Cheap Paint =Good? Camel Artist Watercolor from India Review (Camlin Kokuyo Watercolor Review)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 31 ม.ค. 2021
- Today we are going to look at a very affordable set of watercolors. I have been requested to review these paints for years. They are very popular in India but hard to find elsewhere in the world until now. As soon as I saw them for sale on Amazon I bought a set to try out.
I purchased the set of small 5ml tubes in a set of 24: amzn.to/3iDBZwM
They have a set of 12 large 20ml tubes amzn.to/2Ky1fI9
And an 18 color set of 9ml tubes: amzn.to/2Ybrx6l
*I recommend looking at the different options because it might be a better deal to get larger tubes of fewer colors depending on the colors you use most.
Here are the swatch stamps I use: amzn.to/3cwqh64
amzn.to/36yo06p
Pros:
*Price (between .07 and .11 cents per ml)
*Nice flow
*Very transparent
*Glazes/layers well
*Dries down well in a palette with no cracking
*Lightfast ratings are provided on tubes A=absolutely permanent, B=permanent (apparently there is a C=moderately permanent but my set did not contain any of those colors)
*These are a joy to paint with, comparable to a western watercolor such as Winsor & Newton in performance
Cons:
*No pigment info
*Strong chemical smell when used wet from the tube. (This might be due to use a cheaper resin to bind the paint or some sort of additive to prevent spoilage) If left to dry down in an open palette the smell dissipates and I didn't notice the odor when I added water to the paints a week later.
Bottom line: You really can't beat this paint for the price. Like I mentioned the fresh paint smell was really strong to me so I recommend squeezing them in a palette and letting them dry down before using them. I'm not willing to trust lightfastness ratings myself without knowing the pigment info so I will be using these in sketchbooks or for non permeant work but that's me, you can decide for yourself or swatch them out and do your own lightfast test. I don't usually do that myself as I live in the north and don't get enough sun to do a trustworthy test. These would also be a good set for a student as they get a quality experience painting with these. If the price stays low (around $20 for a set) I'd recommend them!
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I don't think there is any student or artist in India who hasnt used camlin products. Thank God for camlin that makes good quality affordable art/ hobby supplies
Sure but sennelier are are better then it
@@Angel_13989 yes sennelier is better but it is way too expensive for beginners it won't be a good choice but it is good choice for professionals or those who do commission works
@@kashishbansal2496 True that!
True
I'm not from India, but we have these paints available in every stationery store here, and they're very affordable as well. I did a light fasting test on them probably years ago throughout the summer months and non of them faded (the 18 color set), funny thing the archival pen that I used to write the names with almost faded completely, but nothing happened to the paints so, in my opinion, I find them dependable.
That's good to know!
Wow. What good information to share. Thanks for doing that and sharing information.
Are you from Bangladesh?
@@thefrugalcrafter Lots of love from India
@@thetwelve5922 Nepal
I meant to mention there’s a TH-cam channel called Draw with Shiva where the artist paints some amazing pieces with these watercolors. That’s where I first heard about them several years ago.
Draw with Shiba*
Lindsay: "I was just playing around and did a loose rose and some doodling real quick"
*pulls out a beautiful stunning painting that I could only ever dream of making* 😂😭😮
Same here, my best work I doubt will ever look as good as her doodles!
It is fun to do though. :-)
I am so glad I watched your video. I am from India. I had started to feel that Windsor and Newton was a great deal and I am missing on something big.
I am very happy you reviewed Camlin watercolours. I am very pleased to tell you that my grandfather used to use these company colours, almost 50-55 years ago. And the paintings i have made by him, the colours are pretty fresh and vibrant.
I grew up with these paints and I am very thankful to Camlin for doing a great job.
Windsor and Newton isn’t even close to the best paints in the west, the only thing they have going for them is their large number of colors. Holbein, m Graham etc is better, imo, but man, once you get to that level it tends to be preferences. I got recommended camlin paints because I refuse to spend the astronomical prices for these other brands, and I gotta say, I agree. This paint holds up. It even holds up to other Asian artist grades in that price point. The only thing I wish is if it had a more extensive color choice available here, we can only get the 25 as the biggest, and there’s apparently 20 more colors? I wish I could get them, too!
Thank you for reviewing. I needed this so much. I am a beginner in watercolor and m an Indian. This is perfect timing. Lots of Love from India.
Thank you for the excellent review Lindsay. Camlin artist paints are good quality paints. At least 3 generations of Indians have used them and enjoyed them. I have a painting that was painted by my grandfather and the colours have NOT faded. 90% of the people who use these paints are painting for the joy of painting and it does a good job. I've given numerous sets of camlin artist paints as birthday gifts, Dasara and Deepawali gifts to kids who enjoy painting. Editing comment to add - Lately, I've started giving these as back-to-school gifts also. :)
Good to know!
I can tell u that all the world famous Indian watercolour painters have used these. Also I know for sure that they last for 20 30 yrs without fading at least.
Also. Have to tell you. I have been waiting for this review from u for 3 yrs. So thank u
Oh wow! Sorry for the wait, I was glad to finally be able to purchase some here in the states:)
@@thefrugalcrafter omg
Yes milind mulik has painted with these ....he's an awesome watercolor artist ....his paintings are such a great pleasure and he uses them till date ....many great Indian watercolor artists using these paints and creating wonderful art....also check Nitin Singh an Indian watercolor artist....he uses camlin and creating those wonderful stunning watercolor paintings.....proud to be an Indian 🥰🥰🥰
It's really a proud moment for me to see you receiving our indian product. Thank you for a very positive prospective that you have given about the watercolor. There are another 22 colour in the loose stock catagory, a part from the pack of 24. Art is all about creating with any kind of supplies from expensive to inexpensive products. Thank you once again.
I love the picture you painted. We used to live in a house with a huge backyard and we had dozens of bunnies who came to eat the clover at the back of the yard. It was so funny to see them start on the stem and work their way to the flower. The flower would suddenly just disappear in their mouth. I love using my fur brush too so I can't wait to try this picture.
Camlin artist grade watercolors, Acrylics, Oils, Pastels are amazing!
This was a really nice review to see. I've heard about the Camel Oil Pastels from India, but did not know they made watercolours as well. It's so nice that they have a good brand locally available to them and that you took the time to make this review. I'm not from India, but as someone who doesn't live in North America or Europe this review was really nice to see.
Thanks so much Lindsay! So nice to have affordable options.
Just bought this set and about 30 shades open stock too....they have no smell! Maybe this shipment has been through some rough weather before reaching the store....as these are in plastic tubes for this set, I think it’s the plastic that’s letting off smell...the 20 ml tubes are all metal. These are veryyyyyyy generous paints and you won’t get scared making large A3 size or even larger paintings with them coz you won’t worry about the cost..............I have Daniel smith, sennelier, Van Gogh and qor all in sets....and ....I find it hard mentally, to want to do a large landscape or a bird on a tree in A3...coz the prices are insane.....well! Thanks for the review....ur so chirpy and smart....always fun to listen to you!!
It's really nice to see these paints reviewed and some information about them from someone who uses watercolour paint all of the time.
Your reviews are so very informative! Thank you Lindsay.
Great review, Lindsay! These watercolor paints look fantastic!
Great video. Thanks for your tip about how to suss out a lightfastness scale rating! Never would have thought of that! 🌺
It's great to see that one doesn't have to spend so much money especially when you are just starting to learn. This review convinced me to add to my cart and start. Thank you for your review !
Thanks Lindsay. Dr. Oto Kano in her paint reviews noted that Old Holland brand has a horrible smell and that is a very expensive paint. Rewetting they still smell bad. Just shows to go ya 😉💜
Thank you so much for taking time to review these. That tiger of yours is stunning.
I bought these last week and really like them. They dry well and have less smell. I did put a little clove oil soaked sponge in the pallet that helps alot. The colors are amazingly vibrant!!
"A watercolor artist can create the most beautiful masterpiece from cheap watercolors, that artist is Lindsay."-Lynn
Awesome video❤👍💜💙💚💛🧡
Thanks for a great review Lindsay.
Wow this was an eye opener!!!! Being an Indian we always have this product on hand ....but most of us undervalue it considering its cheap price...but den someone like u from abroad review this brand and we den realize its important.....it's never about the quality it's about the skill.....and still camlin is far from being considered low quality paints .....so my message to all my Indian friends who run after expensive brand just stop for a moment and learn to be grateful for what we already have ....this artist wished if she could explore the open stock of these paints because they are not available there but we can easily do that here .....so be grateful and work on improving skills .....this artist has made some amazing paintings using these paints ....so it's not about they being cheap and all about how well your skills are......stop chasing expensive brands right in the beginning of ur watercolor journey.....use these and make a great progress ....thanks for reviewing them 🥰🥰🥰👍👍
One of my other favorite watercolor artists on TH-cam is Paint with David. He is amazing and uses this brand always. I was hoping for a review because I adore watching him paint and they always seemed to perform so well. Thanks for the review Lindsay!
I tend to favor M Graham and have used Newton since the 60s. Recently I purchased a set of Sennelier, which is also highly rated. Graham and Sennelier are fantastic quality, but they are honey based (I tend to enjoy my color pretty explosive). With honey based, it's hard to create a travel set (my current issue) because they can be unsettled, even when dry, so I tried out Camlin Kokuyo's 12 tube set. Damn. This is the steal of the art store. Totally unlike anything under $60 for the same quality. From what I have seen, the only real mark against them is a lack of pigment information, and yet they do have solid lightfastness ratings and they mix very nicely, soooo......clearly the pigmentation isn't showing up as an issue, down on the taste test level. I am left to imagine that the only reason they are priced so low is that someone in India is cranking out massive quantities of it while dealing with a kind of prejudice against India, compared to France, England, Holland or the state of Washington.
I think it is affordable because they sell so much. I think its one of the only brands in India so they sell a lot so they don't have to mark it up as much to make a profit. I bought a set to try last year and it is a steal.
Do you think they handle like artist grade watercolour? On Amazon it claims to be artist grade, I'm sceptical but impressed with the paints.
Thank you for this review! Am i glad I camre across this video. You saved me a ....load of money! I was about to get some expensive paints! Its Camlin for now, since I'm just dabbling
I'm early for once😁
I also feel impressed when I find good quality cheap pains.
I feel like some companies are starting to up their game now with all the competition.
I am glad that Camlin now displays pigment information in their website
That's great!
I've been using various paints by camlin camel and believe me every one of them works really well for affordable paints. Right now my favourite medium is their artist watercolour cakes. I have the set of 14
So glad these work well I just might have to buy these Great review I was excited to know they work so well. After seeing your tiger painting.
Am so glad someone abroad found these and reviewed these on YT. I am 53, and have grown up using Camlin products right from school days.
The reason for being so affordable, maybe, is the very cheap labour in India, and the easy availability of pigments. Maybe most of the pigments are manufactured locally. Even the binder, gum Arabic, is very easily available at a fraction of the cost in the Western countries.
Even the professional artists here have been using these since decades. And their light-fastness is also very good.
The landscape you painted is so beautiful, and so are the rabbit and the tiger paintings. But the landscape is just amazing. 🤩
Thank you!
I was just scrolling through your channel looking for a video to watch as I’ve been very unwell recently and my health has gotten much worse in the last week or two, your videos are one of the things that are keeping me going, they’re so relaxed and entertaining whilst I get to learn more about art while I’m not capable of doing any myself at the moment, so I was super excited when the notification for this video popped up just now! Haven’t watched yet but looking forward to the video 🥰💖
I was really sick when I found thefrugalcrafter years ago. I was jodybugg back then. my whole world fell apart because of the mystery plague. good thing my life is better now, and Im inside my genie bottle tiny studio apartment, have regained some health, and a good life despite how unexpected my world got.
I hope you are feeling better soon, and able to get back to your art.
@Nilliebug-❤️ I will keep you in my prayers. I hope to hear that you are able to paint soon.
I hope you feel better soon:)
I hope you feel better soon nilliebug and take it easy whilst you recuperate. I too found Lindsay's channel about 4 years ago or more when I had just gone on long term sick. I'm a bit better now and working part time and I still love her channel and helps me to relax. Lindsay's approach to art is wonderful and few artists I've watched have such a broad range of skill with different media. Channels like hers have helped me reignite my passion for art and keep me going when I'm too sick to do anything myself.
Woohoo! I always want what you use! The beautiful paynes gray is included in the 24 set but I didn’t see it in the other 2 sets. Thank you Lindsay 😜
Thank you for reviewing the Camlin watercolour paints. I was always curious how artists abroad would rate these. My projects look as good as any other artists (hue wise) in the groups I post. Checked my old paintings, they still look as bright. Also, when other artists tell me crimson is a fugitive colour, I tell them in my paintings they are exactly the same as the day I painted these.
In fact I have a watercolour cake set from my school days.
The student colours are chalky but are useful in line and wash, poster and card making, especially the crimson colour is even better than the artist quality.
There is another green (will have to check the name) which is similar to emerald green but more transparent and fluidity.
Could you please check on the burnt umber? I find it very difficult to use while following tutorials. Just doesn't give the same effects.
Thank you very much for the lovely review.
Most Camlin art products can stand competition with foreign brands.
The "another green" might be Camlin green. I suppose the Emerald and Camlin greens are both phthalos, one blue and the yellow shade.
@@monsoon_magic2874 Thank you
An excellent and helpful product review Lindsay. Many thanks for producing and kindly sharing the experience. Best wishes & Happy painting 🙏
Thank you for the honest review 🙏🙏
Love your reviews because you give both sides of the picture. Would you consider doing a review on some of their other products on Amazon. I saw they had markers,acrylics,colored pencils and even oil paints I think and they are very reasonable as well. Thank you for taking so much of your time and expertise to review products for your viewers I for one really appreciate it.
I use their acrylics a lot, they’re pretty good, I used them in some of my videos if you want to take a look 🤷♀️
Hi Lindsey,
Thank you so much for this review... Appreciate this so much..I have been using these and the 20 ml individual tubes cost less than a dollar... For a beginner like me these are so affordable , I don't have to worry about wasting paint while practicing, yet there are not so low quality that I would lose interest in watercolors. We can whole heartedly practice and learn the techniques before I buy the expensive ones with pigment information and all...
Thank you 🙏
Thank you for showing this. Always looking for a good quality for a fair price. TFS!
Great review!
I order the set of 24 colors after watching this. I really like them and I barely noticed the smell you referred to, the smell was very slight. The price is great as well.
I wish it had a purple in the 24 set. I will be mixing, I need the practice
Thanks for sharing. I always love your reviews.
This review is so helpful ! Thank you! 🌼
I noticed a smell with the Paul Rubins I bought as well. It did same, went away after dry. This is a nice review. Pretty sure I don't need more.... paint but I might have to get it for a "friend" lol. Thanks for your awesome videos.
Thank you so much for this video!! cause like it is very difficult to find anything as affordable as these here (specially when you are almost a beginner🙃) and it is useful when we can compare these to the paints that we see more commonly in videos and tutorials on here❤❤
Thanks, I just got these from India and did put them in pans.
Between you and Allen Jay reviewing these so glowingly, I checked the price and guess what...it's down quite a bit right now so I grabbed the 24 tube set. Bargains are hard to find these days! I've been hearing about these paints for a long time so look forward to tying them. Thanks for the review.
Hi Lindsay just wanted to give everyone a heads up ordered mine on January 21, says it shipped 22nd and expect delivery 2/11. So will see looking forward to them arriving. Also bought your Lukas paints at Jerry's. Pretty excited about getting them. As for the rabbit it looks good. Years ago we had rabbits in our yard and I found the hole and thought that was very cool. So I took hubby out to see it. Our dog at the time was really fascinated with them. Well when we got to the hole IT WAS LIKE THERE NEVER WAS ONE. Hubby thought I'd lost it. But I swear as God is my witness IT WAS THERE. They fixed it so good there was no trace it was ever there.
Love this!!
I love that you did this video. Of course I don’t live in India. But there sure are some wonderfully talented ladies from India that are around our crafting community. Several are designers these days for big name companies in our community. Wow. They do amazing work. The colors of India are beyond words. My husband and I talk about going there one day. I swear when I do I am going to have myself a new wardrobe made from their extremely talented seamstresses with their beautifully amazing colorful fabric.
I do have many friends from both Pakistan and India. Their clothing is amazing. My husband loves Hindi movies. I do too. But the clothes are what gets my attention in all the songs.
But I love that you wanted to do this watercolor set to be inclusive to people who may watch your videos in other countries that may not have easy time getting the same products as Americans. You are top class for sure Lindsey! Wow. That painting you showed when you said you loved the Payne’s grey is stunning! The sun looked amazing to me. I didn’t see any flaws even though you said you were thrilled with it after you messed with it dry.
Thanks! I'm glad the paint was good as I know so many rely on this brand and wonder how it compares. I think the fact there there are so many people that use it keeps the price lower too. I hope it stays that way!
French Ultramarine is darker than ultramarine! 😁
Also I personally agree with you! I think using Camlin is better than using Winsor and Newton Cotman or Schminke Academia...for hobby purposes, I dont find the reason to use those brands because the student grade WnN quality is almost the same as Camlin. If I were to use those WnN or Schmincke, I would only use the artist grade and only use them in pieces that I am selling!
The company was established in 1930, under the British rule. These are extremely light-fast. Even their poster colours are highly light-fast. A couple of my mother’s paintings, done in 1967 are as fresh as newly painted ones. Do Google about the company. It has a Wikipedia page, which gives a bit of background of the company.
Even after years when I want to know something Lindsay has an answer 🙏🏽❤️❤️❤️
Aww, thanks!
Thanks for the very detailed and informative review. I have been using camel artist water color and I don't want to change into any foreign brand.
Glad it was helpful!
Woohoo! Got their magenta and violet tubes, absolutely stunning. They do have a smell, but it reminds me of nail polish, which has a nice scent to me haha. Plus, the tubes are 20ml of goodness! This will last me awhile. OH! There is one slight con or pro depending on your painting style: I’m pretty sure these purpley colors are high staining, but for me these lift really easily, so it’s hard to layer.
In the end I think watercolor paper can also make it lift less or more, and giving it more time to dry helps a bit. Ps. sorry for the spam haha, these are my first paints that worked how I wanted them too.
Camel makes these paints, art materials in almost 8 to 10 times cheaper in cost . Thus making it possible for us in India to make a decent art. Its almost impossible for most of us to afford even the cotman of WN or any similar stuff. Here in India we get "Artist Watercolour tube 12 shades of 5 ml" from Camel for only 2$.It is quite impossible for most other biggest brands to make in this low budget still with surprising quality.
Indian artists are everywhere.. millions of them are self tought, utilizing 1-5$ brushes, 0.1$ local sheets .
There is another "Faber Castell Creative Studio watercolour tubes 24x9ml" available for 6$ .
Sunil Linus De
Achintya Hazra
Ganesh Hire Fine Art Studio
Art with Shiba
Sourav Joshi Arts
Art with Vishal
Nitin Singh
Artist sikander chd
Prashant Sarkar
Ravindra Mahale
Subhojit Mondal Art
Nishikant Palande
Etc. Are best watercolour artist Channels from INDIA.
Thanks for providing the list.. I do follow a few of these people but I'd like to check others out too. Amd you're right... Camlin is the reason why every age group in India gets an affordable and decent quality of art supplies since almost a century
Most positive review for Indian watercolor product. Thanks 👍👍. I am gonna buy, post your review..
Glad it was helpful!
As always love your reviews.👍🏻
Yay, thank you!
@@thefrugalcrafter❤️❤️❤️❤️
Very thorough review.
Beautiful colors!
it is very humbling, we take our choice and abundance of vance marketing of products for granted...this review makes you take a step back and really appreciate what we have, my hope would be that more industries be open to idea of selling there products in India at a price point that they can afford...thanks Lindsay
Camlin is our Crayola but very good quality. Our staple and we grew up with it. Recently I have heard people comment negatively about poster paints here in the US but in India Camlin poster paints, even in the 80s , was excellent quality.
Great review. Thanks. I spent much time in India. Many art materials available; good quality - real beauties and local artists very talented. I have found the relatively unpleasant odor is unfortunately not unusual. TH-camr Kesh has fun art videos from India
Thank you so so much for this review it was super helpful!!
I just finished your video, and If you do get open stock...I promise you, the greens will blow you away.....I was after I swatched them yesterday
You are a wonderful person Lindsay. :^)
I am very happy for watercolour artists in India.
Im Indian and I had to use these back when online shopping wasn’t mainstream and I didn’t become a digital art fiend lol I did anime fanart then, so these definitely brings up “memories”
Thank you very much for the review 😊
Thank you! Interesting review,
Was watching a documentary on the Harem learning more on Islam & I saw your video felt it was a better use of my time to learn to watercolor better.
I appreciate your reviews & if you have a spare room I'd love to visit Maine and craft... creepy thing to say my sister wants to move there for her Lupus, she says the cold helps her more.
Been wanting to visit. Sending you & yours
♡❤🧡💛💚💙💜❤♡
Thank you so much for this review.
I am from india and i was curious to see how this brand performs compared to other brands you find in the US. Like you mentioned this is the most popular and affordable watercolor paints in India.
I have used the camel watercolor paints extensively and didn't find any smell. Probably its an issue with the batch you got.
I purchased this set on Amazon shortly after Lindsay's initial video on these paints. The paints I received also have a very strong chemical smell. But they do seem to be lovely paints and I will squeeze them from the tubes and keep in a palette. That would be the only negative I would have with these paints.
They do have a smell of petroleum. I like the smell to be honest 🤣
You might not notice it, if you buy mostly eastern watercolors. Every single water color I’ve purchased from Asia have had that distinctive smell. I think it’s the binder, which is different than euro/American binders. Some Russian brands I have played with have them as well
Thanks. Nitin singh the youtube artist uses these and they come out lovely.
Thank you SO much for the review. As an amateur wc, I want to add some information just so there's clarity around the Indian scene.
Excluding international brands, there are about two brands that sell watercolors, Camlin and Brustro. Camlin costs about 7$ for 12 x 20ml tubes. Brustro is a little more expensive, in the same range. The value proposition with these paints compared to any other artist-grade set is absolutely INSANE. I haven't used Brustro, so I won't comment on those paints, although I've heard people on TH-cam talking about their old formulations being chalky, and their current batches seem to be fine. Camel has THE legacy status though, tried and tested by generations of watercolorists here in India from what little I know. People experienced with Camlin and Brustro please enlighten us. :)
Might be wrong here, but from what I gather, Brustro doesn't seem to be making their paints and instead, they seem to be outsourcing them, at least with their pan palette sets. Their new metal compass box cakes set seems to be similar to Mungyo's, their 24 half pan set going for ~30-35$.
I have heard Camlin is going to release a professional watercolor line soon and also reveal pigment information in the near future, so that should be a treat.
It's glad to see such a review for these paints and knowing from someone who's tried many sets, that they hold up. Thanks again, Lindsay. :)
Very likely Brustro and Arteza are one and the same.
A year later, 08/06/22, the BRUSTRO 24 half pan set is going for $100 😳😳😳. WOW!
I also comments, and at least one artist review on TH-cam, suggesting the tube paints aren't as good as the 24 pan set. I'm astonished the price went up over $60 in about 12 months on Amazon. Ouch. I liked the transparency, follow an artist in India, and I really did wanted to try these. For $100 I'll give Roman S. Aquarius line a try, or trusty Windsor Newton pros.
I bought the same set of 24 tubes of Camel Artist paints, and they had noticeable odor. I was pleasantly surprised.
we love this brand.. grown up using these colors...
Hope you do ok during the Coming snow storm. That storm wasn’t nice to Calif-heavy rain, floods, mudslides, blizzards, power outages. Stay safe, warm and healthy!!
Thank you for reviewing our Indian brand camel. It's a legendary staple brand for most Indian artists. We also have an artist called Shiva who does all his professional works in camel. So I guess the lightfastness is pretty decent. We get it here for only rs.390, a set of 24 5ml tubes. It's like $5.43. we try to use the artist one as it's very cheap and value for money. Then there is another brand called Brustro. Which will be great if you can review that as well.
See in my opinion brustro watercolor paint tubes are not reliable or any of their product maybe they're learning from trial and error and the only thing is why they're popular is because they got promoted by lots of local artists and their availability at price ranges which are like affordable than any other brands but believe me you'll see a complete difference once you switch to other brands
Brustro isn't lightfast and is extremely chalky and it's also not manufactured in India, it exports everything from China under the name of creativehands. I agree with the person above me because i too feel that the only reason they're popular is because of the hype created by the local Instagram artists that don't usually sell their work because you can't sell anything made with that quality of paint.
commenting 3 years late but just wanted you to know that Camlin seem to have added pigment info to their website! Bought a 12 set of these to use as practice paints to improve my technique without wasting more expensive paints (e.g. if I have to practise washes etc) and am really enjoying them!
Good to know!
We get a lot more colours in individual tubes here. It's good for artists starting out as despite being so cheap they're so wonderful
The colors are incredible!! pigmented and blends well.(can be smelly too).But i dont like the color selection in 24 watercolor set> But shades of the 12 set are great !
Hey I just thought I would let you know i bought the exact pallet your using in the video yesterday on amazon for £2.60 with free delivery! I just wanted to let you know in case you are cautious about going out and buying stuff due to Covid or if you needed more. 😊loved the video!
That is GREAT price!
I watched a different artist give a video on a product and 3 minutes into the 17 minute video all she had talked about was whether or not you could get the item on Amazon. All you need is a link and tell viewers that basically. I wasn't impressed with her review either. I think that is one of the reasons that I like watching you as you know your 'stuff'. I am learning tiptoe by tiptoe in the ocean of art and art products. I have been having fun. So far today, I have been working on a gouache painting (just waiting for parts to dry to move on) and I got a new 12 pack of Derwent Chromaflow colored pencils to try and review. That was fun as it wasn't an overwhelming amount of pencils to try. I got to try some blending with them a couple of different ways. The 12 pack has a yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, denim blue and a lighter blue, a dark green and grass green, brown, black and white. I was very impressed by the denim blue as it truly does look like the color of denim (depending on how many times it has been washed!). I was hoping to see if you had done a review of them then realized that they are just coming out this month. I'm not sure how much they will cost, but would love to hear your opinion on them. I still have so much to learn! Thanks for the teaching.
I have never heard of them. Are you sure its Derwent?
Great review! These are really beautiful paints! I feel guilty for not really realizing that supplies were so limited in some countries. 🥺 We have so many things available to us...it's difficult to imagine! I'm so glad to be aware now, and will definitely be more grateful. 💖
Thank you for this information Lindsay! 🙂💕
Supplies aren’t that unavailable, if they’re not in stores I just get my art supplies from amazon, but certain things are more expensive here (like the miya/himi gouache goes for $60 US here) but things like Windsor and newton and holbeins are pretty readily available
It is available in few stores and online but it's also extremely expensive cz most of it is imported with heavy shipping costs and also cost in foreign currency. A lot of brands are popular here like W&N, Daler Rowney, white nights, schminke and Daniel Smith but camlin costs a tenth of them all and are also available more easily.
In case anyone is wondering these paints smell exactly like winsor newton designer gouache, it's not off putting at all to me, I like the smell.
Thank you for the review and especially for mentioning the smell! I had some seriously concerns about using these - even before hearing your comment about the odor - because many art materials imported from overseas contain dangerous chemicals &/or lead.
I teach art to children and seniors; both groups are at risk (more than the general population is) from exposure to environmental chemicals and poisons. I tell my students, "Buy quality, even if it's just a few basic colours. You will get better results and your skills will grow faster because you aren't fighting your tools." In this case I would add, "You can't make art in the ICU."
Everything comes with a price. As a retired nurse, I think the danger to one's health outweighs even the cheapest price tag. As a student at University, one of my Professors had a brain tumor directly associated with his exposure to the chemicals in his art materials. He lectured us endlessly about personal safety and environmental responsibility with regard to our art materials. He was paying the ultimate price for his art because when he was in school no one knew the dangers. We know better now; with that knowledge we have the responsibility to make a better choice ~ and to encourage others to do the same.
Sounds like you have a real prejudice, you should work on that. I hope you realize the vast majority of watercolor is imported from outside the US. The smell is probably just raw ox gall, which reeks until it dries. Other brands, including Old Holland, have a similar issue.
I read somewhere that these tubes are plastic. This probably accounts for the smell. People use plastics routinely in fact a lot of household products are overly perfumed to cover the smell they have from being packaged in plastic. I do not think on the evidence this review gives that the contents have anything overly toxic in them, anyone using any properly pigmented watercolours should be aware that pigments themselves can be toxic even in the best brands, however the lack of smell after a day and a week the Lindsay refers to indicates no problems outside of the usual. India has been making quality paints, inks and other stationary items for at least a century, I have pencils made by them in India, and routinely used in the drawing offices of Caterpillar U.K. that are over forty years old and still as good as when they were made, they sharpen well too. Camel is not comparable to cheap Chinese ‘make money fast, here today gone tomorrow’ label, it is a very well established Indian brand that has supplied Indian people for many decades and is now in partnership with a leading Japanese stationery brand. That is not to say the Chinese stuff is all bad either, some of it, mainly student stuff, is not really very usable, there are really good brands, but there are also overruns from very decent outsourced western manufacturers that get relabelled. Keep an open mind about things. India has well over a billion people, many incredible artists live in the region, it has educated talented people working in art, design, craft and cottage industry professions and needs to be able to supply its own people with quality affordable products. Price differentials reflect the nature of the economies in which products are made not the quality of materials, which is also why Russian, Czech and Ukrainian professional paints lie in the cheaper range too. Americans in particular pay a very high premium for products made there. That premium buys some of the more luxurious pigments at a very high cost. They still use the more ubiquitous colours as well though!
Heyyy! Finally a review from you! I really really wish you could have brought a few colors open stock! I really don't like their cobalt blue hue. It's basically a mix of camlin blue (it's pthalo blue red shade!) And French ultramarine. The color selection isn't so great in 24 set. They have honey in them so they don't dry out completely (atleast here in India where it's kinda humid!) I personally like chrome yellow hue instead of lemon yellow. A few colors like cerulean blue and yellow ochre (and raw sienna) have a white added. (though it doesn't increase lot opacity!) I personally didn't find any smell😅. Maybe you got a bad batch or I got a good one😅 . I personally have done a 3 years light fastness test and I've found the rating on tube pretty accurate! PS. I hate emerald green too😂
I just wish you could have some sample of French ultramarine or Permanent blue! (Actually permanent blue is french ultramarine with a verrry little pthalo!) Their ultramarine blue is VERY weak and dries out hard as a rock!!
I also felt ultramarine blue is not pigmented enough
we just got the sets available in America, I didn't see any open stock options but I think this set gave me a decent idea of what to expect. Thanks for watching:)
Update on this, tho the chances of you seeing this is low lol.
The Camlin DO smell! I thought for the longest time that all watercolors smell like that, but when I recently brought a few Daniel Smith tubes, THEY DIDN'T SMELL!!
I am so sorry for the confusion haha!!
Lovely! I only wish there was a violet in this set
I think they put the more lightfast colors in the sets, I think they have the violets and mauves open stock if you live in India.
I just ordered an 18 tube set from Amazon. It was the only set they had. My husband is getting ready to retire and I’ve been stocking up on Daniel Smith, Schmincke, and Arches. I know after retirement we won’t have as much money. 😂. These paints will be nice when I’m just goofing around.
I ordered a couple of the schmincke new granulating paints. I know I can just mix them myself but they were beautiful brown colors I would love for my landscape painting. Do you have an opinion or plan on doing a review of these paints?
Hi Lindsay, wondering if the smell is from the plastic tubes rather than the paint?
Eliza in Sydney
x
There is another version between Artist and Student grade. I used to paint with that grade. It is more than 13 years since then those paintings are still maintaining their richness and pigments. I started using artist-grade from 2020 and it is very good. I think if paintings can be stored properly or away from direct sunlight then these Artist-grade Camlin watercolours will last longer than 50 years or maybe more!
What is it called?
these are the camel "artist" watercolors. I have camel "funfilled" water colors which are half the price for exact same quantity. my art teacher used the same set im using right now and created masterpieces. he had same painting hung on his wall for years. I joined my school in 2011, left in 2020, and those paintings retained the same quality. Lately ive been wanting to upgrade colora and found almost all professional watercolor artists (well thats what i think because they put paintings on show and do commissions and their art is just on next level!!!!) use the "artist" version aka the one you have. Im torn in between using foreign brands and this Indian brand ive been using forever. A foreigner reviewing this was pretty helpful.
I'm glad!
Indian knowledge of paint is more ancient than western knowledge of paints. And a lot of the colours in the western pallette even in the pallettes of 17-18th century famous artists of Europe, came from india (including Afghanistan and Pakistan which were always part of India until about 70-100yrs ago).
Good point!
Marie’s at Jerry’s goes on sale for under $7 and is good for beginners too. Nice bright colors.
That paint does not dry down well in pallets tho, it shrinks, cracks and falls out. Marie's is best fresh from the tube, it had a similar smell to Camel tho.
I purchased these paints because I can never have enough watercolors. They were beautiful and didn't crack after dying. I'm very sensitive to smells though. I had to give them to my dad. They don't smell after drying but I had to stay out of my art room for most of the day when I poured them. I had to get rid of the Masters Touch set of 48 paints because their smell literally made me gag when I'd open the tin. I really wanted to love these because they are really pretty. My dad loves them though. Lindsay, I hear you say that you don't like Emerald Green. Have you tried Sennelier Emerald Green? I think it's beautiful and added it to my main pallet recently.
Thank you for mentioning the smell! I had some seriously concerns about using these - even before reading your comment about the odor - because many art materials imported from overseas contain dangerous chemicals &/or lead.
I teach art to children and seniors; both groups are at risk (more than the general population is) from exposure to environmental chemicals and poisons.
Everything comes with a price. As a retired nurse, I think the dangers to one's health outweighs the cheapest price tag.
@@CrazyAuntVal thank you for your service as a nurse! My mother was a nurse and I have the utmost respect for your kind. I think it's great that you teach art to children and seniors as I do the same. I'm very sensitive to smells but I would keep these away from my clients for sure.
@@TheToolgirl42 It's always nice to meet a fellow art teacher (enabler.)
I'm always hesitant to post a reply that might stir up a grumbling conversation; but when it comes to protecting other artists' health, I just don't seem to be able to keep my mouth shut. 🤭 I'll bet your mom's the same way.
We're all in this together, right??
So if it helps even one person, I'll take my chances, remembering that not everyone recognizes that the comment was posted with the intention of helping, with no criticism intended.
I have Masters Touch watercolor tubes and their smell is really strong too, it's like spoiled butter??? I don't know how to describe them. I'm going to buy Camlin watercolors so if the smell is as bad, I will need to wear a mask while pouring them into my palette haha. My Masters Touch tube paints crack and crumble when I leave them to dry, but I bought a 38 set so I have to push through the smell :(
Thanks for the review. How do these compare with the Pretty Excellent watercolor set?
There are more colors in the PE set, quality wise, similar.
The set is 18.90 on Canadian Amazon as well, but $20 shipping on top of that.
Hi Lindsay! New subscriber here. I've been looking for a budget watercolor that still perfoms relatively well and is pigmented. These look really vibrant and hopefully transparent. I'm planning on buying them, but am spilt between these and the Pretty Excellent set. I thought about getting those but I heard they're very staining and the colors seem too similar. I heard these are less staining and there's more paint for each color. I have a question: are these chalky? Like when you go over them with your finger and color rubs off. And if you still have them, has any paint separated in the tubes?
They are not chalky. I filled my palette and sent what was left of the tubes to my friend to try so I can't say if there was long term separation. These have more of a traditional feel and color palette compared to PE. The only downside us they smell when you squeeze them out but it goes away. Honestly im more fond of pretty excellent but either is a good choice.
You can find the pigment information in 20ml tube.
Thanks for the info!