What Paper Should I Use?

When I first started teaching art, I was so overwhelmed with paper. The art room I was handed had every kind of paper you could imagine, none of which were labeled. My professors always told me what to get on the syllabus and my high school teachers always had materials out. When I painted on my own, I knew canvas was for oils and acrylics and then just used whatever the lady at the art store told me I should use for watercolors over the years until I became a watercolor painter myself. So it is no surprise that one of the most common questions I get when teaching a watercolor workshop is, “What paper should I use?”

If you are going to splurge on any art material. Splurge on paper. Quality paper changes your paintings. My short answer is try cold pressed and hot pressed out for yourself. Cold pressed for lots of layers, warm pressed for lots of details. Try to get a heavy weighted paper no matter what. At least 140 lbs. Stop reading here if that is a good enough answer for you and go explore for yourself. But if you want the full answer about paper, then keep on going.

Before I get into it, here are some of the aspects of paper I’ll explain:

• Material
• Weight
• Surface
• Absorbency
• Format
• Archival Quality

The material used is usually cotton or wood pulp. Think cotton fibers versus the cellulose in plant fibers that makes up the structure of the wooded plant. If separated, it is made into a pulp.  If you want high quality, go with 100% cotton. Sometimes cotton  will be referred to as rag, depending on the brand. Cotton absorbs the water well, can take on a bunch of layers,  and you can lift and rework as you go. When you think of wood pulp, think of the material itself. So the paper doesn’t absorb as evenly, it can’t absorb as many layers, and dries much faster. If you start layering, it will begin to pill. It is more affordable though, so I recommend it for little kids or to mess around and practice with. Anything final or that needs to be archived, go with cotton. I just think of a cotton shirt and a piece of wood. It helps me visualize why cotton would be better.

Material can affect the color of your paper too. Colors range from bright white to a soft, more earthy looking  off-white tone. Color of paper can affect how tones show up. The earthy ones can produce a softness to your painting where as the bright white will contrast will with all your colors. This is a matter of preference pertaining to your project. They also make black watercolor paper and all sorts of colors. I have used black for mixed media and oil pastels. I have also used it with pearly watercolors for a cool effect. Have fun exploring with different colors. A lot of professional artists like Arches. Strathmore has different grades that they call, “series.” The 400 series has a brown cover and a 500 series with white cover. If you are going to sell or archive your work, the 500 series is the one to use with Strathmore because it is the only one that is 100% cotton.

Weight is the thickness of the paper. The heavier the weight, the thicker the paper will be. Weight is measured in pounds. You will see it labeled  as 140 lb (300 gsm – grams per meter). This is the most common weight. There is also 300 lb (640gsm) which is more expensive. Heavier paper can handle more water without warping. To prevent warping on the 140 lb paper, you can stretch it. Even thought 300 lb is more expensive, I wouldn’t say that ever project needs this thickness. One isn’t necessarily better than the other. If you are going to do lots of wet on wet in big areas, you would want the heavy paper. You all want heavy paper with lots of layers. But I have made some really cool projects with 140 lb paper. In fact, I did a painting the other day where I used the 300 lb and I wish I had gone with the 140 lb. So like I said, it depends on the project. Picking which one to use comes easier as you practice.

If you compare the surface of different watercolor papers, it will have different textures. Cold pressed, warm pressed, and rough paper. Cold pressed is the most popular and is made how it sounds. The put the fibers in a press and flatten the paper with a big cold press. Hot press is the same, but with a hot press. So if you think about what the effects of cold and hot would do to something then it is easier to understand how the paper works. The cold pressed is slightly textured and more versatile whereas the hot pressed is really smooth and good for fine details and ink work. Rough paper isn’t pressed at all. It is laid out to dry over different textures. So it dries unevenly and gives a less controlled look since the water will act more unpredictably.

Absorbency is a treatment they put in the paper to controls the timing of water absorbency.I didn’t know this was even a thing until well into my experience so don’t worry if you don’t understand it all. It just explains why different brands have the same weight and material make up but act differently. But it’s called sizing and depends on the fibers and the sizing type. Internal sizing is mixed into the pulp before pressed or dried and external sizing is applied to the top of the paper. I have also heard it called surface sizing. It’s a treatment that influences how the paint can blend, lift, and spread. The more sizing that is put in or on the paper, the longer the paint sits on the paper. The less sizing there is, the paint will soak in quicker. It basically gives us time to work our painting so it doesn’t bleed in too quickly. If you have low sizing, you might get paper that acts like printer paper or tissue paper. One time I thought I was getting a deal on great paper and it warped and wasn’t at all what I expected. That was before I learned about sizing. To test sizing strength, just put a water droplet of a color you use often. If it stays longer, it has a stronger surface sizing and if it seeps in quickly then you have a lighter surface sizing.

Another way to observe your sizing is glazing and lifting. Start with a wash. Let it dry completely, then add another layer with a different color. If the first layer doesn’t spear or move when you put a wash over it, then it has a stable surface size. If it lifts or muddies quickly then the surface is less stable. Lifting a wash that has completely dried is another test. If it lifts cleanly, then it has a stronger sizing. If it doesn’t then that means it absorbed quickly. Blending, layering, and lifting is so important while painting. I suggest testing lots of the more expensive brands and different weights, and see which ones you like. Testing doesn’t take long but is worth it.

Paper comes in different formats too. Pads, sheets, and blocks. Pads are either spiraled or bound with glue. I have gotten really good quality pads over the years. But you can also use them as sketchbooks and such. Sheets are customizable and usually for large projects. You buy one sheet at a time.Buying one sheet seems crazy but it is expensive so that is why you get one at a time. Sheets are usually great quality paper. For the longest time, I had no idea what people were talking about when they said watercolor blocks. But now I use them all the time. They are bound all around with glued edges. You use one at a time and need an exact knife to separate the sheets. They are nice because you don’t have to stretch the paper with blocks. Blocks have high quality paper on them.

And last, you will see acid free a lot. Acid free resists yellowing and colors fading over time. 100 percent cotton is typically the best for archival paper.

That pretty much sums up what I know about paper. The best way to figure it out is to go paint.