Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Pro…: is this $9 stack worth it for Photography?
Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro: the $9 shortcut for a traditional look in Procreate
If you are painting portraits on an iPad and fighting the “digital look,” you know the frustration. You have the talent, but the default Procreate brushes often leave your work feeling flat or overly smooth. You want the texture of oil paint or the soft blend of chalk, but you do not want to spend weeks tweaking settings to get there. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate by Gabriela Shel is a $9 pack designed to solve exactly that. It is not a generic bundle of random strokes; it is a curated set of 15 brushes built specifically for the nuance of face painting. If you are looking for a way to move from stylized sketches to realistic, textured portraits without reinventing the wheel, this is a low-risk entry point into a more traditional workflow.
Quick answer
| Best for | Portrait artists who want traditional textures (oil, pastel, chalk) without spending hours tuning brush settings. |
| Skip if | You only paint landscapes, abstract art, or are looking for a full course rather than a toolset. |
| Price | $9 |
| Format | 15 Procreate brushes (5.17 MB download) |
| One-line take | A tight, job-specific kit that bridges the gap between digital convenience and traditional painterly depth. |
What you’re actually buying
At $9, you are getting a focused toolkit rather than a bloated library. The core of this pack is the variety within the 15 brushes. Gabriela Shel has grouped these into distinct families: texturized brushes for building up surface detail, chalk and pastel options for soft blending, and oil-style brushes for richer, more opaque strokes. This mix is crucial because portrait painting rarely relies on a single tool. You need a brush that can lay down a broad color block, another that can smudge shadows into the cheekbone, and a third that can add the gritty texture of skin or hair. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
The seller specifically highlights the Pastel and Texturized Color Blocker brushes for smudging. This is a smart inclusion. Smudging is often the hardest part of digital portraiture to master because standard airbrushes can look too clean. By providing dedicated tools for this specific action, the pack saves you from the trial-and-error of trying to mimic a dry brush with a wet one. Whether you are working on a quick character study or a full illustration, these 15 brushes cover the range from stylized to realistic, allowing you to keep your hand moving rather than stopping to adjust opacity or jitter settings. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Why it’s on our radar
This pack stands out because it is honest about its scope. Many brush packs promise “everything,” but this one promises “portraits.” That specificity is valuable. If you are a character artist or a hobbyist who loves drawing faces, you do not need 500 brushes; you need the right 15. The fact that the seller uses this exact set for her own work adds a layer of confidence—you are buying the tools that produced the results you likely saw on her Instagram or website. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
The price point is also significant. For $9, you are getting a complete workflow for a specific niche. It is cheaper than a single hour of a private art lesson, yet it provides a permanent asset for your Procreate library. It is the kind of small investment that can immediately change the quality of your output if you have been stuck with the default Apple brushes. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
What actually matters
Before you buy, consider how you currently handle texture in Procreate. If you are already happy with the default soft brushes, this might not add much value. However, if you feel your portraits lack “tooth” or depth, the texturized brushes in Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro are designed to fix that.
Check your Procreate version. While most brush packs are compatible across recent versions, always ensure you are on a supported update to avoid import errors. The file size is small (5.17 MB), so it will not eat into your storage, but it is a quick check to make sure the download process is smooth. Finally, look at the seller’s free tutorials on her YouTube channel. Seeing how she applies these specific brushes in real-time can help you decide if her technique aligns with your own style before you even open the file. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Mid-check
If you are ready to upgrade your portrait workflow, you can grab the pack here. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
FAQ
Is this brushset only for realistic portraits? No. The description notes that the set offers a variety to work “from stylized to realistic.” The chalk and pastel brushes are particularly useful for looser, more stylized character work, while the oil brushes help with detailed, realistic rendering. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Can I use these brushes for other subjects like hands or clothing? Yes. While the pack is optimized for faces, the texture and blending properties of the oil and chalk brushes are versatile. Many artists use these same tools for rendering fabric folds or skin on hands, as the underlying mechanics of shading are similar. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Do I need to pay for Procreate to use these? Yes. This is a brush set for the Procreate app, which is a paid application on the App Store. You cannot use these brushes in free alternatives like ibisPaint or Medibang. (Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate)
Bottom line
If you are painting portraits in Procreate and feeling limited by the default tools, Painterly Portrait Brushset Pro for Procreate is a smart, low-cost upgrade. It gives you 15 specific tools that address the common pain points of digital portraiture: texture, blending, and realism. For $9, it is an easy yes if you want to stop tweaking settings and start painting.