I received my pastel set well packaged & in a timely way. The assortment was what I was looking for so I could compare brands' feel and quality. The darks let me see each of the brands of soft pastels in a relatively easy way and I was very pleased to be able to try out these beautiful pastels in such a set!

Just getting into pastels. This was a perfect way to test out various brands without breaking the bank. Great selection of colors, too.

I needed to refresh my blues…this sampler did the trick for a good price!

Product arrived in perfect condition. This is a great way to compare all of the different soft pastel brands! I'm just starting out and this is a such a smart Idea to test products out yourself first before purchasing a new set! Every brand of pastel in this sampler is of wonderful quality! So soft, so buttery, So wonderful! I was also very excited about the fact that it wasn't just the same shade of blue, it varied so much and gave a great variety of different blues!

Wonderful way to test out new brands of pastels without breaking the bank! Arrived in perfect condition and contained a nice variety of sticks!

Having several different brands of pastels to try is very interesting and enlightening. Twelve pieces to sample for color variations and softness is truly a great experience. I highly recommend it.

When I first started in pastels knowing how wide the range of pastels was and how each served its own purpose was a mystery. Listening to accomplished artists introduced me to this knowledge. It made a huge difference in my growth and in the pleasure I took in it. So, I decided to teach an introduction to pastels class at a local art center /gallery. This included introducing students fully to the medium, including pastels and the various surfaces they could be employed on. This set is perfect for the pastel intro! I can use it over and over for each session I teach. Still looking for an economical way to introduce paper. I currently cut sheets of my own paper up to let folks sample different surfaces as the sample packs from Dakota are too costly. When students get done with the class many of them become converts! So thanks to this set I can introduce more burgeoning artists to this wonderful medium.

Person who chose samples really listened to me and picked a great selection of purples that filled my need. Used them all in a painting and they were great. Arrived safely

Fantastic ordering experience, super fast shipping and excited to try out a variety of pastel brands before investing in this medium. Thank you for the friendly fast service!

Excellent set! Great variety of values & brands. TY!

I love the opportunity to try different pastels. The sampler gives you the chance to try different colors, hardness, etc. I needed more blues but wasn’t sure what to pick. Now I can try each one of these and see which ones work best for me.

Love the richness of all the pastels and the colors are beautiful.

I use pastel pencils over Panpastels but I wanted to try soft pastels. Of course there are so many brands out there and even watching reviews couldn't really help me in choosing one as each artist has a preferred brand according to their style. I was so happy when I saw that Dakota Pastels had sample kits. I picked the green one as I have very few greens in my set and I was delighted to give them all a try. This is definitively the best way to find the brand, softness and texture that fits your style. Definitively recommends this to everyone.

This is a great idea. Getting to try different brands and asking for just light colors is awesome. Thank you!

I purchased the soft pastel sampler in green based on prior experience with Dakota pastels. I was blown away with the choices of greens and it will expand my palette of greens tremendously. I have only used 3 of the different brands in the sampler box so I am so excited to try the other brands.

I like them…

After beginning my passion for 2.5 months ago, and buying lots of different brands of pastels and finding they were not compatible to my neophyte abilities, I reached out to my Patreon teacher, Karen Margulis. I asked in a wishful way if only there was a sampler of brands for me to experiment with and see which ones worked best for me. Within an hour she sent me the link to Dakota's sampler boxes. Wow 12 brands in one color hue. Of course I ordered a box of blues and 2 days later I had it here in my studio. I am now heading to Dakota for future shopping once I understand my favorites. I also got a paper sampler package which I have sorted out with mini paintings to find out which are my favorites for future work.

In one word my immediate reaction was "sweet." Nice different color selection and well marked with brand name. I haven't used them yet but this should help alot towards learning this new medium, to me. The same can be said for the assorted pastel surface sampler packet.

In one word my immediate reaction was "sweet." Nice different color selection and well marked with brand name. I haven't used them yet but this should help alot towards learning this new medium, to me. The same applies ro the assorted paper packet,

If you request a sample box of one color range, Dakota does a wonderful job of putting it together. I wanted a sample box of different soft pastels for demonstrations and presentations of the Pastel Medium so I wouldn’t have to carry a lot of supplies but I wanted it in a color I needed. I asked for pinks and they put together a perfect selection in both soft and hard pastels.

I ordered a custom sampler in beige, which I didn’t have enough of. I received 12 different brands, in colors from pale taupe to camel, and put them to use immediately in a big project. Very helpful to learn new brands and have the color range I needed.

A fantastic way to form your own opinion and not have to depend on a youtube video. Nothing like experiencing the different brands in your own hands. And Dakota customer service is five star as well!

The sampler was / is perfect. A great way to try different brands. I ordered the Soft Dark Pastel sampler - will try this again.

Love the assortment

Super happy I got this.

Lovely selection of greens ranging from light to dark and cool to warm. Dakota chose colors that I would not have chosen but which add dimension to my palette. A wonderful addition to my growing palette of pastels. I'm a newbie to pastels, so I don't have a favorite brand yet. The samplers are very helpful in figuring out which brands may become favorites and, just as importantly, the brands of which I am not fond. And they are fun! It's a real treat to see what surprises await me in the sampler box.

I love being able to try out so many pastels without having to buy individual sticks or a set I may not like. They came packaged well, none were broken. The colors are beautiful. I still haven’t gotten to use them all yet but I’m making my favorites list.

It was just like a kid waiting for Christmas to see what Dakota picked out for me custom vibrant pink sampler Luscious perfect exhilarating at first glance and they feel and paint that way as well

I love the sampler set.

Excellent selection from top manufacturers of pastels. A great way to learn about the individual qualities of the different manufacturers and which ones work best for me. A very economical way as well.

Love having a package of different brands to try out and see how they work.

Disappointed because I assumed they would be light colors. Just a few could be called light. Other colors are bright pinks and blues....way too intense. I really wanted soft pale colors.....

I enjoy-shopping with April she’s always so helpful to me with everything I need. If I don’t have the product she explains it to me if I’m looking for something in particular she finds it for me . thank you very much Tina Dion

Got what i ordered quickly. Great selection.

This was so helpful- I was able to try all the different soft pastels and find my favorites!

My pastel collection really needed more dark values, and I really wanted to try different brands without a big commitment This set fit both criteria. It was great getting to try out brands new to me, and finding some I like better than the soft brand I was using.

I'm new to this medium and have no idea what type or brand of soft pastels I might like. The samplers are the perfect way to try out different brands without spending a fortune. In addition to standard color selections, Dakota Art Pastels offers custom assortments. If you want to try something new or are looking to expand your selection of a particular color, this is the way to go.

For the beginner and the pro, this is hands down the most valuable offering anywhere. I've been painting with pastels for 10 years, but I've never had so many different pastel brands at my disposal. I'm giving a one-day introduction to pastels and everyone attending gets a sampler. How I wish that I'd had that opportunity right from the start. Buy this! You won't regret it.

I love the samplers! This was my second dark soft pastel assortment purchase. I really appreciate the relevant colors that are selected. Not colors that will not ever be used. It also gives the pastelist an opportunity to try other brands, too.

This is a great idea to offer various brands of pastels. I’m excited about experiencing the different “feel” of different brands and how they will work for me. The colors were beautiful and a great addition to my collection. Overall, I couldn’t be happier. Thanks ❤️

I think this is an excellent value deal. At my finger tips now are a variety of green and blue hues but each with a different and distinct feel. This allows me the opportunity, as a relatively new pastelist, to try different brands to see how I like each of them and which suit my style best. I think it's great.

I started using pastels 2 years ago (I also work with other mediums) and this sample box of a variety of brand names pastels have been of great help to feel and see the differences you can get out of your work without spending a fortune....as we all pastelist artists know, you get addicted to pastels and you want to try more and more of it!....very expensive hobby! Love the product!

This is the best way for a newbie to try out multiple brands for a good price. My only wish is that there were a couple of medium hardness in the collection. As a suggestion it would be great to have the option to try reds and yellows the same way.

Had several of the pastel brands that I didn't have so I wanted to try. Even for the brands I already have, the shades of blue were different from my collection, so it's perfect! I particularly love the Diane Townsend. I had one green in it though -- I'm sure you meant it to be blue-green, but it's definitely in the green side. That's fine, you can't have too many greens anyway. Good value, fun set.

Carefully assembled set that is really well packaged (no breakage) thar provides a great range of colors. Its such a good idea to add some great new colors AND try various brands without buying a set.

A fabulous way to try different brands! Also, to augment certain colours in your box. Love it. 💕

Love the products so nice to try a variety of brands, some I had never heard of before.

Impressed with the quality of packaging and identifying each pastel. This has been very helpful! Thank you!

The pastels arrived in very secure packaging! I am working on several paintings to try out which pastels suit my style best. There is a nice variation of lights so I have tried them all. Perfect way to decide what to buy next when investing in a larger selection.

The opportunity to try the various soft pastels in this sampler was just what I needed. Making an investment in products, which I may or may not like seemed somewhat risky, and this solution solved that dilemma. I now have a better understanding of the texture quality and application of a variety of pastels without spending big bucks on untried sets of pastels and taking my chances. Thank you. To me this is an excellent marketing exercise and a way for customers to familiarize first before committing to any major expense.

The product made it all the way to Ecuador without breaking! Yay! They are soft pastels.

Satisfied my curiosity about softness. Discovered I prefer slightly firmer sticks. Townsend has cool grittiness, Ludwig's are lusciously soft while not too soft. Great American is super soft. Girault are fantastic for detail. Blockx? Learned about one I hadn't heard of. Excellent color variety. Incredibly valuable for discovery.

I didn’t think that soft pastels couldn’t get much creamier, but this sampler proved me wrong. Very nice option for Dakota to offer this beautiful set.

Great to be able to try out different brand pastels and compare. Interesting to feel difference in softness and amount of grit in pastels. Also nice to feel difference in shape and size of pastels and play with line and mark making. Now have a better idea of which brands I will look for in the future. Super deal for the price. Thank you Dakota Arts for making these samplers available

I am new to pastels, so this was a great way to try all the different soft pastels. April picked out a custom color for me for portraits. Getting to hold and feel each different pastel and see how they lay down color is really good. I learned about what I like to use, and how rich the colors are. The hardest part was deciding which set to buy because I wanted most of them. April was so much help and fun to talk to.

Great idea for new pastel artist to figure out which pastels they like using!

These samplers are a wonderful way to try out a nice variety of pastels. Brands are so very different and being new to pastel painting I was stymied about where to put my money. I found some very clear favorites in these samplers,

The sample set I received is fantastic plus I found out when I called (to ask the name of one of them) that they had accidentally not included one of them. Guess what Dakota did for me? They very quickly mailed out the missing pastel and 2 others for me. What a great company!! Highly recommend the sample packs.

I love the idea of samplers, I have bought many across a couple of websites and I am so glad I happened upon a hard sampler, it was so helpful in making decisions on which brand to commit to. That being said... I was a little unhappy with the color selection, I do understand it is a sampler and you get what you get but they were almost all dark blue!! I think for a lot of people having the same color helps with comparing across brands, but for me I would rather have a varied palette to integrate into my pastel collection

This was better than expected for an assortment of pastels to try. They were pack so well as was the rest of my order. Fast fast service!!!!

Having a set like this gave me the opportunity to try a variety of Artist Quality Pastels of varying textures and learn which ones suited my style of work and my handedness. Because of the color selection I was able to see how they worked with one another and how the different brands played together. I can't recommend these highly enough. The Dakota sampler set gives the artist a complete picture before they invest in a large purchase. Then, they can make the correct choice for their needs and not spend a fortune on items that may not work for them at all. Thank you, April for such an idea. Your service was invaluable.

I couldn’t be happier with the selection of soft pastels. There is one of each of the soft pastel brands that Dakota carries. As a beginner it is nice to experience the unique qualities of each and compare. I thought it might help me favor one brand over the other but instead I want some from all.

The sampler is a great way to try out several brands without having to buy a lot of full sets

The samples were so much fun to try. Most excitement I’ve had in years.

Fabulous way to check out comparisons between manufacturers without breaking the bank by buying sets as well as a convenient way to increase your pastel collection in certain color ranges. Particularly suited for newer pastelists.

Great! This sampler set allows me to try all the pastel brands that I was interested in trying. The brighter yellows are exactly what I wanted. Thanks

Excellent idea for those unfamiliar or wanting to try different brands of pastels without making a big investment.

GReat fun! I especially love the Schminke and Blue earth blues.

Love trying the selection so that when I’m able to order sets I’ll be making good choices. My fixed income limits the amount I can spend, but quality is important. Wanting a set of Terry Ludwig is my goal. Fingers crossed!

In my previous review about your paper and board samples I wrote about what a great service this is. I have also ordered the soft pastel samples so my students can test the various brands. It's a life and money saver for sure. Plus I have ordered this a number of times and the colors you send are always different. It's like opening a surprise present!

Dakota Arts offers great sampler products for paper and pastels. This is a nice assortment of darks from the major pastel makers. I am pleased.

I love this selection of pastels! It’s a great way to add a variety of high quality chunks of color goodness:) I have just started to get serious with pastels after being a printer/ painter/ teacher for years- these are just what one needs as they start to explore better brands.

I was so excited to receive this pastel sampler, mainly to try a nice variety of brands. I discovered a brand I probably never would have bought through this set, so that was great and well worth trying. I did not give a full star rating because two of the pastels, which I like, came without a wrapper and I have no idea what brand they are, or what color. I would appreciate a chart of the names and brands of the pastels to be included in the set.

What a great way to sample different brands! Loved the options provided and the convenient way to try each one

I’ve now purchased both the green and blue samplers. It’s been a great way to try some shades I might not of picked up personally, and also to try brands I haven’t tried before. I’m usually pretty faithful to Sennelier soft pastels, but I’m now also enjoying some of the others.

The customer service at Dakota Pastels is tops. They can accommodate you and your needs very well. I called them for a set of the pink sampler set and it was sent to me quickly and packaged perfectly. I have purchased quite a bit from this excellent company. Everything pastels. Makes perfect sense. And their sales are great!

I used these pastels for a drawing, it's great to try the different textures from each company! Now I have plenty of green shades, maybe I'll try another range later. Thanks.

Lovely idea to try pastels from several different pastel companies. Gives you a good idea on how they work on your favourite papers. Pastels came well packaged so no broken pastels enroute.

Love getting to use so many brands. Handy to buy categories I need like lights n greens

This is a good idea, gives you a chance to try out different manufacturers of soft pastels. There are 2 pastels in each box that do not have a label so hard to know if they are Terry Ludwig or not!

Great box of colors and brand selection.

This is a great way to try the many brands to find your favorite. The only problem is that I love them all.

This was a great introduction to a variety of soft pastels and fairly economical. Huge problem:I like them all!

This is a wonderful way to sample a variety of brands without breaking the bank.

I really enjoyed my pastel sampler. I got the dark sampler, and was a little disappointed that 2 of them were black ( both of the Diane Townsend’s). I wanted more colors. I was really impressed with the Terry Ludwig and the Blue Earth. The shape, size and smoothness were outstanding. Being new to pastels, I liked the sampler pack so I could try out all those wonderful brands before I buy a set. They were packaged great, and arrived perfect, thanks Dakota!