Review on Caran d'Ache Gouache Studio Set -15 Assorted Colors in Metal Tin by Denise Davis

After looking for a "good" gouache set and reading the reviews, I decided for this set. Basically I liked the idea with the pans, they're cleaner and so handy as they dry quickly, when you're done you can just close the lid and go. But I was concerned about the consistency, opacity, and its ability to mask. I'm fairly new to this medium and have previously used these gouaches on jelly cups so I started looking for something else first. They work well enough, but they're so dirty, so striped, and the container weighs a ton, so ugly! Ok, back to these :-). I understand that this is not fine art quality gouache and that some people are concerned about the lightfastness of their pigments, although some claim to have contacted the company and told them that most of the colors in this palette have very good lightfastness, with exception from a few of them. (Purple and Pink) In my case, I'm not worried about their lightfastness as I plan to use gouache for paintings and illustrations, mostly in a sketchbook. Since this set has such good reviews from other gouache artists, I think you should give it a try. They are not expensive and they have many colors that you can play with for a while. They are not the designers of Windsor and Newton, gouache, Holbein etc and we shouldn't compare them to them but they are great for what they are, good for practice, learning and drawing. The brush that comes with it is great! If you're picky, maybe buy a large white tube of Windsor and Newton gouache and you'll be good to go for a while. The little white gouache that's coming is good but probably not as good as Windsor and Newton anyway, eventually you'll stop being white pretty soon so get a W&N then. I'm very happy with this choice , I know I'll have to get my hands on Windsor and Newton Designer's Gouache anyway if I want to do the 'real thing' for illustration, but this set is still a must-have if you enjoy painting, sketching, or your outdoors want to take your own colors with you. The box is big but very strong, still much better than carrying tubes, palettes, knives etc. So here it is, I recommend this magic red wonder box to all kids (3-90) who like to draw and so on. You will not regret it! * I almost forgot you see I have cats. They walk on my paints, they drink my watercolor water, they tap on palettes, they chew on brushes. Another reason I'm afraid to buy tubes or stop making oil or acrylic. But I can only put one lid on it, I have water lids, mixed pallets, etc. LOL. You know I stand a minute away from my desk and they fiddle with everything. You know what I'm talking about if you have cats or dogs :-) Well if your dog runs away with this box the colors will still suit you hahahaha.