The blue-collared Cotman round, sold one brush at a time. A short pale handle, a bright chrome ferrule with a blue band at its base, and a golden synthetic head that comes to a point. Series 111 is the short-handle round in the Cotman family, and the size is printed on the handle.

A round is the brush watercolour is actually painted with. Held upright it draws a line as fine as the point; laid over on its side it releases the whole belly of the head as a broad wash; and everything between those two is one continuous range controlled by nothing but the angle of your hand. A flat cannot do that, which is why a painter who owns one brush owns a round.

The sizes we can supply run 0000, 000, 00, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. Anything in the photographs above 8 belongs to the same family but is not on our list, so order from the twelve names rather than from the picture.

The price ladder is worth reading before you choose, because it does not do what you expect. It falls from Rs. 1,500 at 0000 down to Rs. 1,200 at size 0, and only then starts climbing — Rs. 1,350 at 1, Rs. 1,550 at 2, up to Rs. 3,250 at 8. The miniature sizes cost more than a 0 because making a head that small and still pointed is harder, not because they hold more hair. The cheapest brush in the whole series is the size 0.

For most people the sensible first buy is a 6 or an 8. A big round holds enough water to carry a wash across a page without running dry halfway, and it still comes to a point fine enough for detail — one brush doing two jobs. The 0000 and 000 are specialists: signatures, eyelashes, the last three hairs of a botanical study. They are not beginner brushes and they are not cheap.

Rinse it before the paint sets, reshape the point between your fingers, and stand it head-up to dry. Tell us the size on WhatsApp when you order. Cash on Delivery is available across Pakistan, and stock, your city and delivery charges are confirmed before dispatch.

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