Castle Art Supplies 40 Piece Premium Drawing and Sketching Set with Tutorial | for Artists, Professionals or Beginners | Pencils, Charcoal, Graphite and More | in Neat Carry-Anywhere Zipper Case

Ivy ReisnerUnited States

This and paper (and maybe a good instruction guide) is all you need

First, if you are using Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain: The Definitive, 4th Edition to learn to draw, this has a lot of what you will need in a convenient case. Going through the book, I rarely have to reach to anything that didn't come in this kit shy of my sketch book. That was what turned me on to it, and that's why I love it. Incidentally, if you are learned to draw, I'd highly recommend that book, this kit, and Strathmore STR-340-111 50 Sheet Draw Tape Bound, 11 by 14" or a similar size sketchbook (or any sketchbook if you're not fussy) to get started. The three together will see you a good way into your journey. Throw in a drawing board if you're feeling fancy. Indeed, for most instruction programs, this and some paper is all you'll need. it is a very well provided kit. Going through all of it, piece by piece. The case itself is quite sturdy (my cat has taken a try at destroying it, and I've taken a try at over-stuffing it, and it's survived both of us.) It holds everything securely and presents them well with the built in stand. Pencils include 8B, 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB (HB is your standard #2 pencil by the way), 2H, 3H, 4H, and 5H. For those familiar with drawing pencils, you already know that's quite a huge range. For those unfamiliar, H measures hardness and B measure boldness. 5H is so hard it barely makes a line and 8B is so dark it's practically charcoal. Speaking of charcoal, this kit contains a box of 4 sticks of willow charcoal (made it though a lot of rough treatment because the case does a good job of protecting it until I finally broke them intentionally), three sticks of charcoal (soft, medium, and hard) and three charcoal pencils (soft, medium, and hard). The charcoal sticks are the darker matte ones. The shiny one are graphite. On the graphite side there are three sticks (soft, medium, and hard) and a 6B soft graphite pencil. On the pastel side, there are four pencils: Black, Grey, Red Brown, and Sepia. It comes with two pencil sharpeners, and here I took one out to make room for something else (I've been tweaking the kit a bit -- more on that in a bit) and replaced one as it wasn't a terribly sharp sharpener. That was the only bit I was disappointed in, and it happens sometimes. It also comes with sandpaper and an Xacto knife for additional sharpening options. I've used the knife to cut cardboard with no issues. On the eraser front it has a kneeding and a vinyl eraser. That's all you need. It has three blending stumps (very generous -- most kits have just one) and a double sized pencil extender. Now, since I'm weird, I extended the kit a bit. To wit, I've added: an eraser shield (that it would have been nice if it came with it, but it would have been hard to present it well -- I just stuck it behind the pencils), Pilot FriXion Colors Erasable Marker, 6 Color Set (SFC-60M-6C3) (the only thing that isn't secured in the kit) An eraser for said markers (that's what replaced the extra sharpener) Three Conte crayon pencils One white pencil Pentel Arts Pocket Brush Pen, Includes 2 Black Ink Refills (GFKP3BPA) The point of that simply is, with moving stuff around the kit is quite versatile and suited for individual customization. There is room to make this kit uniquely yours. Castle Art is extremely responsive to customer concerns (I emailed them with a question about the kit and they got back to me promptly and with very helpful information). They do not, at the time of this writing, offer refills, but I have found each of the components either here at Amazon or at various online and brick and mortar art supply stores, so it won't be hard to refill the case at need.

ChantalCanada

Amazing All-In-Sne Sketching & Drawing Set!

I gave 4 stars for beginners because it’s great for amateurs who want to expand their horizons. Like me, I have never added pastel pencils into my graphite and charcoal mix, nor used graphite and charcoal sticks. Those specific items I will review their quality after I’ve used them a bit more. The one missing star is for beginners with little to no experience. For someone like this I would suggest the smaller pencil set that castle sells just to get used to the basics first before broadening your horizons. I am perfectly pleased with the quality of the pencils. The vinyl eraser is like any other eraser of its kind and it does what it’s supposed to. The smudging pencils are sturdy and can withstand the necessary amount of pressure to blend graphite and charcoal. The graphite sticks seem promising for shading in large areas, though I’ve only used them twice. Same with the charcoal sticks. One small criticism is the size of the kneading eraser, I do wish it was about 2-3 times larger so you can cover larger areas with it. I personally don’t like plastic sharpeners so I won’t be using it, but I tested it and it does it’s job, no bending or cracking of the plastic. The steel sharpener is a nice weight and size with 2 different sizes use. The sandpaper is where I think the big kicker is. Sandpaper isn’t a secret in art but usually we find ourselves buying a whole roll from the hardware store cause on its own in an art supplies shop they’re just over priced, let’s be honest. I’ve never seen a pencil set with a sandpaper pad included. The sandpaper holds so many uses, cleaning/sharpening your smudging pencils, sanding a dull pencil down to a fine point without needless sharpening, quick & easy way to clean your vinyl eraser, and I could go on. I’m sure there’s more that other people have done with it that I’ve never thought of myself. Overall opinion: I love it. I’ve had only one small complaint amongst the entire kit. Notably I can’t presently comment on the willow sticks and pastel pencils as I have not used them yet. I will update my review in the future to include how I feel about them as well!

PierluigiItaly

Ottimo come regalo a principianti

Premetto che disegno molto, moltissimo, e, per mio grande piacere, anche i miei bimbi piccoli (12 e 8 anni) si stanno appassionando al disegno a grafite. Per questo motivo ho voluto comprare un kit per il più grande, che contenesse l'essenziale e qualcosina in più (anche perché così evita di usare sempre i miei :) ). CARATTERISTICHE ed USO Il kit è davvero completo, non manca nulla, si passa dalle matite a grafite più comuni (dalla 8B alla 6H) a quelle a carboncino, oltre a pastelli sanguigna, carboncini eccetera. Non sto ad elencare il tutto dato che è tutto indicato sulla pagina del prodotto. Evidenzio che ci sono gli sfumini in cartoncino ed a pennello oltre agli immancabili strumenti per temperare e spuntare le matite. Il tutto è condito con un contenitore molto pratico di cui ho apprezzato molto il poter alzare una parte dei porta-matite e metterlo diagonale per poter prendere ed inserire facilmente le matite a posto (e questo, con i bimbi, è ottimo perché di solito, lasciati sul tavolo, finiscono a terra!!!). Insomma, l'uso è praticissimo. Sul lato qualità direi che siamo nella norma. Buona la grafite ed il carboncino, direi nella media, niente di eccellente ma nemmeno di super economico, un po' meno i pastelli che mi sembrano un po' spenti. PRO ✅ Kit davvero completo ✅ Ottima idea da regalo ✅ Comodo da usare e qualità più che buona CONTRO ❌ I pastelli li ho trovati un po' spenti CONCLUSIONI Molto soddisfatto, ottima come idea regalo, comodo da usare e la qualità va bene per i principianti o per chi disegna per hobby. Per me, al prezzo in cui l'ho comprato, circa 32 euro, è un ottimo acquisto. Spero di essere stato utile :)

ValérieFrance

Top !

Très grande trousse noir en mousse avec une bonne fermeture éclair qui protège les 40 pièces qu'il y a dans la trousse. Beaucoup de crayons noires de différentes références, du plus sec au plus gras, des fusains, des estompeurs, taille crayon et bien d'autres choses indispensables pour faire des dessins aux graphites, croquis ou esquisses. C'est une très bonne trousse pour débuter les dessins aux graphites ou autres. Je recommande vivement au vu du prix et du nombre de pièces dans cette belle trousse. Vraiment très bon rapport qualité prix. Livré rapidement et bien protégé. Je la conseille vraiment ! Peut être également offert en cadeau.