Everyone wants to know what is the difference between Ranger’s Distress Crayons and Faber-Castell Gelatos? I am not endorsing one over the other, but you should know that there are some differences in colors, pigment content, and packaging that might influence your purchasing decision.
Disclosure: samples were provided by both companies for review purposes. Opinions are my own and based on my first-hand experience with the products.
Well, I show you here in SIX MINUTES and 10 examples of how they are the same…and different!
Here are those photos again:
So here’s my takeaways:
- Gelatos have more opaque color
- Gelatos blend more
- Gelatos work better on dark/black surfaces
- Gelatos give you more product for less money
- Gelatos have more colors and include pearls and metallics in the line
- Distress Crayons match other Distress products
- Distress Crayons apply very smoothly
- Distress Crayons have a nice easy-grip pen-style package
- Distress Crayons “move” less and layer well
- Distress Crayons remove more easily on gesso’d surfaces
And while prices vary, on Amazon.com 18 Distress Crayons sell for $37, while 12 Gelatos sell for $19.99. That makes them approximately $3 each for Distress, while Gelatos are a thrifty $1.60 each. And there is more product inside! So if you are thrifty, Gelatos may be the best bet for you- but if you are a Distress fan, you are going to want these colors in your craft box!
What do you think? Which product is right for you?
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Kate says
Thanks for the review. I hadn’t been all that impressed with the Distress crayons (all the demonstrations seemed to require a layer of gesso first), but I hadn’t thought about how well they would work if you already had a lot of the distress products.
A better deal than Gelatos are the Faber-Castell – 12 Count- Gel Sticks for $9.95 and the Faber-Castell Metallic Gel Sticks 6ct for $7.91 (both at Amazon). I have both the gel stick and gelatos and when comparing the exact same colors, I can not tell the difference. The only advantage to the Gelatos is that there are more colors available. One thing I have noticed about both is that some colors go on as smooth as lipstick, others are crumbly, but all blend nicely with a finger.
I also really like the Caran d’Ache Classic Neocolor II Water-Soluble Pastels (15 for $23.73 from Amazon). They can be purchased in sets or as open stock from an art store like Dick Blick. They look like crayons with a paper wrapper and are firmer than Gelatos, but go on smoothly and completely dissolve with a water brush, even on plain paper.
kiki balden says
I’ve got the Gelatos starter pack and then saw the TH distress crayons and was quite upset thinking I had wasted money , but looking at your side by side samples I mostly prefer what the gelatos can do so thank you for these examples. I now know that what I bought will still do a great job!
Cat says
Thanks for the comparison. This really helped in my researching which one to purchase.