Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau, Professional-Quality Art Supplies for Artists Adult Painting Sketching, Non-Toxic, Made in Japan

I think the easiest way to do this is to just list off a bunch of pros and cons... Note, I'm still learning and growing as an artist. I'm not a professional. I have provided some of the pieces I've created using almost exclusively these watercolors (and sometimes some pens/markers, purchased separately from this set of course) PROS: THESE COLORS ARE SOOOO BEAUTIFUL! The colors are very vibrant and blend out really nice; if you don't water it down, it's almost like painting with acrylic with how thick it is; when you water it down, it's a beautiful, amazing watercolor. The lid has the names of all the colors with empty squares by the names so you can do your own swatches of the colors. They layer really well. The white is opaque enough to use. With watercolors, you generally want to work light to dark... but sometimes you don't fully plan ahead and decide that a highlight would look great in a spot that's already pretty dark. With most watercolors that I've used, the white doesn't really help anything, but with this set, it does. You get a lot of paint with this palette. I've had problems with watercolor coming out chalky and just kind of gross looking, I've yet to have that problem with these. CONS: Some of the colors separate. I haven't been able to pinpoint exactly which ones do. I'd imagine it has something to do with the formula used to make certain colors but I'm not sure. What it tends to do in separating: it's almost like you drew a randomly designed cobweb with a white pencil/crayon that the pigment just won't settle on. In some pieces (especially abstract or logos) it actually looks really cool. The colors don't stay mixed. If you look at the palette, there's no skin tone. When I did the eye (second photo) I had to mix my own. No big deal. I mixed the color in a separate, empty palette. I walked away briefly after mixing my colors and when I came back, the colors had parted in the water. It wasn't a big deal, as they mixed back together with a little stir, but it was certainly strange. Price. These work about as well as the Prang brand watercolors, which can often be found for much cheaper. Still, compared to other watercolors, I feel like these hold their own and can be worth the price. Overall, I love this palette and would recommend.

Many You Tubers use this paint so I bought this. Very pleased with the quality. Large pans are so much easier than the tiny ones in most sets. Also, each pan has the color printed on it which is a great help if you spill your pans out of the box. Comes with a chart of colors and two blank color charts. One is typical cold press paper, the other is smoother, glossier (hot press?) so you can see the difference.

These are some truly beautiful watercolors to work with! In one word, they are "pigmented." So pigmented! They are not like traditional watercolors at all unless you heavily dilute them. They are more similar to a gouache, and all colors are fairly opaque with a few of the colors being completely opaque (black, white, and I think Pale Aqua and Cornflower Blue). There is also a color that is sort of silver or pearlescent, and both warm and cool tones of gold. So this paint is thick and fairly opaque, and a little on your brush goes a long way. I sometimes draw with a Pigma Micron pen before painting and these pen lines usually remain visible beneath the paint, so if that's something you like to do, you can still do that! The reason these paints are so different is mostly because of the binder. Most watercolor paints use gum arabic as a binder. Kuretake's use the collagen from various sea creatures instead. I've also read that that is part of the reason the colors are so bright. And you can both see and feel the difference when painting with these. Aside from these paints being such a pleasure to work with, most of the colors are lightfast! According to some kind soul who tested this set of watercolors for lightfastness over a period of a year, the only colors that are NOT lightfast are colors 34 (Dark Pink), 57 (Turquoise Green), 66 (Menthol Violet), 67 (Deep Blue). For anything serious you paint, you can just use different colors instead and you'll be fine. This was one of the bigger selling points of this watercolor set for me, knowing everything wouldn't fade I feel like this is a genuinely good quality watercolor set that could be used by both beginners and professionals, because the quality is good but the price is still fairly reasonable. And if you are taking your art seriously and intend to display it, the lightfastness alone is worth it. Because what use is it to create something beautiful if the sun is going to erase it? So I say this watercolor set is WORTH IT!

I ordered the art nouveau 24-pan palette several days ago and am back today to order the 48-pan set. These paints are gorgeous and luxurious. They are highly pigmented and go on more opaque that traditional American watercolors. They work great for painting detailed pictures and adding color to drawings. I don’t think they’re the best for mixing or for interesting wet on wet effects. I didn’t find the art moves I colors to be too amenable to mixing. Although the colors are gorgeous, this set doesn’t contain basic primaries for mixing. The convenience colors are gorgeous and the paints are thick, creamy, and opaque. But if you’re looking for translucence and layering and the ability to mix any color, you probably want to pass on the art nouveau set.

These are beautiful colors. be aware that Kuretake does use colors that are not the most lightfast (you can see a good review of this on Kimberly Crick's website), I can't recommend use of these for professional art, but for sketchbooks or scanning in, it's probably fine. There is something about these, even though they're more opaque than traditional watercolors, they're definitely also NOT gouache, but despite their semi-opaqueness, they have this lovely way of blending together wet-in-wet and granulating that is just very unique to this product. I wasn't sure if it'd be too cheap or beginner for me, but honestly absolutely not. I don't use all of the colors, but the ones I wanted to use were all in there and it was cheaper than buying individual pans etc. If you wanted to splurge on a big set of Gansai, I think this one (the 48) is hands down the best, you get a good array of different colors including some gold and silvers. My only qualm is I wish the umber color was darker, it's kind of a milk-chocolate lighter color. Kuretake needs to give us a darker van dyke type brown. I also find that they wet easily, and the big pans are fun to play with. Obviously the big box isn't the most travel friendly, but you can remove the pans and put them into another container if you wanted. I put six of mine in a vintage pencil case and they fit beautifully (there is also an empty-6 pan tray that you can buy out there by the same brand to make your own limited palette). The exterior of the box is lovely when you put the palette away, it just feels very special. I really held back on these for quite some time, but I do like them. I would not recommend them to someone who is a beginner in watercolors who wants to learn how TRADITIONAL western watercolors work - these are seriously not the same, and again, they're not gouache, they really are a secret third thing, but the magic of how they are a little different really shines when you use them.

The colors are gorgeous!! Fine quality watercolor paint for a good price.

Paints are good quality and I love all the various hues included in this set. Only wish Kuretake would have included some sort of flat mixing area palette on which to use. I have two of their graphite sets, same song and same story. No mixing wells.

All I have done is swatch these, but I did it twice to get a feel for how they flow. The colors are beautiful full strength or very diluted. I purchased another set of more primary colors.

Estou apaixonada! É muito pigmentado e as tintas são enormes! Comprei apenas pelos reviews, e estava meio ressabiada, mas amei! Os aquarelistas podem comprar sem erro!

Maravilhosa!!!!

Sehr schöne Farben

Como creativa que adora las acuarelas para moodboards y ilustraciones esotéricas, compré este Kuretake Gansai Tambi Juego de 24 colores II, Art Nouveau colors, MC20/24V/NW por su vibe inspirada en el Art Nouveau –esa elegancia orgánica de finales del XIX que evoca curvas florales y misterios sutiles. Es un set japonés tradicional con 24 pans grandes (48x28 mm) en una caja compacta de cartón con overlay washi verde, lleno de tonos neutros y muted (verdes musgo, azules etéreos, rosas polvorientos) más toques vibrantes que se complementan perfecto. Lo abrí para un sketch rápido y me perdí horas mezclando capas suaves que capturan esa esencia onírica sin esfuerzo. Lo que me ha seducido en cada pincelada: Tonos equilibrados y versátiles: Colores inspirados en la naturaleza, semi-opacos que se diluyen en washes etéreos o se aplican gruesos para gouache-like – ideales para fondos simbólicos o detalles finos en mis diseños. Pans generosos y reactivantes: Tamaño pro para pinceles grandes/pequeños, se humedecen rápido y mantienen frescura días enteros; el acabado satinado da un brillo sutil sin chalkiness. Calidad artesanal japonesa: Pigmentos intensos no tóxicos (AP-certified), hechos con tinta expertise de 120 años – se separan para efectos whimsy y blending effortless. Portátil y regalo-ready: Caja ligera que viaja bien, y el set completo crea ilustraciones armónicas sin mezclas extras. Lo que podría afinar: Algunos tonos muted son tan suaves que necesitan capas para punch en papeles absorbentes; no granulan como tradicionales. El precio sube por ser edición especial, pero vale por la paleta curada. La primera vez que swatché los 24, un verde oliva se transformó en un mandala fluido que parecía susurrar secretos alquímicos – justo lo que necesitaba para un moodboard estancado. ¿Lo recomiendo? Sí, para artistas intermedios o ilustradores que busquen acuarelas opacas con twist japonés. Perfecto para Art Nouveau vibes o cualquier proyecto que pida armonía sutil. Consejo extra: Humedece con spray antes de usar y prueba en papel cold-pressed para washes mágicos; combina con fineliners para contours orgánicos.

The colours are beautiful with the added Metalic shimmer.