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Winsor & Newton Professional Watercolour Travel Set – My Honest Review

I’ve been wanting to share my thoughts on the Winsor & Newton Professional Watercolour Travel Set for a while now, because honestly… I’m in love with it.

I recently took it with me on a trip to Europe, fully intending to paint plein air (painting outdoors on location). I had romantic visions of sitting in sunny courtyards, brush in hand, while sipping coffee and capturing the scene. In reality? We were so busy exploring that there just wasn’t time to sit and paint.

I’ll also be honest – I’m new to plein air painting and not very confident in my setup yet. There’s a certain amount of practice (and a little bravery!) required to pull everything out and paint in public. So instead, I’ve decided to work on my travel journal at home – but with a twist. I’m using only my travel watercolour supplies so I can get better acquainted with them for next time.


Why I Love This Set

The Winsor & Newton Professional paints are vibrant, highly pigmented, and perfectly balanced for travel. The colour range in the set is just right for mixing, meaning you can create a huge variety of tones and shades without lugging around a hundred pans.

That said, I would have liked a darker green in the set. At some point, I might swap one of the colours (probably the Burnt Sienna) for a deeper, moodier green. But honestly, that’s me being picky – because this little set is otherwise perfect.

It even comes with a good quality small brush that’s more than capable of handling quick sketches and small details. I’ve used cheaper travel brushes before that shed or lose their point after a few uses – not this one.


My Complete Travel Painting Kit

If you’re curious about what else I pack alongside my Winsor & Newton travel set, here’s my current setup:

  1. Arteza Watercolour Sketchbook – compact, sturdy, and great paper for travel.

  2. FUUMUUI Travel Brushes – handy sizes and portable.

  3. Micron Pen 01 – fine line work and details.

  4. Micron Pen 04 – slightly thicker for bolder lines.

  5. White Pencil – for sketching on dark backgrounds.

  6. HB Pencil – classic for initial sketches.

  7. Kneaded Rubber – soft and doesn’t damage the paper.

  8. Sharpener – a travel essential.

  9. Winsor & Newton Professional Watercolour Travel Set – the star of the show.

  10. Microfibre Cloth – for quick clean-ups.

  11. Small Spray Bottle – to activate paints and keep them fresh.


I ordered all of these items on Amazon. While I would absolutely love to support local art supply stores here in Australia, I found that many of these items were half the cost online compared to local prices – which made it much more affordable to get everything I needed for my kit in one go.


Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for a compact, high-quality, and reliable watercolour travel set, I can wholeheartedly recommend the Winsor & Newton Professional Travel Set. It’s lightweight, beautifully pigmented, and versatile enough to handle whatever subjects you come across – whether you’re painting on location or (like me this time) back at home, reliving your adventures one page at a time.



 
 
 

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