RembrandtSoft Pastels Starter Set 300C15.5

I wanted to try Rembrandt pastels so I decided to get this small selection of half-sticks. The colors that come in this set are: white, black, dark brown, sienna brown, yellow ochre, violet, blue, light blue, dark green, yellow-green(lime),olive green, lemon yellow, canary yellow, orange, and red. The colors are not named on the box- they have little "thumbnails" with a number for the color. I am just trying to be helpful to those who want to know what colors come in the set.I mostly use pastels to do "faceups" on dolls. I scrape the powder from the pastel stick so I can "paint" in on the doll's face. I can mix the colors by mixing the powder this way. I found that these pastels mix just as well as paint and are very smooth when applied to a primed doll head. The pigment is pure and very rich, so I don't need to use nearly as much as I did with the cheaper brands.I would certainly recommend these to artists of all levels. I am a fine artist as well as a doll customiser. My art teachers told me over and over not to be cheap about my materials. They were right, too! You should respect your work as an artist and buy high quality supplies.

I noticed the difference immediately and these are not even the best, such as Sennelier, Holbein and others that cost $300 to $1,100 and up for a full assortment. These 1/2 sticks are actually larger than I thought they would be, packed well and not one came broken. I would consider these a medium level "artist grade" pastel, with smooth consistent coverage and colours true to the colour, the brightness and quality of colour. I would reccomend these even to the professional artist who wants a quality pastel without the huge price tag, but they are not the top graded brands by any means. These would work for 95% of the people who paint/draw with pastels, the true artist would always have a collection of different brands and as many colours as they could afford. This is going to be my go to for many year and as a base for all my work.I will buy some of the best pastels out these, but only a stick or two at a time to decide if for what I do they are worth it. If I change my mind about these I will update the review. The best are Sennelier, UNISON and Schmincke, but they are 5 times more expensive and unless an artist who sells your work for a lot of money stick with Rembrandt.Paper also makes a difference, as does what you want to draw. If on velour then you need a harder pastel, no softer than Sennelier, and pastel pencils which I would recommend Derwent and Othello. If I get to use some of the top pastels I will review them when I use them.

The set looks small enough to carry in a backpack .

These are my pride and joy. I'm starting out in pastels and this is the first set of professional grade pastels I have. They are not even comparable to student grade pastels. They are super soft, smooth to lay down and easily blendable. Great quality. Just amazing! I'm just a beginner, but this is a picture I did with these pastels.

I am a color pencil enthusiast primarily, I use Prismacolor brand, branching into exploring the pastel world has been a struggle. While this is a better buy by far when comparing to Nupastel's..Catch is that I thought the descriptor "Soft" meant this was more in the crayon class smoothness opposed to the crap chalk type. I really hate the chalk type. I am getting tired of every item having completly skewed discriptors! Maybe if you live in a room of razors and sticker bushes it allows this to be dubbed "soft" .I did purposely sadly reaearch pastels and did choose this one as a good beginner pastel, so that is on me for not.piecing together the part of it being sturdier for beginners it would have to be a harder pastel.Basics of shipping this item (again new to this media so when I compare this producte it is Vs. Nupastels) Shipping gets a win hands down since none of them arrived broken. Major bonus for this company providing the correct amount of padding by understanding their fragility. I would feel safe using their own box for transportation it is perfectInitial - I opened it up and was amazed at the color. I made little paper sleeves for each one with simple paper strips and tape which I could not do with Nupastel's odd shape and even more brittle type.After more use I can give a more rounded review on their application and see whether or not these are the cats pajama's for a beginner. Doubtful due to I hate the chalk type. Until I really try with these and learn proper application techniques, I cannot lay claim as to good vs bad if user error is to blame.So, in a room full of knives and sandpaper and jagged edge rocks, it is true if you put this item in that room it is the softest thing in there. However, as soon as you leave that room and into reality, you might be amazed to realize that they are hard. To each his own imagination deceiving I suppose.

First the price was totally reasonable. This came all the way from the UK and its contents and Rembrandt box were pristine and intact. Nothing was broken!! Beautiful. The shipping was quick. I thought I would have to wait much longer. thanks!

These are wonderful! I shave off flakes onto backgrounds to complete my adult coloring book pictures then blend with my finger or a round cotton makeup pad. Works well on grayscale too to add color to backgrounds where the images aren’t distinct. I love making clouds on my pictures with these. I really covet the full range of colors. From what little I’ve done so far I’d love to be able to do a whole pastel picture of florals with these. They aren’t chalky at all & the colors richly cover the page with ease.

New to pastels...and these are rich and beautiful. This is the perfect set to start with ---nice selection of colors without breaking the bank. If you are unsure if pastels are for you --try out these high quality half sticks. I think you'll really like them ---I do!You will need to spray to fix these ---but that's the nature of pastel.