Sofft Panpastel tools.

I was in my local art shop and they had a one of supply of Panpastel tools (Sofft tools) which in Australia is extremely rare, So I picked up this oval set for $4.90 AUD.

If your using Panpastels you definitely need the Sofft tools they are partly what makes the product so unique, eBay art products sellers stock Panpastel products but are usually expensive so head down to a local art shop or look at online shops.

Unlike the actual Panpastels the tools don't come with any storage containers or covers so I store mine in a transparent acrylic box.

Glass painting supplies!

For a family friends birthday I painted wine glasses with little scenes, I bought a tonne of different brand glass paints and these gave the best results! Hopefully this helps out someone looking for a gift idea, these also make great gifts for kids, I was given a few as kid.

The small tips allow for intricate designs and surprisingly last very long, I managed to paint 8 glasses and only used 1/4 of the paint!

These glass paint pens were good for a background giving a less solid colour, like a watercolour finish. 

I used these painted on with a cheap synthetic paint brush, mixable colours gave such great palette options.

Reasonably priced compared to some art products in Australia. 

Pan pastel mixed media set.

Mid last year (2013) I purchased a Pan Pastel mixed media set, this set was not the original colour combination I wanted but I was only buying it off eBay not an art shop, this set was $61(AUD) with $11(AUD) postage. I'm extremely happy with the pigment and quality all round for these pastels but due to the odd colour palette I haven't made an art piece with them, sometime this year I will purchase the 20 colour portrait set from an Australian art website http://www.seniorart.com.au/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14_480_483_486 I've been looking around for a long time for his set and this site seems to be the cheapest and most reliable. If you have never used Pan Pastel before or even pastel at all I would definitely recommend buying a 5,7 or 10 pack first.

I wouldn't recommend this to someone who hasn't tried painted, used charcoal or pastel before, but definitely good for people like me that like the appearance of a painting but hate waiting between layers and people that like pastel but hate the dust getting everywhere.

All the Sofft tools this set comes with.

Slide the cover off for cleaning, all cleaning instructions come with each pack.

The cover on for more precise lines.

I could imagine this set would last an artist half a year and the hobbyist anywhere from half a year to two years. 

I hoped this could help out someone not sure whether to splurge on these products.