Becca Hillburn

Early Access: Amazon Art Supplies Meeden Watercolor Palette Unbox & Swatch- Student Grade Showdown (Patreon)

Published:

2022-09-08

Imported:

2026-10

Tags:

early access meeden student grade showdown watercolor watercolor review

Content

Colors in this set:

Scarlet

Vermilion

Pink

Baby pink

Red orange

Orange

Light orange yellow

Deep yellow

Complexion

Golden yellow

Permanent yellow

Citrine

Crimson

Rubine

Rosy

Dark green

Aquamarine blue

Atrovirens

Army green

Grass green

Bright green

fruit green

bluish yellow

Tea color

Reddish violet

Violet

Purple

Dark blue

Mid blue

Cobalt blue

Ultramarine blue

Lake blue

Peacock blue

Sky blue

Light blue

Permanent green light

Bluish violet

Plum purple

Dark purple

Reddish brown

Brown

Coffee

Deep yellow ochre

Yellow ochre

Black

Dark gray

Silver

White

These swatched ok at first, and I sorta hoped that these might be kinda like the Meiliang pigments, but as soon as I hit the neutrals I knew- there's dye in these here hills. The earth tones tend to be really cheap pigments to produce, so there's no reason to cheap out and use dyes, unless the whole set is dye based. Those of yall who have watched my Student Grade Showdown know how I feel about dye-based watercolors- they have no real place in my watercolor life.

Swatching on Blick:

Looking for:

Opacity

Granulation

Liftability

Why is Dye Based Bad?

These don't totally fall apart when you add water, but there isn't any granulation

These basically have no granulation. While mores saturated and easier to activate than some of the dye-based watercolors I've reviewed (Seamiart, XileyW) they don't really graduate out the way you'd see pigment based paints do. THey do hold together slightly better than other dye-based paints. These are best at their masstone- adding water doesn't really give these much of an opportunity to shine or reflect interesting properties.

Out of the dye-based watercolors, these might handle the best, and for someone like me who struggles to use the Radiant watercolors well, these might offer an alternative if you want to use dye-based paints.

These also don't really need preactivation, they activate quickly, and preactivation causes them to glob up on the brush.

Color Mixing:

Optical Mixing

Laying down the grid has live narration explaining warm and cool colors

Atomic Mixing:

Their ultramarine is REALLY weak- no mixing or tinting power, so your purples mixed with this are going to be really weak. Some of the mixes start really brilliant but start to dry dull, so this probably isn't a good set if you like mixing your own colors (I do), but there may be enough range that you can squeak by with what you have, which might make it ideal for cardmakers who aren't interested in doing a lot of painting, but want an easy way to add color.

Optical glazing seems ok, not a lot of reactivation, but there are some hard-line edges with the yellows in particular.

Wet into Wet:

These definitely seem like dye-based watercolors, and many colors lose their potency in water. There's some strange grittiness to some colors that isn't quite granulation and might be the substrate they're using. I would say these are kinda unpredictable when a lot of water is involved, and probably aren't a good choice for illustrators and comic artists who use a lot of washes or who do a lot of layers.

Compared against other Student Grade Palettes

There are a lot of dye-based watercolors out there, and I've reviewed many, so I'm not really going to spend too much time talking about them because they all start to feel the same. These are pretty comparable to the Artibox, the Dianayw, a bit better than the Seamiart and the Xiley W, but there's definitely better out there for around the same price.

I would recommend if you're considering these, that you check out the

Meiliang and sister palettes

Superior Folding Palette

Superior Master Level watercolors

Rosa Galleria

Monte Marte watercolors

MozArt Komorebi palette

As these are all at a similar price point and perform a lot better

Pros:

The palette is good, but Meeden sells the palettes empty for less

Cons:

These are dye based

Going to be light fugitive

The Verdict:

Skip this

Files

Amazon Art Supplies Meeden Watercolor Palette Unbox & Swatch- Student Grade Showdown

Meeden: Get Your Own: Shownotes: Full Shownotes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aNaf77XFWaDBk5ZZV0J5mMse2ni1a7LKILGzbF1x6mM/edit?usp=sharing Meeden 48 Half Pan Watercolor Palette Swatching on their Paper Colors in this set listed in Full Shownotes. These swatched ok at first, and I sorta hoped that these might be kinda like the meiliang pigments, but as soon as I hit the neutrals I knew- there's dye in these here hills. The earth tones tend to be really cheap pigments to produce, so there's no reason to cheap out and use dyes, unless the whole set is dye based. Those of yall who have watched my Student Grade Showdown know how I feel about dye based watercolors- they have no real place in my watercolor life. Swatching on Blick: Looking for: Opacity Granulation Liftability Why is Dye Based Bad? These don't totally fall apart when you add water, but there isn't any granulation These basically have no granulation. While mores saturated and easier to activate than some of the dye based watercolors I've reviewed (Seamiart, XileyW) they don't reallyi granduate out the way you'd see pigment based paints do. THey do hold together slightly better than other dye based paints. These are best at their masstone- adding water doesn't really give these much of an opportunity to shine or reflect interesting properties. Out of the dye based watercolors, these might handle the best, and for someone like me who struggles to use the Radient watercolors well, these might offer an alternative if you want to use dye based paints. These also don't really need preactivation, they activate quickly, and preactivation causes them to glob up on the brush. Lift Test: Color Mixing: Optical Mixing Laying down the grid has live narration explaining warm and cool colors Atomic Mixing: Their ultramarine is REALLY weak- no mixing or tinting power, so your purples mixed with this are going to be really weak. Some of the mixes start really brilliant, but start to dry dull, so this probably isn't a good set if you like mixing your own colors (I do), but there may be enough range that you can squeak by with what you have, which might make it ideal for cardmarkers who aren't interested in doing a lot of painting, but want an easy way to add color. Optical glazing seems ok, not a lot of reactivation, but there are some hard line edges with the yellows in particular. Wet into Wet: These definitely seem like dye based watercolors, and many colors lose their potency in water. There's some strange grittiness to some colors that isn't quite granulation and might be the substrate they're using. I would say these are kinda unpredictable when a lot of water is involved, and probably aren't a good choice for illustrators and comic artists who use a lot of washes or who do a lot of layers. Compared against other Student Grade Palettes There are a lot of dye based watercolors out there, and I've reviewed many, so I'm not really going to spend too much time talking about them because they all start to feel the same. These are pretty comparable to the Artibox, the Dianayw, a bit better than the Seamiart and the Xiley W, but there's definitely better out there for around the same price. I would recommond, if you're considering these, that you check out the Meiliang oand sister palettes Superior Folding Palette Superior Master Level watercolors Rosa Galleria Monte Marte watercolors MozArt Komorebi palette As these are all at a similar price point and perform a lot better Include segments here: Pros and Cons Pros: The palette is good, but Meeden sells the palettes empty for less Cons: These are dye based Going to be light fugitive The Verdict: Skip this Mentioned in this Review: Meiliang Pigments Aowen Watercolors Superior Folding Palette Superior Master Level Watercolors MozArt Komorebi Rosa Galleria Mont Marte Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:37 Unpacking the watercolor 02:18 Unboxing the Watercolor 10:25 Swatching on Their Paper 21:38 Swatching on Blick Paper 33:43 Lift Test 37:49 Color Mixing 44:29 Wet into Wet 49:05 Comparable Watercolor 1:00:00 Pros and Cons 1:06:42 Verdict 1:08:22 Final Thoughts Music: Sunny Travel- Nico Staf Sun Awakening- Future Mono Benji- Dyalla No Starlight Dey Beat- Nana Kwabena Lazy Walk- Cheel National Express- Dan Bodan A typical Ride Out After the Soft Rains Blue Feather- Kevin MacLeod Summer Symphony Ball- Sir Cubworth Bab Tista- Text Me Records- GrandBankss Crazy- Patrick Patrikios C Major Prelude Knowpe- Noir Et Blanc Vie Sunny Looks Good on You Bike Sharing to Paradise- Dan Bodan True Art Real Affection Part 14- Noir Et Blanc Vie Tranquility- Kevin MacLeod Silver Blue Light- Kevin MacLeod Missing My Girl Summer Love