After a two-month break from this subscription box, I resubscribed for May and was surprised I got it in the mail yesterday. The box came undamaged too, which is a nice change. Without further ado, let’s jump in for this EmmaLefebvrexCraftamo Box 5 review.
Packing
This month’s box came double cushioned! The outer layer was a thick bubble wrap, and then a foam insert to protect the box.
The box isn’t the thickest cardboard, so despite the cushioning, it still caved a little bit but that’s okay. It must have happened prior to being shipped.
What’s Inside This Month’s Box
This month’s bonus come in the form of 3 HB pencils and a kneaded eraser. You’ll also get two brushes, five 8.25×11.6″ sheets of 100% cotton paper, two sheets of tracing paper, project template and reference photo.
Improvements Needed…
By the way, the reference photo is printed landscape, which is a little silly to me. It should have been printed in portrait orientation so it’s not so small with so much white space around it. Mine came wrinkled too, as you can tell from the picture.
Moreover, the three HB pencils arrived very dirty. I gave them a wipe but the lead has stained them permanently. These sketch darker than the Faber Castell HB pencil I have, by the way.
One more thing I noticed: the paper this month seemed different. The paints dried quickly on it, leaving little time to blend, almost as if it was cellulose rather than cotton paper.
The Brushes
The brushes included in this month’s box are a size 6 dagger brush and size 4 filbert brush. For comparison, the filbert brush is bigger than the Princeton Velvetouch size 6 filbert brush:
I personally prefer the EmmaLefebvrexCraftamo brush, since it holds more water.
Paints…and a bit of tea!
This month’s paints are Olive Green, Cerulean Blue Hue, Pale Terracotta and Alizarin Crimson.
By the way, the half-pan paints no longer have the plastic wrap. Instead, they are taped over with labels, which left sticky residue on the paint. You can lift the residue easily with the label or any tape to remove it, but it should not be taped this way.
Below are swatches of this month’s paint. I have some issues with the paint this month; I find them to be on the chalky side.
Here’s what I also learned as well: a youtuber did some detective work and suggested that the paints are manufactured by Phoenix, which is a budget brand in China. You can watch her video here if you are curious.
In addition, Emma Lefebvre has compared these paints to Winsor & Newton (professional line) before, and Lindsay Weirich (aka The Frugal Crafter) has suggested that Phoenix likely manufactured for Winsor & Newton’s Cotman line which is student grade.
The Painting
You can find this month’s tutorial here. I did mine with a darker skin tone and also added nail polish on the nails.
A few things to note for this month’s brushes and paint. First of all, the paints were chalky. I never experienced this issue before, so I don’t know if it’s just these shades or maybe I got a bad batch. I find them very grainy to work with and I much prefer Meiliang (comparing student grade to student grade here).
Secondly, while I love the two brushes, they are better for painting loose florals. For example, I struggled with the dagger brush to paint the hand. Emma also suggested grabbing a round brush to do the hand, several times in her tutorial, for this reason. I had so many streaks using the dagger brush or the filbert for the hand that I gave up and grabbed a round brush to complete the painting.
Value For Your Money?
I really wanted to love the box, but I am not in love with it. I like the brushes, which remain the best part of the box even for the previous boxes; however, the paints are just okay, and the bonus items (pencils and kneaded eraser) are cheap to produce in China and I felt that the box was very expensive (CAD$84). The fair price for the box, inclusive of shipping, would be the price (US$50) before shipping.
Summary: EmmaLefebvrexCraftamo Box 5 Review
This month’s box has great brushes as usual, and the shipping is quick and well packed, with no damage to the box at all. However, I have some issues with the paints, and the price of the box is a bit high for what you are getting, since everything came from China. The bonus items don’t really add much value to the box, and the pencils could have been in better condition. While I do appreciate the logistics company (Yanwen) in China having the box cushioned well this time and the quick shipping, I am still not sure if it is worth the hefty price tag.
I hope you enjoyed this EmmaLefebvrexCraftamo Box 5 review. What do you think of these subscription boxes?
2 Comments
Having just read your blog, I totally agree with your comments. I find these student grade paints chalky, whereas years ago I used Winsor Newton student grade when first starting and my tube paints in the 1990’s were actually good. Now I use professional grade Daniel Smith and Winsor Newton and and they are far superior. Also I use much better really white paper, even heavier weight paper, as I frequently paint wet into wet. I’m still what I call a beginner but sometimes people want to buy my work. I don’t sell as it’s for my own enjoyment or as gifts. I do enjoy watching Emma and Jenna Rainey and other loose artists. I’ve taken classes but find it difficult to find classes in our upper northeast Wisconsin area especially since Covid struck. I am still learning a lot. I will try to find you in different sites and look for your your books. I really prefer hands on real life classes, as I learn so much when having an instructor in a room with me. Thank you for your review. I do think Craftamo is making a high profit margin. I’ve had my good brushes since the 1990’s.
Thank you, Virginia! I appreciate your comment and I agree with you on these brushes. I love Emma but Craftamo is expensive for what it is, you can find similar brushes like Artegria, Grabie for a fraction of the price with no shedding. I hope you find classes close to home and continue to enjoy watercolor! 🙂