KOH-I-NOOR TOISON D'OR 8522 Artist's Soft Pastels - Grey (Pack of 12)

These inexpensive pastels are perfect for my purposes. I wanted to supplement my 72 stick Koh - I - noor set with some extra greys and to have replacements for the ones I knew I would use frequently. (I use greys for the initial drawing of landscapes and cityscapes.)There are only four shades that aren't included in the set of 72 (see photo) but provide a good range of colours.They are what I would describe as a medium soft pastel - softer than the cheaper Inscribe/Mungyo ranges but less soft than the Unison and Sennelier pastels but lay down smoothly, blend well and are not prone to shattering. They also produce very little dust in application which I really like.I am primarily a painter and found that using very soft pastels meant I had to protect everything else in the studio with dust-sheets or risk indelibly staining other work and equipment, which was time consuming, irksome and not totally successful. (Tracking tiny fragments of pastel on my shoes ruined a good rug and the shoes.) This led to me finding pastel more trouble than it was worth and only recently rediscovering it as an enjoyable medium with Koh - I - noor pastels.These are not large sticks- 7.5 cm long with a 1cm radius- but at less than 75p apiece are great value for money and are marvellous value. If you are new to pastel or want to try them out in mixed media I heartily recommend them.

Lovely pastels to use, near as good as top artist brands, fantastic prices but let down by the absolutely horrible labels each pastel is encased in. Previously I'd bought the 72 set and after stripping all of their covers vowed never to buy this brand again... I forgot.. each pastel has a tight strongly glued plastic label that has to be peeled from the stick so it can be used, see photos. 12 pastels took over 1/2 an hour to strip not one label came apart in less than 4 sections, most took more and sometimes the force needed to separate the label from the pastel causes the stick to break. Which all in all, makes opening a box of these pastels an exercise in frustration.

Having taken up pastel drawing in the past few months, I have tried quite a few brands and found these to be the best for me. They are almost dust free, strong in colour and adhere to the paper well and blend well. They have paper round them which reduces the pastel from getting on my hands (one well known brand I have has lovely colours, but terrible dust). Good range of grey shades.

love koh-i-noor pastels

very pleased with my purchase

I love these pastels, they have a great texture and blend beautifully.

Great value

Excellent value and wonderful pastels