I love watercolor paint. There is something about the idea of an art supply swirling and mixing gently on one side of the paper, and yet being bold and vibrant on the other side of the paper that seems to fit both sides of my personality. But what are the best pan watercolors for kids? Is there a way to deliver the same bright colors as my own, without sacrificing the budget?
While I do love liquid watercolors, there’s something nice about open the container, use the paint, shut the container without me having to look for something to put the liquid watercolors in. (Don’t worry, liquid watercolors, I will make sure I give you some love and attention in a future post.)
Paint the Rainbow
But I’m going to be honest. I’m not a huge fan of those pan sets where there are only 8 colors. It’s just not enough. You can tell me that I can mix them with white, but I still would rather have an incredible rainbow of colors in front of me to choose from, direct from the palette itself.
So I went hunting for some sets that were inexpensive, had a lot of color choices, and were vibrant with the hopes that I could upgrade from the standard Crayola and Prang sets with impunity. And here’s what I found.
Crayola & Prang
If you ask anyone what brand they started painting with, they would probably tell you one of these two tried and trusted brands. Both come in a 16-color set, an upgrade from the traditional 8-color set. One huge benefit is that you can replace a single color without having to buy an entire set.
Crayola’s standard watercolor paints are okay, but their Education line is a definite upgrade (depending on where you buy it, it may say Education and it may say Educational). Easy to mix, barely any water needed, these paints are super vibrant right out of the palette and especially nice for younger kids because they won’t get frustrated at the lack of color on the brush. Blick carries them as well. They also have a Crayola Artista set which is a further upgrade. The washable variety is good enough for toddlers and preschoolers, but doesn’t deliver enough on the color.
These are similar to Crayola in consistency, and the way kids can use them. The only difference is that Prang’s color choices are a little darker than the Crayola equivalent. But they are easier to find than the Crayola equivalent.
Michaels & Ooly Pods
You’ll see these containers of 36 just about everywhere you go. They’re usually around $10 at the store and online, and there are a rainbow of colors, perfect for finding the correct shade.
I’ve tried six different versions of these pods – from Michaels, off-brands, Ooly, and even Arteza and I have not found a difference in the way they perform.
Lots of color options – but one thing I’ve always noticed is that there is only one beautiful turquoise color. This color gets used a lot for kids – sky, ocean, and just about everything else that kids want to paint blue (including penguins). And there’s no going back once that blue is gone. You can’t replace the color, you need a new set, especially when kids are clamoring for that perfect blue. So while the color options are beautiful, this can definitely become a problem quickly.
Out of the ones that we’ve tried, these have been the most inexpensive to buy on Amazon. Michaels also carries these in a couple of different brands.
US Art Supply Watercolor Paint Set
Faber-Castell Connector Paints & Arteza
These paints are a little more costly, but the paint quality is exceptional. Bold colors, pods that are easily replaced and a nice quality paintbrush.
Faber-Castell Connector Paints
These paints come with an added quirk – you can take the paints out and connect the colors you need. Connect them in a circle, connect them in an S – there’s really no point other than an additional level of fun, especially if kids are using them. One thing that will come up quickly is the lack of white. These paints come with a small tube of gouache for mixing, which is not the easiest thing to use for younger kids. But the quality and colors are exactly what you would expect out of Faber-Castell.
Although they are considered watercolor paint, one thing of note is that these paint more opaque than traditional watercolors. The surface of the painted paper has a chalky feel to it. Sometimes this can cover up a Sharpie line depending on the color.
Ooly Chroma Blends Neon and Jack Richeson Metallic
Need a little extra something for kids art? Neon and metallic offer a little something extra.
Ooly Chroma Blends Neon Watercolor Paint
These neon paints glow under a blacklight, paint over black paper (add a couple of layers on top of each other for a beautiful neon pastel), and make incredible rainbows and pops of color. They have a bit of a chalky feel much like the Faber-Castell.
Known for their cake tempera, Richeson has a beautiful set of metallic watercolors that add shimmer. Some metallic watercolors barely show up on the page, but these are much brighter than many of the others that I’ve tried. They’re perfect for pirate treasure, Egyptian art, fish scales, and so much more.
Bianyo Watercolor Set
I picked up this set from Amazon when they were running a sales and because it came with 10 brushes. That’s right, 10. All for $20 and that’s before the sale and the additional coupon.
I might just have my new favorite watercolors to use with my kids…or maybe myself, because sometimes they need to sleep and it’s 1 am and I’m in the mood to paint.
First, the con. Just like the Ooly and Michaels pods, there’s no replacing a color if you run out.
But now the pros. Let’s start with that they include neon in the palette. It’s not a specialty paint that I need to find, it comes with the neon. It comes with multiple vibrant and transparent shades of all of our favorite colors. The brushes are also wonderful. I love the Royal Langnickel Big Kids Choice as a standard brush (the green one), but sometimes we need to work with details, and these brushes offer a wide variety of sizes perfect for achieving that goal.
When you snap the tin lid on, the tin fits inside a small pouch with all of the brushes. If you popped a water brush in the pouch, this tin would be perfect for taking outside for nature study. They even threw in a few pieces of watercolor paper in the set to get you started.
There’s a lot here, and I’ve only scratched the pan watercolor surface. So what’s your favorite pan watercolor set? Drop me a comment below!
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