MIYA 56 COLOR Jelly Gouache Set! Is it worth it? 

I am pretty sure these big sets are used in China for the Chinese Art Entrance Exam for art school. They have a large open set with lots of colors because this test is timed and mixing colors takes too long and they paint on huge canvasses. The color selection is more influenced by Eastern art. I don't think they are light fast. They became popular more recently in other countries. I hope this helps!

I seriously hate mixing colors, so this would be worth it to me simply for that reason. I know color theory and I know how to mix, I just don't like fussing with paint. I found that if I allow myself the freedom of having as many paints as I want I am infinitely more inspired to create. It's like a weight lifted off my shoulders.

As big and beautiful as the set is, I think for artists who are trying to improve, the huge amount of colors can be a setback. Not only is it harder to limit a palette, but learning to mix colors is SUCH an integral skill to understanding the pigment itself! Also, you'll find that you can save a ton of money. I personally only ever use magenta, ultramarine, yellow, white, and sepia. That's all you need to create the entire color wheel.

I have both the 24 Himi gouache set, and a similar 56 color set to your Miya set. I also have carandache and arteza 60 tube sets. With regard to the 56 color set, my understanding is that in China and other East Asian countries take art as an academic subject in school very seriously. Consequently, the very large set of 56 is made for students for their art tests where they are given 3 hours to paint a still life or landscape to prove proficiency. The convenience colors are presented so that the students won’t be spending inordinate amounts of those three hours mixing colors for their art test. As for me personally, as an artist, since you asked, I will reiterate something you had said in a previous video: the way these are presented show a certain way of viewing color combinations that could inspire different ways of looking at things. I enjoy them as a rather hedonistic, indulgent way to paint. They’re fun. I like to use sets like this when I’m just drawing or painting for my eyes only with no pressure to show what I did. Like you, I have many expensive, precious watercolors reserved for more “serious” art endeavors. My 56 gouache set is to blow off artistic steam or to experiment with new subjects or ideas.

I found this exact set at a thrift store, unopened, for less than half the price I found on amazon, it's a fun little thing to dive into and play with, it certainly is freeing to have so much paint for so little and have it still perform relatively well. I also found the streakiness problem but I found I would try to use it in places I wanted that uneven transparency like in impressionistic foliage when I'm laying down the first dark colors. It was a lot of fun playing with them and I'll likely keep coming back to them so I can figure out the smaller pallets I like best. I was excited to find them so cheap because I like your himi gouache painting videos so much I couldn't wait to try something similar.

I absolutely love working with this set! I have professional gouache but as far as painting experience this one is #1. Yes, they are kind of shiny when dry (particularly the darker colours) and yes, you may need multiple layers. But there is something so freeing about having all those colours open next to you and not having to worry too much about squeezing from a tube or wasting paint.Some of my favourite pieces are made with this, not because it is the best paint but because I felt free to make more choices when painting (just less pressure overall).

Is it odd that I would love to have this big set and one of the smaller sets and swap the cups out to have my preferred palette of the day? I can dream ☺️

Just a little tip for other beginners like me. If your painting caused the paper to warp, slightly wet the back of the page, then press it underneath something heavy. It works really well, and makes your painting look a lot better.

That is a crazy amount of warping, especially for paper on a block! How strange. This painting is stunning though; I love the colors. And I only have the 24 color set which is already an overwhelming number of colors for me, so I will definitely skip this one 😂 I recently bought a few tubes of M. Graham which are lovely, but I think the primaries I chose aren't as primary as I want them to be so I need a few more.

I've had this set for over a year now and I really love it. I think it's worth it for those who don't like color mixing and just want to go in and paint. I really enjoy the range because I do notice when I paint that some colors are really hard to get when attempting to make them.

I wish they sold the 18/24 palettes empty, because it feels so wasteful to buy an entire smaller set just to have a place to store the curated smaller palettes you could make from these, and that's definitely how I would use them! I know you don't usually reach for convenience colors, but it would be awesome to see you curate some of your favorite colors from this set into one of your smaller palettes and paint a piece from that. I'm also really happy you showed us footage of powering through a painting you weren't sure was gonna work out at first -- RU-vid helps me improve so much as an artist because I get to see the process work of other artists and not just compare myself to an image of a finished piece. But even then, we as artists rarely show the process work of a piece that doesn't work out. Because of that, I'm not really sure what to do with them a lot of the time since the mantra is often is that they're not worthy or important enough to be seen. I got so much out of watching you troubleshoot and reflect on this piece, and it's definitely one of my all-time favorites of yours!

I ran into that issue when I first started in watercolor. You see all those colors and think "unlimited possibilities" or "no more mixing"... but it causes more problems than good. Especially if you are dealing with a brand with limited pigments across the board. Not only more difficult controlling mixing on the paper and the potential for unwanted colors or "mud"... but it's impossible to remember exactly what is in all those convenience colors, if they bother to tell you in the first place. Some pigments just don't play well together, and when just about everything has multiple pigments, it's so much harder to avoid a mess. There is a large tendency to add white to alter a color which can cause additional issues.. white is fine but can cause streakiness and opacity where you don't expect it, and it's not always obvious... also cheaper brands tend to use the wrong white for tinting (titanium white vs zinc). Curated smaller pure pigment palettes, even if you have multiple to fit your mood or season, are so much easier to work with and give a much nicer result. It doesn't have to be boring.. chose the colors you love, just choose the right companions to go with them. You can reach for any of your paints and know they play well with the rest. If you hate to mix, premix.. buy tubes and just use those primaries to create their "children" ahead of time in an additional pan/well. Limited palettes also save you money, a bigger tube is way more cost effective than a small one, and it's much more cost effective to mix a bit of this and that than to buy five or six extra colors you already have the ingredients for. You can buy a limited palette of artist quality for the same price as a big cheap set that will be so much more lightfast and effective. A few years in and I never buy premade palettes.. and while I have a bunch of palettes of different brands, color choices, themes etc...I don't have a single palette that is more than 9 colors.. most are less.

Most gouache sets from China are intended for student use and for a very specific set up where you would have your own paper mixing palette to work with, hence the lack of mixing surfaces. The abundance of colors are also supposed to make mixing faster.

I have the 24 colors and this 56 color jelly gouache but i always find myself reaching out for the 24 colors bec. It doesn't take up to much space in my small table and to be honest i like mixing colors. But the problem with me is that i am bad at estimating how much paint i need so i end up having to mix again, and sometimes i find it hard to get the exact color again. Meanwhile, what i like about having 56 colors is that i do have more colors to choose from. By the way, I am just a beginner in arts, i am not great at art stuff and to be honest, i can't even draw. I just tried art as a therapeutic thing.

You’ve mentioned this a couple times when you’re talking about selling the originals… what steps should we take to protect jelly gouache paintings? I just got my 24 color set a couple days ago and I’m really loving it!💛💛💛

I had to comment that I’m new to gauche and I couldn’t resist and ordered this 56 color set! Im a color junkie and have been painting with watercolor for 2 years and wanted to try something new. I had a couple tubes of Holbein brand, a mixing set and I loved it. BUT I couldn’t resist using them like watercolor. I really want to just dig in and pick from an array of colors. With tubes I’m afraid I’ll limit myself. I think with the cups it will be a more freeing experience. Thank you for the review on these. Mine should be arriving any day now.

I really like this painting because of the light and dark aspect. It’s mysterious and moody.

These paints are great for practice! Because I don't like working with dry gouache , I tend to close each container with a piece of press and seal wrap cut to the size of the original foil lids. It helps significantly, though depending on several factors, they will still dry out eventually. (: Hope that helps someone out there :D

The painting is so nice. Your lighting is so cool to look at. Some times fresh eyes let us continue on a piece and so glad you endured. 😊 I don't know about the big set of gouache. When I have too many options sometimes it ll take me longer to paint or I try to do all the colors.I feel all sorts of stimulated with all those colors, though that is a good thing too. I suppose it's all how an individual works.

I have this set and having a lot of color options are great!! But someone in the comment section said that it can be a huge drawback for beginners because you might not able to learn how to color mix which is important 🥲 as a beginner, i feel intimidated by the amount of colors I have.. I should've got the 18 color set instead but hey! This set is still great 👍

Before even watching the video i have to say - OMG IT'S ENORMOUS!! It would take up half my desk (which is extra small), seriously.

I too bought this supermassive set in the summer and haven't opened any of it yet because that many colours look so pretty but are so daunting... Why on earth I never thought of making a selection and trying some limited palettes, I don't know, but I reckon I might do now, having watched this video. So thanks for this!

This is such a beautiful painting. The lighting is so interesting, and it was great to see how you built up the shadow and the highlights, and kept the structure of the face.

What you could do is buy a sheet of thin clear acrylic and put it in the lid (like the palette is in the 24 set) and use that as a palette. It would also prevent the foam from drinking up the colours when the lid is closed.

The painting is beautiful love the way you captured the light

I absolutely love this color palette… you did a great job!

I just bought this set and am very excited for it, it comes in on Monday and I plan to update you after I have done a few paintings, I love your art it is so beautiful!

First of all, awesome painting as usual. That light from below creates so much atmosphere!! Some months ago I bought the 24 color set and I do agree that its defenitely a good way to start and just have fun. Having this massive set just seems overkill tho .... especially with it not really being made to be used as is, but more as a storage for custom palette builds like you said.

I recently bought from your store for my 20th birthday! And I love it, I also like that your package was reusable i reused it to ship my textbook back to my school bookstore

I have this set and the 36 color set! I use this one for art at home and use the smaller one to travel! Out of all the gouache I’ve tried himi is my personal favorite, I like the texture and the cup format!

Ooh that set is so pretty :D I love the pastel tones included

I love this set it has so many colours. Its a stunning beautifull gouache set. I think i prefer this one over the 24 colour set. I love you,re painting. Beautifull colours✌🏾👍🏽👋🏾👩‍🎨🎨😊

I have the 24 set and i love it allot, it’s been a while since I’ve used it though and this video inspired me to get working with it, the panting is beautiful 😍

I have the black box of himi miya gouache 56 colours. Its my all time favoriete gouache box omg. I love you,re gouache painting Arleebean 😊👋🏾✌🏾👍🏾

I am trying Gouache for the first time so I am excited to see how it goes 👍😁

Some reviews I have watched were all having a hard time opening the jelly cups, but here, I was quite amaze with how easy you open them. Fantastic, indeed!

I have a himi miya set of 70 gouache and love it for its convenience for when I just want to play and experiment with ideas. I agree that it can be somewhat streaky for some colours but when just exploring it doesn't matter to me. I find the large selection inspiring and will often use colours I might not have thought of if it wasn't right in front of me. Sometimes it makes for wonderful combinations, but I do agree it helps if you know colour theory well to get the best out of it. I have other expensive brands for my serious work but having such a large range saves me time when developing ideas at the beginning, it's just all laid out waiting with one click of the lid. It does help I have a large space to work , although sometimes I'll just play while watching TV with it on the couch next to me so I can just use the coffee table. It's good for a fast start and packing up and personally I love it.

I'd say no because of the amount of repeat colors you get. Though, I guess that'd be good if you run out of one color.

I love how this painting turned out

Yay these look lovely, love the art! Merry Christmas to you and your family ❤️

I always get so happy when I see that you have posted 💕 have a happy holiday

those colors are gorgeous though, and I have the 24 set, but want that 56 just because I love jelly gouache so much and I hate anything in tubes

Watching your channel growing is sooo cool... I really like your videos ❤️

I would feel so much pressure to focus on using these paints as quickly as I could (and neglecting all my other gorgeous fun supplies!) for fear of them drying up like my 18-set. I loved hanging out with you for the video, though, you rock!

I've been using the 24 color set for almost a year now, and I absolutely love it. Though, with the amount of paint being used to mix colors, I would rather prefer to have more colors in a set so I don't have to continuously mix other colors and use up more paint. Especially the white paint. I've used more of that than other colors and it's almost gone. :( It's the one draw back on my own part. Plus there are some colors I would prefer to already have pre-mixed than to have to do it myself everytime. :) Just my own little thoughts on this topic. Love your channel & your art!! Happy New Year to you!

this is really interesting timing! just ordered myself an 18 set of these after going back and forth about them for... what im now realising has been a few years since you first reviewed them, wow. really looking forward to using them, and i love the artwork you made in this video! :)

Ooooh so dark! I love it!!!

I'm a newbie in painting in general and I've already started myself with watercolor for just creative arts (building up art as a hobby so I don't really mind not progressing too much too soon and really just having fun with the art supplies I have) and I already have a 42 watercolor fan palette and still I find myself looking for the in between. I have a hard time mixing colors because they tend to be watery instead of the opaque mix that I crave for that's why I'm looking into getting this particular set. Another major factor is because I love the color mint and I don't like that I have to mix it each time I want to paint something with that color. I don't own a palette/container that I could seal mixed colors in so I personally prefer just having them premixed and with the opacity I'm looking for so it's not as hard on me. Before starting myself with traditional art, I have some 2 years of digital art experience so I understand why I crave for that opaque pigment in each color. I'm all self taught btw!

Wooo always get excited when you post 🥺🥺🥺

Ooo yummy colours love the process, it looks like you had fun ☺️

I prefer using a palette knife to take just the amount of color I want so I don't cross contaminate my colors.

Looks like a big box of fun. All those pretty colors but I'll take the smaller set. Mixing is a huge part of art. It's why we learn color theory. It's a hard set to resist. TFS.

Is it worth it? HECK yeah! I love the Miya/Himi gouaches, they are beautiful and vibrant and an amazing value for the money. Is it needed? HECK no! DO NOT BUY THIS IF YOU ARE A BEGINNER! I know the colors are enticing, but if you are a beginner you NEED to learn how to mix all these colors yourself out of the primaries or your skill will never improve. Color theory/mixing is a necessary skill for an artist to have and buying a giant set like this is going to hold you back. The only reason I buy the giant sets and all the various colors that brands have to offer in watercolors, gouache, and oils is because I am adept at mixing (have been doing it for.........oh good lord, LOL, I just realized it has been almost 45 years now!). I also do large pieces and having colors premixed for me saves time when I am doing a commission that has a tight schedule (we all know how time consuming it can be to run out of a color and have to mix the same exact shade again to be able to finish).

Absolutely in love with this painting. The lighting is breaking my brain a little bit, though -- where *is* the light source? Is it lighting him from below? There's something otherworldly about this piece because the light and the shadows are behaving in a way you wouldn't expect.

Very nice 👍🏽 work BTW going to purchase the 18 colour set. Limited palette is sufficient

Wow what a big beautifull gouache set of miya. I bought the 24 set of miya gouache from alliexpress

I always have a problem with my paper warping. Maybe because it’s on the cheaper side, or the amount of paint I use. I really like the painting as well.

These colors are beautiful

I put a piece of parchment paper over the paint so the paints don't make a mess on the lid. I agree the paint are not as good as the small set. I don't use the paints that often the size and amount of colors is overwhelming.

Nice piece of work.. someone gave me a set.. I never opened it I use my old set and refills...

Beautiful drawing!😍

I wanted this set before I got the current one I have now which like the 30? I think but I can’t wait to get this one!!!!

Absolutely an amazing artwork dear friend. Good job👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

I usually only sketch and never color. If I do color, I use watercolor. I love the look of gouache though. The problem is I hate color mixing and I'm very lazy. That's why I might give these a try. Thanks for the review

I just got this for Christmas

Ok but did you dip a wet brush into the containers or scoop some out to use? I’ve only used the cheap tubes from Michaels but wanted to get a small set of these but don’t wanna mess them up with water

Absolutely amazing and cool technique. You are very talented artist! Enjoyed fully it was relaxing watching your video. Thank you for this beautiful sharing stay blessed greetings and best wishes from Canada 🇨🇦

It's like a new box of crayons! Wheeeeee!

Hi Arlee! What primary colors would you recommend on gouache? I'm thinking of getting holbein in limited colors since they are quite expensive. I usually go with Yellow ochre, ultramarine and alizarin crimson but I'm afraid it might be a bad color wheel haha

Guys, would you recomment the black box with the metallic colours or the white/teal box?

That's a lovely painting

Nice painting

I have the 18 himi gouache set

weirdly, it wasn't when you were holding it in front of your face that the scale of the set hit me, it was when you had it on the table placing all the cups back into it. That's a LOT of paint. I'd never get a set this big, but I do wish it were easier to find as singles (with this or any other brand) some of the more unique and harder to mix colors like those mint and lime greens and bright teals. I use those sorts of colors a lot and having them as a convenience would be great.

In my opinion, the 56 colour set is wonderful however there's not really a big point in buying such a huge set. I have the 24 colour set and it's more than enough colours for me. I enjoy mixing different paints to get specific colours and it's really simple to do so.

oh my god those colours. i want to get this set as well but rn im too broke to even think about it xD

I just started playing w gouache this year and it's very different from acrylics,I cant figure out how to prevent lifting and I've been contemplating getting one of these sets but dont know if it would be worth it

those brushes look super satisfying, does anyone know which those are?

The way you just pulled all the cups out and mixed them up, lol my OCD is screaming at me 🤣

would you recommend the miya gouache or the arteza gouache for beginners? the miya set is obviously extremely popular rn but i’ve also heard good things about arteza. and i really don’t want to waste my money haha

I’ve always wondered: are these jelly gouaches acrylic or traditional? My first thought is traditional, since I’m assuming they can be reactivated? Or are they some other type?

Enjoy looking at all those colors. But would i buy that set? Also on a whim like you! 😅 I am weak. Love the painting. Reminds me of Neil Gaiman's Dream/Morpheus 😍

Can anyone tell what's the size of that whole case?

I just brought one for my college project and I was just wondering is it okay to put them sideways or upside down? I'm scared of putting it sideways in my portfolio and suddenly when I open it all the colours spill out

is the container airtight?

The painting fairies always come visit my painting overnight too.

how much was it (price wise)?

For any of the people finding this video in 2024, I would like to say something. I have had this set for 2 years and have had art block for years. If you also have artblock, this set will definetly not help you loves! I would rather say get the 24 twin himi gouache set or the normal 24 colour sets! Hope this helps

himi is a line of products under the miya brand :]

Love

Does no one shake these up before opening them?! This eliminates the need to make a mess mixing them after opening.

What happens when you run out of some colors? Can you replace individual ones?

me every time you start drawing a bald head: "solas????😍😍✨✨"

Is there a 70 piece set ?

Who doesn't love paintings

Does this box seal better than the 18/24 ones?

i believe the brand is miya and the gouache is himi? Could be the other way around

I bought it😆

Why didnt she mix the separated binder? At leat in watercolours if you have too much unmixed pigment it looks bad on the page

OLD LEATHER SMITH here. Beautiful work, your very inventive young lady. Please have a MERRY CHRISTMAS and a Safe and Healthy New Year GOD'S BLESSINGS ✝️⚾🙃