Smart Art is a fine arts subscription service that sends a new project every month and all the supplies needed to complete it. My husband and I are both artists, and we have been having a blast with our Smart Art subscription!
This box was sent to us at no cost to review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
About Smart Art
The Subscription Box: Smart Art
The Cost: $49.95 per month with free shipping. Save with 3, 6, and 12-month subscriptions.
ACTIVE DEAL: $5 off your first subscription
CODE: ENJOYART5
The Products: A fine arts project, complete with instructions and supplies
Ships to: U.S. only
Good to know: It's a different project in a different media every month, using different techniques!
Smart Art June 2018 Review
This month's project was creating a brusho watercolor painting! This is the booklet that Smart Art sends every month. It includes art history related to the project, a list of the included supplies, project pointers, and instructions.
Subscribers can upload a picture of their finished project to Smart Art's Facebook page for a chance to win a free box! That's really cool! On the other hand, our projects usually take forever, so we always seem to miss the boat on this contest.
This is the inside of the booklet. On the left are the art history and project pointers, and on the right, there's some info on brusho watercolor crystals plus the supply list.
The instructions are printed on the back of the booklet. They are pretty clear and easy to follow, but they still allow for as much creativity as you like.
Here are the supplies that were included for this month's project:
Brusho Crystal Colours, 3 pcs - Total Retail Value $18.87 ($6.29 each. Found here for $5.38 each)
Elite Synthetic Kolinsky Watercolor Brush Round 3 - Retail Value $9.25 (found here for $4.66)
Fluid Watercolor Paper Block, Cold-Press 6"x8" - Retail Value $9.19 (found here for $5.75)
Natural Cylinder Spray Bottle, 4 oz - Estimated Value $1?
(I could only find this bottle for sale wholesale, so the retail value for a single bottle is a guess.)
Please note that the values listed here are list prices. Almost all of them can be found for less at most online discount art supply stores.
My husband decided to take this month's project on! His first step was to prepare his work surface and the crystal watercolor pants. The paints are actually a fine crystal, so they work best when gently sprinkled on the painting surface. They recommended using a thumbtack to puncture the tops of the bottles and to seal the bottles when not in use.
His second step was to sprinkle the brusho colors along the bottom third of the paper. This will ultimately be the bed of wildflowers.
The next step was to spritz the paper with water to activate the watercolors.
Next, he brushed the flower shapes onto the paper with plain water, then sprinkled the green crystals onto the water.
He then added some black stems and flower details with the brush.
Finally, he used circle stencils and sprinkled more crystals into them. Then he spritzed the circles with water to activate the crystals. This is his completed painting! So pretty!
The Verdict: My husband and I are both huge fans of Smart Art! My husband LOVES watercolors, and he really enjoyed trying this new technique. I was struck by how vibrant the colors are using these paint crystals - usually watercolors have a kind of "washed out" look. I definitely prefer more vibrant colors! I think it turned out really beautiful! The value this month was considerably less than the cost of the box, $38.31 worth of materials for $50. This is a little low even for a fine arts subscription box. I definitely feel like the curation and instruction adds to the overall value of the box, but it is subjective, so you would have to decide for yourself if it is worth it to you.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No, you will receive the August box. From Smart Art:
Sign up on or before the last day of the month to get the current box that will be released on the 1st of the following month! All orders processed after the last day of the month will ship the following month. For example, a purchase made on April 30th will be shipped May 1st.
Coupon – Use code COLORJOY to save $5 off your first box!
Check out all of our Smart Art reviews and the Craft Subscription Box Directory!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What do you think of Smart Art?
Please do not enter your email address in the Name field or in the comment content. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. Remember to post with kindness and respect. Comments with offensive language, cruelness to others, etc will not be approved. See our full comment policy here.