I live in South Africa n the Daniel Smith paints are insanely expensive. But I love them. I pay 16 times more than what u would pay per tube in the US.
I am a re-beginner having side lined my sketching and watercolor after getting married 42 years ago. Now I have replaced my brushes, purchased some paper and sketch books and diving back in! I cannot pick just one favorite video. I find them all so very informative and I adore the way you present them. Keep up the good work and congrats on 15K!
Denise!! Congrats on these incredible milestones! I am so incredibly happy for you! It’s really difficult to choose my most favorite video of yours, but I do have sentimental attachment to the first video of yours I ever saw. It was your demo for Sennelier with the dryad painting. That one basically opened the floodgates for me to all of your other content. :]
Thank you Arleesha!! Your channel is booming as well, and you're going to catch up in no time! :) I'm so glad to hear that Lunara drew you into the channel. Drawing faces is something I struggle with so that one was pretty special to me too!
Your Swatch With Me: Daniel Smith 72 colors is my favorite, I watched the whole video - over 90 minutes and loved it! I'm a newbie to the watercolor world and have learned so much about the science of watercolors following you. Thanks for sharing your knowledge, talent, & skill with others.
My favorite video was when you talked about Vegan Watercolors, I especially liked how you talked about how animals are treated before they are used in the meat industry. I live in a rural area so I buy meat from a family friend who raises animals because I know that they are treated right there.
LOVE THAT! Thank you so much. That is what bothers me the most, how the animals are treated. I am vegan, so I don't eat meat anyways, and I don't have a problem really with people that eat meat, so long as the animal was treated nicely and not just mass produced, that is the part that makes me upset, and reading how you care about that and actually buy your meat from your friend who you know treats them nicely makes me so happy. Thank you so much!
Yay, Daniel Smith! and as for my favorite video (for your giveaway), I have to give it up for the Top 5 Browns video because it got me to buy the Daniel Smith Permanent Brown and I love it so much! I love the Top 5 videos in general because there are mixes you show us I had never considered and they also taught me that some paints may look slightly different out of the tube, but they mix similarly so I don't NEED to buy every color that strikes my fancy. Congrats on the 15K!
I love your video exploring every single one of your palettes, and saying a little bit about what went into making them and the different brands of paint. It was so awesome to see all those gorgeous paints.
Congrats on all the milestones!! :D That's really awesome! Very generous of Colors of Nature to offer a big set like that :) My favorites videos of yours are all of them, but I love when you show color mixes (like in the Color spotlight series) and we can see some beautiful swatches and how to use colors like PG7. I also love watching you paint animals, it's very calming :)
My favorite was your most recent one with the watercolor journals. I ended up buying the small pentel and loved it so much I bought the landscape version about a week later. It was very thorough and not bias like all of your videos! Even though you have your favs, you always give an honest opinion and review. Thank you.
I found your channel by the series of TOP 5 favorites of each color. I have to say since I found it that day I loved each video that talks about mixing, top 5 by color and of course the color spotlights. It is all so usefull when you are just passed experimenting with yr paint and you really want to know why colors and brands perform like they do. I also love all the pigment information. For what I know, you are the only one who has a channel that is so informative on all these topics. And that is the reason why I looooooove your channel. It doesn't stop with reviews, you go way further with it!!!! Congratulations!!!!
Fantastic video! Thanks that really helped a lot. :) this is my favorite video so far, I just found you, and am trying to find some paints to purchase. Keep up the amazing videos, I'll check out your past videos.
Hi Denise, what another excellent video. :) I broadly agree with your assessment of the various brands and I think your rankings were extremely fair, thoughtful and considered. You're very fortunate to live on the west coast of the USA and have three wonderful brands right on your doorstep. I know we have spoken before about this but here in Europe, Daniel Smith is so expensive that it is difficult to justify choosing them over other, cheaper and more local brands, even though the Daniel Smith line is so wonderful. One of the reasons Daniel Smith is so expensive over here, aside from the shipping costs and import duties, is that their paints are distributed by just one distributor of paints in Europe, which sells to all the art shops. It is a great shame because this kind of monopoly restricts the choices of artists. I am also suspicious of certain artists telling everyone only to use Daniel Smith and fear they are either being paid or subsidised to promote the brand, even if it is a fantastic manufacturer of paint. My preference at the moment is for Schmincke watercolours, which, both in Ireland and Austria, are half the price of the likes of Daniel Smith. I had a problem with a pan of Schmincke Quinacridone Red Light and emailed head office in Germany about. They were a joy to deal with and sent me a replacement right away, along with a few other pans of paints. M. Graham is an incredibly good paint but they are very difficult to find here. One art shop in Hove in the UK stocks M. Graham at a premium price - £16 for the highest series - which I would also find hard to justify. I bought a few tubes of M. Graham from an art shop in Potsdam in Germany, which seems to be one of about three stockists of M. Graham paint in Europe. They are a joy to use and I preserve and treasure them as you do with your Schmincke paints. If I lived in the USA, I would use M. Graham or DS but I am not sure they are worth spending double on, when compared with Schmincke here in Europe. The quality of Winsor and Newton has decreased in recent years and, as we discussed before, they are a pain in the neck to reactivate when they dry on the palette. Winsor and Newton does state not to leave the paint on the palette to try and recommends that artists should only use tube colour fresh from the tube and pans for when cakes of paint are needed; this seems like a terrible underhanded rip-off, however. This, coupled with the prices you pay for W&N paints in the USA, means it is simply not worth it when you compare the quality of W&N with M. Graham or DS. Winsor and Newton has been sold twice in the last few years, first to a Swedish company and then to a German company, and it is no longer the traditional "British" brand it might once have been, with a royal seal of approval. Most paints are now made in China and the artists' watercolours are made in France. A great shame indeed. W&N are reasonable value here in Europe but there aspects of the brand and the quality of paint in recent years, which frustrate me very much. Sennelier makes beautiful paints, which are pretty good value in Ireland. They glaze well but are not as intense as the likes of DS. Many artists who use them love them but some have also reported that it takes time to get used to Sennelier paints. My preference would be as follows: 1. Schmincke 2. M. Graham 3. Daniel Smith 4. Sennelier 5. Winsor and Newton
I love your individual color series 👍🏼 congrats on hitting two milestones and shout out to DS and PO49 I hoarded 4 tubes that should last me the rest of my life. 😉
The reason I love these kind of videos is becauase it's interesting to see how popularity of certain brands changes in different countries :p I can't even remember if I've ever seen Grumbacher in any of the stores I frequent. Van Gogh is almost everywhere, sometimes in stores that don't even specialize in art supplies (good for me because I love them)
To be honest, I'm surprised you're not at 100k+ subs yet. I absolutely love your palatte setups, as well as the Color Spotlight series. So glad it's coming back. Congrats on 15k subs. I wish you many, many thousands more.
I’d like to thank you for being honest in your reviews. Also, for giving your reasons as to why you prefer or don’t prefer a particular brand. I’d also like to applaud the companies who choose to allow you to review their products, knowing that you are not afraid to say what is good or not so good about their paint.. it shows me that the company has a great deal of integrity and that they may actually care about the customers wishes and needs. Thank you
My favourite video... Hm... I'd say the White Nights review, because I was waiting for it for soooo long or the Rembrandt review because you taught me the existence of brightners, which was something completely new to me... But nah... I think my favourite one is your top 5 blues, not only because it is my favourite color, but because the blues from M. Graham magnetized me, just by watching them alone, and I blame you for my new addiction now... lol
I'd have to say my favorite video of yours would be the watercolor paper comparison video(s)! Most TH-cam videos only compared a few papers to each other, and they didn't actually paint on the paper and test it in every important aspect as you did, and it REALLY helped me to pick and choose a few new ones to try out, including a few I had never heard of before! Your videos are all really helpful, but I just loved this one! :)
Really love our videos overall, but if I were to point out WHY I think I enjoy them so much, I'd probably say that whatever you're talking about you know a lot about the given topic to then give your informed opinion, making it very easy to not only get an opinion but also learn something from watching your videos, not to mention your art is absolutely beautiful :)
I love the favorites series. My favorite video is the watercolor paper comparison video. That's how I found your channel and it has SO many papers and it's a very useful video.
My favorite videos on your channel have to be the swatches you did recently, But prior to those I love that you are able to take your love and compassion and amazing knowledge for animals AND watercolor and smoosh it all into your awesome channel. We are all so much wiser on both subjects because of you. In the beginning when you were an awesome mixologist (is that a word?) teaching us all about our pigments and how they behave together to your wealth of knowledge in all things endangered animals- what is not to love? I cannot possibly pick just one video. Please never stop doing this :) You are one of my favorite channels
Thank you so much for this incredibly helpful list, Denise! :D there are so many wonderful paints to try!! Anyway, my favorite video of yours (that I have seen so far) is actually TWO videos. I have watched and re-watched part one and two of your Daniel Smith swatching videos. Because lately I have been obsessed with learning as much as I can about Daniel Smith paints.
I really was inspired by your Top 10 Watercolor Brands because you were specific about each company’s color permanence, washes ,and layering abilities. As a retired Art Teacher I am just getting started back into painting watercolors and need to be reeducated on different brands before I spend any money.I love all your TH-cam shows but this one was to the point .Please keep helping artist to expand their creativity.Thanks AGAIN, Mary Hobby
My favorite video currently is your 2018 watercolor palette tour. Watercolor collections are just so mesmerizing and I aim to have as diverse as a collection as you some day! Right now I use Grumbacher Academy, and I'm so happy to see them in your top list. But I'm currently saving for a small set of Daniel Smith to try out!
Awesome review! I love watching your videos for ideas for which brands/colors to try next, plus they are so colorful and relaxing that they always put me in a good mood. It's hard to choose a favorite, but I really enjoyed the video about Schminkes' Academy line. I didn't realize it was such a good quality paint for student grade, and I'm really excited to (hopefully) try them out one day.
My all-time favorite video of yours, the one I keep going back to, is the one of you setting up your porcelain pallet. It's honestly just so satisfying seeing all the swatch cards lined around the pallet, and watching you fill them all with paint, and talking about the paints, I just. I also love the Top 5 Colors series because you show how each color mixes, and having a limited pallet, I like to see what I can get from one paint. I love all your videos, I learned almost everything I know about watercolor from you, so thank you for making them.
you were so lucky！ i live in hong kong we just hv w&n,holbein, Da Vinci and some of the Asian brand.Is really expensive to buy Daniel smith and m.graham online
My favorite video from your channel is actually when you tested all the watercolor paper because you made me save a lot of money with your tests. It was really informative and help me a lot !
i personally think the grumbacher academy paints are a huge downgrade from cotman. i've found my experience with cotman rather pleasant, since i think their only issue is the vibrancy. the grumbachers are too chalky for my taste.
After seeing the new Cotman formulation, I'd probably agree. Mine were SO hard and difficult to use, but my sister just got a set and her Cotmans are lovely. Not sure when the change happened, but I'd be more willing to try the new set out!
Congratulations on the 15k and the Patreon milestone!! This made my day! I'm super happy and excited right now! Finding one favorite video is so hard. I really love the Color Spotlight and top 5 colors series. If I had to choose one I think it will be your Top Favorite Browns. I started picking colors for a professional set last december and since I'm still working on it. I reference this video all the time as I love painting portraits. I think it's my most watched video on TH-cam.
I wander if winsor& newton professional watercolor fits in your top 10? despite they are really expensive in America. thank you,I really love your reviews.
My favorite video on your channel is your M. Graham watercolor review, because it's how I discovered your channel! Thank you so much for all of your reviews, demos, and educational videos, and for putting your wonderful animal art out for us to see.
@@eggfish1085 Yep, point is we all have those blind spots. Don't worry about it, lol. I get your frustration, though! I agree it's better for people to let people know about faux pas, though. I am fine with a short, awkward conversation if it means I'll stop looking silly into the indefinite future!
I have several Holbein videos, and my reason for not including W&N or Holbein is that they're both unreasonably expensive where I live. The paints themselves are fine.
In Liquid Color really i have surbrised your channel for a long time ( i think so) but i haven’t seen it yeah Holbein is also expensive in my country but WN is quite normal
My favourite video was definitely the jaguar painting. The expression of the animal was just amazing. I love all your watercolour painting videos though as I'm just starting out and love picking up tips! :) Congrats on 15k!
I’m a fairly recent subscriber, but I was drawn in by your swatch videos (I just started my own binder!) and I loved your color showcase series so I’m glad that’s coming back for another round!
Congrats on 15k! I've loved your Top 5/10 series, but I think my favorite video of yours was when you did the Creative Watercolor Swatches where you drew different little illustrations for each color. It was really unique and inspiring, and it'd definitely be cool if you did more swatches or illustrations like that in future videos!
My favorite all time video/es of yours is the color spotlight!! I'm kind of new to watercolor, I took a class back in college and used Reeves watercolor and didn't have much knowledge with colors and pigments. So when I stumbled on your color spotlight I was hooked! you're a wealth of information and I am very thankful that you decided to share that with us. ❤
my favorite videos are your color mixing videos because they inspire me to get creative and paint more ! thanks for being awesome 💛 c: your color spotlights and suggested supplies ( brushes, etc ) are videos i AlWAYS come back to
This videos a favorite for sure! You're very thorough with your explanations if each paints and it'll help many of us decide what paints we should buy based on our style if painting.
I love seeing all the beautiful colors in all of your swatching videos. You go into such depth for all your videos. Your channel is a vital resource to any watercolor artist.
All of these paints are so beautiful, and I really appreciate all the thought and effort that went into the explanations of the pros and cons of each, as well as the demonstrations of how they go down on paper. I think this is actually my favorite video of yours. I'm a beginner at watercolours who has been looking for a video like this so I have some idea of what to go for when I decide to upgrade my paints. I also enjoy seeing videos where you do illustrations, you're very talented and it's nice to see some of your work.
Denise, your videos have been so helpful. It's your approach, very organized and logical - just the antidote to my hit and miss unmethod. I especially loved your "How to make simple swatch cards" tutorial because now I can find my way around my collection of around 80 colors that grew over a number of years. I actually never knew which colors to choose until I spent the time to make those swatch cards and arrange them in a folder. I also learned the importance of pigment numbers. With an added bonus of improving my technique wash after wash on those cards. That video was one of my top five tutorials ever. Thank you.
My favorite video of yours is probably your watercolor collection. Maybe it appeals to my hoarder instincts, but it also really helped me set up my favorite few sets!
Your Top 5s (-ish? Lol) have taught me so much. I learned more from your Top 5 color series than you could imagine and use it as a reference in my shopping now. Thank you for sharing!
I've really liked all your top 5 videos and found them all helpful. My favorite, and it helped me make some choices, was the top 5 watercolor sketchbooks video. Thanks for all you do and thanks for the 15k contest!
The three color challenge, your tiger watercolor painting was the video that made me subscribe. So excited that you keep on growing on this platform and that you keep posting all sorts of videos!
I just recently discovered your channel and binge watched almost all of your videos. My most favorite video has to be the Daniel Smith swatch video. I really enjoyed watching you swatch all those colors and just listen to you rambling about them^^ Congrats on that milestone^^
Being new to watercolors my fav video so far has been your top 5 watercolor journals and your top 10 watercolor brushes. Thank you for providing your honest reviews. I love to watch your videos. 😊
My favorite of your video is definitely the color spotlight. I learned so much from that series and am glad it will be returning. Thanks D., love your channel
I have only recently found this channel but I am in love with your swatch videos. I not only find them mesmerizing but so interesting and the information you provide is extensive. On the whole though it's your enthusiasm and love for the topic that makes all the videos lovely to watch.
This is just the video I needed right now! I've been delving deep into so many watercolorists on TH-cam while getting back into these beautiful paints... I dusted off my Cotmans while still learning the ropes, but it's so interesting to learn about people's different opinions on various professional grade paints! My personal favourite video (for the giveaway entry) is your 12 colours for travel palettes - as someone who is learning the medium with experience in other areas of art & has a background of colour theory etc, it's really interesting to know which exact colours you find the most useful & versatile!
My favorite video is your Hanamule review!!! You showed me that the bamboo mixed media paper is exaaaaactly what I am looking for in water color paper. Smooth, but handles layers/glazing and wet on wet. You are one of the first people I have seen review it properly.
Congratulations on your achievement. I think I was one of your first thousand subscribers. You’ve definitely abetted many watercolor purchases of mine this year. I think my favorite video was Purple.
I've enjoyed your mixing videos and the top 5 color series, but my fav video was your M Graham review. That's what convinced me to take the plunge and try a few. (Steve Mitchell helped, but you pushed me over the lovely edge).
Yay congrats on 15K! My favourite is the colour mixing video you did a while back. It really helped me out when I started learning how to paint with watercolours! :)
Great Review, Denise. I soooo agree about White Nights paints. They really are neither professional nor student grade, but I totally agree with you rating them number 1 in Student grade. I still love using them to play around and create quick little paintings with lots of color!
Enjoy all your reviews. My favorite is the Winsor Newton review as it is the brand that I use and I would like to branch out to other brands. Also like you Endangered series, on the Elephant. It was really good. Thanks, Denise for your info on so many products.
Concrats on the 15k milestone! I am glad to hear that the color spotlight is coming back because that is my favorite. I have learned so much from watching your videos. Thanks!
Congratulations on all your landmarks! I very happy that the colour spotlight vids will be coming back, because I really loved all of them. They are what made me subscribe to your channel! Yay!
I love all of your videos, but my favorites are the paint reviews and the Swatch With Mes. And the color spotlights. And I love the ones that feature your own art. This isn’t narrowing it down much huh. I love the way you communicate both your knowledge and your passion, without ever getting stodgy or preachy. Your videos are so much fun to listen to and watch.
my favorite video from your channel was the windsor and newton pocketplus review because its the video that helped my to decide on my first set of watercolors and its the first video that introduced me to your channel.
Congratulations on 15,000! Thank you for your reviews and tutorials -- so hard to choose a favorite. Your watercolor journal video was extremely helpful!
I really appreciate how well planned, informative and filmed your videos are. They are a delight to watch. I really love the color mixing series, as my theory is weak. The color mixing purple video gives great insight, because mixes often turn brown. it really made me understand the need for seemingly unrelated colors in one's palette.
Hi Denise!! Thank you for this fantastic video! So helpful and informative in deciding what to buy. Congratulations for the 15K subscribers! You deserve it. It is hard to choose one particular favorite video from you in the channel, but it is probably the color spotlight series, especially the Quinacridone Rose; simply because it is one of my favorite colors/pigment to work with.
Nice review! I'm super new to watercolor, tho I always liked painting. but I'm learning a lot about the technical part (granulation, pigments, etc.). I haven't watched a lot of your videos yet but I really liked the 2018 favorite palettes one, enough that I bought a Schmincke Akademie palette right after I watched it! Can't wait to get it and start working with it!
I loved both your swatch with me videos on Daniel Smith as well as your review of White Knights. I appreciated that you acknowledged that White Knights is a professional quality watercolor and is so very affordable. I think that right now it’s really the best value for someone serious about watercolor, but simply can’t afford the other price points. Keep up the great work!
Hard to choose only one favorite video. I think any of your color spotlight video could be a favorite. I enjoy the way you show us what the color can do, what colors you can mix with them and all their other secrets. I also really enjoy your scientific approach to paints and that huge amount of card swatches you use to compare the paints of different companies.
Congratulations on 15k subscribers 🍾 My favorite video is the Daniel Smith swatch with me video. It inspired me to move into professional grade watercolors. Thanks for all you do here.
My favorite video was Goodbye Quin Gold. I love that color too. And I went on Amazon and quickly order 3 tubes while they still had the original formula. I do love all your videos as I am new to watercolor. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and skills.
Just an fyi, the pigment itself is still available... just not the paint. If you want to learn how to make your own watercolors, you can still have that beautiful, single pigment quin gold! ... but that's a lot of work, so it's understandable if you're not a fan of that idea, haha. I'm currently working on a line of homemade watercolor paints to sell, which will include that pure quin gold, myself. I need to really get on that, as there's a clear hole in the artist's world, and it's just no good. Such a great mixing color can't be impossible to obtain, dang it! Will do my best to perfect my line and get it out there asap. I loved that color so much - can't let it die while there's still pigment available! :P~
Watercolor spotlight light series has been my favorite along with the videos about DS Quin gold, considering we will never see that color again....Congrats on 15k, never doubted it and its only gaining momentum!
Thank you and the Color of Nature for this give-away. I was surprised and happy to see that your top 2 brands match my start-up collection now that I'm into watercolor again after 25 years.
I have so enjoyed watching your channel over the past several months. My favorite was the holiday gift guide because it was so much fun, but really, I like them all.
I love all your videos, I like your succinct way of speaking. My favourite video would probably be the review of sennelier, and I bought my set in the strength of your review. 😆 Thanks for sharing your knowledge! 😆
Congrats on 15k subscribers! Picking one favorite video is kind of hard for me but I do love all your top x videos like this one, top watercolors icks, top brushes, top, etc. It's always fun seeing other people's preferences and finding out about new products and such!
I updated this list for 2019! th-cam.com/video/h0k4LVZkRzk/w-d-xo.html
Hello, Have you include Paul Rubens in this list??
I was today years old when I discovered that I live 20 minutes from the Daniel smith store
Lay off the liquor.
Omg I would kill to live that close to them!
I live in South Africa n the Daniel Smith paints are insanely expensive. But I love them. I pay 16 times more than what u would pay per tube in the US.
There's a Daniel Smith store?!! I'm going to have to find it!
I am a re-beginner having side lined my sketching and watercolor after getting married 42 years ago. Now I have replaced my brushes, purchased some paper and sketch books and diving back in! I cannot pick just one favorite video. I find them all so very informative and I adore the way you present them. Keep up the good work and congrats on 15K!
Denise!! Congrats on these incredible milestones! I am so incredibly happy for you! It’s really difficult to choose my most favorite video of yours, but I do have sentimental attachment to the first video of yours I ever saw. It was your demo for Sennelier with the dryad painting. That one basically opened the floodgates for me to all of your other content. :]
Thank you Arleesha!! Your channel is booming as well, and you're going to catch up in no time! :) I'm so glad to hear that Lunara drew you into the channel. Drawing faces is something I struggle with so that one was pretty special to me too!
Your Swatch With Me: Daniel Smith 72 colors is my favorite, I watched the whole video - over 90 minutes and loved it! I'm a newbie to the watercolor world and have learned so much about the science of watercolors following you. Thanks for sharing your knowledge, talent, & skill with others.
My favorite video was when you talked about Vegan Watercolors, I especially liked how you talked about how animals are treated before they are used in the meat industry. I live in a rural area so I buy meat from a family friend who raises animals because I know that they are treated right there.
LOVE THAT! Thank you so much. That is what bothers me the most, how the animals are treated. I am vegan, so I don't eat meat anyways, and I don't have a problem really with people that eat meat, so long as the animal was treated nicely and not just mass produced, that is the part that makes me upset, and reading how you care about that and actually buy your meat from your friend who you know treats them nicely makes me so happy. Thank you so much!
I really like your "my top five favorite watercolors". It helps me understand the differences in the highlighted colors.
Yay, Daniel Smith! and as for my favorite video (for your giveaway), I have to give it up for the Top 5 Browns video because it got me to buy the Daniel Smith Permanent Brown and I love it so much! I love the Top 5 videos in general because there are mixes you show us I had never considered and they also taught me that some paints may look slightly different out of the tube, but they mix similarly so I don't NEED to buy every color that strikes my fancy. Congrats on the 15K!
Thank you Alejandro, and I'm so glad that you like the permanent brown!! It's such an underrated color!
I love your video exploring every single one of your palettes, and saying a little bit about what went into making them and the different brands of paint. It was so awesome to see all those gorgeous paints.
Congrats on all the milestones!! :D That's really awesome!
Very generous of Colors of Nature to offer a big set like that :)
My favorites videos of yours are all of them, but I love when you show color mixes (like in the Color spotlight series) and we can see some beautiful swatches and how to use colors like PG7. I also love watching you paint animals, it's very calming :)
Thank you so much, Eve! I'm so glad to have gotten to know you through our journey here together!!
I love “the ultimate watercolor paper comparison” video. It was so helpful for a new beginner.
My favorite was your most recent one with the watercolor journals. I ended up buying the small pentel and loved it so much I bought the landscape version about a week later. It was very thorough and not bias like all of your videos! Even though you have your favs, you always give an honest opinion and review. Thank you.
I found your channel by the series of TOP 5 favorites of each color. I have to say since I found it that day I loved each video that talks about mixing, top 5 by color and of course the color spotlights. It is all so usefull when you are just passed experimenting with yr paint and you really want to know why colors and brands perform like they do. I also love all the pigment information. For what I know, you are the only one who has a channel that is so informative on all these topics. And that is the reason why I looooooove your channel. It doesn't stop with reviews, you go way further with it!!!! Congratulations!!!!
Thank you for the kind words Iris!!
White Nights are the best watercolors I have ever painted with so *thumbs up*
Fantastic video! Thanks that really helped a lot. :) this is my favorite video so far, I just found you, and am trying to find some paints to purchase. Keep up the amazing videos, I'll check out your past videos.
Welcome Justin! Thanks so much and I hope you have fun looking through the videos!
Hi Denise, what another excellent video. :)
I broadly agree with your assessment of the various brands and I think your rankings were extremely fair, thoughtful and considered.
You're very fortunate to live on the west coast of the USA and have three wonderful brands right on your doorstep. I know we have spoken before about this but here in Europe, Daniel Smith is so expensive that it is difficult to justify choosing them over other, cheaper and more local brands, even though the Daniel Smith line is so wonderful. One of the reasons Daniel Smith is so expensive over here, aside from the shipping costs and import duties, is that their paints are distributed by just one distributor of paints in Europe, which sells to all the art shops. It is a great shame because this kind of monopoly restricts the choices of artists. I am also suspicious of certain artists telling everyone only to use Daniel Smith and fear they are either being paid or subsidised to promote the brand, even if it is a fantastic manufacturer of paint.
My preference at the moment is for Schmincke watercolours, which, both in Ireland and Austria, are half the price of the likes of Daniel Smith. I had a problem with a pan of Schmincke Quinacridone Red Light and emailed head office in Germany about. They were a joy to deal with and sent me a replacement right away, along with a few other pans of paints.
M. Graham is an incredibly good paint but they are very difficult to find here. One art shop in Hove in the UK stocks M. Graham at a premium price - £16 for the highest series - which I would also find hard to justify. I bought a few tubes of M. Graham from an art shop in Potsdam in Germany, which seems to be one of about three stockists of M. Graham paint in Europe. They are a joy to use and I preserve and treasure them as you do with your Schmincke paints. If I lived in the USA, I would use M. Graham or DS but I am not sure they are worth spending double on, when compared with Schmincke here in Europe.
The quality of Winsor and Newton has decreased in recent years and, as we discussed before, they are a pain in the neck to reactivate when they dry on the palette. Winsor and Newton does state not to leave the paint on the palette to try and recommends that artists should only use tube colour fresh from the tube and pans for when cakes of paint are needed; this seems like a terrible underhanded rip-off, however. This, coupled with the prices you pay for W&N paints in the USA, means it is simply not worth it when you compare the quality of W&N with M. Graham or DS. Winsor and Newton has been sold twice in the last few years, first to a Swedish company and then to a German company, and it is no longer the traditional "British" brand it might once have been, with a royal seal of approval. Most paints are now made in China and the artists' watercolours are made in France. A great shame indeed. W&N are reasonable value here in Europe but there aspects of the brand and the quality of paint in recent years, which frustrate me very much.
Sennelier makes beautiful paints, which are pretty good value in Ireland. They glaze well but are not as intense as the likes of DS. Many artists who use them love them but some have also reported that it takes time to get used to Sennelier paints.
My preference would be as follows:
1. Schmincke
2. M. Graham
3. Daniel Smith
4. Sennelier
5. Winsor and Newton
That's a fine list and assessment Conor! As always, thank you for your thoughtful contributions to the discussion :)
My favourite video of yours was in the colour series for the colour brown. That was SO helpful to me. Thank you.
I love your individual color series 👍🏼 congrats on hitting two milestones and shout out to DS and PO49 I hoarded 4 tubes that should last me the rest of my life. 😉
I think my favourite videos from your channel are the watercolor paint reviews, they are so complete and you explain everything so well.
The reason I love these kind of videos is becauase it's interesting to see how popularity of certain brands changes in different countries :p I can't even remember if I've ever seen Grumbacher in any of the stores I frequent. Van Gogh is almost everywhere, sometimes in stores that don't even specialize in art supplies (good for me because I love them)
my favorite video of all time is your spotlight on mixing blacks it by far has improved my paintings depth
I think my favorite video is the one on DS Quinacridone Gold that was discontinued.
To be honest, I'm surprised you're not at 100k+ subs yet.
I absolutely love your palatte setups, as well as the Color Spotlight series. So glad it's coming back.
Congrats on 15k subs. I wish you many, many thousands more.
For the cracking issue, I mix a small dot of honey with my paint before it dries, it keeps then nice and juicy and makes them flow a lot easier
I’d like to thank you for being honest in your reviews. Also, for giving your reasons as to why you prefer or don’t prefer a particular brand. I’d also like to applaud the companies who choose to allow you to review their products, knowing that you are not afraid to say what is good or not so good about their paint.. it shows me that the company has a great deal of integrity and that they may actually care about the customers wishes and needs.
Thank you
My favourite video... Hm... I'd say the White Nights review, because I was waiting for it for soooo long or the Rembrandt review because you taught me the existence of brightners, which was something completely new to me... But nah... I think my favourite one is your top 5 blues, not only because it is my favourite color, but because the blues from M. Graham magnetized me, just by watching them alone, and I blame you for my new addiction now... lol
I'd have to say my favorite video of yours would be the watercolor paper comparison video(s)! Most TH-cam videos only compared a few papers to each other, and they didn't actually paint on the paper and test it in every important aspect as you did, and it REALLY helped me to pick and choose a few new ones to try out, including a few I had never heard of before! Your videos are all really helpful, but I just loved this one! :)
Really love our videos overall, but if I were to point out WHY I think I enjoy them so much, I'd probably say that whatever you're talking about you know a lot about the given topic to then give your informed opinion, making it very easy to not only get an opinion but also learn something from watching your videos, not to mention your art is absolutely beautiful :)
Thank you so much for the kind words!
I love the favorites series. My favorite video is the watercolor paper comparison video. That's how I found your channel and it has SO many papers and it's a very useful video.
I absolutely loves this video, Denise!
Thanks Meda!
My favorite videos on your channel have to be the swatches you did recently, But prior to those I love that you are able to take your love and compassion and amazing knowledge for animals AND watercolor and smoosh it all into your awesome channel. We are all so much wiser on both subjects because of you. In the beginning when you were an awesome mixologist (is that a word?) teaching us all about our pigments and how they behave together to your wealth of knowledge in all things endangered animals- what is not to love? I cannot possibly pick just one video. Please never stop doing this :) You are one of my favorite channels
Thank you so much for this incredibly helpful list, Denise! :D there are so many wonderful paints to try!! Anyway, my favorite video of yours (that I have seen so far) is actually TWO videos. I have watched and re-watched part one and two of your Daniel Smith swatching videos. Because lately I have been obsessed with learning as much as I can about Daniel Smith paints.
I really was inspired by your Top 10 Watercolor Brands because you were specific about each company’s color permanence, washes ,and layering abilities. As a retired Art Teacher I am just getting started back into painting watercolors and need to be reeducated on different brands before I spend any money.I love all your TH-cam shows but this one was to the point .Please keep helping artist to expand their creativity.Thanks AGAIN, Mary Hobby
I really enjoy painting with Schmincke Horadam! Also it’s very convenient since I live in Germany :D
My favorite video currently is your 2018 watercolor palette tour. Watercolor collections are just so mesmerizing and I aim to have as diverse as a collection as you some day! Right now I use Grumbacher Academy, and I'm so happy to see them in your top list. But I'm currently saving for a small set of Daniel Smith to try out!
Wow, you’re at 25k just 3 months after reaching 15k! WOOHOO!
Awesome review! I love watching your videos for ideas for which brands/colors to try next, plus they are so colorful and relaxing that they always put me in a good mood. It's hard to choose a favorite, but I really enjoyed the video about Schminkes' Academy line. I didn't realize it was such a good quality paint for student grade, and I'm really excited to (hopefully) try them out one day.
My all-time favorite video of yours, the one I keep going back to, is the one of you setting up your porcelain pallet. It's honestly just so satisfying seeing all the swatch cards lined around the pallet, and watching you fill them all with paint, and talking about the paints, I just. I also love the Top 5 Colors series because you show how each color mixes, and having a limited pallet, I like to see what I can get from one paint. I love all your videos, I learned almost everything I know about watercolor from you, so thank you for making them.
Thank you for the kind words and support LJT! :)
lol I only know ONE place where to buy M. Graham in my country, and it's an online store. Same with Schmincke (different store), and Holbein.
you were so lucky！ i live in hong kong we just hv w&n,holbein, Da Vinci and some of the Asian brand.Is really expensive to buy Daniel smith and m.graham online
My favorite video from your channel is actually when you tested all the watercolor paper because you made me save a lot of money with your tests. It was really informative and help me a lot !
i personally think the grumbacher academy paints are a huge downgrade from cotman. i've found my experience with cotman rather pleasant, since i think their only issue is the vibrancy. the grumbachers are too chalky for my taste.
After seeing the new Cotman formulation, I'd probably agree. Mine were SO hard and difficult to use, but my sister just got a set and her Cotmans are lovely. Not sure when the change happened, but I'd be more willing to try the new set out!
Congratulations on the 15k and the Patreon milestone!! This made my day! I'm super happy and excited right now!
Finding one favorite video is so hard. I really love the Color Spotlight and top 5 colors series. If I had to choose one I think it will be your Top Favorite Browns. I started picking colors for a professional set last december and since I'm still working on it. I reference this video all the time as I love painting portraits. I think it's my most watched video on TH-cam.
I wander if winsor& newton professional watercolor fits in your top 10? despite they are really expensive in America. thank you,I really love your reviews.
Hi Erin, no they are not in my Top 10. I have more info about them in a separate review :) They're just too overpriced here for what they are.
In Liquid Color please let me know how much does WN cost in america? Bc in my country it is not too expensive
Hằng Phan in the US a 24 half pan set is $122.88. They do have a half pan set with cotman that is 12 half pans for $15.89.
Skylar Silver in my country 24 half pan is nearly 100 dollars
Hằng Phan Oh ... that is better
My favorite video on your channel is your M. Graham watercolor review, because it's how I discovered your channel! Thank you so much for all of your reviews, demos, and educational videos, and for putting your wonderful animal art out for us to see.
All of the watercolors that are mention in the video sell in my country (online) cost more than 100
I love the compare and contrast with your top 10 watercolors because as a new beginner I am torn torn torn on which colors to go with. Thank you
omg. i have been saying “se nil yer” in my whole entire life and no one’s been correcting me
Hey, we all have blind spots. I used to say Schminck-EE, instead of the correct Schminck-UH. It happens!
Galagya I know Schmincke’s pronunciation, but it’s just the SENNELIER!! I’ve been asking salesmen/salesladies for “senilyer” for straight months
@@eggfish1085 Yep, point is we all have those blind spots. Don't worry about it, lol. I get your frustration, though!
I agree it's better for people to let people know about faux pas, though. I am fine with a short, awkward conversation if it means I'll stop looking silly into the indefinite future!
My favorite video is this one. I am just starting on my watercolor journey and you have helped me so much.
What about winsor and newton and holbein i think that holbein is better than mission gold
Hằng Phan I mean, it’s her list, she can put whatever she wants in it.
Anh Huỳnh Kim Nguyễn yeah and I realize that she hasn’t tried Holbein before( bc I can’t find any video that she review about holbein)
I have several Holbein videos, and my reason for not including W&N or Holbein is that they're both unreasonably expensive where I live. The paints themselves are fine.
In Liquid Color really i have surbrised your channel for a long time ( i think so) but i haven’t seen it yeah Holbein is also expensive in my country but WN is quite normal
@@hangphan9774 Here you go: th-cam.com/channels/nh5k3c1miCbQlt0Q8iXePw.htmlsearch?query=holbein
My favourite video was definitely the jaguar painting. The expression of the animal was just amazing. I love all your watercolour painting videos though as I'm just starting out and love picking up tips! :) Congrats on 15k!
I’m a fairly recent subscriber, but I was drawn in by your swatch videos (I just started my own binder!) and I loved your color showcase series so I’m glad that’s coming back for another round!
Congrats on 15k!
I've loved your Top 5/10 series, but I think my favorite video of yours was when you did the Creative Watercolor Swatches where you drew different little illustrations for each color. It was really unique and inspiring, and it'd definitely be cool if you did more swatches or illustrations like that in future videos!
Congrats on 15k!!! My favorite videos of yours are the 'Top 5/10 series because I learn SO much about pigments from you.
My favorite all time video/es of yours is the color spotlight!! I'm kind of new to watercolor, I took a class back in college and used Reeves watercolor and didn't have much knowledge with colors and pigments. So when I stumbled on your color spotlight I was hooked! you're a wealth of information and I am very thankful that you decided to share that with us. ❤
my favorite videos are your color mixing videos because they inspire me to get creative and paint more ! thanks for being awesome 💛 c:
your color spotlights and suggested supplies ( brushes, etc ) are videos i AlWAYS come back to
This videos a favorite for sure! You're very thorough with your explanations if each paints and it'll help many of us decide what paints we should buy based on our style if painting.
I love seeing all the beautiful colors in all of your swatching videos. You go into such depth for all your videos. Your channel is a vital resource to any watercolor artist.
All of these paints are so beautiful, and I really appreciate all the thought and effort that went into the explanations of the pros and cons of each, as well as the demonstrations of how they go down on paper. I think this is actually my favorite video of yours. I'm a beginner at watercolours who has been looking for a video like this so I have some idea of what to go for when I decide to upgrade my paints. I also enjoy seeing videos where you do illustrations, you're very talented and it's nice to see some of your work.
Denise, your videos have been so helpful. It's your approach, very organized and logical - just the antidote to my hit and miss unmethod.
I especially loved your "How to make simple swatch cards" tutorial because now I can find my way around my collection of around 80 colors that grew over a number of years. I actually never knew which colors to choose until I spent the time to make those swatch cards and arrange them in a folder. I also learned the importance of pigment numbers. With an added bonus of improving my technique wash after wash on those cards. That video was one of my top five tutorials ever.
Thank you.
Thank you so much for the kind words Jen! I'm so glad the content is helpful! I hope to keep making relevant content for you :)
I'm looking forward to seeing more of them
My favorite video of yours is probably your watercolor collection. Maybe it appeals to my hoarder instincts, but it also really helped me set up my favorite few sets!
Your Top 5s (-ish? Lol) have taught me so much. I learned more from your Top 5 color series than you could imagine and use it as a reference in my shopping now. Thank you for sharing!
My favorite video is your top 5 watercolor journals. I’m a big journal collector and I loved watching your thoughts and reviews of them!
I've really liked all your top 5 videos and found them all helpful. My favorite, and it helped me make some choices, was the top 5 watercolor sketchbooks video. Thanks for all you do and thanks for the 15k contest!
The three color challenge, your tiger watercolor painting was the video that made me subscribe. So excited that you keep on growing on this platform and that you keep posting all sorts of videos!
Congrats on the milestone. I see only growth in your future. I love the one you did for your new collaboration. Thank you
I just recently discovered your channel and binge watched almost all of your videos.
My most favorite video has to be the Daniel Smith swatch video. I really enjoyed watching you swatch all those colors and just listen to you rambling about them^^
Congrats on that milestone^^
Being new to watercolors my fav video so far has been your top 5 watercolor journals and your top 10 watercolor brushes. Thank you for providing your honest reviews. I love to watch your videos. 😊
Your drawing/painting of the horse was beautiful, as well as your video today. Thank you so much!
My favorite of your video is definitely the color spotlight. I learned so much from that series and am glad it will be returning. Thanks D., love your channel
I have only recently found this channel but I am in love with your swatch videos. I not only find them mesmerizing but so interesting and the information you provide is extensive. On the whole though it's your enthusiasm and love for the topic that makes all the videos lovely to watch.
Great review of different brands. I like all your videos, but most recently I liked the palette tour and the color series.
This is just the video I needed right now! I've been delving deep into so many watercolorists on TH-cam while getting back into these beautiful paints... I dusted off my Cotmans while still learning the ropes, but it's so interesting to learn about people's different opinions on various professional grade paints! My personal favourite video (for the giveaway entry) is your 12 colours for travel palettes - as someone who is learning the medium with experience in other areas of art & has a background of colour theory etc, it's really interesting to know which exact colours you find the most useful & versatile!
My favorite video is your Hanamule review!!! You showed me that the bamboo mixed media paper is exaaaaactly what I am looking for in water color paper. Smooth, but handles layers/glazing and wet on wet. You are one of the first people I have seen review it properly.
Congratulations on your achievement. I think I was one of your first thousand subscribers. You’ve definitely abetted many watercolor purchases of mine this year. I think my favorite video was Purple.
I've enjoyed your mixing videos and the top 5 color series, but my fav video was your M Graham review. That's what convinced me to take the plunge and try a few. (Steve Mitchell helped, but you pushed me over the lovely edge).
Yay congrats on 15K! My favourite is the colour mixing video you did a while back. It really helped me out when I started learning how to paint with watercolours! :)
Great Review, Denise. I soooo agree about White Nights paints. They really are neither professional nor student grade, but I totally agree with you rating them number 1 in Student grade. I still love using them to play around and create quick little paintings with lots of color!
They're really wonderful little paints! And there's a sale on Jacksons right now - they're less than $2 USD each! :D
I highly appreciate how you decided to include the vegeterian watercolors as well and not only that, but you also put them in a giveaway :D
Enjoy all your reviews. My favorite is the Winsor Newton review as it is the brand that I use and I would like to branch out to other brands. Also like you Endangered series, on the Elephant. It was really good. Thanks, Denise for your info on so many products.
Makes me happy!!!!! I practice with student grade and will use my daniel smith later on....
Concrats on the 15k milestone! I am glad to hear that the color spotlight is coming back because that is my favorite. I have learned so much from watching your videos. Thanks!
Congratulations on all your landmarks! I very happy that the colour spotlight vids will be coming back, because I really loved all of them. They are what made me subscribe to your channel! Yay!
Thanks for being here for so long!
Congrats on the milestones! My favorite videos are the color-specific and also the White Nights review.
I love all of your videos, but my favorites are the paint reviews and the Swatch With Mes. And the color spotlights. And I love the ones that feature your own art.
This isn’t narrowing it down much huh.
I love the way you communicate both your knowledge and your passion, without ever getting stodgy or preachy. Your videos are so much fun to listen to and watch.
my favorite video from your channel was the windsor and newton pocketplus review because its the video that helped my to decide on my first set of watercolors and its the first video that introduced me to your channel.
Congratulations on 15,000! Thank you for your reviews and tutorials -- so hard to choose a favorite. Your watercolor journal video was extremely helpful!
I really appreciate how well planned, informative and filmed your videos are. They are a delight to watch. I really love the color mixing series, as my theory is weak. The color mixing purple video gives great insight, because mixes often turn brown. it really made me understand the need for seemingly unrelated colors in one's palette.
Hi Denise!! Thank you for this fantastic video! So helpful and informative in deciding what to buy.
Congratulations for the 15K subscribers! You deserve it.
It is hard to choose one particular favorite video from you in the channel, but it is probably the color spotlight series, especially the Quinacridone Rose; simply because it is one of my favorite colors/pigment to work with.
I really really enjoy your color mixing videos, I learn so much from them! Especially the greens!
Honestly I LOVE your 2018 watercolor tour! I am seriously addicted to watching other peoples watercolor collection videos c:
Nice review! I'm super new to watercolor, tho I always liked painting. but I'm learning a lot about the technical part (granulation, pigments, etc.). I haven't watched a lot of your videos yet but I really liked the 2018 favorite palettes one, enough that I bought a Schmincke Akademie palette right after I watched it! Can't wait to get it and start working with it!
I loved both your swatch with me videos on Daniel Smith as well as your review of White Knights. I appreciated that you acknowledged that White Knights is a professional quality watercolor and is so very affordable. I think that right now it’s really the best value for someone serious about watercolor, but simply can’t afford the other price points. Keep up the great work!
Hard to choose only one favorite video. I think any of your color spotlight video could be a favorite. I enjoy the way you show us what the color can do, what colors you can mix with them and all their other secrets. I also really enjoy your scientific approach to paints and that huge amount of card swatches you use to compare the paints of different companies.
Congratulations on 15k subscribers 🍾 My favorite video is the Daniel Smith swatch with me video. It inspired me to move into professional grade watercolors. Thanks for all you do here.
My favorite video was Goodbye Quin Gold. I love that color too. And I went on Amazon and quickly order 3 tubes while they still had the original formula. I do love all your videos as I am new to watercolor. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and skills.
Just an fyi, the pigment itself is still available... just not the paint. If you want to learn how to make your own watercolors, you can still have that beautiful, single pigment quin gold!
... but that's a lot of work, so it's understandable if you're not a fan of that idea, haha. I'm currently working on a line of homemade watercolor paints to sell, which will include that pure quin gold, myself. I need to really get on that, as there's a clear hole in the artist's world, and it's just no good. Such a great mixing color can't be impossible to obtain, dang it! Will do my best to perfect my line and get it out there asap. I loved that color so much - can't let it die while there's still pigment available! :P~
Watercolor spotlight light series has been my favorite along with the videos about DS Quin gold, considering we will never see that color again....Congrats on 15k, never doubted it and its only gaining momentum!
Thank you and the Color of Nature for this give-away. I was surprised and happy to see that your top 2 brands match my start-up collection now that I'm into watercolor again after 25 years.
I have so enjoyed watching your channel over the past several months. My favorite was the holiday gift guide because it was so much fun, but really, I like them all.
I love all your videos, I like your succinct way of speaking. My favourite video would probably be the review of sennelier, and I bought my set in the strength of your review. 😆 Thanks for sharing your knowledge! 😆
Congrats on 15k subscribers!
Picking one favorite video is kind of hard for me but I do love all your top x videos like this one, top watercolors icks, top brushes, top, etc. It's always fun seeing other people's preferences and finding out about new products and such!