Artsnacks December Review

Hey Everyone!
This year is coming to a close and with that, my final Artsnacks box review for 2018. It’s been an awesome year of getting these boxes, trying new things with different products and most of all challenging myself to create drawings with products and colors I may not have normally put together. Whether you go with Artsnacks or not, I highly recommend trying out one of these box subscriptions for yourself.  It’s given me a creative boost and something I really look forward to every month.

Items in the Box:

• Tombow Fudenosuke Colors Brush Pen
• KRINK K-75 Paint Marker
• General’s Draughting Pencil
• Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pens – 4 pack
• The Snack –  Mint Candy Cane

Tombow Fudenosuke Colors Brush Pen
I’ve become a really big fan of the Tombow brand over the course of the last year. Their products always perform so well and the quality is excellent as well. This hard-tipped brush pen is perfect for illustrating fine lines but in my illustration, I used it for larger areas as well and the coverage was great. Because this is a water-based pen you can also blend out some of the pigment to get a watercolor-like effect but you have to work quickly to achieve a smooth result.

KRINK K-75 Paint Marker
This marker was clearly designed for broad strokes and large areas, but I wanted to see what It could do in a detailed setting. Using the edge of the marker I was able to have pretty good control over my lines. Multiple small strokes of this product also blended well into one another for a continuous finish. I also loved how shiny and silver this actually was. Often silver markers come out grey or dull, but I was happy with the level of shininess this had. It also had a very minimal scent which is always a plus when working with an alcohol-based paint marker.

General’s Draughting Pencil
The English language is full of words that look like they should be pronounced one way based on their spelling but are actually pronounced another… like draughting. It’s actually pronounced like “drafting.” The good news is, this isn’t a blog about spelling and pronunciation so let’s talk about the actual pencil. I used the pencil for this illustration as a way to add shading and dimension to my Christmas ornaments as opposed to draw the preliminary sketch. The soft graphite core layered surprisingly well over the KRINK marker. Overall this is a very sturdy and well-crafted pencil that would satisfy all of your sketching needs. 

Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pens – 4 pack
if this isn’t the first time you’re finding me, then you already know my love for Faber-Castell PITT artist pens. The waterproof and lightfast India ink in these pens is a dream to work with and they also have no scent. This 4 pack comes with 4 different nibs, which are sure to delight hand-letterers and illustrators alike. The 4 nibs include a B or Brush, SC or Soft Calligraphy, SB or Soft Brush, and a 1,5 or Bullet. I used all 4 pens in my illustration, but they definitely all have their strengths and weaknesses depending on your skill level with them. The brush pens require a steady and sure hand for fine details while the 1,5 and SC are a little more forgiving when it comes to broader lines and strokes. As with anything, some healthy experimentation is always a good thing.

Final Thoughts
My favorite item in this box was hands down the KRINK Marker and that’s only because I’m not counting the PITT pens. Since I have an incredible bias towards them already I didn’t think it was fair to the other products I was trying for the first time. As a personal preference, I would have loved to get a different product other than a pencil in this box. There was nothing wrong with the pencil, I just don’t use them very much anymore for my sketches. Otherwise, though, I feel like this box is ending my first year-long experience with the Artsnacks boxes on a high note!

For a more in-depth look at my process behind these drawings and to see the products in action, check out my YouTube video below.

Sign up for your own Artsnacks box by following the link: http://www.artsnacks.co/

Have you tried any of the items in this review? Which did you like best? 
Share with me in the comments!