How to Plan Black Friday Art Supply Buys: The Sets That Actually Drop and the Deals That Are Stickers

This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases.

Some content on this site is AI-assisted and reviewed by our editorial team.

Black Friday is the one week a year when the 72-count Prismacolor tin actually drops to a price that makes sense, and the one week when every art supply listing on Amazon gets a red “deal” sticker — including the ones that haven’t moved a dollar since March. The difference between a real Black Friday art supply deal and a sticker is about $20 on a pencil set, and nobody tells you which is which. I’ve tracked price histories on the major colored pencil, marker, and paper listings for three Black Friday cycles, and the pattern is consistent: big sets drop, singles and specialty paper don’t, and the deals that matter sell out by Friday afternoon.

Here’s the planning guide I wish I’d had before my first Black Friday art supply haul — what to buy now, what to wait for, and what to skip entirely.

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils, Soft Core, 72-Count Tin — The Set With Real BF History

The Prismacolor Premier 72-Count Tin is the perennial Black Friday doorbuster for colored pencil buyers. The soft wax cores that blend like butter are the reason most adult colorists start here, and the 72-count tin is the set size where retailers actually have margin to cut — historically 30 to 40 percent off the $50 list, landing around $32 to $35. The honest catch: check whether you’re getting the tin or the tray version. The tin is the classic; the tray is a newer packaging that some colorists find flimsier, and the prices can differ by a few dollars even on “sale.”

My take: If you’re buying one art supply on Black Friday, make it this set — it’s the most reliable deep discount in the category.

Prismacolor Verithin Colored Pencils, 24-Count — The Hard-Core Pairing

The Prismacolor Verithin 24-Count is the hard-lead companion to the Premier soft core — harder points that keep their tip for tiny spaces, architectural details, and the under-layer work that soft cores smudge over. At about $20, it rarely drops more than 10 to 15 percent on Black Friday. The honest lesson from three years of price tracking: smaller sets don’t have the margin for deep cuts, so buy this before the Black Friday sellout rather than waiting for a floor price that never arrives.

My take: Buy it before Black Friday if you need it — the discount will be small and the sellout risk is real.

Ohuhu Alcohol Markers, 72-Color Dual Tip Set — The Marker Deal to Watch

The Ohuhu 72-color dual-tip alcohol marker set is the other genuine Black Friday mover in the art supply space. At about $40, the 72 and 120-count sets historically drop 25 to 40 percent during the Black Friday window — the biggest per-marker savings you’ll find all year. Alcohol markers are a different medium than colored pencils (they bleed through thin paper and blend by wet-on-wet layering), but if you’ve been curious about marker coloring, Black Friday is the time. The honest caveat: caps can dry the nibs if you store them horizontal in a hot room — store them flat in a cool place and cap them immediately after use.

My take: The best marker deal of the year if you’ve been waiting to try alcohol markers — watch for the 72-count to drop below $30.

Bold and Easy Coloring Book: 50 Simple Stress Relief Designs — The $7 Basket Filler

The Bold and Easy Coloring Book at about $7 is the basket filler that pushes an art supply order over the free-shipping threshold. Books rarely get Black Friday discounts — publishers don’t run doorbusters on paperbacks — but this format is worth adding to any supply order because it’s the coloring style that anxious, overwhelmed colorists actually finish. Thick lines, simple shapes, no intricate detailing that turns a relaxing hobby into a stressful one.

My take: Add it to your cart to hit free shipping — at $7 it pays for itself in delivery savings and you’ll actually color in it.

Common Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)

Buying singles expecting a BF drop: Individual pencils and small sets (12, 24) almost never get meaningful Black Friday discounts. The margin isn’t there. If you need singles, buy them now — waiting costs you nothing and risks a sellout.

Falling for the sticker deal: A red “Deal” badge on Amazon means the price is lower than the recent average — not necessarily lower than it’s ever been. Check camelcamelcamel or Keepa for the price history before buying. A real Black Friday drop shows a V-shaped dip below the 90-day average.

Waiting too long on the 72-count: The Prismacolor 72-tin sells out on Black Friday afternoon every year. Set a watch alert on the listing and buy in the morning. By Saturday, it’s back to list price or out of stock.

Forgetting the coloring books: You’re already paying for shipping on pencils — add a $7 coloring book to hit free shipping and actually have something to color in with the new pencils you just bought.

Budget Note: The Value Floor

The cheapest Black Friday setup that genuinely works: the Prismacolor 72-count tin on BF discount (around $32-35) plus the Bold and Easy coloring book ($7). For under $42, you have professional-grade pencils and a book designed for the way most adults actually color — low-pressure, big shapes, satisfying results. Skip the 150-count tin unless you’re selling commissioned work; 72 colors cover 95 percent of adult coloring projects, and the extra 78 pencils are duplicates at slightly different hues that beginners never use.

Keep reading: our guide to bold and easy coloring books covers the format in depth, and our comparison of gel crayons for adult coloring is the budget alternative if pencils aren’t your medium. For technique, our pastel pencil on toned paper tutorial is the next step up.

Deep-focus coloring hits different with an audiobook — Audible’s free trial is here.

ColoredCalm is reader-supported. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. That means if you buy through one of the links above, I get a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend supplies I actually color with.

Related Guides

• Gel Crayons for Grown-Up Coloring Books: Bold Color Without Tired Hands
• Color-Your-Own Christmas Cards: The Watercolor Blanks That Survive the Mail
• Six Erasers Ranked by What They Undo. The Electric One Earns Its Batteries.

Prices move fast. Start your Amazon trip from our Shop & Support page and your purchases support ColoredCalm at no extra cost to you.