Hi, friends! Oil pastels are a lot of fun and you don't need to break the bank to get a decent product either! Today I'll show you the oil pastels I have and how they compare as well as what I recommend for someone starting out.
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The firmest oil pastels I use, and also the most budget-friendly, are the Pentel Arts set of 50. ***Some viewers told me that they reformulated these pastels and now have a very strong odor. Blick: shrsl.com/2vzsy Amazon: amzn.to/3cIv6Zy You can get a set of 50 for $7.04 on blick and it's a great start on your oil pastel journey. I even use them to block in areas or add detail at the end as they are firmer. Even tho they are harder than the other brands I mention they are very pigmented. These are great in sketchbooks as they don't transfer much to the opposite page. The downside is that they are not lightfast so use them only in sketchbooks and for experiments if you are concerned about fading.
Mungyo Gallery Soft Oil Pastels amzn.to/31GCEpn Mungyo makes many pastels for other companies including the Master's touch at Hobby Lobby so if you wait for a 50% off sale you will pay the normal Mungyo price on Amazon. Mungyo makes a regular and a soft and I purchased the soft. They are really nice for learning and are a bit more lightfast than the Pentels so your work will not fade as quickly in the light. They are lovely to work with. Expect to pay between $20-$30 for a 48 piece set, they also offer a 72 wood box set: amzn.to/3ukvEuv
Paul Rubens Oil Pastels: amzn.to/3mekfcS this 48 set is a great option for the budget-conscious artist who also cares about lightfastness. Every stick has pigment info and a lightfast rating. These are soft and very nice to work with. They have also come out with a pastel color set amzn.to/2Om8xAI an iridescent set: amzn.to/3udd47N and 6 pack of white pastels: amzn.to/39zU4bu These would be my top pick for budget and quality
The softest pastels I have are also the most lightfast and you can buy individual sticks but they come at a cost. The Sennelier oil pastels are spendy but awesome: shrsl.com/2vzuh They also have larger sticks if you want to work big. These are lipstick soft and so pigmented. They are truly a luxury art supply.
I also showed the eye-pencil like Dramasticks. I did not have a lot of luck with these but if you think they may be right for you you can see them here: amzn.to/3sRkQUI They might be discontinued tho. Jane Davenport also has Power Pastels but they are more like a wax crayon than an oil pastel so I did not include them in this comparison. I do like the power pastels but I have not used them much, I think I will, stay tuned! They are a good price on Amazon right now: amzn.to/31HzTEo
Last but not least are the Winsor & Newton Oil Bar, these are paint in a stick, they dry just like oil paint, unlike oil pastels which never truly dry to a durable finish. I think these might be discontinued but the Shiva brand is available: shrsl.com/2vzvb
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