Niji Pearlescent Watercolor Palette

When I first got this assuming palette more than a year ago, the almost no-name palette is marked as something else (there was a labeled at the base but I peeled it off right away) and since then, Micheal's has been putting out the exact same thing (inner/outter packaging and the palette itself) and the brand is called Niji by Yasumoto. I am assuming the previous company was merged?

Anyway, the new ones (the two are slightly different, probably due to quality control) has the same light and flimsy (I already broke mine) clear lid but now there is a huge Yasumoto relief is part of the black base. Don't let the flimsy packaging and "Made in China" fool you: These are a lot more sophisticated than the price suggests.

Unlike the condensed paint/cream gel consistency I have seen from standard watercolor,  the Niji pearlescent watercolor has a thick spongy/rubbery texture that doesn't dissolve as quickly when dipped. The sheer-at-first (it's meant to be used alone or mixed with normal watercolor) color pay off means that I (the impatient watercolor newbie) don't have to spend time testing and diluting, making sure I don't get a big and uneven patch.

 Of course, there is also the option of build it up: If you  making a small pool on the paint's surface and wait for 30 seconds, the color becomes much more vibrant. Some of these shades are a little garish (I wish they are all nature-inspired but oh well...) while other are just dreamy and quite versicle. My favorite ones are the slightly cool brown (brown taupe), gold,  more turquoise one of the two blues, beige and the white.

I like how the shimmers are subtly pearly (without being frosty so I can using) and multidimensional. I have not yet tried it as layering piece (I still can't get normal water color to look even) but thinks this would makes a nice liner to accent calligraphy and drawing.

 Overall: Amazing deal for the price. I would be nice if the plastic is a little tougher.