I learned so much from this video thanks to your great teaching and in-depth analasys. I think Stabilo Carbothelo are for me due to the price-quality ratio. Caran are definitely amazing but they are almost double the price now so it's hard to justify the investment considering that great results can be achieved even with the mid-range offerings. I'd stay clear from cretacolor because of the snaping you mentioned.
Brilliant review. I was really happy to hear you say that you couldn't be bothered to sit and sharpen them for ages with a blade as I feel the same way.
I don't speak English very well but you understand almost everything. And it's nice to see your videos because you're direct and very objective with art supplies. Thanks!!!
Jason, thank you so much for your marvelous art instruction, and comparison, videos. I so appreciate the time you take to make detailed art samples explaining what you are teaching. Just watched your pastel pencil review--it was thorough, fair, honest, visually effective, and informative both in pencil info, price, etc., and how you feel they are to work with. You opinion matters a great deal to a great many of us budding artists. Thanks again! God bless! PS: Please keep making these wonderful videos! Please never stop creating your amazing wildlife art! So beautiful!!!
I have a full set of Faber castell Pitts .. still getting used to them but I am glad to know they are good choice .. I am curious about the pastel papers, I still haven't found the one that fits me..
I watched this video over a year ago. It always stayed with me. Now that I'm ready to buy I have watched it again and decided on Carb Othello. Thanks so much for this in depth info!!
Thanks for all the information. Saves me some time not to mention $$$ You can spend a lot in this pastel media before you find out what works for you. Thanks again.
Hello Jason, did you use the Conte a Paris in the meantime? I am asking because I am considering buying them because of their vibrant colors and the feel of them in your hands, they are quite large. Thank you for all the wonderful work you do!
thank you for the information, I nearly bought some of the caran d'Ache pastels last week end at an art fair but now I think I'll try the Pitt pastels as they are a little firmer.
thank you for the in depth review. I'm a beginner in the pencil realm and I am starting to research pastel pencils and looking to purchase a set to use.
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I picked up the FC but I feel limited with the 60 shades. I do a lot of portraits so based on your findings the CD may be nice for skin tones. I will probably add to my set with the CD. Very helpful.
That was so helpful, I can't thank you enough! The video on the paper too. Like you, I tried pastels and gave up because I didn't like the results, then I saw the difference in your paper video. Your videos are wonderful and you're a good teacher!
Great review! I have a set of the FC Pitt Pastels but just don't love them as I do their other products. I'm just trying Koh-I-nor giaconda pastel pencils and so far I'm wowed by them. Superb pigment and feel softer than the Pitt pastel pencils which can be scratchy at times. I have a Carbothello but it feels very chalky so still on the fence about that one! I use mine over Conte Sticks or Pan Pastels both of which I love, so hoping the Koh-I-nor live up to my initial impressions.
I was also very pleasantly surprised by the Giaconda set by Koh-I-Nor. Wonderful to work with. They were actually the ones that got me to pay more attention to pastel art supplies. I definitely recommend them.
I have a Gioconda set for a decade or so now, used them quite a lot once I got them, the color range is ok, worked really well for what I used them (muted palette on gray paper), but felt a bit weak for full color drawings on brightly colored non-abrasive papers.
Thank you so much! I currently use Caran D-Ache but aam looking for a harder and less expensive choice and Carbothello is going on order today! You are the BEST!
Thanks for this review! I read one artist who said they used to use Stabilo but now use the Faber Castell pastel pencils because he doesn't have to apply fixative to the latter. What's your experience? If I can get away without using fixative that would be great since I tend to do my work in books...
I have Derwent pastel pencils from 17 years ago… When I recently decided to start using them again, I bought some more open stock. They are significantly different in formula. I really wish they would’ve kept the formula from 17 years ago, it is so much smoother and richer and texture. Now I’m trying to find something close to that. Thank you for the comparison review
a friend gave me a vintage set of carb othello pencils, probably from the 50's... Im not a pastel artist or even good at drawing but I do like to do mixed media and sometimes I color in small areas and i just love the carb othellos for blending. Unlike regular colored pencils, I can blend these so easily, i feel I get a more professional look and like I said, I can not draw a lick lol I have a youtube channel as well where I do mostly mixed media art. Thanks for your detailed comparison. I also have the creatacolor pencils that I had gotten from a 2nd hand shop and they dont work nearly as well and i cant use them anyway because i cant seem to sharpen them... ironically, neither could you lol Thanks again.
I wish someone could donate me a set of pastel pencils. Art suplies in South Africa are not so easy to come by and those that you do get, are so expensive. For me, working with pastels are just a dream.
Stabilo if you like full coverage effect and a soft pencil. It really depends on what look you are going for . Some people have different preferences. Derwent nice as well but have have a hard time finding a sharpener for it unless I use a knife. I usually lay down the sketch with a harder lead then go to a softer pencil as I add the finishing colors/layers.
Good review. My husband gave me a small set of Carb Othellos for my birthday and I have had a good bit of luck with them. I have a few others in browns and pale colors. I prefer to use a harder pastel stick like Nupastels, for the initial layer, and then work with softer pastels over the top. You can also get good blending from using sanded paper to draw on and alcohol with a bristle brush (assuming the smell doesn't knock you out.) Don't dismiss Cretacolor too quickly though, they make a really good line of what they call "colored charcoal." They are really thick and more like colored chalk but they come in beautiful darker earth tones and are great for rough sketching because they erase very well, which I prefer because I do portraits and figure drawing.
Caran D'ache are generally the best in most art products but you pay a premium price. Personally I feel it is better to get 2 different brand sets of the other as opposed to one Caran Dache unless you make a living being a pastelist and only use them for details. I prefer to do pan pastel base, then unison or similar soft pastel then pencils for details. If you ever try velour you need to use the harder pastels such as Conte for the most part, then maybe finish with generals soft, refining details with pencils. Conte also do pastel pencils which are good too.
Thanks for the results, as a beginner I was leaning towards Derwent ( as I have their watercolour pencils ) but, heard a lot about Stabilo & Faber Castell & of course CaranD’Ache but, after your video am back to Derwent. What would you advise? Can they all be sharpened with a pencil sharpener? ( or craft knife.) Thanks. Sorry I meant as a set to buy, seem to think you’re a mind reader, the Derwent that is!
snapping during sharpening was the same reason I stop buying Cretacolor. there is no point to bye them if they keep breaking even when sharpening with a knife... it's a shame as I really liked Rotel Fett.
Uh i was about to spend 133 eur on the full cretacolor set instead of 75 eur on the full carbothello. Cretacolor has 12 more pencils. Still would have been a bad deal. So thanks alot for that video !
It might be the most expensive pastels are less dependent on the perfect paper. They might have an additive for that. I have heard it is pumice. Id like to know what the ingredients are.i cant even make up my mind to try pencils! Only have three brands sticks.
I like Derwent and Carbothello. I tried out some Fabre Castell but like the other two better. My Derwent set is older, and Derwent has reformulated to be softer, but I don't know about that. Dakotapastels.com is a great source for all things pastel-with fair prices.
Great review! I’m brand new to this medium. Just ordered my very first set of pastels and trying to figure out the rest. Because I feel like I can’t wait another minute to dive in. I’m a watercolor painter with acrylic as my 2nd favorite. I appreciate videos like this. Now I need to figure out paper, storage, sharpener, and fixative. So excited!❤️
Great video Jason! 😆 I have the 72 set derwent that I got a couple of weeks ago on dick Blick for $85 USD and the carbothello 60 set on amazon for $60 usd arrived 3 days ago. I was happy to see there was some different colors between the two sets that I wanted. The carbothello were also list as being used with water to. I am using both with a pan pastels under painting. I am happy with both so far and I have used my derwent super point manual sharpener with no issues. 😉
Great comparison! It's incredible how one can notice the 5 bucks difference between the Faber Castel against the Carbothello and Derwent. I'm 15 min into the video and, to me, the Faber Castell seems like the second softest after the Caran D'ache, obviously.
Great comparison, thank you. I have owned both Carbothellos and Fabers. I preferred the Carbos because they were softer and easier to blend than the Fabers.
thanks so much! A few years ago I started in pastels & got the CarbOthello set. I haven't had opportunity to use them much due to work load responsibilities. But I'm so happy to know I chose well! I attended a workshop by a wonderful expert (Tom Christopher) where we learned how to tone in an underpainting with watercolor. He used Art paper. After watching your previous pastel videos I looked up the paper you are using and see that it is also appropriate for a watercolor underpainting. THANKS for all your great info!
Thank you for this review, even though it's fairly old. I have been reading reviews and opinions on pastel pencils for the past several months had pretty much settled on ordering the Carbothello set (by reviews and by the little four pencil set that I got many years ago in high school.) Finally got them this week (60 pencil set) and I'm so absolutely in love with them! After having fun with them the last few days, I'm glad to have seen your review. Thank you!
You won't go wrong with Carbothello. They blend really well and are highly pigmented. I find that a rice paper stump is the best for blending these and charcoal as it does not pick up too much of the medium off the paper.
How are the Carb-Othello Pastel Pencil, is that the same thing you have on here or is it different? I'm about to buy a set, and want a great set. Thank you for great video very informative!!
I recently heard of your channel. My main medium is graphite and colored pencils. I own prismacolor, Derwent Inktense, the 24 set of FC Polychromos, a few open stock FC Goldfaber & open stock Caran D’ache Supracolor. I own two small sets of Rembrandt and a few open stock Sennelier pastels. ( I love them both) I enjoy having a pencil format for better details. Thank you for the comparison video. I’m going to go with either the Derwent of Faber-Castell. I can see adding a few open stock Caran D’Ache as well.
Thank you. Very useful. I was wondering if I should buy the cretacolor 36 set for 50% off. I tried a couple in the shop and felt they were too hard, however, having almost no experience with this medium I thought I would ask the internet and I'm happy I did. I generally prefer softer materials so definitely not getting yhe cretacolors.
I'm trying to decide to start with pastels, but can you tell me what General's Pastel pencils are like compared to the cretacolor pencils? So far they seem dry and brittle, but I know General's makes pretty good products. Thanks
Thank you Jason just what I needed today, I am not new to pastel but pastel pencils I am new and struggled listening to all the different opinions, I bought derwent (arriving tomor) and someone today said no so looking again and your video convinced me I bought the right ones, excited :)
Mix and match your colours, don't stick to one set. If you like how a colour goes down, buy that pencil. Start with a 60 set and then buy as you need from different sets. CD are too expensive and you can buy singles as you need.
I really enjoyed this video. Having smaller (24) sets of Carbothello and Pitt, I’m looking to get the Derwent 72 next...but it seems there are two different kinds: the 4mm (with the parrot on the tin), and the 4.5mm (with the lion on the tin). Can you tell me which one you reviewed? Amazon has much better reviews for the 4mm, but I liked your results - and your opinion carries more weight.
In the future it would be easier to have the names rewritten closer to the colouring sampling. We can’t see/remember which is which as your going cuz the names are off screen. No biggy cuz we can get a notepad out; just takes away the focus is all. Your vids are excellent and thank you for them! Being on a budget I gotta do some research before commuting to expenses lol. Cheers from 🇨🇦. Happy Spring too!🌸
As someone who has used the Caran D'ache pastels for a long time they are superb and well worth the investment for professionals. They are more expensive for a number of reasons all of which fine artist's will appreciate and recognize for their value. Caran D'ache use the same method in making their pigments as the best soft pastel manufactures. They begin with single pigments of the highest quality and finest grade. They use the least binder that they can while retaining the pastel feel, hence more dust. The wood that makes up the pencil is sourced for it's quality and resilience to shaping. As to the 84 colors this gives the artist the ability to grade to a far finer degree than with any of the other manufactures, especially when blended using specific techniques and methods. The Caran D'ache pastel pencils also correspond closely to Sennelier soft pastels and combine seamlessly as both products have single pigments and are free of unnecessary fillers. If your work is going to define you long after you have gone then you want the best materials and Caran D'ache are cost effective when you consider that 200 years from now with the correct storage they will still showcase your skills for the world to see. If you don't sell your work buy the next best or the one that has that certain feel that you enjoy using and that compliments your artistic style. Thanks for sharing this very nice review.
lots of the top pastel manufactures have great lightfasness. It is not required to spend HUNDREDS of pounds on a set of the most expensive pencils to enjoy creating art with pastel pencils.
I was gifted a 90 piece wood boxed set of Derwent this afternoon - I came to UA-cam to help me figure them out, as I extremely rarely ever used pastels (wax) in the past -- and although an earlier review had the man hating the brand, and I was chuckling whilst listening to him, I liked your review better as it was better opinionated by comparison. I look forward regardless to trying these pencils in the near future. Thank you Joe Guelph, Ontario
It's really interesting to watch this five years on, having watched a few of your process videos. You are still using (and recommending) the Stabilo Carbothello and the Faber-Castell Pitt, with a small handful of others bought as singles. 👍
Learn from me - Pastel drawing / painting and more -
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I keep trying to blow the dust away from my phone xD
I learned so much from this video thanks to your great teaching and in-depth analasys. I think Stabilo Carbothelo are for me due to the price-quality ratio. Caran are definitely amazing but they are almost double the price now so it's hard to justify the investment considering that great results can be achieved even with the mid-range offerings. I'd stay clear from cretacolor because of the snaping you mentioned.
Brilliant review. I was really happy to hear you say that you couldn't be bothered to sit and sharpen them for ages with a blade as I feel the same way.
I don't speak English very well but you understand almost everything. And it's nice to see your videos because you're direct and very objective with art supplies. Thanks!!!
Jason, thank you so much for your marvelous art instruction, and comparison, videos. I so appreciate the time you take to make detailed art samples explaining what you are teaching. Just watched your pastel pencil review--it was thorough, fair, honest, visually effective, and informative both in pencil info, price, etc., and how you feel they are to work with. You opinion matters a great deal to a great many of us budding artists. Thanks again! God bless! PS: Please keep making these wonderful videos! Please never stop creating your amazing wildlife art! So beautiful!!!
I have a full set of Faber castell Pitts .. still getting used to them but I am glad to know they are good choice .. I am curious about the pastel papers, I still haven't found the one that fits me..
If sound is anything to judge these pencils by then the Stabilo is the one that sounds better
I watched this video over a year ago. It always stayed with me. Now that
I'm ready to buy I have watched it again and decided on Carb Othello. Thanks so much for this in depth info!!
Absolutely fantastic review! Covered everything I was wondering about. Thank you so much. This has saved me countless hours and a lot of money.
Thanks for all the information. Saves me some time not to mention $$$ You can spend a lot in this pastel media before you find out what works for you. Thanks again.
Hello Jason, did you use the Conte a Paris in the meantime? I am asking because I am considering buying them because of their vibrant colors and the feel of them in your hands, they are quite large. Thank you for all the wonderful work you do!
thank you for the information, I nearly bought some of the caran d'Ache pastels last week end at an art fair but now I think I'll try the Pitt pastels as they are a little firmer.
thank you for the in depth review. I'm a beginner in the pencil realm and I am starting to research pastel pencils and looking to purchase a set to use.
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I picked up the FC but I feel limited with the 60 shades. I do a lot of portraits so based on your findings the CD may be nice for skin tones. I will probably add to my set with the CD. Very helpful.
yes I agree :)
This was an excellent review! Thank you very much!
That was so helpful, I can't thank you enough! The video on the paper too. Like you, I tried pastels and gave up because I didn't like the results, then I saw the difference in your paper video. Your videos are wonderful and you're a good teacher!
Great review! I have a set of the FC Pitt Pastels but just don't love them as I do their other products. I'm just trying Koh-I-nor giaconda pastel pencils and so far I'm wowed by them. Superb pigment and feel softer than the Pitt pastel pencils which can be scratchy at times. I have a Carbothello but it feels very chalky so still on the fence about that one! I use mine over Conte Sticks or Pan Pastels both of which I love, so hoping the Koh-I-nor live up to my initial impressions.
I was also very pleasantly surprised by the Giaconda set by Koh-I-Nor. Wonderful to work with. They were actually the ones that got me to pay more attention to pastel art supplies. I definitely recommend them.
I have a Gioconda set for a decade or so now, used them quite a lot once I got them, the color range is ok, worked really well for what I used them (muted palette on gray paper), but felt a bit weak for full color drawings on brightly colored non-abrasive papers.
Thank you so much! I currently use Caran D-Ache but aam looking for a harder and less expensive choice and Carbothello is going on order today! You are the BEST!
Me too!
@Hang Art Studio yes i have that alot too
This was VERY useful, Jason. Thank you. I have been considering using pastel pencils and was confused as to which brand. Great.
Your review is excellent! I think you were very fair! Thank you so much. I have subscribed to your channel.
Thanks for this review! I read one artist who said they used to use Stabilo but now use the Faber Castell pastel pencils because he doesn't have to apply fixative to the latter. What's your experience? If I can get away without using fixative that would be great since I tend to do my work in books...
I love Derwent the most🎨❤️
I have Derwent pastel pencils from 17 years ago… When I recently decided to start using them again, I bought some more open stock. They are significantly different in formula. I really wish they would’ve kept the formula from 17 years ago, it is so much smoother and richer and texture. Now I’m trying to find something close to that. Thank you for the comparison review
@@creativesolutionstoart try carbothello, they are soft and smooth
a friend gave me a vintage set of carb othello pencils, probably from the 50's... Im not a pastel artist or even good at drawing but I do like to do mixed media and sometimes I color in small areas and i just love the carb othellos for blending. Unlike regular colored pencils, I can blend these so easily, i feel I get a more professional look and like I said, I can not draw a lick lol I have a youtube channel as well where I do mostly mixed media art. Thanks for your detailed comparison. I also have the creatacolor pencils that I had gotten from a 2nd hand shop and they dont work nearly as well and i cant use them anyway because i cant seem to sharpen them... ironically, neither could you lol Thanks again.
I wish someone could donate me a set of pastel pencils. Art suplies in South Africa are not so easy to come by and those that you do get, are so expensive. For me, working with pastels are just a dream.
I am also in South Africa and always feel disappointed by how we can't get art supplies with an easy reach
Me too
Stabilo if you like full coverage effect and a soft pencil. It really depends on what look you are going for . Some people have different preferences. Derwent nice as well but have have a hard time finding a sharpener for it unless I use a knife. I usually lay down the sketch with a harder lead then go to a softer pencil as I add the finishing colors/layers.
Good review. My husband gave me a small set of Carb Othellos for my birthday and I have had a good bit of luck with them. I have a few others in browns and pale colors. I prefer to use a harder pastel stick like Nupastels, for the initial layer, and then work with softer pastels over the top. You can also get good blending from using sanded paper to draw on and alcohol with a bristle brush (assuming the smell doesn't knock you out.) Don't dismiss Cretacolor too quickly though, they make a really good line of what they call "colored charcoal." They are really thick and more like colored chalk but they come in beautiful darker earth tones and are great for rough sketching because they erase very well, which I prefer because I do portraits and figure drawing.
Caran D'ache are generally the best in most art products but you pay a premium price. Personally I feel it is better to get 2 different brand sets of the other as opposed to one Caran Dache unless you make a living being a pastelist and only use them for details. I prefer to do pan pastel base, then unison or similar soft pastel then pencils for details. If you ever try velour you need to use the harder pastels such as Conte for the most part, then maybe finish with generals soft, refining details with pencils. Conte also do pastel pencils which are good too.
thanks for the info
@ Kyomii
What is pan pastel base?
Jason, is it ok to combine the brands? Perhaps creta would be ok if you are looking for sharp lines? How do you feel about pan pastels?
yes perfect to combine - pan pastels arriving soon to test :)
Thanks for the results, as a beginner I was leaning towards Derwent ( as I have their watercolour pencils ) but, heard a lot about Stabilo & Faber Castell & of course CaranD’Ache but, after your video am back to Derwent. What would you advise? Can they all be sharpened with a pencil sharpener? ( or craft knife.) Thanks. Sorry I meant as a set to buy, seem to think you’re a mind reader, the Derwent that is!
I use the Pitt almost exclusively although I have some Derwent. Now thinking I should get a few carbothello and caran d'ache....
I am just beginning to wet my feet with pastel pencils and I think your advice choice is the way to go. Thanks so much....❤️
Absolutely fantastic comparison review!! Thanks so much! You've really saved me time and money.
such grace in his analysis, superb
Most helpful review .thank you
Hi thank you for giving review I was actually thinking to buy one. It was helpful 🙂
snapping during sharpening was the same reason I stop buying Cretacolor. there is no point to bye them if they keep breaking even when sharpening with a knife... it's a shame as I really liked Rotel Fett.
Wonderful review and comparison! Really thorough! Thank you.
Uh i was about to spend 133 eur on the full cretacolor set instead of 75 eur on the full carbothello. Cretacolor has 12 more pencils. Still would have been a bad deal. So thanks alot for that video !
I have the larger set of carbothello pencils. i am having a breaking issue though, when sharpening the pencils. maybe the sharpener?
Thank you so much for making that comparison video! You helped me immensely! Ordering the ones I want now, thanks to you! :)
what is the best pencil sharpener for pastel pencils. Your pencils always seem lovely and sharp. Mine are not. Love your work.
It might be the most expensive pastels are less dependent on the perfect paper. They might have an additive for that. I have heard it is pumice. Id like to know what the ingredients are.i cant even make up my mind to try pencils! Only have three brands sticks.
I am worried why you didn't use the same color for Cretacolor as others!
What’s the difference in colored pencils and pastel pencils? Thank you
I like Derwent and Carbothello. I tried out some Fabre Castell but like the other two better. My Derwent set is older, and Derwent has reformulated to be softer, but I don't know about that. Dakotapastels.com is a great source for all things pastel-with fair prices.
Conte pencils are excellent but i won't buy them because i cant sharpen them easily. They crumble. Therefore they are useless to me
Great review! I’m brand new to this medium. Just ordered my very first set of pastels and trying to figure out the rest. Because I feel like I can’t wait another minute to dive in. I’m a watercolor painter with acrylic as my 2nd favorite. I appreciate videos like this. Now I need to figure out paper, storage, sharpener, and fixative. So excited!❤️
Thank you for this video! It helped me a ton!
I'm using Derwent currently. They blend quite easily and are vibrant. Maybe I try Carbothello as well because everyone is talking about it!
Just found a 24 set of derwent for 1.13/pencil usd so I got them for starting out.
I have a big set of Derwent and I use them alongside Koh-I-Noor pastels.
It's interesting to see what other brands are like too. Thank you.
How about Rembrandt?
I use pastel pencil to get to fine details without spending an arm and a leg on large medium-hard pastel sticks.
Great video Jason! 😆 I have the 72 set derwent that I got a couple of weeks ago on dick Blick for $85 USD and the carbothello 60 set on amazon for $60 usd arrived 3 days ago. I was happy to see there was some different colors between the two sets that I wanted. The carbothello were also list as being used with water to. I am using both with a pan pastels under painting. I am happy with both so far and I have used my derwent super point manual sharpener with no issues. 😉
Valarie Connell /DrawingWithFire You can add water to any soft pastel providing your paper/support can handle it.
Yay! sounds great
What kind of accent do you have? It’s very soothing
Great comparison! It's incredible how one can notice the 5 bucks difference between the Faber Castel against the Carbothello and Derwent. I'm 15 min into the video and, to me, the Faber Castell seems like the second softest after the Caran D'ache, obviously.
Very informative, thank you so much!
The Caran D’Ache are now over $300 at Dakota Art pastels.
Thanks for the comparison info :)
Until the lovely point ,is gone!! Than what???!!!
These reviews are purely personal, there is review with another artists and he can't stand Darwent!
Great review! Pastel pencils are on the list of supplies to try out. I'm collecting some regular colored pencils as well.
Carbothello: I bought a couple open stock today, I'm impressed, I might buy a full set
Thanks, this was really helpful!♡
Great comparison, thank you. I have owned both Carbothellos and Fabers. I preferred the Carbos because they were softer and easier to blend than the Fabers.
yes but did you use a stabilo pencil ✏ instead for Derwent
Brilliant video jason thank you for making it✏
Great review, thanks for the info!
thanks for your opinion, you help me a lot in my decision.
thanks so much! A few years ago I started in pastels & got the CarbOthello set. I haven't had opportunity to use them much due to work load responsibilities. But I'm so happy to know I chose well!
I attended a workshop by a wonderful expert (Tom Christopher) where we learned how to tone in an underpainting with watercolor. He used Art paper. After watching your previous pastel videos I looked up the paper you are using and see that it is also appropriate for a watercolor underpainting.
THANKS for all your great info!
my pleasure
Faber castell makes less noise then the other two that he said where same
I have got the Derwent set so please give me some tips for using them
What is the best for poster making?
Thank you for this review, even though it's fairly old. I have been reading reviews and opinions on pastel pencils for the past several months had pretty much settled on ordering the Carbothello set (by reviews and by the little four pencil set that I got many years ago in high school.) Finally got them this week (60 pencil set) and I'm so absolutely in love with them! After having fun with them the last few days, I'm glad to have seen your review. Thank you!
thank you from across the pond
I wish the prices were the same as they were 7 years ago!
Jason, do you use a mask when you work?
I'm using Derwent Pastel Pencil for the portraits and combined it with Cretacolor for the fine details..THANKS INDEED for the review Jason....
You won't go wrong with Carbothello. They blend really well and are highly pigmented. I find that a rice paper stump is the best for blending these and charcoal as it does not pick up too much of the medium off the paper.
yes - agree :)
Again, you did an excellent job of comparisons. Thanks.
Love your channel! Thank you!!🙂🌞
How are the Carb-Othello Pastel Pencil, is that the same thing you have on here or is it different? I'm about to buy a set, and want a great set. Thank you for great video very informative!!
I recently heard of your channel. My main medium is graphite and colored pencils. I own prismacolor, Derwent Inktense, the 24 set of FC Polychromos, a few open stock FC Goldfaber & open stock Caran D’ache Supracolor. I own two small sets of Rembrandt and a few open stock Sennelier pastels. ( I love them both) I enjoy having a pencil format for better details. Thank you for the comparison video. I’m going to go with either the Derwent of Faber-Castell. I can see adding a few open stock Caran D’Ache as well.
We bought the Carbathello on your recommendation. Easy to find them in the US for a discounted price.
yes - i think they are super good value
Thank you. Very useful. I was wondering if I should buy the cretacolor 36 set for 50% off. I tried a couple in the shop and felt they were too hard, however, having almost no experience with this medium I thought I would ask the internet and I'm happy I did. I generally prefer softer materials so definitely not getting yhe cretacolors.
I'm trying to decide to start with pastels, but can you tell me what General's Pastel pencils are like compared to the cretacolor pencils? So far they seem dry and brittle, but I know General's makes pretty good products. Thanks
Thank you Jason just what I needed today, I am not new to pastel but pastel pencils I am new and struggled listening to all the different opinions, I bought derwent (arriving tomor) and someone today said no so looking again and your video convinced me I bought the right ones, excited :)
Great review -- valuable input! Many thanks!
Mix and match your colours, don't stick to one set. If you like how a colour goes down, buy that pencil. Start with a 60 set and then buy as you need from different sets. CD are too expensive and you can buy singles as you need.
Jason, thank you so much for this video! It's very useful! I'm going to save this video, for any doubts that I have. Many thanks again😊❤😊❤
I really enjoyed this video. Having smaller (24) sets of Carbothello and Pitt, I’m looking to get the Derwent 72 next...but it seems there are two different kinds: the 4mm (with the parrot on the tin), and the 4.5mm (with the lion on the tin).
Can you tell me which one you reviewed? Amazon has much better reviews for the 4mm, but I liked your results - and your opinion carries more weight.
In the future it would be easier to have the names rewritten closer to the colouring sampling. We can’t see/remember which is which as your going cuz the names are off screen. No biggy cuz we can get a notepad out; just takes away the focus is all. Your vids are excellent and thank you for them! Being on a budget I gotta do some research before commuting to expenses lol. Cheers from 🇨🇦. Happy Spring too!🌸
I recommend a sponge make-up applicator instead of that stump. Much more even distribution of pressure, and it picks up less dust.
this is the video i needed than you.
As someone who has used the Caran D'ache pastels for a long time they are superb and well worth the investment for professionals. They are more expensive for a number of reasons all of which fine artist's will appreciate and recognize for their value. Caran D'ache use the same method in making their pigments as the best soft pastel manufactures. They begin with single pigments of the highest quality and finest grade. They use the least binder that they can while retaining the pastel feel, hence more dust. The wood that makes up the pencil is sourced for it's quality and resilience to shaping. As to the 84 colors this gives the artist the ability to grade to a far finer degree than with any of the other manufactures, especially when blended using specific techniques and methods. The Caran D'ache pastel pencils also correspond closely to Sennelier soft pastels and combine seamlessly as both products have single pigments and are free of unnecessary fillers. If your work is going to define you long after you have gone then you want the best materials and Caran D'ache are cost effective when you consider that 200 years from now with the correct storage they will still showcase your skills for the world to see.
If you don't sell your work buy the next best or the one that has that certain feel that you enjoy using and that compliments your artistic style.
Thanks for sharing this very nice review.
beckyholt a good artist, good enough for their work to define them after they're gone, could've easily just have used a biro...
your comment sounds so much like an advertisement.
lots of the top pastel manufactures have great lightfasness. It is not required to spend HUNDREDS of pounds on a set of the most expensive pencils to enjoy creating art with pastel pencils.
Thank you. Makes my decision to buy a Carbo Othello set next week.
I was gifted a 90 piece wood boxed set of Derwent this afternoon - I came to UA-cam to help me figure them out, as I extremely rarely ever used pastels (wax) in the past -- and although an earlier review had the man hating the brand, and I was chuckling whilst listening to him, I liked your review better as it was better opinionated by comparison. I look forward regardless to trying these pencils in the near future.
Thank you
Joe
Guelph, Ontario
great review... so helpful
It's really interesting to watch this five years on, having watched a few of your process videos. You are still using (and recommending) the Stabilo Carbothello and the Faber-Castell Pitt, with a small handful of others bought as singles. 👍