Caran D'ache Luminance Colored Pencil Set of 40 (6901.740)

I truly enjoy these pencils. They are a "must have" treat for any artist or colorist. The cost of the pencils is definitely the only negative about this item, but there is none other exactly the same. I own many pencil brands; Faber castell Polychromos, Prismacolor premiere, Caran D'ache Pablo, to name a few. I truly love the feel of these pricey pencils. I put off trying them for years and on a whim (plus a good sale). I purchased the set of 40. The colors are vibrant, the pencils are buttery without skidding, and the lay down color beautifully. They layer and perform every bit as one would expect from an artist grade, high-end pencil. These are the best. I really love my Pablos as well as my polys, but now I'm hooked on these Luminance pencils. Here is a list of the colors included in the 40 count package:001 white, 240 lemon yellow, 820 golden bismuth yellow, 030 orange, 571 athraquinoid pink, 850 cornelian, 061 primary red, 070 scarlet, 350 purplish red, 585 perylene brown, 120 violet, 129 violet brown, 112 manganese violet, 862 burnt sienna 10%, 872 burnt ochre 10%, 821 Naples ochre, 034 yellow ochre, 037 brown ochre, 025 green ochre, 015 olive green, 470 spruce green, 220 grass green, 225 moss green, 739 dark sap green, 180 malachite green, 159 Prussian blue, 162 pthalo blue, 662 genuine cobal blued, 171 Turquoise blue, 661 light cobalt blue,002 silver grey, 495 slate grey, 508 payne's grey, 009 black, 046 Caswell earth, 808 French grey, 548 raw umber, 069 burnt sienna, 065 russet, 077 burnt ochre.I hope this list helps you, as other reviews which list colors in sets, have helped me!! I would have to say if I had to find s criticism about these pencils, it would be that the color names are difficult to read on each pencil. That is a Minor complaint, but it might be best to inventory your set, as use dose wear off the writing in time ( more than its original state ). Obviously, the price is a deterrent but the overall performance is worth the investment, in my humble artist opinion!! These are fast becoming my "go-to" pencils, well over my Polychromos (Faber castells). I really should have invested in the 76 set! Try them as they are worth every penny.

These are, without exception, the finest colored pencils I have ever used. Now, Faber Castell Polychromos is supposed to be on par with them, but I have never used those so I can't tell you if that is true.I used to use Prismacolor, and their leads shattered all the time. I used to use Caran d'Ache Pablo, and I thought those were great colored pencils until I used Luminance. I have never had a Luminance lead shatter like Prismacolor does. It will chip tiny chips on occasion, that's all.There are two main advantages to Luminance. First, and this mainly concerns professional artists, but Luminance has the highest lightfastness rating of any colored pencil. Essentially, pigments of whatever kind (colored pencil, watercolor and others) can fade over time if exposed to light. The degree to which that happens depends on the chemical formulation of the pigment. Luminance has the highest lightfastness rating of any colored pencil made.The second advantage is in the sheer color intensity of the pencils. I used to work mostly in watercolor, and the difference between less expensive Student grade watercolors and professional watercolors (in addition to lightfastness) is the amount of pigment per unit of paint. The very best paints contain very high densities of pigment compared to binder.Well Luminance pencils are definitely in that latter, high intensity category. You can readily layer on extremely dense color.Now, Luminance pencils are expensive. I would recommend watching tutorials online on colored pencil methods before you buy, and buy a few colors of the pencils separately first to test them out and see if you like them. In many online art supply stores and probably Amazon too, you can buy individual pencils to test them. Everyone has their own preferred artistic media to match their own style, and it is possible that colored pencils might not be your thing. But if colored pencils are in fact your thing, Caran d'Ache Luminance gets my highest possible recommendation. I cannot imagine going back to any other colored pencil. Five stars.

Beautiful pigments, very nice set. If you are looking to upgrade the quality of your artwork, these will help.

Although these are not the most expensive colored pencils they are near the top of the list. They are definitely nice. The colors go down smoothly, very similar to Prismacolor. They sharpen nicely and even very sharp points don't break too easily unless too much pressure is used.Even though they are expensive I wish I had gone the extra mile and gotten more than 40 colors. On the other hand, since they work almost as well as other brands I suppose the 40 are good enough.The color range is good.They seem to be sturdy enough - no unusual breakage. The box they come in has extra padding that's permanently bonded to the bottom of the top tray and to the inside of the box cover to protect the pencils. There's also a foam mold to hold each pencil securely in it's place. This packaging really adds a lot to pencil protection. Other manufacturers would do well to copy this package design.Recommended if you're willing to shell out the money. Beginners should use the very popular mid-range brand if they want something better than bargain level pencils before buying something like the Caran d'Ache pencils.

I was worried about the delivery, but the set of 40 luminance pencils arrived in perfect condition! I’ve swatched them all — so nice and smooth. I can’t wait to play with them some more!

They were expensive, but they are from Switzerland! They worked like standard colored pencils. I'd buy two boxes if I were you... you know, just in case.

Good quality! A little expensive but I guess you get what you pay for!

Original product, safe yet sustainable packaging, reasonable price/value for money. Arrived with no issues and earlier than expected.