Caran d'Ache Museum Aquarelle 76 Box Set
Caran d'Ache Museum Aquarelle 76 Box Set
This is less a review and more a discussion as to whether or not it is worth spending a little bit extra on exactly the same size and type of pencils just because of the packaging. Mind you, I think I am doing a disservice to this set and others like them by calling this wooden box, packaging
Although this is advertised as a 76 set of Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle, there are actually 80 pencils in the set total. There are the 76 colors in the range, with an additional Caran Dache Grafwood Graphite pencil and three Technola Water Soluble Graphite pencils, as well as two white pencils and two black pencils.
The first thing anyone should do before shopping and intending to spend a lot of money is to, One; seriously evaluate if they need or want the product and if you purchase the product will it significantly improve your current position, be that happiness, increase the cost of your art work etc. The second thing that must be done is to shop about and never just buy the first item you see.
Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle 76 Box Set Cost
Whether you buy the Museum Aquarelle Box Set or the cardboard box that Caran d’Ache now sell their top line art supplies in, either way this is a luxury item, a top quality set of pencils and they are both going to cost a lot of money.
However, by shopping about, the Wooden Box Set can on very rare occasions be found cheaper than the original set in the cardboard. For example, I found my box set for £196 where as the cheapest cardboard 76 set I could find was £229. So on this occasion, regardless if you want the wooden box or not, it is still the cheapest option and there for the only option in this equation.
Never the less, a lot of places sell the Wood Box Set of the Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle for about £450 or £350 with the cardboard set selling for approximately £230 or £270. So if we take this as the situation you are face with, there a few things that you need to consider.
For the most part, especially when it comes to Caran d’Ache, the Wooden box sets are for aesthetic purposes only. The reason I say this is because, even if you purchase the 76 Museum Aquarelle in the Cardboard set from Caran d’Ache, that packaging is one of the best if not thee best that I have ever seen with regards protecting the contents.
Ordinarily, a lot of people would suggest that the box sets are more protective of their contents, but in the case of Caran d’Ache, they protect their top line of pencils incredibly well regardless of the set.
Another thing to consider is your studio or setup. If you are the type of Colourist, Pencil Artist or Crafter that has a custom build pencil storage, or a set of the pencil drawers that have become incredibly popular or even prefer storing your pencils in pencil cases, then spending the extra on a wooden box is not for you. If you know beyond any doubt that even if you purchase an expensive set of pencils like the Museum Aquarelle and are happy to store them in cases, then you would absolutely be wasting money on the Wooden Box.
I personally used to be of the opinion that paying a lot of extra money for a wooden box was crazy and it was something I would never do. But that was before I was spending two and three hundred pounds on pencils and would laugh at the thought of spending more than £2 on a set of colored pencils
Now however, I have a much better understanding of coloured pencils and appreciate them so much more and so that being said, I am clearly happier spending a lot of money on a set. The Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle Box Set is one of the most beautiful art product based items I have ever seen. You can feel, see and smell the quality of the box as soon as you remove it from the outer packaging.
I would say the cost different has a lot to do with this, which aligns back to what I mentioned earlier and in my video, how important it is to shop about. If the wooden box set is £50 to £60 more or perhaps less if you are lucky, I would definitely consider the box set. However, if you are looking at an extra £150 to £250 extra for the wooden box, which I have seen when searching Amazon, I would absolutely leave it and not even take a second thought.
Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle Pricing
Currently on Amazon UK, the cheapest Caran Dache Museum Aquarelle 76 Wooden Box set is £229 where as the cheapest cardboard box set of 76 Caran Dache Museum Aquarelle is £200.63. So you have to ask yourself, is this beautiful wooden box worth £29? As an owner of one, I would absolutely say yes.
On Amazon.com in the US, the cheapest Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle 76 Wooden Box Set I could find was $452 and for the same set only in the cardboard box, the cheapest I could find was $277. That is a difference of $175, so in this case for me I would definitely buy the Cardboard box version.
In Europe the cheapest Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle 76 Wooden Box Set I could find was €333 and the cheapest cardboard set of exactly the same pencils was €286. this is a difference of €47, definitely worth saving or spending the extra money for such a beautiful set.
As always, with the prices I have quoted in this article, they are the prices at the time of writing the article, I check the product links every two weeks and ensure I am providing the cheapest links on Amazon for you.
Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle 20 Landscape Set Giveaway.
I also have created a YouTube video were I show the set off in all its glory, to see the video simply click the link. In order to give back to my subscribers, readers and viewers of The Art Gear Guide, I have a wonderful Landscape 20 set of Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle for the lucky winner.
To take part, all you have to do is visit the YouTube video via the link, when you get there comment on the video, you can say whatever you like, the purpose of commenting is so the software I use can grab all the names from the comment section and select a winner at random.
Additionally, if you could share the video on your social media platforms with your friends and family who you think would love a set of pencils like this, I would really appreciate it. And if you could like the video it helps the channel out but it is not essential to win the prize. You do not have to be a subscriber, although if you do subscribe, then you will be notified of other giveaways I will be doing.
Finally, if you would like to see a full review of the Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle, follow the link to see my written review and YouTube Video Review.
