment, this is like talking to the cast from The big bang theory (comedy series). I gotta admit, I only got half way down and felt like the girl neighbour across the hall.
What ever you said...I think you are correct...lol
I think I get the point, or at least could follow what you are saying.
If I'm correct, this test basically only showed how different pencils react to Gamsol plus the type of paper/medium involved. Different paper gives different results for the same pencil, thus what would score nr 1 on one type of paper using Gamsol could score much less or vice versa on a different type of paper.
Same with solvents. And every mixture of pencil, solvent and medium/paper type will give you different results due to the characteristics of each components involved.
This would be the "average person" type of conclusion, IF I'm correct about what you mean/are trying to teach us.
I purposely ignored the hydrocarbon explanation tbh because I felt it didn't really needed to be used for my interpretation.
Now, am I a Penny or a mixture of a Penny and, say, any nerd besides Sheldon? (I liked the comment above me lol) 😁
Oh and you like Gamsol best. If all else was wrong at least I should be correct on that one lol.
@@christreanor6637 😁
To help people out here, imagine doing this test with paints instead. If you try to use water to thin/drag out oil paints, it won't work very well. It'll work great for acrylics, because the "stuff they are made from" dissolves in water. Oil doesn't.
Likewise if you test a "water based oil paint", it'll work better too.
So you're not testing how much pigment is in the color, rather just how well the water dissolved it.
Me reading this: whaaa
I just love that Koh-i-noor wood less pencils (progresso) made it to your list. 12 years ago (and even before and now) when I went to first grade in elementary school here in Czech Republic where Koh-i-noor is from, they were the must-have for us and now artists use them for art. I'm glad that they're still as great as they were before. Their pigmentation is amazing and you can still use them when they break. Perfect for kids and everyone else.
Damn girl you have art, math and science in this video
+Kat Patterson, triple threat! lol 😊❤️❤️❤️
Interesting video and a lot of work went into this. Not sure if this is how you actually test which pencil has the most pigment at all. I also noticed that for some brands you pick the top pencil they have, but for others not. Bruynzeel, Derwent and Caran D'ache have way better pencils available that lay down a lot of pigment on your paper, but I'm sure even they would fail your test, since laying down a lot of pigment and reacting to something like Gamsol are two different things. We now know which pencils react best to this kind of solvent and that's cool.... but that doesn't mean that pencil also has the most pigment. That you can clearly see without using any solvent at all.
+Benjamin A, I appreciate your perspective...yes...there are some potential flaws in this test, but like I said...I have to start somewhere. I'm excited to do another group test like this to see what else we can learn.
Coloring Pages Bliss I understand that, you indeed have to start somewhere.
As a fellow hand problem person I really appreciate you showing the good hand health measures, both the breaks as you went and taking three days rather than pushing on until you couldn’t move your hand. Thanks for the good example.
I guess what you really tested was the solubility of the colored pencil leads. The mixes might not dissolve in mineral spirits, they might be better in water. The pigments might still be bound as you try to spread them. Either way, this is an incredible amount of work!
I'm glad that you said about human error and impossibility of being completely objective in such a test. One thing that I noticed was the difference in colour density left behind on the original test square after applying the solvent. Some squares were still densely coloured, which suggests that there is still plenty of pigment left there. Perhaps the pencils are made of different materials that react to the solvent differently.
For people who just want to colour and draw for their own pleasure, rather than being artists or art students, it would be helpful to know ease of use and how to use on different paper textures.
For instance: some people want to layer colours, while others want to get a quick shot of colour in one stroke; some people like intense opaque colours, while others like a paler wash of colour. I like the texture of the paper to be seen, but I know that some people want dense colour through which you can't see the bumps of the paper.
You have a lot of different brands of pencils, so a comparative overview of the most popular would be interesting. :)
One thing to consider is that they don't all blend the same. I find that solvents dissolve Polychromos for example a lot easier than Prismacolors with the huge amount of wax.
+Ramo, yes...it is an imperfect test...I wish I had the time and energy to repeat it a few times and then average all the scores. But alas...I don't think my hand or my sanity or my family would allow me to do it lol 😂
It is a can of worms, a bottomless can! I'd take the top, say 15 pencils and the 15 worst pencils and repeat the test with only them using different solvents. Easier on the hand and family, while giving more meaning to the tests!
I admire your tenacity in getting this test done, but the factors aren't even, as you said, and looking at the swatches before and after applying gamsol gives me a different view. Because you discounted a color for the odd way of reacting, I believe that the rest of the pencils could also have differing ways of reacting to the gamsol. The Luminance pencils look more intense than any others, before and after, even if the pigment didn't pull out as far. The pulled out pigment and the pigment left in the square was nicer, brighter, smoother than most/all of the others too. Anyway, it's a fair general idea, so thank you for that.
Me: *Watches this video*
Her: we will be testing 30 different colored Pencil Brands
Me: There's more than just Crayola??
Indeed - actually the school pencils of Jolly are very famous (got exported to the US, New Zealand, UK and whole Europe....) There are no Jolly in the test ... now I'm confused, did I missed them ?! And the LFI is the actual cost factor of those Pencils and Faber Castell as well as CaranD'Ache are the TOP on that.
Very nice hands.
Yep and I knew a couple but not THAT MANY
um,you mean 33..
Crayola is fucking dog shot no way u use them
Wow, Jennifer, thanks so much for taking the time to do this wonderful comparison! 💕🌟💕 It was so much fun watching this, and, like you, I was a bit surprised by the results. 😯 😊💕 Btw, I love my Gamasol and have been using it for years! 😍😁💕 Thanks bunches for all you (and your magnificent support team 😁👏👏) give to us! Hugs from Carol, Columbus, Ohio 🤗😊
+Carol Berquist, thanks for this comment and for watching. I'm glad you enjoyed the video.
Coloring Pages Bliss can you do a short video saying how much each coloring pencil pack costs to see if they are worth, pls do it, and nice vid!!!!!
+XxLegendaryxX 21, good suggestion...thanks 😊
@@beangus3092 have you had a look at Amazon? Price wise it's easy to compare by sorting them inexpensive to expensive. I've seen boxes of 260 dollars. Way too much I would spend on a box, no matter how good they may be. Unless I start to be more advanced, I won't even see much difference anyway right nowb😜
Lawyer/spokesperson for All Orange Chicken damn this was so long ago i forgot about this, watching this vid gave me nostalgia from last year
Oooh - I just bought the Blick pencils this weekend at one of their brick & mortar stores (so they're not ONLY available on the website). They're open stock, which is a plus. They have some smaller sets of pencils - but many of the colors are included in that 72-pencil set.
I appreciate that you tested all the brands the same or at least as much the same as you could. I wonder, however, if the results were more dependent on how Gamsol-soluble the fillers are in each pencil rather than the amount of filler. I would think also that wax-based & oil-based pencils would function differently with the odorless mineral spirits.
When I (completely subjectively) judge colored pencils in regards to how pigmented they are, I look more at how much pressure I need to apply in order to achieve the desired color saturation. I know paper type has a HUGE impact on how well pencils perform -- but as long as I am trying pencils on the same kind of paper, I can cross-judge. If, with a single layer, I have to press hard to get just a bit of color or press super hard to get bright, vibrant color, I don't consider the pencils to be highly pigmented (and I'm likely not that fond of the pencils). If, with a single layer, I only have to barely touch the paper to get just a bit of color or apply medium pressure to get bright, vibrant color, I consider the pencils to be highly pigmented.
+Shayna Reynolds, thanks for your insights. They were very helpful. 👍😊
As I am picking up coloring once more after 65 years, it is interesting to me that there are SO MANY types of coloring pencils (and pens) and quite by accident I spent a lot of money for the Woodless Kohinor and enjoyed them a lot. Then, because we travel a lot and I was away, I rushed into a store and bought the Prang to have in the RV. I've been using them a lot lately since I earned my CZT in The Zentangle Method and now I think I will go back and pull out the woodless and compare them. Thanks for all this hard work and I know it cannot be quite as precise as mixing ingredients for a cake, but it was very interesting. I'll tune in again!!
Not sure if this is necessarily the best way to judge the pencils.
A particular pencil might have high pigment but with a filler that doesn't necessarily break down as well with the mineral spirits.
Conversely, another pencil with less pigment might have a filler that breaks down more readily and is able to spread further.
So, the results might not be representative of the true pigmentation or quality of the pencil.
More important is how well the pencil lays down the colour and how well it blends.
You are perfectly right! Some are working well Vaseline others with baby oil and others mineral spirit or Gamsol, even with Holbein Meltz! But she is doing her tests according to her own ethic rules and she is working very hard with honesty! 😊
@@danyelhudon458 Yes. I can’t deny she did a superb job taking the time to do a thorough test👌
I did not see another solvent used, wax and oil respond differently to solvents.
I use Gamsol and CP's Powder blender. One for oil based and another for wax based.
Thanks for the tremendous amount of time You put into this. Gamsol users ( and I am one ) will and do appreciate your time, and especially the sore hands. ( and the results are beneficial ) I could not have done this. Nice video. Thank You so much!
Waayy... too much mineral spirits used and I agree... not a test of anything except solubility...
This was a great video. I appreciate your attempts to apply scientific method to assess the quality of the art supplies we spend so much money on. Your hard work is appreciated. I was surprised like you were by some of the results. I too enjoy coloring with the Tombow recycled pencils and thought they would place higher, the same for the Prismacolor Premiers. I was particularly confounded by the Blick and Koh-I-Noor Polycolors as rumor has it that they are the same pencil, apparently not. The Prismacolor results weren't really surprising when I thought more about it. I've seen videos when people use Gamsol with those pencils it doesn't work as well, or they have to use more solvent. Perhaps, the same test with different solvents or a uniform amount would be interesting. This may not be the best test if the Gamsol cause the different binders to react strangely with the pigments. I don't really use solvents with my pencils, so I don't really know. Sorry for the long reply, but I found this test really interesting and would duplicate it if I had all the pencils. These are just some thoughts I had while watching. Again, you did an awesome job!
+Msboochie2, I love this comment and all your thoughts on the test. I am glad to hear that I'm not the only person who thinks this way. I am busy trying to think of more methods of testing to apply to all of them...maybe with less burnishing 😉
Yes, I agree. While I may not have as much background experience with art as both of you & those other women dissing & bashing you . I have had 2 years of art school under my belt, I didn't go as far as the Colour course, which I see would have been very involved, but I'm sure entertaining. I'm very glad that you made this video, I now have a better idea of which coloured pencils I want to try first. I do have some of those you tested & some surprised me, too. I have learned a lot today, including from some of them bashing you, but I would've preferred hearing about it, in a more tactful & mature manner. Which shows, just because you "may " have more knowledge or understanding, doesn't make you better. I'd much rather have a conversation with you & MsBoochie2, about art than I would with those other women, ranting and raving. I appreciate your humility and humbleness. Thank you very much, ColouringBliss, for doing this video, I truly enjoyed it. I look forward to more videos. You have my vote. 😀😍
There are a few Japanese brand coloured pencils I would like you to check out. Holbein, Mitsubishi Uni Color, Tombow Irojiten and FELISSIMO 500.
+Tina Rice, thanks for the list. The Irojiten made it into this video and I have a couple of the others in my Amazon cart already. I will look for the others...so much art fun!
Coloring Pages Bliss I wanted to know what you thought of the Tombow's pencils. I know it didn't make it on the lists. I plan to go to Blick's pick up Studio Pencils. We have a store in San Diego. It used to be called The Art Store and pick up some Studio Markers. I want to get a gray set of pencils because I like monotone images. By the way, you did a great job with testing all of these Colored Pencils.
I saw a video on the Holbein Pencils. They're suppose to like the Faber Castell Polychomos and Pablo Colored Pencils (oil based). The woman started with a small set of 36 she got on eBay because these Pencils in a small set are hard to find. I did see a set on Amazon that has 150 pencils and it's $304.92. She also said what was nice about these pencils. She could blend them with the Faber and the Pablos because they are all oil based pencils.
Coloring Pages Bliss the video link ruclips.net/video/QOczOyJs2V4/видео.html
+Tina Rice I did a full review on the tombows a few months ago that you will probably really like. Thanks for your insights on the other pencils.
Coloring Pages Bliss I'm going to look for your video.
The pencil shavings in this video were gorgeous, Jen. They looked like little piles of colorful confetti. Did I just come up with an idea?! I think I might have! We can use pencil shavings as party decorations or packing material. 😁
I always appreciate your videos. You have so many ideas and share so much useful knowledge with your viewers and I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you put into each video and also enjoy your chattiness. I watch and re-watch a LOT of your videos because they're so informative, I know I don't garner every little piece of info by watching just once and I have really learned so much from you and improved both my sketching and coloring skills, which brings me great joy and a sense of accomplishment. You're a real gem, lady! Thank you so, so much for all you do!
Stay blessed & blissful! ❤❤
I also use CARAN d'ACHE, your No. 2, the permanent model "Pablo", but it's a bit counterproductive to move a permanent color with a brush.
I prefer the "Supracolor" model, the water soluble. As intended, I dipped the pencil's head in water. Picment density becomes 10 times higher, and a brush can move the color 10 times longer into a evenly distributed in decreasing density.
+knudplesner, ooooo I can't wait to try those. I told myself I can't start collecting the water soluble pencils until I have finished reviewing the ones I have. There are so many beautiful water activated pencils...it's hard to wait. 😊
I have the set of 120. Note, the pencils are of different qualities, marked with 0 - 3 stars, depending on the color.
The 0-3 stars are the light fast rating of the pencil.
I am not sure your measuring pigment content but the pencil's color movement by Gamasol. Perhaps blendability? Some pencils may have more pigment but are not blended by Gamasol. Fillers do have a lot to do with this aspect of pencil contents. I think you did an equal testing but you are correct about this being only 1 aspect of pencil strength. Good Luck with future videos! I did give you a thumbs up!
There is no way the blick pencils were the most pigmented, just compare them to the luminance, if you are considering to buy colored pencils i shouldn't advise you to rely on this video at all.
This is my first time visiting your channel. I thought for sure the Caran d’Ache would be in first place. I’m glad that the pencils I own at least scored in the top 10. I have the 132qty Prismacolor Premier set. I’ve wanted a Faber Castel Polychromos set and Caran d’Ache set for the longest time. Just have to save up.
I’ve been drawing since I could hold a pencil/crayon. My deciding factors for buying pencils is smooth consistency, layering & pigment. They must work well together.
Love your thoroughness. Subscribed ✔️
This is an excellent comparison! and most of the colored pencil brands i own made it into top ten!!
Art@Fadil I love your vids!
I am glad to hear ! Thank you :)
hi fadil i always watch ur videos!!!
I'm a fan
I applaud your trying to be consistent…..I think the inherent oils and waxes in the different pencils were a factor that made comparisons difficult. I think the Derwent Colorsoft ( my faves) came in high because of the low wax/oil content, and for that reason I tend you almost always use a light sanded paper.
I applaud you for all the effort, because you did put in a lot of work. So Kudos to you for that!
Although I feel like this test was mislabeled and mishandled. It is certainly true that this test really shows how well Gamsol works on THIS specific type of paper. Not actual pigment "concentration". Now before anyone says "why not show a better way to do it if you're so smart?" I'd like to say that there are some ways to do it, and that's in a scientific lab with actual controls in place as well.
A good way to do it (for anyone curious) is to try atleast 3 different solvents and then a control experiment with NO solvents because all experiments should have a control. Why 3 Solvents? Just to reduce the error that comes from using one solvent to test these different types of pencils. Instead of using paper, because ultimately paper is such a HUGE factor in the solubility of the pigments, it's best to take the same amount of the core out and dissolve that in the solvents and then try calculating the concentration of colour in the solution. Paper chromatography or titration may prove to be useful here. Paper chromatography can actually show how much of it is the binder and how much of it is the pigment. HOWEVER, a test like this across so many different brands with pencils that will all behave so differently on everything from the type of paper to the technique to even the solvent...there is certainly a lot of room for error. Thus I feel this test itself is rather unnecessary to begin with. I do agree with you on the fact that this is NOT the only criteria to judge a pencil with. So it makes one wonder what the point of this test is in the first place..Anyways I'd like to get into details about the problems I have with this test (this is not meant to spread hate but to offer a more logical explanation on the topic for anyone curious)
Every pencil is formulated differently, with a different binder which ofcourse behaves differently with Gamsol. Setting that aside there's the factor of whether or not ACTUAL pigments were used in each of these coloured pencils. I'm pretty sure that about 75% of them are mainly dye based because ofcourse real pigments are expensive and brands that are super cheap, can't afford to sell pencils with real pigments at 50 pencils for $5. Also a factor to consider is the staining property. Certain dyes and pigments will stain more than others. Pthalo blue will always stain a lot more than say Ultramarine blue. Then there is the hardness. Softer pencils will disperse a large amount of colour more easily than a harder pencil. Not only that but an oil based pencil for example being fairly translucent would also disperse pigment differently compared to a more opaque pencil like Luminance or Prismacolor Premier. Some food for thought. IGNORING ALL of this, if we just take a moment to see how you calculated the ratings, there is big flaw there. Basically you're taking two readings from each colour and then you're just adding them up and averaging them. The problem is that the strongest pigment reading is not at all the same across all the brands. So say one of the brands has a larger strongest pigment reading but another brand has a smaller reading (however that smaller area is much higher in colour concentration than the brand with a higher reading) The calculation is not taking this into account at all. It also doesn't take into account the fact that not every colour in a brand is consistently giving the same results. So if ONE colour ends up getting a very high reading with two others getting more average reading, it'll tip the scale higher in favour of that brand. It doesn't really showcase that it's actually a more consistently highly pigmented brand in general.
So the takeaway from this is that it's not a true test nor representation of pigmentation. The fact remains that it is always best to try different pencils and see which YOU prefer for your purpose best. Generally all artist grade pencils will have a higher pigmentation than cheaper children's grade pencils. But if a cheaper pencil serves your purpose well, there's no problem in that. To anyone who read till this far, thank you for your time and I hope this was helpful in someway.
Thank you for taking the time for this comment, made a lot of sense to me 😊
Thank you for writing this comment. It makes a ton of sense when you think about it
Didn't read teh whole thing, but agree.
There are talkers and doers.
I agree also another factor is your own eyes ! Every one sees colours slightly differently and when this factor is taken into account then this test is only for personal use and certainly no good to others. I see colours a lot more vivid then most other people’s. I did like the test and taking the time to do it I appreciate this but the whole thing was totally inconclusive.
Wow! What an excellent effort...even allowing for any differences in your method, such as consistency in amount of pigment put down, or even inconsistencies in determining pigment values after using the Gamsol, you have given viewers an idea of where to perhaps start, or at the very least, perked their interest to do their own follow up research of various brands...yeah, well done and thumbs up.
What an amazing video. Holy moly, thank you for doing all of that work! I love your analytical approach. The scientist in me loves it :)
I'm thinking that using Gamsol as your means of testing skewed your results in favor of the "waxy" brands and against the "dry" brands. But I give you full kudos for TRYING to come up with a way of objectively testing this. All brands, after all, CLAIM to be highly pigmented in their advertising copy, even low-end scholastic brands.
+Astrin Ymris, you could be right. I am working on coming up with another test to run to give us another way of looking at the pencils. It is very upsetting to me when I read the phrase "artist quality" on a pack of cra-Z-art colored pencils! 😡 thanks for your comment.
Great video! I was wondering if you could add prices though? I do a ton of art and love the caran d'ache brand (my #1) but I also know how expensive the Luminance pencils are (averaging 400$ for a pack of 76). They're gorgeous artist pencils and whoever loves to draw and sketch will most likely enjoy them. However, for the fans that enjoy coloring books and/or the beginner learner, I think it would helpful to see the price points so they don't get disheartened when they realize some pencils cost more than most phones lol
Excellent. Just excellent! Thank you for doing such a thorough analysis.
Not sure how helpful this test is. The gamsol breaks down the wax and fillers to get to pure pigment but it is the amounts and types of wax and fillers that determines how much pigment we can access when actually using the pencils. A pencil may be heavily loaded with pigment yet contain enough wax and fillers to interfere with the pigment that reaches the paper. Likewise a pencil may contain less pigment yet show more color payoff on paper if it contains less wax. It may feel less smooth in use than highly waxed pencils yet the color may be more intense.
Thank you for the different comparisons that you do - they are a help. I also find that the different brands of colored pencils react differently on the type of paper that is used. I was surprised at where some of the brands ended on the list in the blending such as the Colorit Brand, one of my favorites (but I have not used it for blending with Gamisol. I only have used the Prismacolor Premiers in blending with Gamisol - like the effects with this brand).
Thank you for all your hard work so that all of us could benefit!!!!!
Thank you for all the tedious work you did on this video! The results are so helpful for your viewers. This is the first of your videos that I have seen and looking forward to watching others. Thanks again.
Thank you so much for sharing this. It was a ton of work! Great 👍 video!
Well, since you asked, no, I don't think it is a valid test. A test like this would only be valid if all pencils had the exact same ingredients and only the amount of pigment varied. Depending on how pencils are made, reactions to OMS will vary, and therefore it is impossible to determine pigment content simply by comparing how far OMS will allow you to drag out the pigment.
As a math teacher and a hobby artist, I love how you quantified the results! Will you please do one of these for blending?
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. It has really been helpful!
You Did a "monumental" work testing all that pencils. I just was stunned that Caran D`Ache wasn`t at the top list and my favs (Prismacolor Premier) placed at the bottom of the top ten.... Oh well :D You did a very useful video, thank you very much....BRAVA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And thanks a lot for your effort & patience :D
What do you think about Prisma Scholar ? Are they good ? How are they in comparison to Prisma Premiere ?,
@@aliyahmiller4334 From what I know, Prismacolor Scholar is the student version. They are good and vibrant for a student colour pencils, but it's not as good as Prismacolor Premiere, which is an artist coloured pencils.
Aliyah Miller I know you don’t need this reply anymore, but from my experience, they’re very similar to the premier brand. I’ve done tests with the Scholar & Premier. Basically your only problem would be only having 48 maximum
Prismacolor pencils are very week in pigment and the lead falls out trying to sharpen. Horrible pencils. Colors muted.
WOW! I love this. What a labour of love. Thank you so much.
wow.... i thought i was a maniac with figures and colors.... you got me at square one.
Wow amazing results, thx 4 taking the time to show it on video! So interesting.
But does not this depend on how many layers and how hard you deposited the colored pencil's pigment?? Wax vs Oil based colored pencils?? This is still very subjective, as you are determining what mark is strong and which is not.
You are so right on the money with your comment. She doesn't test them the way each pencil is supposed to be used. If she used the pencil the way they're supposed to be used she would have very different results. Thank you for posting this comment because your right.
+GWENNETH SIMMONS, exactly what I said in the video 😉 I hope I eventually find a way to test pencils that is truly scientific...in the meantime, I will keep trying what I can.
+loricat, there is no specific way a colored pencil is supposed to be used...that is the joy of art. In fact, many professional artists use blending solvents and agents with their colored pencils to achieve the look they are going for. It is exciting to see the possibilities 😊
She already made this disclaimer in the video
Does it affect the test that she dips into the gamsol 4 - 5 times for red, then only once for the remaining 2 colors for that brand. Results are a washed out pale red square while the other 2 are nearly opaque. I noticed this on the second pencil test on the 1st page. Each pencil deserves the same testing parameters.
I have been watching your videos for a few months. I find them all enlightening. I click on other videos about drawing but most of the time I don't watch them for long. I find that your videos more information and... I just like watching them a lot. Thank you for all the work you put into each one.
I have been coloring adult coloring books for years but I didn't have a clue how to blend or shade and make the pictures look nice until I started watching your videos. I am learning but now I have much more knowledge of how to accomplish more beautiful pictures. Thank you again.
+Kathryn Athey, such a wonderful comment!! Thank you so much! This means so much to me. ❤️💙💚💜
Truthfully using a typing/printer paper is not an accurate way to show pigmentation, because pencils have different binders in the leads and the paper greatly affects the way the pencil reacts to the paper...a binder that dissolves easily with gamsol will naturally blend further than one that resists the gamsol...which doesn't prove pigmentation but rather the solvent's ability to react with the binders...you will find that some pencils blend better with oil rather than gamsol. Furthermore if you used a cold pressed watercolor (cotton) paper you would find different results as well, because the paper has binders that allow colors to "set" on top of the paper which in turn allows for a more fluid result with pigmentation... which will give you a more accurate result for the pigmentation representation...things to just consider...which will change the outcome of your experiment
Thanks for your feedback. As stated in the video, i use high quality paper for my testing and I’m careful to be consistent with this paper from test to test so that can get dependable results. You are very right that every paper makes a big difference in the results.
An interesting take. However, just because you put down thick layer and use OMS to drag the color out isn't really true reflection of how they might be used in artwork. Nor is lightfastness addressed (can be a high rank but can also fade when given as a gift or sold)
Thank you!!! So far I only have crayola an a 24 pack of prismacolor pencils
+compa75, those are great pencils!
I noticed that the colors, especially the red, sometimes seemed to become a different color when thinned. Some of the red stayed red and some of it changed into orange or magenta. That's a game changer when it comes to blending. It would be interesting to know what the different companies use to make their colors. I found out that some pencils are made with graphite and clay, others are wax and oil.
That was a lot of work! It was very informative.
Thank you for taking all the time you put into this testing! Like you said, this is one factor in the choosing of which colored pencil brand to use. I don't understand all the controversy about this video. If some viewers don't like the method used then why are they watching? Just change the channel. This was a very thoughtful thing that you've done and I for one appreciate the time you put into it! I've noticed that all these comparison videos are done with good intentions to aid your viewers in one way or another. Keep up the good work! 😁
Like you, I'm surprised by some of the results. Did it matter if they were wax or oil based? The Koh-I-Noor woodless were one of the first pencils I bought, probably 7 or 8 years ago, before I really knew how to use colored pencils. That user error made me put them away, thinking it was the pencil. I recently pulled them out and was so pleased to see how well they worked, especially on a smoother paper! So I have two of the top 3 now. Trying hard not to jump to the Blick site to order theirs. lol
I have a question that you might be able to answer, one that's been bugging me... Why are really sharp pencils better at putting down pigment than duller pencils? I find myself struggling to get color down, but once I sharpen it, it's not a problem. I don't get it. One would think that a duller pencil, with more surface, would give you more color. I've been doing a bunch of coloring recently and I'm seeing my pencils disappearing due to the sharpening. I'm starting to panic! lol Thanks for your thoughts.
+Irene Grau, that's a good question. It has to do with the tip of the pencil easily traveling into the tooth or texture of the paper. The blunt tip is sort of sliding across the top of the tooth and not filling up the texture. Instead of sharpening every time, try 2 things...rotate the pencil slightly as your coloring to present a different edge to the paper...secondly, use sand paper to gently bring a point back to the tip instead of sharpening every time. I hope this helps.
Ah, that makes sense -- and probably why a duller pencil seems to do better on a smooth coloring page? I do rotate, but I didn't realize I could use sand paper to refresh the point. I'll try that. Thanks!
One tiny tip transfers all the pressure that you put on the pencil on to a 10th millimeter of surface while a blunt tip transfers the same amount of pressure on to 1-2 millimeters of surface. Obviously that affects the strength of the color immensly.
A razorsharp tip imaginarily only fights against one tooth of the paper while a blunt tip fights against a whole army...
Its comparable to a thin sharpened sword needing hundred times less strength to cut into flesh compared to an old and blunt one...
Besides there is to say: If you are using wax based pencils like prismacolor they will get smaller very fast, thats normal. Others than wax based pencils do not have that problem in such dimensions...
Ive drawn a Mr. Popo face from Dragonball on an A4 sized sheet of paper and it ate up 2/3 of a new black prismacolor pencil.
(Dont ask me why I color a white sheet fully in black pencil instead of using black paper. By now I wouldn't be that stupid lol...)
Just in case you bought yourself some first wax pencils... there is nothing to effectively do about it. But single pencils aren't that expensive anyway.
+Benhard Wiesner I think you and my sons would get along well. Do you watch Forged in Fire? My family loves that show!
One of the things I would have liked to have been noted in your wonderful test process would be whether you are working with a wax or oil base. Thank you for taking the time to create this wonderful video.
Blick Studio and Koh I Noor Polycolor pencils are the exact same pencil- Koh I Noor manufactures and relabels them for Blick. So I am very confused.
crucibelle I have reviewed both. They are identical. The company might SAY they are different but the cores are exactly the same. Exactly. Have you tried them?
crucibelle aka someone who wants to sell you their brand of pencils...
+crucibelle, this is similar to the information I have received. I am hoping to get more details before doing the full review on their beautiful pencils.
As written they are both from the same manufacturer Koh I Noor Hardtmuth and they are 100 % identical.
Why? Frankly speaking, I know the production. This is truly another paid advertisement from Dick Blick. Fake!
How do the prices compare? I'm surprised no one is talking about cost. The crafting world costs so bloody much, I wish I were on the selling side :0)
Nicely done. Seems like a very fair assessment of each brand of pencil. I was also surprised that the Blick pencils were the number one rated. I’ve always been partial to the Berol Prismacolor for a number of reasons... price, availability, pigmentation, blendability, and colorfastness. I may have to try out the Blick’s! Thanks
Wow. That must have been a TON of work. Thank you so much for all of your hard work. My favorite pencils are still prisma premier. :-) xoxo
+Shannon Coppersmith, yes...they are still my go-to pencils. So many pencils...so little art time 😉
@Coloring Pages Bliss: I've loved Prismacolors for years, but their downfall in quality caused me to shift to Polychromos. I expected them to do well on this test, because the cores are still great, but I was surprised that you didn't disqualify them for the sharpening issues like you did another brand.
+Astrin Ymris, the other brand actually beaks...like while coloring I could feel the core snap inside the wood 😳. That's how poor the quality is on that brand.
I feel like Prismas quality has gone down hill over the years. They were my absolute favorite for years and the last set I bought was a huge disappointment and didn’t act anything like my older ones. Have you noticed that too?
I'm looking at a few (or several) videos on colored pencils, and found your channel and subscribed. This was a great way to see many different brands and it didn't cost me a penny to get some ideas! Thank you! Still, the best part of the video is your adorable dog! 💟
I feel like you did fine when it comes to the human factor, I understand that it's there and it's gonna happen and I appreciate that you pointed it out. My biggest problem with this is the fact that color erase isn't a wax base pencil. A lot of those aren't wax based pencils so they're not going to react well to the mineral spirits. Color erase is a clay base pencil and is used for different things than regular prismacolor.
I still did appreciate this test though and I appreciate all the time that you put into a. :)
I appreciate you using constrictive criticism, giving your opinion with politeness and leaving a compliment. Some were asses to her and thank you again.
Thank you for your review. I really appreciate the tremendous time you took with your comparison test.
Very cool, but not crazy about the colour range in the Blick Studio pencils :(
Great video to get more info of which pencils to choose. Thanks for all your hard work! I love this video. ❤👏👏👏
Hi Jennifer, I just want to ask if you have tried the Staedtler Luna colored pencils? Thank you!!!
+Sunako Nakahara, not yet. I only have 2 kinds of Staedtler pencils so far.
great job ! what patience you have ! I've only tried a few different brands myself but I like prismacolor premier myself. Thanks
luminance looked the most pigmented to me because the color dragged out is actually really vibrant and consistent, its stays true to its color and doesnt cause discoloration because of too much scattering of the pigment. This test doesnt really say much to be honest.
Awesome test! Thanks so much for spending so much time on your very clever comparison! Can’t imagine a better test anywhere!
Oh, the Cra-Z-Art ones are awful!!! I did a project, and I couldn't even get them to mark on the paper.
+Monique Reed, I feel your pain...literally...lol
Funny story, I really like them against other pencils their price.
Ereka Taylor Craz Z art is pretty good for Layering and blending in my opinion, just not with pigment
One of my Mom's friends bought me those, one of those "friends" who likes to give stuff to poor friends and look magnanimous. She also gave me a "brand new" Fitbit that was registered to someone else's computer and was unusable. I don't think I'm going to be so intimidated by Lady Bountiful's cast offs any more. Even though I already feel bad writing this.
They are way better now, I tried them a few year ago and they were awful and now the 76 box is actually pretty decent, I tested it against others and no one tell which one was which
What a huge project! Thank you so much for doing this mammoth experiment and posting for all to see. There were a few big surprises for sure! Awesome information!
Thank you for this wonderful video. I really appreciate the time and dedication you have put in this video!
Wow--what a job! I'm very interested in the results. Thank you!
This was awesome! Colored pencils, I just recently realized, are my favorite medium to play with. I love my Color Collection by Conte but I can't wait to afford to buy more brands. Thanks for all the time it took for you to do this and yes I feel like this was a pretty legit test. :)
I enjoyed watching your test on pigmentation. I was surprised by the final results. Thank you for this helpful video.
Great video! I've shared it with my craft group, thank you for taking the time to film this x
Wow. What you guys do for your fan base. Amazing and a very rare result. Nice one.
Can we just appreciate how much time and effort had to go to do this? Kudos to you 👏👏👏
+EverKinzPony thank you 😊💕
I would love to see the same sort of test done with watercolor pencils. Thanks for the amazing amount of work you did on this testing sequence.
Damn, You're committed. Thank you!!!
I ordered the Blick Pencils and was disappointed in them. They are more like the much cheaper brands. The price for 72 of the Blicks was around $60.00 Money would be better spent on Prismacolor, DerWent or Polychromos. Sorry I bought the Blick. Not good advice here.
Really? You think Blick is #1? Looking at your test swatch, the pigmentation fell off quickly and then faded away and yet you think this is #1. Don't think so.
That was really fun. You really did a systematic review. So I don't have to buy a crappy set and then have it pile up in my stash! Nicely done. Thank you
Impressive dedication. I enjoyed watching and was surprised at the results. Well done! 💜
WOW! I really enjoyed your video, and learned so much! You put in a lot of time and study into this, and I appreciate it so much.
I appreciate your hard work and effort. However, I am not an artist. I use colored pencils for coloring books. Most of the people I know who color don't use gamsol. More of my groups use baby oil or vaseline as fixatives and we don't use that all of the time.
+carmen l, I love using Vaseline too! I decided odorless mineral spirits would be the cleanest and most efficient method for this test.
I'd like to see you do the same test with baby oil, rubbing alchol, etc.
Maybe even with just the top & bottom five (or ten) brands to cut down the amount of work.
+Jan Kimbell, yes! And I'd like to try the powder blender that I have seen several artists using. So many possibilities!
+Coloring Pages Bliss, Yes, TOO many possibilities! You'd go crazy trying to test all of that! Maybe a smaller sampling of pencils. Reconsidering my earlier post, I agree with Shayna Renolds, above, use fewer pencils, and 2 or 3 different blenders like what she recommended, above. Maybe just baby oil, rubbing alcohol, and powder blender. That would be not so tough, except you thought you were testing something else and it's hard to revisit a difficult project when you thought you were done with it!
I think Cray-Z-Art bumped up their game recently because I bought some for my kid and had to borrow a few for some art projects and wow what a difference! They are WAY MORE pigmented now and were standing up to Fabre Castell Goldfabers, I dont if they changed formulas but I was pleasantly surprised
I'm not really surprised that crazy art was last
Wow, look at you and your organisation with this, and the sheer amount. Thank yo so much for doing this test xxx
Thank you, that was a lot of work. I was pleased to see the Polychromos come high on the list. Have never heard of some of the brands, but will definitely consider the Blick pencils.
Very well done! I'm happy to see Caran d'Ache Luminance is one of the best. That's the brand I decided to use to follow up my Karisma Colour Pencils. Until now I only needed two new (Luminance ) pencils. Most of the Karisma pencils are still in usable shape. It's such a pity Karisma pencils aren't made anymore.
*Prisma color premiere blue was the most pigmented damn Prisma, get it girl!*
Wow! Excellent test-I’ve looked at so many “reviews” of art supplies that ultimately boiled down to the reviewer’ s opinion. This is, by far, the best, least subjective, most logically demonstrable that I’ve found. Thank you! 👍🏼
Great video. You did a lot of work, much appreciated.
+Fluffy Bunny, you're welcome! It turned out to be way more work then I thought it would be, but I learned soooo much!
OMG... this is just what I needed.... after taking the Art Institute (draw this "thing" and send it in found in magazines years ago) correspondence course... I finished and did well enough to be offered a job.. BUT... My family at the time was in great need and I went to work building swimming pools to help support my mother and father through a hard time. So after a career in the concrete industry... laborer, finisher, form setter, foreman, Business Owner.... I am RETIRED and back to my first love... ART.. but wow how things have changed because of the technology. Sorry, I said all that just to say THANK YOU for helping to decide what products to invest in rather than purchasing low quality products only to find they don't fill the need....
I see two sets here I will be ordering... KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK it is so helpful for us newbies.
I was working in Pen and Ink sketches in the past and used watercolors to fill in or highlight.
Now I see you can get water color pencils... very excited to see whats out there. ...