Review of the Deli Colored Pencils, Are They Faber Castell Polychromos Alternative
Review of the Deli Colored Pencils, Are They Faber Castell Polychromos Alternative
In this written review we take an in-depth look at the Deli Colored Pencils and look at claims such as, the Deli Colored Pencils are Faber Castell Polychromos cheaper alternatives. However, before I put any credence, or not, to this claim, we need to test, analyse and demonstrate the Deli Colored Pencils before making any comparisons.
I discovered Aliexpress a few years back, when I was searching for colored pencils to review that may not be considered mainstream. I wanted to review a set of colored pencils that not. many people knew about, but they could still easily grab hold of a set if they so wished. Looking around on Aliexpress I discovered the Deli Colored Pencils, but because they were so cheap for a set of 72, I just thought they were going to be really bad and so I thought I’ll leave them for another time. About a month ago from writing this review, I seen the Deli Colored Pencils on Ali and thought, what the heck, lets get them and find out how good or bad they are, that is the entire point of this channel and so here we are.
Deli Colored Pencil Characteristics
I have the 72 set of Deli Colored Pencils to review, but we will talk more about set sizes further into the review. This 72 set comes in a sturdy metal tin, with two layers of pencils. On the front of the tin we have a beautiful piece of artwork depicting what looks like a thatched building surrounded by beautifully colored trees. On the rear of the tin there is a color swatch indication of the pencils inside and a lot of Chinese writing.
The Deli pencil sports a round barrel with every barrel lacquered the same color as the core pigment, making visual identification for the pigment required, very easy. The core is an ample 3.7mm, housed within a 7.5mm barrel. The pencil feels very light in the hand, something that ordinarily indicates to me, a lower grade wood being used for the barrel and thus resulting in problematic sharpening. However none of this is the case in for the Deli Colored Pencils, I sharpened all 72 before use and not a single one cause me any problems.
Along the barrel is printed “Color Pencil” in silver metallic font, this is closely followed by a number which corresponds to the color of the pencil. Unfortunately there is no pigment name on the barrel, on the packaging or even on the company home website.
After the number we are presented with the name of the company “Deli” in the same metallic print, which is accompanied by some Chinese characters, which I am guessing also says “Deli”. Finally toward the end of the barrel there is a decorative silver ban and the end of the barrel is capped.
Deli Colored Pencil Performance
As I mentioned above, one of the first things I do when I get a new set of pencils to review is to create a color swatch, but before I do this I sharpen every pencil. The reason I do this is because most pencil companies spray a fine mist of protective wax on the cores to protect them during transit and so they really need to be sharpened to remove this layer and thus experience the true nature of the core.
I like to try and test new pencils on as many different papers as I can, however paper is expensive and I am quickly running low on stock, so for this review I have only used three paper types. the first paper type used was the Strathmore 300 Series Bristol Velum paper and this was for the swatch.
The Bristol Velum paper provides just enough tooth to grip gold of the colored pencil pigment whilst allowing the artist to achieve beautifully smooth gradients and transitions of color. As I always do when creating a swatch, I start with a heavy application and fade the pigment as I moved the pencil down, this helps to demonstrate the pigment in a heavy layer format transitioning into a light layer, displaying a gradient. With the Deli Colored Pencils, I think you can see just how saturated and vibrant the pigment is.
I think the palette selection for the Deli Colored Pencils is a pretty typical 72 count of colored pencils, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the good selection of earth tones along with one or two unique colors from the greys. One or two colors are quite similar in tone, especially among the yellows and that would perhaps be my only critisim
Next up on the same Strathmore 300 Series Bristol Velum paper, I complete a layer test, creating as you can see from the image, five light layers and a single heavy application. The reason I do this for anyone new to the channel is this. It is generally considered among colored pencil artists who use Odourless Mineral Spirits, the approximately 3 to 5 layers of pigment should be applied before using OMS and then re-applying layers. The heavy application is a simple display of the pigment in its rawest form.
The Deli Colored Pencils layered really well in this test and in fact, many more layers could have been applied as I discovered in the artwork I created. The next test is the blending test and again, the purpose of this test is to use two colors to generate a third color and I think it is clear from the image provided that the Deli Colored Pencils blend beautifully with a clear third color being established.
The next test is how the Deli Colored Pencils react to odourless mineral spirts and for the results of this test you are going to have to watch my YouTube video review. In the video review, after creating a sphere using a series of blues from the Deli Colored Pencil range, I apply Zest-It Odourless Mineral Spirits. This is something I very rarely use in my own art work, but I know it is important and so I always include it. There are without doubt huge benefits to using OMS, the artist can achieve a more painterly effect providing the pencil being used reacts well to OMS; also applying OMS helps to rejuvenate the tooth of the paper after applying many layers, leaving the paper more susceptible to additional layers.
I have added a new test to my reviews and this came about after I thought about how I could visually describe the behaviour of the colored pencil core. As you may or may not know, I don’t buy into the wax and oil based colored pencil description, I fear new artists put to much weight on buying wax or oil based pencils when in fact there is no such thing as a wax only pencil or an only oil based pencil. As a result I try to describe how the core of the pencil feels when using it on various papers, but I wanted to show it visually.
The only thing I could come up with is the image supplied. The idea was, to apply a heavy application from a pencil until the core wore down to the point an artist would need to re-sharpen it. I decided to do the same with another pencil, from the same Deli Colored Pencil set, only using a light layer allowing the core to wear down to the same re-sharpening point as the heavy layer pencil test.
The final test is applying a few pencils to black paper, all this displays is whether or not a pencils is translucent or opaque. Neither of these define if the pencil is good or bad, this is simply case of some artist prefer one over the other and this test displays exactly that.
The core of the Deli Colored Pencil is a real delight to use on the papers I tested, the core holds up really well as you can see from the results, but delivers a beautiful layer filled with color, zero bloom, not sticky residue and only a slight amount of crumbling when applying heavy pressure.
So in my opinion the Deli Colored Pencils is not really like the Faber Castle Polychromos colored pencil, the Deli is a very different pencil, but being a different type of pencil does not equate to being a better or worse pencils. I will do a comparison between both pencils and let you decide which pencil delivers better results.
The artwork I completed using the Deli Colored Pencils was created on Derwent Lightfast Paper. So I have used the Deli Colored Pencils on Vellum paper, which is pretty affordable, Black sketching paper from Windsor And Newton and now the more expensive and higher grade paper, Derwent Lightfast.
I chose a fairly simple subject to draw in this Butterfly, some artists can make drawing butterflies look absolutely beautiful and some even quite scientifically biological if you know what I mean. I hope I did this beautiful butterfly justice, but whatever the results portray, I loved using the Deli Colored Pencil in this drawing.
I was able to layer without any issue on this particular piece, I applied multiple layers as you will see by watching the speed drawing video I have added and never experienced any bloom or tacky surface from layers building up.
Deli Colored Pencil Set Sizes and Prices
The Deli Colored Pencils are available in sets of 24, 36, 48 and 72. When I purchased my 72 set I paid £17 on Aliexpress and it was delivered to me within the week. That 72 set has increased slightly in cost but is still incredibly cheap for a 72 set of colored pencils in this quality category. However what I would say is this, in the past when I and others have reviewed products from AliExpress, they start off inexpensive, but as more and more people purchase the product, the price always goes up. So, if you like what you see in the Deli Colored Pencils and you think they would fit well into your artistic style, I would get them as soon as you can.
For artists in the uk, the 24 set will cost £9, for the 36 set you will pay £13, for the 48 set you will pay approximately £16 and for the largest set of 72 you will pay £22.
For Artists in the US, the 24 set will cost $13, for the 36 set you will pay $18, for the 48 set you will pay approximately $22 and for the largest set of 72 you will pay $31.
For Artists in the EU, the 24 set will cost €13, for the 36 set you will pay €17, for the 48 set you will pay approximately €22 and for the largest set of 72 you will pay €30.
Deli Colored Pencil Lightfast Information
There are no lightfast ratings for the Deli Colored Pencils, if you are worried about purchasing lightfast pencils or think that you need lightfast pencils regardless of the art you are creating and selling, listen to my YouTube review of the Deli Colored Pencils. In that video I explain exactly how I feel about this subject.
Deli Colored Pencil Conclusion
I really enjoyed using the Deli Colored Pencils and I was reasonably happy with the artwork I completed. The Deli Colored Pencils deliver effortless layers, beautiful blending and strong color. The Deli Colored Pencils are in no way the type of pencil a fine art colored pencil artist would use and this is due to the lack of lightfast testing. However, as I mention in my video review, you can still create beautiful art with non lightfast pencils, the only difference being, you are restricted to how you sell art created with such pencils.
It concerns me how some people, particularly new and young artists, have this overwhelming urge to only buy lightfast pencils and this is an absolute must if you intend selling the original piece, but if this is not your intention, expensive lightfast products are not essential. If you have a set of highly lightfast pencils and a set of pencils like the Deli Colored Pencils, I ask you to draw the same bowl of fruit in front of you with both sets, I can pretty much guarantee that you will not create a significantly nicer piece with the lightfast pencils over the Deli.
There are so many other wonderful projects and art that you can work on with non lightfast pencils and still achieve amazing results whilst obtaining the same overall experience. If you get to a stage in your art that you want to sell the original pieces or you will be taking on commissions, that is when highly lightfast pencils will be needed, but until that time, you can most certainly use cheaper non lightfast pencils whilst delivering breathtaking results.
I was shocked at how much I enjoyed the Deli Colored Pencils, the biggest down side of course being the lack of open stock replacement pencils and there being no pigment names. Other than that, with the cost being taking into consideration, I can’t think of another pencil of similar quality where you pay £22 for a 72 set, at least not yet, I hope to discover such a pencil in a future review.
to watch my YouTube video review of the Deli Colored Pencils simply follow the link, also if you would like to see the speed drawing video of the art work come to life you can do so by following this link. If speed drawings are not your thing, you can check out the still images I have added to the website so that you can study and inspect in your own time. As always thank you so much for your support and I look forward to seeing you all in the next review.
