Sargent Art Set of 72 Different Colored Pencils, Artist Quality, Writing, Drawing, Illustration, Non-Toxic

I have an addiction to coloring supplies, and I own well over thirty different brands of colored pencil, from the modest Crayola, Arteza, and Star Joy to the midrange Schpirerr Farben, Prismacolor (and yes, they are not really all that expensive when on sale) and Derwent Coloursoft, to the high end Polychromos, Derwent Lightfast, Caran Dache Luminance, and Holbein. Each level of pencil has its uses, and I can appreciate a good bargain pencil as much as a high quality professional one. I was quite surprised when I received this bargain set of Sargent Art Supreme and found a creamy, vibrant, sturdy, and good quality set of pencils. Unlike some of the pricier sets, this one had no breakage (take that, Prismacolor!), no dust or crumbling, was quite water resistant, blended well, layered well, and its lay-down was excellent. If I had any complaint, it was that there were not any skin tone colors and few tans or mid browns. But then again, there are only 72 in the set, and with the excellent blendability these pencils have, pinks, the included browns, and subtle undertone colors blend well enough together to create skin tones.So I recommend this set not only to beginners, but to anyone who appreciates the uses that bargain pencils have for coloring pictures that do not need to be lightfast and who does not need to purchase individual pencils open stock. For example, I am now working on a picture from an expensive Japanese coloring book on toothy cardstock paper. I am using my Holbeins. But when it comes time to color the background, I don't want to gobble up too much of those pricey pencils. I tried out my new Sargent Art sky blue on the same paper, and it makes an excellent choice for the background, as would some other less expensive brands. Give these a try. You will be pleased!

So I'm a little nervous about putting my art out there, but here goes. I've included 2 different models so people can compare the Sargent brand with a more expensive, high quality brand. The model with the ponytail was drawn with Polychromos. The dark haired model was drawn almost entirely with Sargent Art Supreme pencils, 72 color box (the almost is because I used a tiny bit of white gel pen for the highlights in her eyes and on her nails and I used a Prismacolor blender).There are 72 pencils in this set. The box itself is a sturdy metal box with 2 removable plastic trays of 36 pencils each, kinda flimsy but they're fine. The set has what I'd call a definite rainbow pallete, most colors are very bright/vivid with very few neutral tones.Overall I'd give these pencils a 3.5 more so than a 4, only because of the extraordinarily limited palette. You'd think with 72 colors, you'd get more than the 4 usable skin tones, i.e., beige and brown colors. There are a few that look like browns, but upon coloring turn out to be way too red. There are too many greens, oranges and really bright colors. The set is really limited when it comes to neutral or natural colors- grays and browns especially. I had a really hard time with the shading on this piece and wound up using a graphite pencil as a dark gray. I think they had coloring books more in mind when they chose the palette for these pencils- which I'm fine with, love my coloring books, but I really wanted to try these for portraits.The quality of the pencils is actually pretty decent, but they don't have a blender included (Prismacolor works great). I have Faber Castell Polychromos, Prismacolors, and other high-end pencils, but I'm always looking for something new. These are worth the price I think, definitely a step above school/student grade. They color very smoothly and have a decent amount of pigment for the price. Where they fail for me is mostly in the really poor range of browns and skin tones. There's a slight tendency to clumpiness in the dark colors, but honestly, my Polychromos do the exact same thing.Overall, if you want a really decent but affordable set of pencils, I think these are definitely worth the price. I just wish they'd get rid of a few greens and add some neutrals.

I purchased these on a whim, there were very few reviews at the time so I was not sure what to expect. They looked vaguely familiar to another brand on Amazon but upon arrival these were a huge surprise.First off, what no one tells you and what is not on the listing is these pencils are not wax pencils nor traditional oil pencils, these pencils are actually water soluble or watercolor pencils which is why when tested against another set which looks identical they feel completely different - two different formulations but like colors. I have other sets of the same brand which offer oils, wax and watercolors which all look alike but feel completely different.I did test with water as it's one of the first things I do test while creating a color chart in my art journal. I knew once I began coloring in my chart by feel alone that these were watercolor pencils, they generally have a dry scratchy feeling to them so when I used a wet brush on a swatch it confirmed my suspicions.If a pencil produces color when mixed with water it is usually deemed water soluble at a minimum and some are marketed as watercolors. I encourage you to test a known standard colored pencil against this one with water and you will see the difference. A standard colored pencil when used with water will not produce any sort of color.With that aside let me say these are really nice pencils in general. These pencils are not like the basic Sargent Art pencils for general use at all, not even in the same category of pencils. The colors are brighter and there's an amazing array of colors. And while not everyone likes pencils stored in tins I do, I find it protects my investments well and are quite portable. The tin is top notch and heavyweight.As mentioned, these do have a bit of a dry scratchy feel but my set are water soluable pencils so that is to be totally expected. They do layer quite well and I find blending with just the smallest amount of water far more effective than other methods. I prefer to use these pencils as watercolors instead of colored pencils because you get a better color and what I do is take a small amount of the shavings from the tip of the pencil and put it in a pallet and then use a brush with a small amount of water and dab it into the shavings to dilute them then use that to paint with.Compared to other watercolor or soluable pencils these would be in the mid range of brightness, nowhere near Inktense (which are actually ink) but better than other brands overall. I really would recommend these to anyone looking for a nice set of pencils that have a dual purpose, you can't go wrong with these.

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Great budget pencils, good lay down of color, barrels fit well into your hand. I use these for coloring illustrations, they blend well with other pencils

The pencils were such a pleasant surprise. They are vivid in colour and so creamy to work with.

Sargent Art Supreme Colored Pencil turned out to be a revelation. Although these may not be to the same standards as the more outrageously priced artist grade coloured pencils (Caran D'Ache Luminence, or Faber Castell’s Polychromos), their price point and quality may make them an even more attractive option.The pencils themselves are sturdy, handsome little devils. Their coloured-dipped ends run almost half way up the pencil.The colour names are marked on the barrels. The colour selection is varied, and the pencils color beautifully. When I compared these swatches to the more expensive sets, these were just as dynamic, if not more so than some other artist grade pencils. They layer and blend well and sharpen to a fine point without lead breakage. I was surprised at their smooth lay-down. The lead glides effortlessly across the paper leaving their rich pigments. I found they feel similar to the Lyra Rembrandt’s Polycolor, however these are not as scratchy but lay-down just as good. The only issue I found with the colouring, is there seems to be some crumbling when layed down on fairly smooth paper.The price is fantastic. For pencils of this quality these are quite affordable. I was able to get this full set of 72 for under $40 (prices do fluctuate so I recommend taking advantage of these offers) and I recommend you just get the full set. The only concern I had with this set, and this may be an issue for some, there is no lightfast information included on the packaging. It does state these are “artist quality” and judging by the performance of the pencils, I will take them at their word. I have tried checking their website and was unable to find this product listing, so I cannot confirm if these are indeed lightfast. If this is important to you, I recommend you follow up with Sargentart.For any commission pieces, I will always default to the pencils that have the highest degrees of light-fastness, usually the Polychromos, Prismacolor, Lyra Rembrandts, Staedler Karat Aquarells. I do not sell all of my sketches, on the contrary, I usually create art for myself because I love it and when I am just doodling, or fast sketching to pass some time (which is constant), I default to my non-artist grade pencils because artists grade art materials are expensive. If someone loves any of my pieces that were created using student or scholastic grade materials, they are informed and they make the decision whether to purchase it. Another option- I sell prints, and prints last forever. I am more interested in using pencils that I love to use, that are comfortable on the hand. Pencil that sharpen to a brilliant fine point without the leads falling off; that lay-down and blend well, and that offer an output that satisfies my demands in my quest for perfection. Although I have used these sparingly since these are the newest pencils I currently own, I am loving the experience.This set pretty much checked every box for me (light-fastness excluded and is the reason I am deducting 1 star). They are affordable, for pencils of this caliber; they lay-down smoothly, almost effortlessly, and the colours are rich. A great set, that turned out to be quite the pleasant surprise, recommended.

Nice colours, especially pinks and purples. Nice light oranges as well. They sharpen well with little breakage. I’d say that the colours are fairly bright, certainly not muted. I tend to like more earthy colours and I’d say these are not particularly earthy.I find that these pencils work well on rather smooth paper. The colours come through beautifully. On paper with more tooth, they don’t lay down colour as well leaving quite a lot of white space. It’s also best with these pencils to lay colour down lightly in layers - I find the colour becomes waxy and shiny with too much pressure. In spite of this, I do like them. They sharpen well - I’ve had no breakage yet. And the price is great. They work very well with my other sets as many of the colours are unique. Great for adult colouring especially in books with smooth paper.Pros :nice soft cores with little breakagePencil has the colour printed on the pencilLovely bright colours - pinks and purples are especially niceConsCould use a couple more browns and greys - too many yellows in my opinionLay down is a bit patchy on some paperPencils have a chemical odour