Shein Art Supplies Tested: 5 Budget Finds Ranked From Best to Worst

Introduction

Shein started as a fast-fashion retailer, but it has been quietly building a stationery and art supply section for over a year and a half now, and the low prices keep drawing curious artists in. We picked up five of the most popular items, spent real time testing them with actual drawing materials, and rated each one on performance and durability.

A few expectations to set up front: nearly everything in the store’s stationery section carries suspiciously high ratings, several items cost less than a coffee, and one order even arrived incomplete without any refund notification. The overall takeaway mirrors the brand’s broader reputation: functional in the short term, but rarely built to last.

Shein 10-Piece Random Gel Eraser

This is a pack of ten small eraser sticks, sold for about $1.50, meant to erase gel pen ink. With 208 reviews and a 4.5-star average, hopes were high, because an eraser that genuinely removes gel pen would be a genuinely useful tool.

In testing against a Gelly Roll gel pen, it barely lifted anything. It rubbed some glitter residue onto the stick itself, but the ink stayed put. Even when the ink was still wet, the results were disappointing. Trying it on ordinary ballpoint pen ink and a regular black pen made things worse, not better, and after three attempts with three different pens the conclusion was clear: it just does not work.

Shein 6-Piece Pencil Shaped Eraser

Pencil-shaped erasers are a favorite among sketch artists, and the usual brand-name option typically runs about $6 for a single eraser. This pack of six full-size erasers costs only about a dollar each, which made it the bargain candidate of the test.

The surprise came when they outperformed expectations. Compared side by side with a premium Faber-Castell pencil eraser, the budget version erased graphite more completely while the expensive one left muddy texture behind. The catch: because this eraser is very hard, it can tear into the paper surface underneath if you press hard.

Shein One-Piece Vintage Drawing Book

This $3 drawing book was chosen specifically because the listing showed toned paper, which allows artists to work from dark shadows to bright highlights. What arrived was completely white paper instead, and public reviewer photos confirmed other buyers also received toned stock, making this a clear mismatch.

The paper itself is extremely thin, roughly the thickness of printer paper between a cardboard backing. Writing a name bled through six pages. Erasing was equally poor: even light pencil shading refused to erase, while the same test performed on ordinary cheap printer paper erased almost invisibly well. One genuine compliment: the cardboard flap on top makes a nice customizable cover you can design yourself.

Shein All-in-One Palette with Brush Cleaner

At $12 this is the expensive item of the bunch by Shein standards, where most items sat under five dollars, but it is also the one that genuinely earned its price. The unit combines an 18-well paint palette, multiple brush holders including interior slots for wet brushes, a water basin with ribbed interior walls for rubbing brushes clean, and a rough section for working dried acrylic paint off bristles.

The plastic feels thick and resists bending, which is more than can be said for typical palettes at this price. In use, paint mixed easily in the designated area, and the brush-cleaning test ended with a fully clean brush in one pass, finished off with a drying pad on the side. A carrying case on top rounds out a surprisingly thoughtful design.

Shein One-Sheet Blackout Chalkboard Wall Sticker

This chalkboard wall sticker costs $1.50 for a large sheet and has nearly 2,500 reviews at close to five stars, and it even arrives with chalk included. The problem starts with shipping: because Shein ships in soft bags, the sticker arrived bent through a full 360 degrees, and once a sticker this thin is wrinkled, it stays wrinkled.

It is also noticeably shorter than the product photo suggests. The surface does erase well with a wet paper towel, but the material feels far thinner than true chalkboard paper. It might suit a child’s casual use, but for day-to-day use the fragility is a real limitation.

Overall Buying Advice

If you are shopping Shein’s stationery section, the pattern is clear. The palette is the standout and the only item that earned a 10 out of 10. The pencil-shaped erasers earn a 5 out of 10, offering real value despite the hard texture. The gel pen eraser fails outright, the sketchbook earns a 4 out of 10 thanks to thin, bleed-prone paper that does not match its listing, and the chalkboard sticker earns a 5 out of 10 for working well but arriving damaged and feeling fragile.

The broader theme is that these supplies feel made to be used a few times rather than to last. Shopping exclusively at Shein for art supplies is not recommended, but one or two specific items, especially the palette, make sense as low-risk experiments.

Conclusion

Shein’s art supply section delivers a mixed bag: one genuinely good find in the all-in-one palette, a solid budget eraser value, and several items that fail on the fundamentals of the products they claim to be. For artists on a tight budget, the palette and pencil erasers are the safe picks; the rest are easy to skip.