Old vs New Sennelier La Petite Aquarelle Watercolors: Are they still good?

Hi friends, nearly 7 years ago I reviews the then-new LaPetite Aquarelle watercolors by Sennelier. They were the first student-grade watercolors by the brand. You can see that review here: • Sennelier La Petite Aq... in that review I compared them with the artist grade line and was really impressed. I heard rumors that the paint was no longer as good and I saw they just released a 36 set of the paint, so I decided to purchase that set and put them to the test!
I found the 36 set on Amazon: amzn.to/3K4ikEU
Blick also carries this line of paint: shrsl.com/467uq
Watch the video to see if they are still any good
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Video production and Craft ideas: Lindsay Weirich
Music: Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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[@PaintinHiding]

actually, la petites don't contain honey. i was told by the distributor in here in thailand. i have some la petite tubes and can confirm they cure in pans very matte. loved this review, love all your reviews, thank you lindsay!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Thanks!

[@corvus3513]

I have no problem with longer videos at all, in fact, I prefer them. Especially the swatching of paints. And this also feels like a new series that you can start! Comparing their older version to their new contour parts. It's fun to see which brands try to keep things under control and which ones just let themselves go based on their brands (looking at you Winsor and Newton).

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Haha! Yes! I've done a few like that on prismacolor pencils, meilang watercolors, arteza colored pencils, winsor newton watercolor markers, cotman etc. I should put them in a playlist!

[@abbyrivers9971]

I don t mind long gids Rutger! You are still doing great Lindsay 👍 Thnx for your comparison.

[@sondrabrown442]

I’ve used my old set a lot and am gradually replacing with the professional colors like you suggested. So glad the new set is good quality. Thanks Lindsay!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Wonderful!

[@sonyaoart]

Just for the record, I don’t find swatching videos boring at all. They can be dangerous because they make me want to buy more paint, but I’m working on keeping the want monster in check 😂

[@hiddenshadow2105]

Also I wish to mention that Jacksonsart branded watercolours are, purpordely, same LaPetite Aquarelle by Sennelier but rebranded. Vast majority of reviews I saw compare it to Sennelier (as if by the same script), and you can pick and chose them one by one. I have almost all of them (save some browns) and they are lovely to work with, even if some got discontinued out of initial 48 colours, which I supplemented with proSennelier.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Interesting, I heard they were made by Sennelier but a little lower quality their their pro range, so that makes a lot of sense.

[@hiddenshadow2105]

​@@thefrugalcrafter Out of ten reviews I saw / read I think only one didn't mention Sennelier and this persistence in comparison was odd to me unless it was direct marketing point. Some sources directly claim that Sennelier is making them for Jacksonsart and I know for sure that years and years ago they did a similar brand deal for big art supplies retailer here, so it is plausible. I have no proof, of course, but until rather recently Sennelier was also the only manufacturer which used Pigment Red 242 for their warmer, vermillion red: French Vermillion in Jacksons art has the same pigment.

[@lisasizemore8718]

I have the 12 set of the La Petites and they looked dry until they were wetted then the dried back down glossy.

[@junepatterson7928]

Thank you so much. Every group needs a point guy. It’s especially nice when the “point guy” is fun.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Right on

[@raggedyroad]

Thank you Lindsay. You always provide wonderful information and I love that you provide a painting using the reviewed product. Also your subject matter is usually very striking and interesting. I started my watercolor journey a few years ago and you're still my favorite YT teacher.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

You are so welcome!

[@nancyloomis3046]

I think it’s great when artist grade brands bring out a quality student grade…or “almost professional” set as I call them. I think the Van Gogh wcs, made by Rembrandt fall in that category….I have a couple of their sets and they’re great..especially “The Pinks” set. I don’t have a lot of Sennelier wcs. I have a basic 8 color half pan palette as well as one they labeled “tester”, that I haven’t used much. Both are artist grade and were priced very low on Amazon. I haven’t used either one that much. I tend to favor Schmincke for the European brands. My best “killer deal” on Amazon was the Sennelier “Paris” set of 120 extra soft pastels, for like $115 or $120…something like that. That was a short term deal. They went back up to $159 and now I see they’re $145. These are absolutely stunning colors. If you’re into pastels and you’re looking for a premium set, you might want to give these a shot. You never know the deals you can come across on Amazon. 😊 Thanks Lindsay!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

I bought that set too! It was a steal!

[@OhJodi69]

I LOVE Van Gogh........not only are they outstanding quality, but their range of colors is amazing for a "non-professional" brand.

[@MaryYoungblood-xy8vg]

Glad for Lindsay while I am home with COVID. You make isolation bearable

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Aww, feel better soon!

[@CubNan]

I like the shine.

[@brittanyhoward7742]

I used my Sennelier paints during Inktober and they've become my favorites. I love how delicate they look.❤

[@susansacco7583]

Thanks Lindsay! Love Sennelier💕

[@SMCCRADY2]

Great review, absolutely love the painting!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Thank you so much!

[@melissaaldosari8024]

The colors are really beautiful!💜💜💜

[@thefrugalcrafter]

They are!

[@starshinesoldier]

Glad that their quality is still good!

[@bethcrane5780]

Love all these reds and I know you do too! Thanks!

[@nadeaner.cowley513]

Great video!!! Thank you for sharing! Much love! 💙

[@thefrugalcrafter]

You are so welcome

[@kimyork6774]

Stunning picture!

[@enyardreems]

12:36~! I think this is the longest I've ever seen you go until you started hunting pigment info haha! I'm so sad I missed this deal...I love that you get to having so much fun your swatches get fat :) My swatches are whacky like that!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Just keep an eye out, they come back in stock every few months.

[@ChoochooseU]

I adore my “old” set and enjoyed this video very much. My goal has always been to replace eventually with Daniel Smith as I have a particular passion for their granulating and special effects. But alas I’ve been on a couple year stent of fiber arts and making my way back around this year to paint- just got Windsor Newton 24 pack WC pencils to try out today and about to swatch them out. My grandchildren have used my og Sennelier set a lot and they’re a bit messy but still holding strong. I did find the Bees 🐝 really loved me when I took these for some travel art work. So maybe something as the binder they enjoy.

[@melissaaldosari8024]

Oh how I love a swatch party!

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Me too!

[@natalierice6528]

The La Petites were the first set I bought that you recommended years ago. I loved them and their vivid colors except… the binder caused my water to get snotty & slimy very fast. I assumed it was the honey. Granted, I am lazy about changing out my water.😊 I think I should get them out again and give them another try now that I have more skill.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Weird, do you use 2 water buckets, one for clean and on for dirty water.

[@natalierice6528]

@@thefrugalcrafter sometimes and sometimes I use one for blues/greens and another for reds/yellows. I used to have 2 big beer mugs I used, but it was a chore to get the bottoms clean. Now I have smaller bowls.

[@lizadivine3785]

Hello Natalie!!

[@kimyork6774]

Back in stock for $47 and change. Maybe wait for black Friday?

[@hiddenshadow2105]

"Step above cotman" I am very biased against Cotman (this is the only ever paint that went moldy on me, repeatedly), so if I can be a bit snarky for a moment I'd like to say that Cotman is a rather low threshold to cross.

[@bookishindian]

😆

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Where do you live? I am in Maine and have used cotman for decades and never had mold. YARKA is the paint that molds on me, the earth tones. I wonder if your climate disagrees with the oaint or you gor a spoiled batch. This is interesting.

[@hiddenshadow2105]

@@thefrugalcrafter near Buffalo, although not directly at the lake. I have M.Graham paints that behave better than Cotman, which is, as I said, is the only paint that went moldy on me. It might have been a bad batch, but even without it I am finding Cotman difficult to move on a page and prefer Van Gogh / Mungyo over it.

[@a.m.g.karlsson7165]

I live in England, where the air outside is damp and the inside is damp. None of my watercolour sets has ever got mouldy, including the box of Cotmans I bought decades ago and still have.

[@user-bl2dl9nr6f]

this video got me to bring my 2 sets out again ,i got the 12 tube sets ,its a very nice palette ,the price was under 30.00.one is almost empty .so i put the full newer one in my full tube stash under my bed.i squeezed out some and have them drying in front of my fan ,have a wonderful week

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Nice!

[@Julie-vy3oz]

Lovely set of paints at a hood price!

[@judygrandstrand9784]

Lovely colors

[@JoAnneSmith-di8ok]

This review was interesting. Your painting is beautiful.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

Thank you so much!

[@shirleybrady3174]

I must have gotten a bad set of the LaPetite when I bought them. Mine were dry and chalky, hard to rewet, with weak colors. No gloss period! I love the professionals.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

I wonder if they had bad batch. I know many supplies were different during the pandemic.

[@corriemcginnis4400]

Counterfeit maybe ?🤷‍♀️

[@shirleybrady3174]

@@corriemcginnis4400 I got them in 2020. When she was using hers today I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! Mine went into the trash can! They were absolutely horrible! They must have been counterfeit! My greatgrands didn’t even want to use them. What I saw today was amazing!🙂

[@shirleybrady3174]

@@thefrugalcrafter very bad batch! Thank you for showing me what they really look like today!

[@jrm2716]

swatching is never boring! If I were to replace paints with full pans, would they fit in the tray where the half pans are now? tfs

[@thefrugalcrafter]

They should, I'd have to double check tho.

[@kdikun]

Great review! I bought these off Amazon and I wonder if I got a bad batch or a counterfeit set. I just couldn't get much color when I was swatching. I ended up buying a set of 18 of the professional line instead and am gifting these to my friend's kid.

[@thefrugalcrafter]

I wonder if there was a bad batch because I've heard the same thing from a few people and others like me got great paint. It's so odd.

[@joyfulldj]

eu sienna has a more orange undertone in it where as ds davinci and m graham have the darker version; it is pbr 7 just a different tonal version then us oaints have

[@joyfulldj]

I think as I told you earlier it is an environmental thing. You'll notice when you go to france though the colors are vibrant there is a difference; as dutch one can use an ultramarine but for skies I always have to mute it down; or one would have me a greek sky over a dutch landscape wich is rather silly.

[@bookishindian]

during that La Petite Aquarelle sale, I purchased the tube set (Sennelier La Petite Aquarelle Watercolor Set, 0.33 Fl Oz (Pack of 12) --- They dry fairly hard, especially the Permanent Pink (which is a GORGEOUS color!) and maybe a couple of the other colors too. I read somewhere that they may have much less honey than the professional Sennelier tubes. Also, I was disappointed that they didn't include ultramarine blue in the set of 12. And was not impressed by the Cobalt Blue Hue, which seems to have white in it, and is not a super useful color. However, if I drip some water on them and let it sit, they work fine, and I love the translucency as well as the glazing abilities... From your video here, it seems that the formula for the tubes and the pans may be different?

[@thefrugalcrafter]

It might be, I have not tried to tubes, they seem overpriced to me compared to the pans.

[@bookishindian]

@@thefrugalcrafter yeah, the pans might have been better... The tubes were around 27 at the time...

[@nancylemon4120]

Caput Mortum pronounced: KA - Put. More - TUM. 😉

[@SuperMar10GalaxyBro]

😊😊😊

[@patkelly275]

On Amazon UK the 36 set of la petite is £52.92 which seems far dearer than the US price. Reviewers state that the unlabelled pans arrived loose so they had no way of knowing which colours they were. Jackson’s brand 24 half palettes is a stonking £91.48. Even if that is a professional set, if they are provided by Sennelier and supplied as an inferior product, that is awful! 😢

[@thefrugalcrafter]

I would pass at that price and yes, that center row of paint was hard to figure out. I recommend it if the cost is under $40 usd but otherwise go for pretty excellent/meilang