Moleskine Watercolor Sketchbook Tour and Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Using the Moleskine watercolor sketchbook to paint all of the British butterflies, a quick sketchbook tour and review.
Patreon / smoothie77
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I would LOVE to see a sketchbook tour of the little Moleskine with the landscapes. Beautiful work!
I have a solution for your problem. Cut apart the moleskine journal and frame these guys. Your work and treatments belong in a gallery somewhere. The detail and creation of these is really quite spectacular. Fantastic work. Thank you for sharing them with us.
Thank you Daniel, that's really very kind of you to say, the thought had crossed my mind to frame them, it would mean the expense of 26 small frames, this little project could start getting expensive lol
Absolutely worth it though!!!
The tiny landscapes are so cute!! :)
Thank you :)
So far the best sketchbook I have seen... very talented
Thank you Zafran, you just made my day :)
Thank you for showing us your sketchbook! Gorgeous butterflies, you're such a talent! Every thread bound journal I have owned for watercolor has broken apart- granted I'm pretty heavy handed! >.< Made the swap to the Strathmore travel journals a few years ago. Wire bound- both the 90lb and 120lb are perfect. My go to is the 5 x 7- cheap too. Look forward to seeing more from you!!
What a beautiful collection of paintings - your work is stunning!
That's very kind of you to say, thank you!
Wonderful butterflies! They deserve better than a coming-apart sketchbook.
Thanks very much, that's very kind.
These are miniature masterpieces for sure! Please publish these!
Your butterflies are simply stunning!!
Thanks Sandy, you're so kind :)
You're a very talented artist.
Thanks, that's very kind of you.
I wish i could paint like this! omg all your paintings are amazing!!
Kind of you to say, much appreciated.
Beautiful artwork, Smoothie! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you very much you're very welcome! :)
I have some S&B sketchbooks and like them but my absolute favorite is the Fabriano sketchbook with the brick color cover. Perfect for everything it appears. Beautiful butterflies! Cheers from the NL.
Thanks, that's very helpful, much appreciated! greetings from the UK.
WOW WOW WOW amazing amazing your work is stunning!!, I personally think that Jackson's watercolour sketchbooks are amazing, I've had a similar problem with moleskine, but not as yourself, I think mine was due to too much water, like you said, but never splitting.
Keep up your amazing work, it's a pleasure to be able to look at such stunning art, thank you .
I would definitely contact them mate. I have the A4 Moleskin and I had the A5 one before that as you have. My A5 one done exactly the same as yours did here the A4 one on the other hand faired much better and I thought the paper was better quality in the A4 as well.
But I was disappointed with the Moleskin Sketchbook as well, it had no tooth, didn't accept Graphite very well or coloured pencil either.
On the other hand I have about twenty Moleskin notebooks for writing in and I love them they are amazing. I think Moleskin have over stretched themselves with all the various types of notebooks they have and they have compromised on their usual high quality.
I'd definitely contact Moleskin they are very good at responding. Awesome paintings by the way mate really beautiful.
Thanks Harry, interesting that the A4 is better quality, sorry to hear you the same issue as me, I will be definitely be contacting them...ATB
I hate the Moleskine sketchbook paper. Way too smooth.
Remains true to this day, sadly. I got myself a Moleskine sketchbook with lighter-weighed paper meant for graphite and it still does poorly accepting graphite. I've caught myself using it exclusively for ink these days. Even if I do manage to lay something down in graphite, it'll behave so shoddily that I end up tracing it in ink down the line.
That, I guess, is its one upside: it takes ink well with 0 bleed-through, even at 165 gsm. I just wish that that was its advertised medium rather than the one it refuses to take.
I think you should try Stillman & Birn sketchbooks. I think that paper is really good and they have a wide variety of different types and I'm sure one will suit your needs.
Amazing butterflies!!! great idea! I solved the same problem by doing my own book binding. I buy the paper quallity I like best and make my own sketchbook from scratch. It works with sketch and watercolor paper. It's easy and fun.
Second!! hahahaha ^.^ Those where some great sketches Smoothie! I think it is a shame that the books binding came loose and they realy should improve that. Thank you for sharing!!!
A silver medal for Lineke! :D Thank you very much my friend that means a lot coming from you! I hope moleskine get these issues sorted out too, other than that, they are good little sketchbooks :)
Hahahaha!! Thank you Smoothie and I hope so too ... ;)
Is moleskine better then others for quality work. Im looking for a great sketchbook but which one for graphite and watercolour or light washes. Your work is fantastic. What paper en sketchbook is for yoi the best
Nice :) I'd love to see the other sketchbook :)
Thanks Nil, the other sketchbook only has a few paintings and a lot of colour swatches, not much to look at :)
You’re so talented.
Love the video. Would you consider doing a tutorial on how you draw these butterflies? They're beautiful.
Beautiful work!
And now I'm a bit nervous because I've invested in some of the Moleskine books. I haven't had the courage to use them yet...lol : )
LOL get slapping some paint in them! sketchbook phobia isn't good for your creativity :)
I'm not pround of this but... same here :(
lol I know...it's hard. We will have to just persevere and do it. I have seen a suggestion about not starting on the first page...just pick a starting point towards the center of the sketch book.
The pages in mine (seven years old) are "hanging by a thread" too. Although I haven't used one myself, the Pentalic Aqua Journal seems to have a large following here in the US. They are available from Amazon if you can't find them in the UK.
Seems to be a common fault with them, a few people have said the same, I will check out the Pentalic journals, haven't heard of them before, thanks very much for the info Frank.
I think you should try etcher sketchbook i have heard good about that
I've been using Etcher sketchbooks for the last year, they are fantastic!
@@smoothie77drawingpainting I'm glad you finally found you perfect one 😊😊💕💕
Of course you immediately contact the company when you have purchased faulty products.
I've not had any problem with Moleskine watercolour sketchbooks but I really enjoy using Stillman and Birn watercolour or mixed media sketch books.
P.S. since the pages are intact you can have those signatures restitched and the book rebound so that your lovely butterflies are secure in a book again 😊
Thanks April, good to hear you haven't had any problem with the Moleskine sketch books, a few people have recommended Stillman & Birn, i will certainly be checking them out, thanks for the info :)
I completely agree with @Jodi Sones. It looks as if the stitching has given way, and I believe that could be easily fixed. Please show us the finished product if you decide to take that route. Your butterflies are absolutely beautiful!
If that were my sketchbook, now that you have so much work already done in it, I would take it to a book binder and have it repaired. I've worked in a book bindery and that sort of repair is very easy to do.
Thanks for that Jodi, that's a great idea, i will try to find a book bindery near me and see how much it would cost...
Cool ! Glad to have found u 😀
Thanks, and welcome to the channel :)
"I used it for simple little landscape drawings, nothing really spectacular" *Opens up book to reveal tiny masterpieces
Wonderful sketchbooks! The paintings I mean. What surprises me most is the fact that I see no warping of the paper, even with the full page landscapes. Do you do anything special to prevent the paper from buckling when wet?
Really like your work. I’ve not been that impressed with moleskin. I don’t have great success with the paper. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Judith, I think Moleskine watercolor books are "style over substance" we're paying for looks and not functionality, basically the paper doesn't work well, much better option out there in my opinion.
Mine did the same. I like the Hahnemühle Watercolor Sketchbooks better - the binding doesn’t fall apart.
Thanks for the review. I remember Brenda Swenson (hope I get her name right) showing her Stillman and Birn sketchbooks on youtube, looks very durable and of good quality. Have a try.
Thanks Izak, i will check them out.
You do beautiful work. I wish we could see more sketchbook tours. I'd love, for instance, to get a tour of the little Moleskine with the landscapes.
I love S&B sketchbooks. They won't fall apart, that's for sure! Pay special attention, though, to which series you're getting. I believe either the Beta or Zeta will be OK (270 gsm). The others, if I'm not mistaken, are only 150 gsm, and that will pill (eat away at the paper, get little bits, not sure how you want to describe it) with layers and heavier washes. I'm using a beautiful little S&B sketchbook (Alpha series, I believe) that's 150 gsm. I do love it, but I have to be careful not to abuse the paper too much! :)
Thanks for the info, much appreciated, i will certainly be taking a look at the S&B sketchbooks they sound great, the other little moleskine only has a few paintings and a lot of colour swatches, so it wouldn't be very interesting to look through :)
The first 3 look beautiful. I do believe we'd love to see what you'd sketched/drawn or painted in your little sketch book.
Smoothie your buterflies are wonderful ! Why didn't you show them earlier? Great :) As toMoleskine sketchbooks I admit I don't use their watercolor sketchbooks much, but I tried "regular"one. I don't think it is perfect for graphite because it is very difficult to erase any wrong line. There is always visible trace of it. But they are ok for colored pencils. They accept a lot of layers of colored pencils. For watercolors try hahnemuhle sketchbooks. Their paper is better in my opinion then moleskine. And please make some tutorial on buterflies. Cheers !
Thanks Jerzy, I started the project at the beginning of summer and finished the last butterfly a few days ago, i have been posting a few demos on patreon throughout that period, I will be doing more butterflies in the future and will certainly post more on youtube. I've been looking at Hahnemule sketchbooks they look very good, a few people have suggested Stillman & Birn so I will take a look at those too.
Cool Smoothie
Thanks E Will :)
Well, that looks superb, Smoothie. In view of the quality of your painting and the amount of work involved I think you definitely need a sketchbook upgrade.
If you don't fancy binding your own, there are a couple of very old fashioned British options which might be worth investigating. Shepherds (otherwise known as Falkiner Fine Paper) will probably send you a paper sample on request or just tell you what they're using: their business is bookbinding and they enjoy an excellent reputation so you could expect something from them to stay tight under any reasonable conditions. The other possibility is the Roberson book available from Cornelissen and elsewhere. HP and CP surfaces available in both cases, also rough from Roberson; and a choice of 190 or 300gsm paper weights. Roberson's paper is 100% cotton and British made, so I think I could make an educated guess as to what that is. ;-)
Yes! an upgrade sounds good to me, funny you should mention the Roberson sketchbooks, I've just been looking at them on line, is your educated guess the same as mine...st Cuthberts mill :) I will also check out Shepherds, thanks for taking the time to comment.
Yes, St Cuthbert's does seem likely!
I have used Moleskine and I have noticed that you can sometimes buy the same brand from the same place and the paper can differ. I deal with paper merchants and its amazing how different every batch of paper sourced from the same place can be different, its all to do with compression, end of roll, temp etc.
That's the problem with ordering online you never know what quality you will get, at least in-store you can check.
I am someone who is guilty of treating a sketchbook like its a finished art project rather than what it should be used for which is ideas, scribbles, planning, practicing etc. Its difficult to get out of the habit but that is something that can hinder you as an artist, plus cost good sketchbooks are not cheap and it seems weird to trash a sketchbook full of rough drawings.
Anyway my friend I do have a few recommendations that may help, I use a number of sketchbooks but in your video you mentioned which sketchbooks handle water well.
I use a couple of different brands for my Mixed Media sketchbooks, plus I have also found other stockists that are not well known for their art products but they are amazing, for example, artists spend a fortune on high quality Bristol Board, yet I have found a store that sells this is packs just named as White Card but the quality is incredible and it handles everything you can throw at it, yet its as smooth and durable as top quality Bristol Board.
But for Mixed Media its probably best if you can give me an email address where I can send you the information, it would take to much space on the comments otherwise.
If there is anyway you can send me contact details I would be more than happy to pass on the details, although you may have tried these brands but happy to share all the same, artists should share and help each other..
Thanks for all the info, much appreciated, you can email me from the "about" section on my home page, the email address is there, thanks again...
No problem my friend, I am just on my way home so I will email you later on and I hope it helps.
Have you considered a reputable book binder to take care of this for you?? The work is so lovely, a keepsake for your family....it is a shame. I would look into it.
Yes I have, another viewer mentioned the same, its something I will look into, hopefully it wont be too expensive.
CAN'T BEAT THE OLD RING BINDER - PAGES CAN BE FOLDED BACK ON THEMSELVES WITHOUT ANY WORRY OF SEAM SPLITTING EVEN IF THEY DON'T LOOK AS GOOD BUT IT'S THE INSIDE THAT COUNTS - AND THERE IS SOMEWHERE TO STICK YOUR PENCIL - DOWN THE RINGS!
Very true.
yes stillman and birn sketchbooks very good and good price
I'm leaning towards S&B a lot of people are recommending them.
I just want to say, I really forgot to pay attention to the review of the sketchbook.
My review:
The butterflies are stunning 😃
I would 1. contact the company and see what they have to say. Maybe they can give you tips and recommend some products to fix it. 2. If you don't like what they have to say, get some book binders glue PVA PH Neutral (you didn't say what kind of glue you used already) and fix it myself. Or possibly some book binding cloth. Flexible Contact Cement might work as well... Hope it all works out for you. Hate to see this happen to such cool art work! :)
Thanks Robert, I will be contacting them, to see what they, i will then take it from there...
Stunning work what a shame about the book, they should replace it for you.
As a wildlife photographer and a beginner in watercolors I so appreciate the detailing you've put into this project. You've inspired me to have a go at this.
Thanks, Moleskine did send me a new sketchbook after i contacted them, but I have since switched over to Seawhite watercolour journals, they are fantastic, I made a video about them recently here's the link if you're interested th-cam.com/video/qFxcaIOGFIg/w-d-xo.html
Hi! If you would send THAT Sketchbook back to moleskin they would definitely more than refund it!!! Not because of the loose pages, but because that book is ART now!!! There would be many people who would like to have that one! Well, you asked for Hahnemühle. Since I live in Germany and use that „home brand”, I can tell you it is just alike the “old” moleskin paper (since I only know the old moleskin because it is discontinued on my art supplies store). Since this video is older, I don’t know if it is still interesting for you. Greetings!
Hi Vani, I contacted Moleskine shortly after making this video, they very kindly sent me a replacement sketchbook. Greetings from the UK :)
1050 is one beautiful butterfly.
Thanks Lily.
❤️
If you want a 100 percent cotton watercolour sketchbook then try the new winsor and newton “professional” watercolour journal. There’s only one, be sure to get professional and not their classic range if you want 100 percent cotton. Here’s a direct link. You may find it a little cheaper elsewhere www.winsornewton.com/uk/shop/paper/water-colour-paper/pro-water-colour-paper/Water-Colour-Journal-cold-Pressed-5-7-inches-6663274
I'm guessing those giving bad reviews on the paper are people who just happened not to pay attention to the fact that it's cold press and not hot press.
as for your problem with the binding.... unless the company's willing to correct the problem I'd find another maker
Sorry about that dang sketch book:-/ That would be so frustrating... I would definatly contact company! Here is a great link to just about every sketch book out there..www.parkablogs.com/tags/sketchbooks-drawing It has both drawing and watercolor types in it, I hope this helps you on your journey to find the perfect one:-)
Thanks Dessa, I will be contacting the company tomorrow, it will be interesting to see what they say, thanks for the link i'll take a look...
I bend them in half before I buy them
Shame the book is falling apart. You could always send it to me and I'll give it a good home,.......
Hahaha...nice try! :)
Never buy anything but sewn books.