Castle Art Supplies Harmonious Colored Pencils vs Holbein Artists' Colored Pencils 150 Color Set

The Holbein 150 set is the stronger artist's pencil: oil-based 3.8 mm cores, H hardness, excellent light resistance and a huge range that holds a fine point and layers cleanly. The Castle Harmonious is a different tool: 72 deliberately muted, moody wax shades meant to fill gaps in a set you already own, with soft cores that blend fast and a display tin that keeps them ordered. Buy the Holbein if you want one serious, long-lasting core set; buy the Castle if you want quiet, desaturated colors to sit alongside what you have.

• Choose the Castle Art Supplies Harmonious if you already own a full-spectrum set and want muted, moody shades to mix with it, and you prefer soft wax cores that blend quickly.
• Choose the Holbein 150 if you want a single large, lightfast, oil-based set with firm H cores that sharpen to a fine point and suit detailed, layered work.