I have reviewed a lot of art supplies over the years. some good, some bad but it's always nice to find good quality at a low price but times are changing.

Over the past year, I've noticed big inconsistencies in budget art products from slight formulation changes to products changing completely from what I reviewed in previous years, and in most cases, the prices have increased and the quality has diminished. there has been a lot of talk about the new Arteza pencils this week and I am certain they are not the same pencils I reviewed in the past. Let this video be a warning about buying budget art products.
*BTW I did a comparison of the 2017 and 2019 Arteza pencils here when I found out about the old version being water reactive: [ Ссылка ]

What are budget art supplies? These are supplies sold cheaply on amazon or in art and craft stores made by new companies, craft companies, or even big-name art companies under a "kids" or "student" range line. These are made in China or other developing Asian countries. This does not make them bad necessarily but the company does not control the quality as they rely on picking products that these factories already produce. Because of this, the product can vary without the seller knowing it.

Below are the criteria for a professional art supply:

*Products made in their own factory (or by a reputable company that had the other criteria I am mentioning such as DaVinci who is it's own reputable company and white labels for other fine art companies such as American Journey)

*The company does proper lightfast testing verified by ASTM or Blue Wool Scale

*Company does its own independent R&D

*Open stock or refills available

*In paints, pigment info is available

*Product quality is consistent from batch to batch and year to year

*Company has been around for decades


The above criteria warrant the higher price tag. I think budget grade pencils should at most be $30 for a 72 set if they are really good whereas a 72 set of artist-grade would be around $100 and up.

Links to people I mentioned:
Lori at Color my World: [ Ссылка ]

Kimberly Crick Art: [ Ссылка ]

Kristopher Mcheals video where he sprayed the new 2020 Arteza pencils and they ran: [ Ссылка ]

Art Gear Guides take on the Arteza Situation: [ Ссылка ]


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