A shallow metal tin whose lid badge states the count in a black octagon: 45 Colors. Inside, forty-five pans fill the lower tray in rows of nine, and the upper compartment carries two pale blue water brushes, a wooden-handled brush, a white pen printed ART OUTLINER, a metal sharpener and a yellow sponge. The whole thing is about the size of a pencil case.

Rs. 3,000 for forty-five colours is Rs. 66.67 a colour, which makes it the second cheapest colour on our watercolour shelf — only our Keep Smiling 90 tin at Rs. 38.89 comes in lower. For comparison, our Deli EC10-21 cake set is Rs. 75.24 a colour and our Giotto Acquerelli tray Rs. 120.83.

Forty-five is an unusual number and it buys you a particular thing: the greens and the greys. Most sets in this price bracket give you one green and expect you to mix the rest, which is how a landscape ends up looking like it was painted with lettuce. A tray this wide carries several greens, several blues and a run of neutrals, so a tree and a shadow can be lifted straight out of the pan.

The tin comes in two lid designs — a pale one with a pink and blue flamingo, and a black one with a white deer and gold leaves. The paint and the fittings are the same in both. Tell us which you would prefer when you message and we will confirm what is on the shelf before dispatch.

The tools in the top tray are the part people underestimate. Two water brushes mean you can keep one for warm colours and one for cool without rinsing between; the sponge blots the brush before it goes back into a pan; and the sharpener is there because the pen in the tray has to be pointed to draw with.

We list this set from 8 years up. The Safencia price is Rs. 3,000 with Cash on Delivery across Pakistan, and stock, your city and delivery charges are confirmed on WhatsApp before dispatch.

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