Good News: Caran d’Ache

I am very glad to be the messenger of such good news.

Caran d’Ache sent me their certificate of compliance .

I contacted them for products free of animal derivatives  – including manufacturing process- and for their cruelty-free status. And good tidings I bring.

Please see the Caran D’Ache certificate of compliance and pay attention to exceptions in product lines. Some products contain the pigment ivory black, which is of an animal source.

Neither products nor raw materials get tested on animals.

 

the cruelty-free status of Caran d’Ache
  • Caran d’Ache does not test on animals
  • does not commission other parties to do so.
  • their raw material suppliers do not test on animals nor commission animal testing for raw materials sourced by the company
  • Caran d’Ache does not use MSDS/ Material Safety Data Sheets, which data was collected through animal testing in the last decades.

 

Product lines free of animal derivatives (with exceptions of products containing the pigment ivory black):

Caran d’Ache – certificate of compliance issued September 13th, 2023

Source: mail contact

Holbein update : no changes

I initially contacted Holbein back in 2017 and now did so again, to see whether there might have been some changes to make  their coloured pencils ingredients now suitable. Unfortunately, it hasn’t changed. Back then I was informed of the use of animal fats to disperse the pigments. As of now, they cannot give any guarantee.

No further information was disclosed.

 

So here is my up to date listing for my compendium:

manufacturer: Holbein

currently no products free of animal derivatives available

cruelty-free level: no information disclosed

 

I am sorry about the disappointing news. I hope there will be changed in the future and I will circle back to them in some years.

source: mail contact

Updated information : Faber-Castell

Here is the new updated information on Faber-Castell. All the previously listed products are still free of animal derivatives, which includes the packaging. Additionally, I asked about the watercolours in pan format and starter set in tubes, Albrecht Dürer watercolour marker, grip fountain pens, converter, pastel toned and metallic textmarker, notebook A5 and A6– those are free of animal derivatives as well. Unfortunately I do not know whether this includes the manufacturing cycle  just the finished products. Back in 2017, concerning Faber-Castell’s cruelty-free status, I received the reply, that they neither tested on animals nor commissioned animal testing; not in Europe and not anywhere else. A person in the chemistry department  also mentioned back then (2017) for as long as they can look back – 30 years – to their knowledge, there hadn’t ever been commissioned such testing. It was also pointed out to me (again, 2017), that animal testing for painting -, drawing -, and writing supplies was forbidden by law in Germany.

Bearing the 2017 information in mind, I also asked about an update on the company status about the topic but unfortunately, I did not get any information about it this time, so I will place the  cruelty-free status as undisclosed for now (because of lack of new information).

cruelty-free status: undisclosed for now concerning the 2021 update (in 2017, cruelty-free)

Here is my updated ( incomplete) list of products, free of animal derivatives (this includes the packaging; not known whether this extends to manufacturing cycle as well):

  • Gelatos
  • Polychromos coloured pencils
  • Albrecht Dürer watercolour pencils
  • regular erasers, kneadable erasers, pencil erasers
  • all Pitt Artis products:
  • Pitt Artist pen and brush pen
  • Pitt calligraphy pen
  • Pitt Artist pen metallic
  • Pitt Artist pen sanguine /Rötel Pitt Artist
  • black lead / graphite pencils/Bleistifte
  • graphite aquarelle pencils
  • Art Grip aquarelle pencils
  • Pitt Pastel Pencils
  • jumbo lead pencils
  • mechanical pencils
  • mechanical pencil refills; coloured and lead ones
  • Pastel crayon Polychromos
  • tortillon/ estompe
  • soft pastels
  • oil pastel crayons
  • foldable watercup
  • Charcoal  natural Pitt/ Zeichenkohle
  • sharpener
  • Pitt Monochrome
  • Ecco Pigment
  • Grip lead pencils and mechanical pencils
  • Grip Textmarker & Textliner
  • Multimark Marker
  • Art & Graphic Water Brush
  • Graf von Faber-Castell inks
  • Goldfaber Coloured Pencils
  • Goldfaber Aqua Watercolour Pencils
  • Oil Colours (Creative Studio)
  • Synthetic brushes
  • Broadpen
  • Faber-Castell ink
  • Grip fountain pen
  • Albrecht Dürer watercolour marker
  • pastel textmarker
  • metallic textmarker
  • (ink) converter
  • watercolour in pans
  • watercolour starter set in tubes+
  • notebooks DinA5 and DinA6

All Faber-Castell coloured pencil ranges are free of animal derivatives.

Additional information provided by Faber-Castell – products free of animal derivatives:

  • all pencils
  • all mechanical pencils
  • biros
  • biro lead
  • all coloured pencils (including Albrecht Dürer and Polychromos)
  • the entire Pitt Artist line
  • Fineschreiber 1511
  • Gelatos
  • Creative Studio pastels
  • Creative Studio oil pastels
  • soft pastels
  • Polychromos pastels (art. nr. 128 …)
  • erasers, including kneadable ones
  • textliner 48
  • metallic textliner
  • Grip marker (flipchart, whiteboard, textmarker pens, permanent marker)
  • Multimarkt
  • all Uni-Ball products (attention: Faber-Castell is  the distributor not the manufacturer)
  • sharpener
  • graphite chalk/crayon (Graphitkreide)
  • ruler
  • graphite and polymer lead
  • indelible pencils (Kopierstifte)
  • felt pen and double-sided felt pens (Faserschreiber)
  • T-Shirt marker
  • tortillion / blending stump/ estompe/ Papierwischer
  • all lead for mechanical pencils, including coloured lead
  • sanguine  crayon (Rötelkreide)
  • Jumbo Grip neon
  • all chalk (alle Kreiden)
  • ink
  • watersoluble graphite pencils
  • Art Grip watercolour pencils
  • Pitt Pastel pencils
  • Connector Deckfarben (opaque paint in pans)
  • foldable watercup
  • charcoal (zeichenkohle)
  • Pitt Monochrome
  • Ecco Pigment
  • brushes (art. nr. 481600)
  • Art & Graphic water brush
  • oil paint (tempera)
  • wax crayons art.nr. 122540, 120010, 120024
  • thermoplastic wax crayons art. nr. 122540, 120404, 120405
  • Pitt Graphite Crayons e.g. art.nr. 129902, 129905
  • Graphite Pure pencil art.nr. 1173…
  • natural charcoal art.nr. 129114, 129116, 129118, 129122
  • compressed charcoal (Reißkohle) art.nr. 129906, 129903, 129900, 129913, 129916
  • Creative Studio – watercolour paint in pans

Source: mail contact

New enquiries sent out: Faber-Castell, Umton, St. Petersberg watercolours, Nevskaya Palitra

New product  enquiries sent out to:

  • Faber-Castell
  • Umton
  • St. Petersburg watercolours (White Nights; English branch)
  • Nevskaya Palitra

To all, who have sent enquiries to me about companies (and products) that I have yet to contact: I have not forgotten any of you, I will pick up where I left off. Thank you for your patience.

 

Faber-Castell’s ink and broadpen

The broadpen,Faber-Castell ink and their synthetic brush range are  products newly added to my Faber-Castell list of vegan-friendly products.

  • broadpen: document proof, 0,8mm line width, 12 available shades; lovely for writing – my favourites are turquoise, blue and black
  • synthetic brushes
  • Faber-Castell ink : available in four colours: black, blue, pink and turqoise; the shades blue and pink are erasable; black and turquoise cannot be erased; the ink is not document proof; (the waterproof and lightfast alternative by Faber-Castell are the Graf von Faber-Castell inks)

Here is the list of vegan-friendly products by Faber-Castell:

  • Gelatos
  • Polychromos coloured pencils
  • Albrecht Dürer watercolour pencils
  • regular erasers, kneadable erasers, pencil erasers
  • all Pitt Artist products
  • Pitt Artist pen and brush pen
  • Pitt calligraphy pen
  • Pitt Artist pen metallic
  • Pitt Artist pen sanguine /Rötel Pitt Artist
  • black lead / graphite pencils/Bleistifte
  • graphite aquarelle pencils
  • Art Grip aquarelle pencils
  • Pitt Pastel Pencils
  • jumbo lead pencils
  • mechanical pencils
  • mechanical pencil refills; coloured and lead ones
  • Pastel crayon Polychromos
  • paper wiper Estompe
  • soft pastels
  • oil pastel crayons
  • foldable watercup
  • Charcoal  natural Pitt/ Zeichenkohle
  • sharpener
  • Pitt Monochrome
  • Ecco Pigment
  • Grip lead pencils and mechanical pencils
  • Grip Textmarker & Textliner
  • Multimark Marker
  • Art & Graphic Water Brush
  • Graf von Faber-Castell inks
  • Goldfaber Coloured Pencils
  • Goldfaber Aqua Watercolour Pencils
  • Oil Colours (Creative Studio)
  • Broadpen
  • synthetic brushes
  • Faber-Castell ink

All Faber-Castell coloured pencil ranges are vegan-friendly.

Find Faber-Castell in the compendium.

Source: Mail contact

 

How to soften coloured pencils

By chance I found a way to soften the hardened lead of my coloured pencils. Here is how …

What you need:

  • a tin to store your pencils in (preferably not so tall as the one I use)
  • scissors (in case you have to cut the sponge down)
  • 100% cellulose sponge; it is plant based, reusable and machine washable up to 60 ° Celsius ; the sponge is slightly moist/damp; (I layered 3 sponges, so the pencils have a ~3 cm/1 inch cushion)

When you take the sponge out of the package, you will notice it being a bit damp/moist. This is probably what  softens the pencil lead.

If the tips of the coloured pencils are sharpened to the utmost, the  top of the tips might brittle a bit off (not much just a bit) , but they apply so much smoother and more vibrant on the paper. I noticed this especially with my metallic Polychromos. I could practically carve into the paper with Gold, Copper and Silver but I could hardly see any colour on the paper. Now they run smoothly over the paper and the colour is clearly visible without applying a ton of pressure.

Solvent Substitutes-blending coloured pencils with oils

Since last year’s solvent search flop (zest-it) I hadn’t really pursued other options. This January I was reminded of this again, (thank you Steve for writing to me about this topic). I have heard of people using baby oil as substitute. So I gave it a first try with coconut oil.

coconut oil first try on smooth sketch paper

I just threw randomly colour on smooth sketch paper (190g/m^2-90lbs; Hahnemühle sketch paper), transferred some of the coconut oil on the back of my hand and dipped my finger in it and was able to blend with it. This seemed to work so well, so I made my own little experiment the next day, with oils and other stuff I stumbled upon.

What I used:

  • mixed Media Paper (250g/m^2-169lbs; Daler Rowney) with a rougher surface
  • safflower oil
  • coconut oil
  • olive oil
  • transparent lip balm
  • seed oil
  • baby face&body lotion
  • cotton buds (brand doesn’t matter, mine are vegan, waterneutral ones by Hydrophile)
  • coloured pencils (Polychromos, Faber-Castell)

Continue reading “Solvent Substitutes-blending coloured pencils with oils”

Cruelty-free companies offering vegan-friendly products:

This is a list of  cruelty-free companies and the vegan-friendly products they offer. If you don’t find the company you are looking for in this list, please enter the company name in the search box to see their status. If you still can’t find the specific company you are looking for, please let me know, so that I can contact them.

Cheers,    Anja (Ansho)

Continue reading “Cruelty-free companies offering vegan-friendly products:”

new vegan-friendly products by Faber-Castell

Manufacturer: Faber-Castell

New products:

  • Goldfaber Coloured Pencils
  • Goldfaber Aqua Watercolour Pencils
  • (Creative Studio) Oil Colours 

https://www.faber-castell.co.uk/new-products

All Faber-Castell coloured pencils are vegan-friendly.

Here is my incomplete vegan-friendly Faber-Castell product list: https://www.veganartstuff.info/2017/03/15/vegan-friendly-products-by-faber-castell/

 

Source: mail contact

Derwent: new family member – Procolour Coloured Pencils

Manufacturer: Derwent

Derwent released a new vegan friendly coloured pencil range,  Derwent Procolour 

Here is my vegan friendly Derwent list :  https://www.veganartstuff.info/2017/03/17/vegan-friendly-products-by-derwent/

Source: https://www.derwentart.com/en/gb/7797/procolour-pencils                        https://www.derwentart.com/a/274739?_ga=1.57388969.2065623446.1483617661