Awesome Art Supplies | White Nights Watercolors

Even a true artist does not always produce art.
Carroll O’Connor

I got a whole batch of awesome art supplies for Christmas, so I guess I must be very loved or something… Well, the truth is I ordered them myself and then got my mom to pay and give them to me. I pretended the surprise, but not the happiness. Art Supplies is the gift that keeps on giving you know.

I got a new box for my old watercolors, a pad of square watercolor paper, two sets of paint brushes and one of the best things was a whole set of 24 artist watercolor pans. Hallelujah!

I have never owned a whole new set like this before so just opening each of the “candy bars” got me extremely excited. It was like 24 tiny gifts inside a big package… The brand is Russian and called White Nights, and they are really nice.

I have only bought  small half pans before, one by one when in need of a refill. Sometimes I even bought those tiny half pans just as a gift to myself. Then when I got home I just play with a new color. But in this pack – 24 new colors just for me. What happiness! It makes me wonder why I didn’t splurge on or wish for something like this ages ago… Things like this is really the best gift a creative person can get.

I decided to paint color swatches as I opened the White Nights Watercolors up, and note the names of each color. I wanted to try them out at once and it’s good to have the swatches with names in case I want to refer back to it later.

I am not an expert, but I must say I do love how pigmented and lovely these watercolors are. Now all I want to do is experiment with these colors and make little puddles of water and paint on paper.

As with everything, there is pros and cons to buying a whole set like this. These are not too expensive, and buying them as a kit saves money. But then you also get a range of color that you might not use as often. Since I don’t sketch and paint from life/nature I doubt I will use up all these umber, sienna and browns in my lifetime. Also, there wasn’t a pink in the box (though the purple one was a fun surprise). But all in all, I’m a fan of White Nights so far.

And I noticed that the swatches are really helpful when I’m painting, since many of the colors look almost black in the box, so it’s easier to take a look at the painted swatches when I want to pick the right color.

Watercolors was my first real art love, I think, and they continue to be a favorite medium. So as I’m sure you’ve already figured out, I was like a kid at Christmas when I got these… For realz.

Click here to see how I sometimes play with watercolors.