When I first started looking into illustrating my own picture books my helpful Hubby swore by Prismacolors. He is a Graphic Designer, and I assumed he was being an art snob. But turns out when you ASS-ume something, it makes an ass out of you and me! But seriously, I checked them out after constant prodding from him. He had an old set from college and insisted I try them. The results are quickly becoming what I will use to finish my first picture book.
I was impressed. They are smooth and silky and depending on the paper you use they also are quite bright. (I will cover that later.) I will review the Prismacolor Fine Line Markers, also the Prismacolor Blending pencils. I got them both on sale at Aaron's Brothers,
Prismacolor - Primere 48 count set : (afiliate link)
After using my husband’s old set with several breaking on me. He had them for years and they were being banged around, and used all the way down to nubs. I decided to watch the deals in store and online and buy my own set. When I did find them for a decent price it was on Amazon (I have prime) and they were 32$ for a set of 48. I snatched them up quick! Joann’s and Michael's never have sales on them. Aaron’s only had sales on the individual pencils. SO amazon it was, the pencils came in a nifty metal box with a plastic insert separating the palates. They were all sharpened and I was able use them right away. I almost didn’t want to they were so pretty. But the color was creamy and when I did have to sharpen them it was smooth and easy.
The colors are bright and pop off the page, especially with toned paper. Speaking of Toned Paper; Strathmore Toned Gray Paper, if you don’t have some : Get SOME!! It’s worth it. Back to the Pencils, they can be erased to a degree using the right eraser to not smear the image. I like that they can be grainy or thick and the variety in colors is awesome! I still don’t even have all the hues. This set includes just the right amount of desirable colors. The rest of the spectrum can produced by blending, they blend together so well. The set I bought didn’t come with the Prismacolor Blending Pencils. So I bought a small pack on my own for under 5 $ (with coupon.) and I already had one from my husbands set so I knew they worked. They work nicely to smear and blend the colors together and smooth out the lines.
Prismacolor Fine Line Markers - Primere 5 count (005, 01, 03, 05,08)
The markers are in varying degree of sharpness and fine tipped. They are super black, and work for what I wanted. I have mainly used the middle of the rode and the finest and I like the way they mark what I need. Thats pretty much all I have to say on the matter until I use them more. I got them on sale at Aaron’s for a 1/4 of the price with a coupon, which is the only way I buy art supplies.
Here are some Art Pieces I did using the tools I just mentioned. Let me know what you think, and what are your favorites when illustrating or creating art. And as always I hope you follow and like these posts!
