In the coloring review this month we take a set of Staedtler fineliners in pastel colors for a test drive. Read on to see if the soothing pastel colors in this six pen pack can help you reproduce those wistful, spring-time, baby-shower, sweet-shop colors schemes in your coloring pages!
Soft and soothing…
Pastel shades are made from high value (brighter) colors that are desaturated (washed out), think baby-blue, soft-peach and blushing-pink and you are on your way to creating a beautiful pastel color palette. I wanted to try my hand at using a soothing color scheme in some of my coloring pages so invested in this 6 pack of Staedtler fineliners.
In this coloring review I will take you through my first impressions and test drive these pastel pens in a step by step coloring guide of a simple flower design.
First impressions
The pens come in their own plastic case which, like other fineliners in the Staedtler family, has a neat lid that also acts as a stand. The triangular shaped pens have caps which fit snugly on the end whilst you are coloring. If you like chasing pens that roll off the table or enjoy a game of “hunt the missing lid” then these are not the set for you!
Color test…
Let us start with a simple color test to see how accurately the ink matches the pen colors.
you will see that looks can be deceiving!
Each pen lid is a nice soft pastel shade, which you would expect of a pack that claims to contain pastel colors! However when we apply these to the paper you will see that looks can be deceiving!
My hopes of a soft-lavender hint in my coloring pages are dashed, the ink produces a much stronger and darker shade than I was expecting.
These pens are fineliners so their nibs are needle thin and perfect for detailed coloring, but if you need to color large areas then you will want to invest in a set with larger tips.
Gray scale
One of the pens in this pastel set is gray.
Gray is a neutral color that can fit in practically any color palette so is not out of place alongside the other colors, however I think it would have been nicer had Staedtler included another pastel shade, like blue, instead of a generic gray pen. It is supposed to be a pastel pen set after all!
The remaining colors, turquoise, orange, pink and green are a pretty close match for the colors in the packaging and produce a nice even color finish.
Fineliner tips can sometimes feel a bit scratchy when you are coloring, the trick with fineliner nibs is to be as delicate as possible, almost just tickling the page as you color.
Bleed through
Staedtler fineliners are usually good with bleed through, in fact the only pen in this set that leaked ink to the page below was that strong purple.
As always though, make sure you have a spare sheet of paper underneath the page you are coloring.
Pastel shades coloring walkthrough
To give these pens a proper workout I am going to use them to color a simple flower design. I start by using the pink shade.
The pink is my favorite of the colors in this set, it feels smoother to apply than the other pens and produces a very soft and even color.
The next step is to add some gray, this color is neutral and works well to add some contrast to the design.
Turquoise, cyan, greeny-blue! Whatever you like to call it, the color pops against the gray and pink.
I actually love the way the turquoise goes with the white in the design and could easily have left those middle petals white, but to give the pens a thorough test I cracked open that purple pen!
The turquoise and white looked fresh next to one another, adding the purple, a strong dark shade, has caused the centre petals to stand out much more from the design. This color may have worked better in the smaller elements of the design, like the circles in the petals.
Finishing touch!
The design is finished with a pink centre. You are going to either love or hate the purple in this design, but I can’t help think leaving those areas white would have made for a more pleasing set of colors.
Final Thoughts
In my experience, Staedtler always produce quality pens however this set falls a little short of my expectations. Being a pastel set, I would have preferred a different color to gray in this set and the lavender pen simply does not match the color that is produced. This set may be worth the price if you are looking for a nice soft turquoise, orange and pink, but for me the other colors in this set can be found in the standard Staedtler fineliner colouring sets. That turquoise pen is really nice though!
Other coloring pen reviews
Looking for a more striking set of coloring pens? Take a look at our neon coloring pen review and coloring test.
Want to add some bling to your coloring page? Read or metallic pen review and coloring test.
Get involved
Do you use pastel shades in your coloring? Do you have a coloring set to recommend? Let us know below.
Would love to do this, I colour in with water colours, drawer own pics.