My Thoughts on Reviews {…and a review…}

Hi friends! I want to start off tonight voicing an opinion (that’s what the internet is for right? LOL!) I have had a few people complain about the fact that I, The Frugal Crafter, review products. I totally understand why it would rub some people the wrong way if they are coming to my blog for thrifty ideas and a review makes them want to spend. That is not my intention. I get requests on a daily basis from viewers to review products, literally hundreds of requests a year, because they want to know if a product is worth buying before they spend their hard-earned money on it. That is why I review products. That and I am honestly curious about how they perform and compare. I also realize that my audience is all over the globe and a product that is affordable and easy to find one place may be impossible to get somewhere else. I live in the USA so it is fairly easy for me to obtain products. Maybe you can’t get M Graham watercolors so you want to know if Winsor & Newton is as good or maybe a new brand came out and is on sale so you want to know if it is decent. This is why I do reviews. Sometimes I buy the product and other times I am given a sample from a company. I ALWAYS let you know if I am given a product for free so you can factor that in your judgement on how much or little weight to give my review (although you will always get my honest opinion.) And I do not take payment for reviewing a product however I may use an affiliate link if a company I am affiliated with sells it. Again, I make that obvious too. I appreciate when other artists review products especially if it is someone who works in a  similar style because I can get an idea of how useful a supply would or would not be for me. I never want you to think that you need to go buy anything I give a positive review on, rather I want the reviews to be there in case you are considering a purchase that you can compare items and see if it is something you really need or not. It is also helpful to know if two products are indistinguishable from one another so you don’t buy duplicates. You might not agree with my reviews but you will always get my honest opinion. One piece of advise I will give anyone whether you are a marker artist, watercolors or pencil artist is to try a couple of tubes, pencils or markers from each brand (get different colors though so it is not a waste!) and see what works best for you before going “whole hog” on a set. That’s my opinion and as always I welcome yours:)

Now on to the review of Mijello Mission Gold Class (Professional) and Mijello Mission Silver Class (Student) pan watercolor sets. These sets were sent to me by Amazon seller Crush On because they appreciated the review I did on the Mission Gold 24 pure pigment tube set that I purchased last month. I have not seen the silver class (student line) used and I think in some countries it is vastly cheaper than the professional line so I am reviewing it.

Here are the sets I reviewed:
Mission Gold Perfect Pan 24 Set:
Price: $108 on Amazon (retail $189)
24 colors equivalent to 5-6ml tube paint per pan
Packaged in a gold bulletproof glass palette (it is really a type of plastic)
Artist Quality

Mijello Silver Class pan watercolors:
Price $68 (could not find a regular retail price)
20 pans each with the equivalent of 12ml tube paint per pan
Comes in a large palette with plenty of mixing room, also keep the clear plastic packaging as it can be flipped over and serves as divided mixing areas.

I have to say I am impressed with the Mijello Mission Silver Class paint, just be aware that some of the colors are not as lightfast as the artists grade (perhaps due to fillers?) but they mix cleanly and seem as pigmented as their artists counterparts.

In all honestly tho, I would consider the pure pigment set by Mijello gold class because I believe all of the colors can be made from those artist grade pigments. I personally purchased these a couple of weeks ago and love them! They are also cheaper than the Mission gold perfect pans and you get more paint.

And I don’t have this set but many of my viewers have said they love it, the Mission Gold set of 36 with palette, it is cheaper than the silver class paint set but you actually get the equivalent of 80 ml less paint, on the other hand artist quality paint theoretically will go farther.

Like I said I was given these two palettes as a gift from the Amazon seller Crush On from whom I purchased my pure pigment set. The mission gold paints were one of the most requested products to review and I am glad I could able to show you a couple more options. I hope you found this review helpful! If there is a product you would like reviewed let me know in the comments. I base my reviews on most requested items. Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!