Tobio's Kits Review: Is This Viral Watercolor Set Worth It?
July 13, 2026
Watercolor kits such as Tobio's are all over Instagram these days, and it's hard not to get mesmerized by the walnut case that snaps shut on magnets, the pen that's filled with water, and the mini-sized sketchbook. I'll be honest, I thought it might be a gimmick. It looks cute, but unlike the ones you find on Amazon or Temu, it is actually made with great materials, and it doesn't break after 15 minutes either.
Is it a genuinely lovely first kit or just savvy marketing? Here is everything you need to know about Tobio's, and whether it deserves a spot in your bag.
Instagram post
Embed placeholder: the viral Tobio's kit on Instagram
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What Exactly IS the Tobio's Watercolor Kit?
Tobio's is a beginner-friendly, portable watercolor kit built around a real walnut magnetic palette. It was created by Mel, a hobbyist painter who named the brand after her cat, because she couldn't find a set she could comfortably paint with anywhere, in cafes, in parks, even on boats. Everything you need to start is in one box:
- A walnut wood magnetic palette with 8 paint wells, a mixing area and a clip
- 12 highly pigmented paint tubes, from Venetian Red to Ivory Black
- A refillable water brush with the reservoir built into the handle
- A 60-page hardcover sketchbook of 300 gsm cotton paper
- A wristband, a printed manual and a beginner e-book
The whole thing is tiny, about 8.86 by 4.13 by 1.77 inches and roughly 0.75 pounds, which is exactly why it gets used instead of sitting in a drawer.
The Tobio's Kit Breakdown
1. A portable kit you can bring anywhere
The walnut palette closes with magnets and stays shut, so nothing leaks in your bag. The water brush keeps its own water in the handle, and the whole kit fits in the palm of your hand. It is small enough to live in a jacket pocket or the side of a tote, which means it actually gets used.
2. Beginner-friendly and easy to use
You get both a physical manual and an easy-to-follow e-book with step-by-step instructions. There is no setup ritual and no guesswork: open the walnut palette, load the brush and start. The e-book exercises are genuinely useful, not filler, and they are the fastest way to get comfortable with wet-on-wet.
3. Everything in one box
The brush, the thick cotton paper, the 12 paints, the walnut palette, the wristband and the learning resources are all included. There is nothing else to buy before your first painting, which is what separates it from an empty palette where you still have to source pans, paper and a brush separately.
4. Genuinely high-quality materials
Real walnut wood palette with strong magnets, thick cotton paper, a hardcover sketchbook with an embossed logo, and vibrant paints that blend easily. It doesn't feel disposable the way most sub-$15 kits do. The walnut palette is the standout piece: it feels like a keepsake, not a throwaway plastic tin.
How to Set It Up (Even If You've Never Painted)
- Split the walnut palette into its two magnetic halves and clip one to the sketchbook.
- Squeeze a little of each of the 12 paints into the wells and let them set, or use them right away.
- Fill the water brush handle with water and screw it shut.
- Load the brush, pick a color, and start painting. The whole setup takes under a minute.
Pro tip: For wet-on-wet, load extra water and let two colors bleed together on the cotton paper. For crisp layers, let the first wash dry before going over it. Between colors, wipe the brush on the wristband.
The Paint Test: Do the Colors Actually Perform?
Better than I expected. Some kits are chalky, but these blend smoothly, rewet easily and stay vibrant on the paper, even though they are student-grade rather than artist-grade. The thick, opaque colors are the weakest part of the range, but for learning and everyday painting they are more than enough. The real standout is the paper: 300 gsm cotton holds water beautifully and barely buckles under repeated washes, a genuine upgrade over the thin paper most starter kits ship with.
Good to know if you have kids: the kit is certified to EN71 and CPSC standards and is safe for children aged 6 and up. One caution, though: because Tobio's went viral, there are cheap lookalikes with warping plastic palettes and chalky paint. Buying through the official Amazon listing is the simplest way to be sure you get the real thing.
Is It Budget-Friendly?
Tobio's lands right in the middle on price, at around $34. That is more than a $10 to $15 budget kit like Arteza, but with those the paper tends to bubble and the case falls apart. It is less than a full Winsor & Newton Cotman set once you add the paper Cotman leaves out, and Cotman's case is fussier to open and set up. Between the walnut magnetic palette and the cotton-paper sketchbook, Tobio's is the goldilocks choice for a first proper kit: not the cheapest, but the one you will actually keep using.
Final Verdict: Who Is Tobio's For?
I genuinely loved it, and I think you might too. It is not built for large-format or archival work, and serious professionals will want artist-grade tubes and a bigger palette. But for almost everyone else, it is a joy. It is the best fit if you are one of these people:
- A beginner who wants to start painting without researching supplies
- A hobbyist who paints on the go, in cafes, while traveling, or in the park
- A gift-buyer who wants something that feels special and ready to use out of the box
If the walnut palette and grab-and-go format sound like your thing, it is easy to see why this one went viral. You can check the current price and availability on Amazon.
About the author:I'm a casual hobbyist painter, not a trained artist. I've spent a few years picking up and putting down watercolor, which makes me a decent test case for a beginner kit.