Colored Pencil Comparison | Winsor & Newton vs. Holbein

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Unboxing, swatching and testing the Caran d’Ache Luminance colored pencils!
In my quest for THE perfect professional artist-grade colored pencil set, I thought Faber Castell Polychromos would be the love of my life.
Catch the full playlist here: • The Great Colored Penc...
Call it cold feet at the altar, call me a runaway bride…but when it came time to commit to the Polychromos, I was suddenly plagued with doubt.
The only way I can be 100% sure I’m investing my art budget wisely is to actually test these colored pencils. I bet some of you are having the same doubts, so I thought we could spend some time in the months ahead thoroughly comparing all of the professional artist-grade colored pencils I can get my hands on!
Reference photo submitted to Pixabay by OpenClipart-Vectors:
pixabay.com/vectors/cat-kitte...
The links below are affiliate links on Amazon. I may earn a small commission should you choose to make a purchase through these links. Any commission earned through your purchase will go directly to sustaining and growing Art on the Creek. It will allow me to continue to create video tutorials and art supply reviews for you here on KZbin. I can't thank you enough for your support! I hope this channel brings you as much joy as I have creating it for you.
My Favorite Art Supplies on my Amazon Storefront: www.amazon.com/shop/artonthec...
Winsor & Newton Colored Pencils: amzn.to/3tPWJLC
These are not affiliate links:
Holbein Colored Pencils: www.dickblick.com/products/ho...
In all, these 12 sets are the ones I will test. I’ll put all the videos in a playlist as they publish:
•Caran d’Ache Luminance
•Caran d’Ache Pablo
•Derwent Chromaflow
•Derwent Coloursoft
•Derwent Lightfast
•Derwent Procolour
•Faber-Castell Polychromos
•Holbein Artists’ Colored Pencils
•Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Oil-Based Colored Pencils
•Prismacolor Premier
•Prismacolor Verithin
•Blick Studio Artists’ Colored Pencils
Show Theme Music: Charles Shomo, Caffeine Creek Band "Forest Trail"

[@agentxp0749]

Yay! Been eagerly anticipating this next instalment. My favourite pencil is Derwent Lightfast, followed by Luminance, Polychromos and Derwent Drawing.

[@artonthecreek]

Hello! So glad you caught this one and thanks for following my installments! I’ve got many Derwent varieties to try…including the Lightfast. I LOVE the Drawing Pencils! I’m looking forward to testing more. Glad you enjoyed this!

[@INCWorks]

It's so helpful to see you using these products. Although I have SOME experience with colored pencils, I don't know anything about these particular sets. Very enlightening!

[@artonthecreek]

Thanks, Irene!

[@doreenbuchinskiart]

Great comparison Ann! Very helpful! I have some Prismacolors but want to eventually try a different professional brand.

[@artonthecreek]

Hi Doreen! That’s great! This playlist is ever-growing so I hope it will give you some good insight should you choose to expand your supplies.

[@JoAnneSmith-di8ok]

Thank you.

[@artonthecreek]

You’re welcome, JoAnne🤠

[@veystone2580]

Finally, someone who comments on those Holbein pencils!!! I had the same experience with them, and wont buy them ever again. And they go down SO FAST!!!! Is a waste of money.

[@artonthecreek]

I could absolutely see that happening! They have a beautiful pigment lay down but lots of smears and crumbs. Maybe they are less expensive in other countries but at over $4 per pencil here in the US, they just aren’t worth it to me🤷🏻‍♀️

[@veystone2580]

@@artonthecreek 4.25 at Blick. Ridiculous! Mine were going down so fast I was furious! Not even the Prismacolors, a wax pencil, go down that fast! I have some Polychromos for years!!!! Those do last!

[@artonthecreek]

@veystone2580 well at least I know it’s not just me!😂 That’s one more huge plus in the Polychromos column….I’m hoping they are as transcendently delightful as I think they will be!👩🏻‍🎨❤️❤️

[@veystone2580]

@@artonthecreek They are good, but like, as with everything, it comes down to personal preference. But they do LAST A LOOOOONG TIME, they hold their point pretty well, their color range is quite nice, the names on the barrel doesnt fade away (that's another thing about the Holbein!!!! Soooo expensive and the names fade away, quickly. Unbelievable!)... where was I? Oh yes, praising the Polychromos 😅... as I was saying, they are high quality, but I really dont care much for them, cause I enjoy a softer pencil.... I always go back to the Prismacolors! 😅 I even bought the Luminance, but I find myself searching for my Prismas again and again. 😆 Oh and their white (Polychromos) sucks, big time! 😆 And their black is not as black as the Prismacolor's. Back to the Holbein, the only one I keep buying is their Soft White, which is a weird pencil.... the consistency is something I can't describe, but it goes well on top as a bright white, right at the end. Not good for blending colors.... is like sticky.... I dont know how to describe it. But I find it useful to add a punch of white over my watercolor paintings. 😊

[@anitadavidson1266]

I don’t own pencils, apart from watercolour and Inktense pencils that is. I find the whole subject of coloured pencils somewhat bewildering, but that simply means that by watching your triumphs and struggles along the way is gradually beginning to de-muddle me! I felt the W&N held up well against Holbein, especially given that W&N no longer make a professional line, and the student (Studio) line has no more than 24 colours in total, if I am remembering correctly that is! You know my memory is somewhat lacking much of the time though 🤷‍♀️ Still, I think my point remains valid as the W&N felt no less horrible (for different reasons) than the Professional, not to mention expensive Holbien. I so often watch coloured pencil artists make such realistic drawings that they almost look like photographs. What I have also noticed is that they tend not to use the same brand as one another. Could it really be simply down to preference once you delve into the more high end pencils? I hope that makes sense? 1.20am and I can barely keep my eyes open! Why do I always end up watching mind stimulating videos when I ought to be fast asleep?!! Enjoy your evening with Hubby Phil and furry star, Leo. 🎨👩🏻‍🎨🖌️❤️❤️

[@artonthecreek]

Hello my sleepless friend! Well, you certainly do sleep, just not at 1:20am!🥱 The W & N pencils come in 12,24,27,45,48 or 50-packs. Much like their Cotman watercolor line, despite these colored pencils being studio or student-grade, they do offer lightfastness claims (although somewhat vague and proprietary…just like the Cotman lightfastness ratings) The iteration of sets depends on packaging (box, roll, or tin) and accessories included (none, sharpener, mixed with graphite & watercolor pencils, etc.) I should clarify the lightfastness conforms with ASTM standards, however the ratings do not offer a numeric equivalent. Since I do believe the Cotman line can, in some ways, hold up to professional watercolors, I thought that justification enough to compare these to the Holbein Artists’ Colored Pencils. They behaved so vastly differently, and frankly neither were my preference. The Holbein acted much like Prismacolor, which is to say, great pigment lay down but with a lot of smears and crumbs. As I continue to work in cp im finding that to everything, there is a season. Depending upon the desired effect, level of detail needed, etc., one brand may be more suitable to the job than another. The few Polychromos I use are such a vastly different experience-the Luminance also offer a sense of ease that other brands lack. I am very much looking forward to the Derwent Lightfast vs. Polychromos comparison…but meanwhile I have more Derwent tiers to go through. Stay tuned for more insights, I’m so happy this is helping, and as always, thanks for your thoughtful comments! (Hello from Phil and woof from Leo 🥰)

[@anitadavidson1266]

@@artonthecreek Hello Phil. Woof woof Leo ❤️❤️❤️

[@awatercolourist]

First!

[@artonthecreek]

🪩 🕺🏻 💃🏻 ❤️

[@anitadavidson1266]

Hi AW. Ooooh, you got some dancers this time for your prize. They seem to be making very odd movements though…🤭🤷‍♀️😂😂

[@awatercolourist]

@@artonthecreek 😂😂😂

[@awatercolourist]

@@anitadavidson1266 Indeed! 😂