karin DecoBrush, Set of 10

I swear if these were any other brand marker I probably would give them three stars, but something about Karin markers is just so hard to be dissatisfied with. So for starters, I will say I love the color variety of these metallic markers. They include standard metallic colors (gold, silver, copper), and also have some more unique ones like black and a really beautiful turquoise. The coverage is also great. Seldom do I have to go back over things while writing on black paper, though it definitely does enhance the color. My issues are that these markers are a bit clunker than the Karin water-based brush marker PRO models. The ink is acrylic, so naturally it is thicker and needs to be mixed and shaken often (I think they say once an hour, but I find it needs more than that) to achieve the full extent of the color’s potential. I do a lot of work with metallic inks, so I totally get it and understand that it’s necessary, it is just mildly annoying because they are so pretty and I just want to grab and go. Their tips are also very large, flexible/floppy, and not quite as sharp as what I was hoping for. They definitely require some extra consideration while using them for hand lettering or any work of particular detail. Lastly, as with all Karin markers, it seems, they need to be stored carefully and correctly. This makes them hard to use on-the-go. But these ones do come in a tin with some foam padding (Karin has some awesome package design due to the sensitivity of their supplies), so that makes them easier to tote around than some of their other sets. If you are looking for an enjoyable metallic marker set, these are definitely not perfect (it is hard to find ones that live up to my expectations), but I am not sure you will do much better than these. Karin makes a great marker, and I definitely do recommend them. If for nothing else, the color variety alone.

I swear if these were any other brand marker I probably would give them three stars, but something about Karin markers is just so hard to be dissatisfied with. So for starters, I will say I love the color variety of these metallic markers. They include standard metallic colors (gold, silver, copper), and also have some more unique ones like black and a really beautiful turquoise. The coverage is also great. Seldom do I have to go back over things while writing on black paper, though it definitely does enhance the color. My issues are that these markers are a bit clunker than the Karin water-based brush marker PRO models. The ink is acrylic, so naturally it is thicker and needs to be mixed and shaken often (I think they say once an hour, but I find it needs more than that) to achieve the full extent of the color’s potential. I do a lot of work with metallic inks, so I totally get it and understand that it’s necessary, it is just mildly annoying because they are so pretty and I just want to grab and go. Their tips are also very large, flexible/floppy, and not quite as sharp as what I was hoping for. They definitely require some extra consideration while using them for hand lettering or any work of particular detail. Lastly, as with all Karin markers, it seems, they need to be stored carefully and correctly. This makes them hard to use on-the-go. But these ones do come in a tin with some foam padding (Karin has some awesome package design due to the sensitivity of their supplies), so that makes them easier to tote around than some of their other sets. If you are looking for an enjoyable metallic marker set, these are definitely not perfect (it is hard to find ones that live up to my expectations), but I am not sure you will do much better than these. Karin makes a great marker, and I definitely do recommend them. If for nothing else, the color variety alone.