Start Collecting Your Artlets Now
Crafting Magic for Your Studio
Why artlets by adii?
In a world that is overflowing with dozens of art brands coming up with thousands of colours every single day, why exactly would you go for a pricy, fancy-pack-set of watercolours that take weeks to be ready? The answer couldn't be any simpler - handmade watercolours are "your own" and made "just for you", unlike the commercially packaged, mass-produced ones.
They're bespoke standing out in the crowd; they're your Gucci against the high-street; and Tiffany against flea market. Alright, I stretched it tad much, but you get my point?
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
The Inspiration
​
The colours (or artlets, as I like to call them) are meticulously crafted, one colour at a time. Every palette is born out of an inspiring story, experience or a sight-to-behold (mostly coming from my many travels around the world).
For instance, my favourite holiday destination in the summers is Turkey. After one of my travels there, I created a
12-colour palette that was completely inspired by the gorgeous shades of Turkey that shine so bright they're surreal.
A couple of years back, I spent an extended weekend in Croatia, and out came a stunning 7-colour palette dedicated to the gorgeous Dalmatian seaside. And, these are just two examples of the many that I have created so far. But, you need not stick to these palettes only; you can create your own artlets sets by choosing the ones you like!
​
The Process
​
A lot (and I mean A LOT!) goes behind the scenes before each palette is released in the artlets shop. After finalising the colours, I experiment with pigments, carefully weighing them by the gram, to create the shades I have envisioned. Sometimes a single pigment suffices while sometimes I need to mix pigments to reach to a certain colour.
​
The process of making watercolours is called mulling. Every single artlet is handmulled, pouring layer by layer (with 3-4 layers and a curing time of 2-3 days, if not more, for each layer). Each layer is handpoured in magnetic base pans.
The painstaking process can take anywhere from 1to 4 weeks, and can sometimes result in rather unexpected outcome - making it vital for me to start from scratch!
​
The Value
​
What really makes the artlets worth every penny you invest in them is their artist grade quality. Only the purest and the finest pigments - synthetic, earth-based or semi-precious stone based (sourced from all over the world) - are blended with 100% organic, vegan, homemade binder mix made from food grade ingredients, with zero chemical preservatives. The resulting colours are nothing but pure delight to paint with. The artlets are granulating or non-granulating, with excellent lightfastness and pigment index, and buttery smooth on paper, especially when used with professional watercolour brushes and papers.
​
To make it easier to choose, I have created 'Artlets Sets' for beginners. Starting off with these before investing in bigger buys is something I recommend to everyone who's still unsure about their art supply needs.
​
​
​
There's more...
​
To be able to really appreciate the beauty of the colours that I make with so much love, using them on excellent quality, artist-grade paper is a must - something that I realised while testing the artlets.
​
Poor quality paper makes watercolours look unbelievably dull and pale, apart from buckling and tearing with layers of colours. I want you to use my colours on the paper that I personally prefer to use; and that's when I decided to stock it in the artlets store. In the 'Paper Products' section, you will find stacks of my favourite watercolour paper that complements my artlets oh so beautifully! This paper is handmade in India, has a gorgeous rough grain, is bright white in colour, archival, acid-free, 100% cotton, and 270GSM. There are also mini journals (with the same specifics as the paper stacks) that you can use for your art practice or as colour swatch directories.
The Artlets Team
Yes, that is right! We are a 'one woman team'. ​
​
My name is Adii, and I am the Founder, Paintmaker, Artist, Marketeer, Photographer, Social Media Manager, all packed in one for artlets by adii. The brand was born during the lockdown. I quit my 9-5 job simply to go with the flow, unbeknownst to me that I was getting into a 24x7 routine (albeit a fun and satisfying one).
​
After a LOT of self teaching, making mistakes and learning from them, buying and trying art material, and investing an insane amount of time (and my savings) experimenting with pigments and binder recipes, this handmade wonder came into being.
​
artlets by adii is my baby, and I am a very very proud mum. You should try my artlets and you'll see what I mean :)
​
Here's some good-to-know and some utterly unimportant Adii-trivia for those who care ;)
-
I'm a clinical nutritionist turned lifestyle journalist turned watercolour artist turned paintmaker. (Until 2019, I'd LOL at anyone who even suggested I start my own business). I operate from my beautiful and cosy home studio based in India.
-
Before getting into art full-time, I quit my job just to travel and test Deepak Chopra's "possibility in uncertainty" theory.
(Needless to add) When I say, "I follow my heart and trust my intuition," I MEAN IT.
-
Travel is meditation to me, and I take it VERY seriously. I travel not to tick touristy things off my list, but solely to explore cultures and people.
-
I can walk for insane number of hours. Without any music. All by myself. I am one of the lucky few
who enjoy their own company. -
I'm a tea collector and a SERIOUS tea drinker.
-
I'm a food experimenter. Can stomach craziest foods.
-
The Beatles are ♡♡♡♡ and always will be.
-
My soul is stuck somewhere between the 1960s and the 1980s, and I'm so glad it is :)
​
Follow me on Instagram (@artletsbyadii) to see what's new with the artlets, my travel stories, what my customers have to say, and everything colourful (or simply to support a small business). Don't forget to get your Studio Insider Pass to be the first to know about
all latest releases, deals and offers.
​
​
​
​
​