Artful pastel starter box
Best: Overall
Rating: 10/10
Artful is a fantastic subscription service that allows you to try out all the artistic mediums. From watercolours and pastels to ink and lino printing, it will introduce you to a variety of different art materials, starting from the basics and increasing your skill level from there on a quarterly basis. But unlike a lot of subscriptions, there’s also the wonderful option of trying a single box. We tried the pastel starter box and were really impressed with the amount included and the quality of the product. The contents is worth £100, and consisted of a set of 24 pastels, six pastel pencils, putty rubber, a 4H pencil, 25 sheets of premium mixed media paper, blank greeting cards, a no.11 Filbert paint brush, three paper blending stumps, and a magazine full of step-by-step tutorials and inspiration. It’s fit to burst with everything you could possibly need. What we found really helpful was that the box is suitable for all skill levels. If you’ve never used pastels before, the tutorials are a great way to get started, but if you have, the magazine also contains interviews with a variety of different artists discussing their different styles and techniques. This is perfect if you want to freestyle and try something out of your comfort zone. Pay £45 for the individual starter box or £120 for a year subscription.