Welcome to my Gouache Database – a place where I keep track of all the gouache I’ve tried, its properties, costs, and anything else I find interesting. I’ll also post examples of paintings and review videos as they are available.
Prior to 2023, I have been using Winsor & Newton and Schmincke Horadam gouache almost exclusively. In February 2023 I bought all the other brands you see here to familiarize myself with them and gain a deeper understanding of the overall gouache experience in the world. I get endless comments on my videos about these brands and until now, wasn’t able to reply sufficiently. Now I’ll be able to use my own first hand experience while discussing popular gouache brands with the world.
Table of Contents
Sarah’s Gouache Database Table
(updated February 2023)
PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS’ GOUACHE
| Brand | Tube Size | Avg. Cost per tube* | Binder Type *** | Vegan?** | Review | Buy | Manufa. Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daler Rowney Designer’s Gouache | 15 ml | $5.95 | Gum Arabic + Calcium Carbonate | Yes except the colors containing PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (UK) | UK |
| Daniel Smith Extra Fine Gouache | 15 ml | $11.18 | Gum Arabic | Yes, except these colors contain PBk9 bone black: Sepia, Ivory Black, Joseph Z’s Neutral Grey & Payne’s Gray. | Review | (USA), (EU) | USA |
| Holbein Artist’s Gouache | 15 ml | $12.67 | Gum Arabic | Yes, except these colors contain ox gall: Cad Red, Cad Red Purple, Cad Yellow, Cad Lemon, Cad Orange Yellow Ochre, Jaune Brilliant 2, Naples Y, Cad Green Apple, Terre Verte, Co Green Pale, Ulta Light, Grey 1, Grey 2, Permanent White, Primary White, Golds, Silver. Some colors also contain PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (USA), (UK) | Japan |
| M. Graham & Co. Artist’s Gouache | 15 ml | $10.81 | Gum Arabic, Honey | No (contains honey and a proprietary non-vegan ingredient according to their email). Some colors also contain PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (USA), (UK), (EU) | USA |
| Royal Talens Extra Fine Gouache | 20 ml | $8.08 | Dextrin | Yes except the colors containing PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (USA) | Netherlands |
| Shinhan Professional Designer’s Gouache | 15 ml | $6.64 | Gum Arabic | Yes except the colors containing PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (UK) | South Korea |
| Schmincke Horadam Artist Gouache | 15 ml | $17.20 | Gum Arabic, dextrin | No (all colors contain ox gall). Some colors also contain PBk9 (bone black). | Review | (USA),(UK) | Germany |
| Winsor & Newton Designer’s Gouache | 14 ml | $7.86 | Gum Arabic | Yes, except these colors contain ox gall (and some also contain PBk9): Intense Blue, Primary Blue, Burnt Umber, Ivory Black, Lamp Black, Prussian Blue, Sky Blue, Winsor green and Neutral Grey. | Review | (USA),(UK), (EU) | France |
This page contains affiliate links through Blick Art Materials and Jacksons Art. If you decide to purchase something using my link, I get a tiny store credit so I can buy more art supplies, so thank you for your support! New Jacksons Art customers will receive a 10% discount on their first order if it is made through any of these links.
STUDENT GRADE GOUACHE
| Brand | Tube Size | Avg. Cost per tube* | Binder Type *** | Vegan?** | Review | Manufa. Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arteza Premium Gouache Set | 12 ml | $0.74 | Gum Acacia | The binder is, but unconfirmed if they use any PBk9 (bone black) | Review | China |
| Caran D’Ache Classic Gouache (tubes + pans) | 10 ml | $5.75 | Dextrin | Yes | Review | Switzerland |
| MEEDEN Gouache Paint Set | 12 ml | $0.72 | Unknown | Yes | Review | China |
| Miya Arts HIMI Gouache Set | 30 ml cups | $1.24 | Petroleum based | The binder is, but unconfirmed if they use any PBk9 (bone black) | Review | China |
| Royal & Langnickel Essentials Gouache Set | 12 ml | $0.82 | Unconfirmed | Unconfirmed | Absolutely horrible! Don’t buy. | China |
Notes about my Research
*Prices don’t include shipping or taxes. I converted everything to $ because most of my audience is in the USA. I attempted to find the cheapest price for each item. Then I found the mean cost by this method:
- Find the sum of the values by adding them all up.
- Divide the sum by the number of values in the data set.
**I’ve emailed each company to confirm what is in their paint. If they haven’t responded I wrote ‘unconfirmed.’ There is a lot of misinformation online so I prefer to get my facts straight from the company. Regarding vegan paint – the reason a paint would not be considered vegan is if it contains animal biproducts such as honey or ox gall in their binders. Some brands that use ‘vegan’ binders use “Ivory Black” or “Bone Black” (PBk9) which is derived from animal bone. So even if the binder is vegan, any colors containing that pigment are not vegan. I’ll update my list as more companies respond.
***I’ve emailed the companies to confirm the binder materials and the manufacturing location. If they didn’t respond, I will write ‘unconfirmed’ until I hear back. However I don’t think all the companies are being forthright about their ingredients. Example: When I emailed Schmincke (twice), I had to specifically ask whether they include dextrin. If I didn’t ask, they didn’t include it in their ingredient list. I don’t think brands are trying to hide anything, I think they assume people don’t care what the exact ingredients are. I also think it’s likely that most of the brands use at least a little dextrin in the binder, but may not disclose this because it’s a very small amount. Does it matter? Not really. But I’m just trying to be super accurate for you all. Many people assume gouache always uses a gum arabic binder, but that’s not always the case, especially in cheaper brands. Dextrin is a cheaper type of binder (a starchy glue), and can be used to replace gum arabic or used in addition to it. It improves the binder strength and matte finish. But it’s a bit stickier than pure gum arabic. So a little seems fine, but if the entire binder is dextrin, I noticed the paint doesn’t flow very well.
Gouache Brand Comparisons – RANKINGS (opens a separate page)
Gouache Lightfast Tests (12 Brands)
Some pigments will fade in sunlight. If you sell your original artwork, or want them to last a long time on the wall, it’s important to avoid ‘fugitive’ colors. Testing the lightfastness of a color is easy. Simply paint a swatch, hang it in a sunny window, and compare it to the original color after a few months. Many artists have done this for watercolors and oils, and a small selection of gouache colors, But I cannot find a single database of gouache lightfast tests online. So I decided to make my own. Handprint and Pigment database (both of which are widely considered the best resources for pigment data) offer insights into what pigments tend to fade.
My gouache lightfastness tests began Feb 10, 2023.
4 MONTH GOUACHE LIGHTFAST TEST UPDATE: June 10, 2023.
Watch the full reveal video on youtube.
We get a lot of condensation on our windows in winter, so I have to frame my swatches for the tests to avoid moisture getting on the colors. I live in northeast Scotland, which gets less sunshine than some other locations. The best window I have is facing west, so signs of fading may take longer to show in my tests.
Color Swatches of Each Brand
I don’t own every color in every brand, but these are the swatches I have created with what I own. More information can be found in the individual review posts.
I did not swatch Royal & Langnickel because the moment I opened it, it smelled horrific, and almost every single color had binder gushing out of the tube. To put it kindly, it’s not worth my time.
These are high resolution scans so they may take some time to load.
Mold Tests – Comparing 12 Brands of Gouache
I’m performing a “mold test” on all of these brands in my database. This will require time and patience, so check back to see what happens!
Phase One
Experiment Setup/Rules
- Fresh paint is squeezed from the tube directly into an air-tight palette. I have not added any extra water or treatment to these palettes. The palette is sealed shut and set on the shelf. I will check them regularly to see if anything is growing.
- I have a control palette with my usual gouache setup, which includes clove but oil (a natural treatment for preventing growth). This is what I’m comparing the others to, since I’ve been using it for over a year with no issues.
| Brand | Colors in the test | Feb 13 Notes | Feb 19 Notes | Feb 24 Notes | March 5 Notes | March 9 Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arteza Premium Gouache | Taupe, Toffee Brown, Latte Brown | Slight discoloration in corners – Possible binder separation | No change | A little more discoloration on edges | More discoloration, possible mold started on ‘Latte Brown’ | Mold on Latte Brown |
| Caran D’Ache Classic Gouache | White, Primary Yellow, Scarlet, Cyan, Black | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Daler Rowney Designer’s Gouache | Black, White, Neutral Gray | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Daniel Smith Extra Fine Gouache | Hansa Yellow Light, Pyrrol Red, Ultramarine, Lamp Black | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Holbein Artist’s Gouache | Cobalt Blue, Cadmium Lemon Yellow | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| M. Graham & Co. Artists’ Gouache | Azo Yellow, Naphthol Red, Cobalt Blue, Ivory Black | Possible discoloration on the yellow | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Miya Arts HIMI Gouache | White, Lemon Yellow, Deep Red, Ultramarine, Jade Green, Black | No change | Binder separation in lighter colors but no mold | More binder separation in more colors | More binder separation in more colors | More binder separation in more colors |
| Royal Talens Extra Fine Gouache | Yellow, Vermillion, Neutral Gray | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Royal Langnickel Essentials Gouache | Yellow Mid, Rose, Cobalt Blue, Mauve, Deep Green, Prussian Blue | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Shinhan Professional Designer’s Gouache | Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Quinacridone Red, Ultramarine Deep | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Schmincke Horadam | English Red, Helio Blue, Titanium Gold Ochre | Slight discoloration in the yellow corners – Possible binder separation | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Winsor & Newton Designer’s Gouache | Primary Blue, Yellow Ochre, Winsor Green | No change | No change | No change | No change | No change |
Phase 01 Results (1 month)
The only major changes have been on the Arteza Latte Brown which started discoloring quickly and is now officially growing mold (started at 3.5 weeks).
Phase Two
Experiment Setup/Rules
Phase Two consists of painting with the colors from the palette. This means I’ll be introducing water to them. My theory is that the paint itself does not inherently promote mold growth. It’s what we add to the palettes and how often we use them that contributes to mold growth. After painting with each color, I will then seal the palettes again and check them every 4-5 days for another month.
Update: used/mixed/water added on: March 9, March 24
| Brand | Colors in the test | Date Started (useD) | Checked Mar. 16 | Used Mar. 23 | Checked Mar. 30 | Checked april 10 (final check) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arteza Premium Gouache | Taupe, Toffee Brown, Latte Brown | March 9, 2023 | Growth visible on Taupe | More mold on Arteza (see below) | Mold continues to thicken | Mold continues to thicken |
| Caran D’Ache Classic Gouache | White, Primary Yellow, Scarlet, Cyan, Black | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Daler Rowney Designer’s Gouache | Black, White, Neutral Gray | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Daniel Smith Extra Fine Gouache | Hansa Yellow Light, Pyrrol Red, Ultramarine, Lamp Black | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Holbein Artist’s Gouache | Cobalt Blue, Cadmium Lemon Yellow | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| M. Graham & Co. Artists’ Gouache | Azo Yellow, Naphthol Red, Cobalt Blue, Ivory Black | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | Fuzzy patches on Ivory Black | Ivory Black completely covered in fuzzy mold |
| Miya Arts HIMI Gouache | White, Lemon Yellow, Deep Red, Ultramarine, Jade Green, Black | March 9, 2023 | No change | Slight binder separation | No change | No change |
| Royal Talens Extra Fine Gouache | Yellow, Vermillion, Neutral Gray | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Royal Langnickel Essentials Gouache | Yellow Mid, Rose, Cobalt Blue, Mauve, Deep Green, Prussian Blue | March 9, 2023 | No change | Binder separation | No change | No change |
| Shinhan Professional Designer’s Gouache | Cadmium Lemon Yellow, Quinacridone Red, Ultramarine Deep | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Schmincke Horadam | English Red, Helio Blue, Titanium Gold Ochre | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
| Winsor & Newton Designer’s Gouache | Primary Blue, Yellow Ochre, Winsor Green | March 9, 2023 | No change | No change | No change | No change |
Phase 02 Results (2 months)
The only visible issues after Phase 02 are the Arteza Taupe and Latte Brown, and the M Graham Ivory Black.
Conclusion
Since the experiment started over two months ago, I’ve learned that some brands use biocide in their paint (like Miya HIMI, who even offer a spray bottle of fungicide for their gouache). It’s reasonable to assume that many brands include biocide in their paint but don’t say anything, because it’s the industry standard (not just artist paints, but all industries). Without emailing each of them again, I can’t confirm that. So if this matters to you, perhaps try reaching out to whichever brand you’re interested in.
The Arteza and M. Graham gouache had issues, and this coincides with many reports I’ve received from viewers in the comments of my YouTube channel. I can reasonably assume those brands do not include biocide in their paint. Care should be taken when using those brands in an air-tight palette.
I will continue to use my own strategies for keeping my gouache mold-free, since it has worked for me for over a year. If you want to learn more about that, check out this blog post.