I highly recommend the Faber-Castell Goldfaber (wax-based) and the Spirrer Farben (oil-based). I have all the expensive brands, and tried numerous affordable ones. These ones stood out to me as great value for quality.
I have liked the BWs more than the other two you tried. My other budget favorites are Soucolor 180s (which are also the Kalour 180 & Bruts 180). Sous are so comfortable in my hands & are similar to Prismas in feel & color.
That's what I was going to comment and if you want "all the colors" really affordably I would suggest the Kalour 520 for 109. I know a hundred dollars isn't cheap but if you are going to piecemeal the black widow. You can save up and spend less and get the Kalour Also the burtfuner has 2 types at that price point the square barrel and the round barrel. Which performs differently from each other. The round barrel has been comparable to Prisma color in reviews. And the Round are the ones that the manufacturer has stated the Burtfuner = Kalour = Soucolor This is an older video so you may have stated this in a newer one, but just in case someone like me is coming across your video looking for other options.
And Thank YOU for such a sweet comment! I really enjoyed making this video. It was a very last minute idea that I thought would be very helpful since everyone is always asking me, "Which pencils should I start with?" Happy Coloring!
People always forget the hexagonal red Faber-Castell pencils. They're so good for the price, I like them better than the square Brutfuner. Sure there are only 60 of them but they're so nice.
These 3 sets are great choices. I have all three of these sets (as you know lol) The first time I ever used the Artezas was also the first time I watched one of your videos. The shading video with the frog was the one! Thanks Pamela!!!
Thank you, I would love to upgrade to higher quality pencils once I have the means, but for right now a slightly more affordable set will have to do. As someone who prefers waxy pencils, I think the Arteza set would be a good choice.
Thank you Pamela! Fabulous information on budget pencils! A couple of options for the Black Widows…if one of your pencils gets too small to use, you can contact Albert for replacement and for a broken pencil.
Aw, was hoping to see the 120 set by Crayola making the cut... 😁 P.S. Speaking of Crayola... can you tell me the best sharpener to use for them? Some sharpeners just eat them up. Thanks Pamela!
Thank You Pamela, that was a very completed honnest review for these colored pencils which don't buy any other budget prizes pencils because i had all of the Lightfast Luminance well Poly's to name only higher quality Brands for my colored pencils which i really love so i won't buy any other's it's not as if i was at the beginning of my coloring communauty, i do color for Adult since day one and a bit before if i could say but i really enjoyed to watch your excellent review! Enjoy your new sets of colored pencils and you're so right speacking about sharpeners was a very great idea and i'm sure that will be very handy for lots of colorists xx
Love this video!!!! I would say the Arteza set is my all time fave. AND it was fun to find out I was not the only one sweating about why they were not on Amazon for the LONGEST time. I have two sets but cooled it with using them for a bit to see if they would be back. :)
I have used in them, and LIKED it, in most books printed on Amazon paper, Neena smooth bristol vellum and the Springhill. I did not really enjoy them in the Maria Trolle books. But books like Teacup kittens, the Kameliya Angelkova and Jade Summers series, I really love using them.
I'm wanting to get the Brutfuners so bad. I just love the colors.. I just bought the castle art set so I'm trying to wait just a little.. but its getting hard the more reviews I see on them..lol.
Update: I bought them and I'm so happy with them!! I love the way they feel..now I'm wanting more colors, hahaha..the pencil bug is real..lol. but I have the brutfuner square set along with the brutfuner Macaron set. I think I have a good amount of pencils..I just need to calm down..hahhaha..well I'm glad to know I have a good set..thank you for the review
I have the Arteza and Brutfuner sets and love them. Honestly I tend to reach for my Arteza set as they blend beautifully for me ( I've learned to work in super light layers and they respond well). I do not own the black widow set yet, and as much as I see they are a beautiful and trendy pencil set with my full set syndrome I would have to purchase all 7 sets together and I assume there will be more sets released in the future. I was shocked to see Crayola wasn't mentioned here, but understand the difference between a student grade budget pencil and artist grade budget pencil 👍❤ Thankyou for sharing your time and talent with us!
@@audra9352 I find it best to put down a light layer of the lightest color first all over regardless of brand, it keeps the dark colors from grabbing the paper and gives them something to blend into. So I do light all over, then dark, then middle.. then repeat as needed to build and blend, usually finishing with the lightest shade all over again. This works with anything from Crayola to Prisma, it just takes less layers for the softer pencils and you can have a heavier hand with them without getting into trouble.
I tend to work from dark to light in very light layers, then work my way back light to dark. Then I add my final shading touches and lastly the highlights 👍I've found they work wonderfully if you treat them almost more like an oil based set and find they blend up like prismacolors if treated as such. Hope that helps.
Arteza factory is in Miami now but they could still get the pencils from China idk I just know that the pencils I just ordered says made in USA and when I contacted the company they were in Miami
I have noticed that too (they dull quicker than others, but not any breakage), but I do have three sets of them. I just bought a couple extra sets when they price dropped drastically. They tend to go up and down in price. I figured it was a good idea so I always have replacements since I love them so much.
I have the oily 120 square,the 80 oily pastels and the Macarons. From those 3 the Macarons are the best and the square have pencils where when the points break I have a time nothing and then suddenly there is a point again. The 80 box is a little better but the macaron is the best. But they all color great
Oh hey I have all 3! 😂 idk why but after I got my artezas they went up in price (I paid £30 for 120, now I see them sitting at £60, haven't seen them drop to what I got in literal years), I loved the artezas in my sketchbook (also arteza) but they struggle in some my coloring books. My brutfuners took longer to lay down but I 100% love their payoff the best, comparing the arteza, black widow and brutfuner colorings in my Johana Basford book (uk paper) and swatch printouts they are so vibrant and really pop. My blackwidows however feel (wood, pencil weight, shape) the most premium to me
When I've used more up I think the ones I'll rebuy are blackwidow and brutfuner, the artezas just ain't worth it to me at £60. I actually have 2 sets of the 120 artezas tho cause they didn't sell singles when I bought so cause I had issues with my oranges breaking in my first set, they sent a whole new tin and let me keep the first too. Good customer service just not worth 60 quid imho. Primsas are way too expensive where I live so looks like I'll never get to try them (£200, equivalent to $250)
Hi. Very informative video! I really appreciate the coloring book recommendations for these types of budget pencils. That is often a huge factor in how they will perform. How do the Black Widows compare to the Prismacolor Verithins if you have those? Thanks. Rita
It's great that BW added the dipped tips.. but WHY would they not make them match the last two sets? They still look like a mismatch, such a shame. Also they are definitely not budget. In fact they are more expensive than some artist quality pencils, and way too expensive not to have legitimate open stock available. I feel like they shouldn't even be in this video, yet that was the majority of the video and all of the coloring examples except one. The Arteza didn't even get a sample page.
That’s so people can know which set they come from there are also lil foil symbols hot stamped on top to help with the same issue bc so many people like organize their pencils in color order
Pamela mentioned that the Black Widows were here primarily because you can start with a small set, but build out over time. I agree with your comment on open stock, although I have heard if you reach out directly to the company they will sell you open stock pencils. I love my Black Widow set, I feel like they have a ton of color options that are just not in other pencils.
I am sorry you feel this way, but I did address this in the video. Anyone can try out the Black Widow pencils to see if they enjoy them prior to purchasing an entire set and it 's very affordable. Most people coming into this hobby don't need a full set of 120-150 pencils because it can be extremely overwhelming. The BW give you the ability to add on after you order one set and decide you like them wanting to add more color choices. The biggest set we get in Prismacolor is a 150 set. The Black Widow give you the option to have 180 colors which is great for most people that feel they "need ALL the colors!". For someone beginning and not sure where to start, they can pick up a $6 coloring book and the first set of Black Widows for around $17. I did in fact show a page I colored all with Arteza pencils which was the same as the page I showed with the coloring of the Brutfuner. I added that in just so people can see how the colors look on paper. There are more with the Black Widows because they are my #1 favorites and I use them much more often, especially now that I have so many colors to play with.
They are available in open stock, but I have heard from several members of my Facebook group that it's not worth purchasing them open stock. If there are ever any issues with the pencils, they also have wonderful customer service. Albert addresses everyone immediately and always makes it right.
It's like you read my mind. I am really wanting to add a new set to my collection. I've been thinking Black widow... I can't wait to see what you think. 😁
I bought a 2 pack of very inexpensive dual hole metal sharpeners (like 1” square) from Joann Fabric, and it works amazingly on all my pencils, including the squares and prisms. No waste or breakage. Do go slowly with any pencil sharpener.
The black widow owner is based out of Australia if you contact him, he sells them individually and you may be able to purchase directly from him for the full set. I would contact him. It would be cheaper to do it that way as you are based where they are founded. Hope this helps.
I haven't used any of these brands yet, but they have nice pigmented colors. Your flowers and leaves turned out really nice. I'm curious to know what you are ordering now, since the Springhill 80 lb. isn't available now. I think I've seen it in 11 x 17", but I'm not sure that I want to buy any paper that I would need to cut down each time. I'm not sure what I want to do now. I'm going to need some more within a month or so.
The Arteza when you are doing the blend tests look VERY scratchy and look like they are awful and terrible to blend. Thank you for helping me make the decision. Soooo glad I didn't order the Arteza. Will go with the Black Widows.
I actually love the Arteza and don’t find them difficult to blend. The paper also makes a difference. I’m so happy my video helped you make your decision. Happy coloring!
Watching this as a first timer! Now I have a sincere question... why is your video going slow... your moving in slow motion? Is that something you do on purpose to help us? Either way I really appreciate you and began subscribing as of today!!!
I’m not sure why your video would be moving in slow motion. There is a little wheel at the bottom of the video. Maybe you set it to slow the video down by accident not realizing it. It looks like a gear and it’s used to set your video to be faster or slower.
Where can I find open stock Prismacolor premier open stock. The few sites that I found, the cheapest pencil is $2.00 and they don's have all the colors I have 10 penncils I need to restock. Suggestions would sincerely be appreciated. Thans
The names have been translated. You can grab the swatch and add the names to it or grab the one from my Etsy to follow if you'd like to. There is one in my Facebook group in the files section also that you can use to follow along with the video. They are great pencils. It's pretty easy to identify them if they're swatched and you have have the numbers to reference.
Hi Pamela - not sure if you’ll see this message, but I’m wondering which sharpener you’d recommend for the square Brutfuners please? Thanks in advance.
I bought a 2 pack of very inexpensive dual hole metal sharpeners (like 1” square) from Joann Fabric, and it works amazingly on all my pencils, including the squares and prisms. No waste or breakage. Do go slowly with any pencil sharpener.
