I originally planned to do more frequent updates on this, but found that there wouldn’t be much to report. It’s been two months since I hung the test strip in a south-facing window. During that time we’ve had one of the hottest Februarys on record.

Test strip in window.

For a quick review, see the first article in this series.

Here’s the side-by-side scan of the two halves.

Scan of both halves.

It seems they are holding up better than I expected. Even the Alizarin Crimson is doing well.

Here’s the first scan next to today’s scan.

Scan from January (l.) and March (r.).

Overall, I can’t see much difference, even in person they seem about the same. So for a budget paint, Lukas has passed the two month test. I’d be fine with using these for most any project now.

I’m not done yet. The test strip is going back in the window and I’ll check back in a month. Then I’ll let it hang through the summer and see if an Arizona summer can make them fade.

Heres the Amazon links to the paints I used:

• Alizarin Crimson (1064)
• Gamboge (1016)
• Ultramarine Light (1135)
• Burnt Sienna (1109)
• Phthalo Green (1195)