Paul Rubens 6-pack White Soft Oil Pastels

This is a selection of white soft oil pastels sticks (with cylindrical tip, not bullet tip)  to complement any Paul Rubens (Haiya) set. White is the colour that I use the most (in backgrounds, to mix colours, as highlights), so having an extra supply of them at an affordable price is essential. These sticks are creamy good-quality soft oil pastels that remind me of Sennelier's, but at a fraction of the price. They spread, mix and blend well. They're opaque and cover any surface without gaps or see through spaces, easily. They can be blended with tissue paper, my fingers, or a stump. I use them for layering, sgraffito, mixing, lighting and toning different colours. They are covered in fine paper that can be easily removed when needed. They work well as accents on the final layers of mixed-media projects. 

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Mont Marte Fluoro Oil Pastels 12-Pieces Set

I cannot stress enough how beautiful these oil pastels colours are in real life. I haven't been able to find anything similar in good quality brands, so I decided to buy this set just because it was cheap and Mont Marte is a good brand for student art supplies. 

 

The colours didn't disappoint; actually, they blew me away. Perhaps the red isn't the best fluoro red out there, but is still beautiful. These aren't soft pastels, but they are still creamy. They blend OK with quality soft pastels and well with themselves. Having used low, medium and high end oil pastels, these cannot compare in the amount of pigment they have or the level of coverage. Yet, they are still decent and a pleasure to use as highlights over soft oil pastels, or on their own on the top layers of mixed-media projects. Most fluoro pigments aren't lightfast or aren't super lightfast, so I don't expect this to be in the list of light-resistant list. Yet, this doesn't matter if you just want to use them on art journaling, sketchbooks or in small projects that won't have the artwork displayed on any wall. 

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Paul Rubens (Haiya) 8-pc Oil Pastels (Black)

This is a selection of black soft-oil pastel sticks to complement any Haiya set. This is one of the colours that I use the most; so, having an extra supply of them at an affordable price is paramount. Otherwise, I would have to replace them with other brands' sticks, which might or might not have the same properties or qualities. 

 

These oil pastels are buttery soft, like a lipstick, and very good quality. They spread, mix and blend well, but aren't as loaded with pigment as professional brands like Sennelier. Yet, one can't expect this to be the case due to the price tag. They can be blended with tissue paper, stumps, or my fingers, and can be used for layering and sgraffito. They're also great for finished touches in mixed media projects. I use fixatives on anything I put them on to prevent smudging and favour durability. 

 

The wrapping is around each stick should be re-designed. It looks good, but the information on them is barely visible or readable, like the opacity and pigments used on them.  I have learnt from artists' tests on YouTube that most of the Paul Rubens soft oil have great lighfastness, but I cannot see this reflected on the packaging leaflet or on the sticks wrapping paper info.

 

They come in a beautiful box, which makes them great for gifting.

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Deli Soft Oil Pastels Set of 48 Standard Assorted Colors

This is a great set of oil pastels for beginners. It's really cheap, the quality is excellent for the price, like better than expected, and the selection of colours is terrific as the package contains a mix of primary, secondary and pastel colours. Easy to use and spread, although not as spreadable as good quality ones. On the other hand, I wish these ones have points, a la crayons, to make use easier while drawing lines or filling in corners or narrow spaces. I love this set.

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