One common misconception about natural fine arts supplies is that they cost more than toxic conventional paints.
Fortunately for artists making an effort to clean up their creative practice, that's only a myth! If you're looking for quality, investing in Natural Earth Paint actually saves you money compared to using the conventional paints on the market today that have a comparable quality. Not convinced? Let's get technical: we've broken down the costs for our paints versus low-end and high-end conventional paints so you don't have to.
Low-end paints are cheap paints, sometimes considered "student-grade" rather than "professional-grade," that sacrifice coverage, luminosity, pigmentation, longevity, and other essential paint qualities for the sake of affordability. Many artists on a budget opt for these less-than-ideal paints to save money, but forgo quality in the process. High-end paints are costly paints considered "professional-grade" in the fine arts world. They provide good coverage and a higher pigment-to-medium ratio, but can be too expensive for many artists' budgets.
Note that both low-end and high-end conventional paints, despite their different price points, contain fillers, additives, synthetic preservatives, toxins, petroleum-based pigments, and heavy metals that are dangerous for both artists and the environment.
Natural Earth Paint is free from these harmful ingredients while providing a texture, radiance, and subtlety of color unique to natural paints. With a cost comparable to low-end paints and a quality surpassing high-end paints, our paint is truly the best of both worlds.
Let's do the math!
Oil Paints
Our Complete Eco-friendly Oil Paint Kit contains 10 different pigment colors, makes approximately 24 oz. of paint in total, and costs $50.95. A low-end conventional oil paint set inferior in quality to our paints but with the same color range and a total volume of only 14 oz. costs about $28 (source). When you compare the paints by volume, 1 oz. of low-end conventional oil paint costs $1.97, while 1 oz. ounce of our oil paints costs only a few cents more at $2.12.
But what about high-end conventional oil paints, which still contain toxins and unsustainably sourced ingredients, but are more comparable to our paint quality? A high-end conventional oil paint set with a slightly smaller color range and a total volume of 11.25 oz. costs over $80 (source). How does the math pan out? Compared to our $2.12 per oz. cost, 1 oz. of these paints costs $7.11. Yikes!
Acrylic Paints
What about acrylics? 16 oz. of our Natural Acrylic Medium is enough to make about 32 oz. of acrylic paint paired with 16 oz. (1 lb.) of our Earth & Mineral Pigment. Our acrylic medium costs $24.95, our least expensive pigment costs $12.95 per pound, and our most expensive pigment (excluding our specialty mica pigments) costs $24.95 per pound. That means 32 oz. of our acrylic paint costs about $38 to $50, depending on the color. So, 1 oz. of our acrylic paint costs $1.19 to $1.56.
How does that stack up compared to its low-end and high-end toxic acrylic counterparts? 32 oz. of a low-end conventional acrylic paint costs about $30, which maps out to a cost of $0.94 per oz. (source). In contrast, a high-end conventional acrylic paint costs up to $86 for 32 oz., or $2.69 per oz. (source). Oof!
Watercolor Paints
Lastly, our newest paint kit, the Natural Watercolor Kit: at $36.95, this kit makes about 28 oz. of watercolor paint when wet or 28 pans when dry, which means each oz. or pan costs $1.32. A low-end conventional watercolor set includes 2.35 oz. of paint and costs $23.86, meaning each oz. costs a whopping $10.15 (source). Ouch! Even worse? A high-end conventional watercolor set containing 2.82 oz. of paint that costs $51.69 means you're paying $18.33 per oz. (source). Well, that's enlightening!
Summary
Let's take a look at our comparisons, ounce by ounce:
Oil Paint: Low-End Conventional: $1.97/oz. | High-End Conventional: $7.11/oz. | Natural Earth Paint: $2.12/oz.
Acrylic Paint: Low-End Conventional: $0.94/oz. | High-End Conventional: $2.69/oz. | Natural Earth Paint: $1.19 - $.1.56/oz.
Watercolor Paint: Low-End Conventional: $10.15/oz. | High-End Conventional: $18.33/oz.| Natural Earth Paint: $1.32/oz.
The comparison in clear; if you want affordable, high-quality paints free from toxins, fillers, and chemical additives, pick Natural Earth Paint. You'll save money while taking care of your health, improving your artwork, and protecting Mother Nature in the process.
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