I recently picked up a sample of all twenty-four of Holbein’s new granulating watercolours. I was very curious about them, because I like Holbein paints and their mixes seemed different from those already offered by Schmincke. Daniel Smith, etc.
In my excitement, I immediately swatched all the samples out, twice: once simply, with a gradient, and once as fussily as I could (with extra water, extra paint, etc) to see if I could force colour separation. Then, I started reviewing them all on Logan’s discord. My review was very ranty and detailed and is probably the main reason why he asked me to write blog posts instead.
So anyway, onto my reviews! They are arranged in sets of six to give readers a chance to rest. The “greed score” each entry ends with is an ENTIRELY SUBJECTIVE measure of how much I want a particular colour. It is dependent on my opinion on the paint, yes, but also on my needs as a painter and on the paints I already own.
On, and a quick note about lightfastness: while Holbein rates all these paints as “good” or “excellent” in that regard, I have my doubts. Quite a few of them contain dyes (just like their Opera does — and many people have tested that paint and watched it fade quickly and dramatically!), while others contain pigments like PR177, which are known to be pretty fugitive. Anyway, I am marking the “suspicious lightfasness” paints with an asterisk.
The Reds (and one Yellow)
General impression: it’s exciting to see so many interesting red paints, as they’re rare! Most of the mixes depend on Potter’s Pink (PR233) or PY159, which is unsurprising (and similar to Schmincke’s granulating paints).
Burke’s Parrot Pink (PY159, PR122, BV10) * The first paint I tried, and it immediately made a strong positive impression. It just glows; I guess that’s the BV10! And the PY159 really wants to separate, leading to cool shimmery effects. Anyway, based on the hue and the easy colour separation I think I prefer this to Opera. (I suppose I could mix it using Opera and Schmincke’s Volcano Yellow? But I don’t really have Opera, apart from samples.) Note also that it is pretty weak, requiring a lot of paint for good colour payoff. Greed score: I do not usually buy fugitive colours, but… 7/10.
Trumpet Vine Red (PY159, PR177) * Very similar to the aforementioned Essence of Parrot, only darker, redder, and without quite as much magical dye glow. And… equally weak, and suspicious in terms of lightfastness. I still like it visually, but can easily mix something similar and lightfast. Greed score: 3/10.
Cherry Blossom Pink (PR233, PO73, PW6) Hmm. It’s pretty, I guess. Not quite a bland pastel, it’s made a bit more interesting by the granulation from Potter’s Pink. However, one can get the same effect from Buff Titanium–as in the very similar Isaro Powdery Pink, which I own and almost never use. Greed score 3/10.
Flamingo Orange (PR233, PO73) The name is great, but IMO the paint does not live up to it. It’s just a nice orange made worse (a bit dirty, to my eye) by Potter’s Pink. Greed score 2/10.
Lunar Eclipse Red (PY110, PR122, BV7, BV15)* I loved painting out this one! Its earthy red colour with a secret glow is right up my alley. And I like that it can get pretty dark/deep. However, it is fugitive again… and weak, with a rather disappointing drying shift. Greed score 6/10.
Pampas Grass Yellow (PR233, PY43, PY83) * I found this one frustratingly weak and hard to activate. What is this, Schmincke’s Shire set? I am getting flashbacks. Also, I find the colour a bit pointless, since my paint collection is full of granulating yellow earths. Greed score: 2/10.
The Greens and Teals
General impression… Well, let me quote a watercolourist friend who has chosen to go by “The Mysterious V”:
The first three are vegetable shades and last three are “what if blue but also yellow”. Yeah, without the marketing I see green bean, celery, asparagus, and then varying shades of dirty pool water”.
Oh V, these are all great things to put in an painting! (Perhaps a painting of healthy poolside snacks?) Anyway, I do like several of these colours. I am just not sure I need to own them.
Full Moon Yellow (PY159, PY42, PBk6) I don’t understand this name. I do not perceive the moon as yellow-green. (Not even if I imagine it as cheese-based.) And I do not perceive this colour as attractive, or interesting. It’s pretty weak, too. Greed score: 1/10
Japanese Bush Warbler Green (PG17, PY42, PY43) When I was painting this out, I thought “wow, that really feels like PG17”. And, yeah. It’s PG17. There’s just a bit of extra yellow that struggles to separate out, which is familiar too, as I have added yellow to PG17 before. At least it’s the strongest of the three yellow-greens, and the one I would get if I had to get one. Greed score: 5/10.
Mimosa Yellow (PY159 PB29 PG17) This colour is so insanely weak it (again) brings back horrible flashbacks of Schmincke’s Shire set. I am confused by such gentle colours (I tend to get pale hues by diluting paint) and always worried for my brush when I try to load it. Greed score: 2/10 (+1 because maybe it would work well for painting mimosa? The flower, not the drink.)
Wonder Forest Green (PY43 PG50) I feel like this colour looks different in the official swatches? More green? To me this is a blue teal that is more water than forest. Kind of a weaker Cobalt Teal Light with sandy halos–with the “weaker” being the important part, here. Greed score: 3/10.
Peafowl Green (PY159, PR232, PG7, PB15) I want to like this colour–I quite fancy a shimmering teal–but I feel like it just dries ugly for me. And I cannot even blame PR233 for it! Unless the PR232 is a typo. Which… it could be. What do people think? Anyway, greed score: 3/10
Ocean Blue (PY159, PB15) This is phthalo blue with some incidental yellow dots in it. It has all the usual tinting strength and pushiness, and drying shift. Anyway, I like it! Not just for oceans: it should mix good foliage greens. I can see myself getting this instead of regular phrhalo green shade, just for variety. Greed score: 6/10.
The Neutrals
Shadow colours! Or, as I like to think of them, “the palette dirt collection”. My main mixing area always ends up looking like at least one of these.
Eurasian Jay Rose Grey (PB29, PG18, PO73) Based on others’ reviews, this is a very popular member of this set. And I can see why: it’s an outright dupe of the very popular Shadow Violet by Daniel Smith, a colour I have never been drawn to because I find it too brown for most shadows. Greed score: 4/10.
Hazy Moon Yellow (PY159, PBk6, PB15) This looks like one of those “dusk colours” I have seen around, and one I do not find very attractive. Out of personal taste, greed score: 2/10.
Echinops Green Grey (PB29, PG17): Oh, I recognize this one! I have a tendency to try using the weaker greens (cobalts, viridian, PG17) for distant trees, and to then attempt to get a darker value for their shadows using PB29. The result is this sort of unsatisfying low-value shadow mix. Which I actually like as a colour to stare at, and as a way to fill the low-focus parts of a painting. I just seem to mix it very easily. Greed score: 3/10.
Shoebill Blue Grey (PB71, PB29, PBk11): I am torn. I like the look of this–all the granulation–but it doesn’t get dark enough to be a hipster Payne’s Grey colour (like, e.g., Daniel Smith’s Sodalite). Also, the obvious black granulation makes it look unskylike to me. Er, greed score: 4/10.
Moonlit night (PB29, PBk6) I think many brands actually call this mix Payne’s Grey? Anyway, I own a couple of different versions, even though I don’t really use grey mixes. I think it might be a nice option for Payne’s Grey lovers, but, subjectively… Greed score: 1/10.
Rainy Night Moon Black (PB29, PR101): A classic “shadow colour” mix, and a classic slightly-purplish result. I like it! If I had it, I would probably use it all over the place. But I can also mix it super easily. So… greed score: 6/10.
The… Rest
This eclectic six is my favourite subset of paints, but in most cases I struggle to figure out how/where I would use them.
Jade Vine Blue (PV47, PG7, PB15, PW6) I enjoyed painting out this colour–among other things, it’s not weak–but I just don’t know what I would use it for. It seems to be a bit niche for skies, a dawn/dusk specialist sort of thing. I don’t know. Still, greed score: 6/10.
Nightfall Indigo (PG50, PB15, PB60, BV7) * It’s strong, but also kind of boring, IMO. I feel like I can get similar shades by mixing my usual blues, no dye needed. And I cannot tell what that dye is doing in there, apart from possibly ruining lightfastness. Greed score: 2/10.
Clematis Violet (PY159, PB29, PV23) I am not premixed dulled-out violets. They are very easy to mix oneself, and I do not use them much, anyway. Greed score: 2/10.
Earthshine Violet (PB29, PR177, PR122) * It’s like a Rose of Ultramarine++, because the red separation seems more complex. So that’s nice. But it’s got a probably-fugitive pigment in it. I will try to make a better dupe! So, greed score: 2/10.
Twilight Purple (PV47, PR233, PO13) This is not purple. Not at all. It’s… Potter’s Pink++. It has the look of PR233, with more colour separation. And since I use PR233 AND PV47 for urban textures, I think I might use this one, only… What us PO13? Is that a typo for PO73 (a common pigment in this set) or another dodgy pigment? I don’t think I want to buy this until I have tested the lightfastness at least a bit. Greed score: either 3/10 or 8/10, depending on lightfastness test result.
Daybreak Orange (PG50, PO73, PR254) Others’ swatches have a lot of red separating out, but I feel cheated: in mine, the effect is much more subtle. Anyway, overall, the paint paints out like an Indian Red (that opaque masstone with an awkward transition to tints, drying shift.) I actually kind of like it, but, again, not sure what I would use it for. Greed score: 4/10.
My conclusion
I am not about to rush out and buy any of these! If I find a sale, I might be tempted by Burke’s Parrot, Ocean Blue and Jade Vine Blue, or maybe Rainy Night Moon Black. As for my favourite, Twilight Purple, I will wait on my window lightfastness test results.