@ Marie S You may very well know this now, as your post is two years old, but Hahnemühle now has Agave Watercolor Paper, which "is a cold press, natural white watercolor paper made from 70% renewable agave fiber and 30% cotton rag." In addition, they also have released their Hahnemühle Bamboo Mixed Media Blocks, "a unique surface suitable for watercolors, acrylics, and pastels, as well as for sketching and drawing with charcoal. It is made from 90% bamboo fiber, with 10% rag." Infor regarding these papers came from Blick Art Supplies. As you already know, painting with renewable sources is more important than ever in our rapidly changing eco environments. I have used both, but as a mixed media watercolour artist, I do enjoy the Bamboo mixed media paper a bit more, but both are amazing! Happy painting!
@@TrueLoveX1027 working with bamboo paper is.... difficult. I had some bamboo pads and they way they soaked up ink and bleed through the paper made me not want to try any more. It wasn't a mix though, and was cheap bamboo paper, but made me wary. It's like the recycled cotton Indian rag paper - nice in theory, in practice Khadi paper is a nightmare to use. Weirdly sized, and a sh*tshoot what you're gonna get page to page. I agree about sustainability - why the Fabriano mills are hydroelectrically powered, and how cotton is sourced is a tricky one...but I do find the best thing is to use responsibly sourced paper from reliable companies and use it well and don't waste it. It is better to do one great painting on one paper that waste many sheets cos it doesn't work, after all.
Loved this series Carrie!! You MUST try Fabriano Artistico soft press- the texture is amazing!!!! It’s like velvet, right in between hot press and cold press!! My absolute favorite! Keep up the gorgeous work!
Oh, thanks, didn’t know about F. A soft press! Looked it up and think I’ll try it out next time I have to stock up. I use Fabriano , both hot press and cold press as it’s a cheaper option for me here in Italy.
@@PrairieeGirl I thought I'd answer, because I just purchased some of the soft press. I found the best price was for large sheets at Jerrysartarama.com (double check the spelling, I'm not sure if it was jerrysartArama or jerrysartOrama). They had a special of buy 8 sheets, get 2 free. I cut down the large sheets and it is definitely worth it.
I prefer Arches but mainly use Fabriano because I get it for half the price and it's still a joy to paint on it. Tbh I think any 100% cotton paper from a named brand is fine, the rest is personal preference.
Thank you for this! I am a beginner and am working on Canson right now. It is nice to have this reference for when I’m ready to move up to something better. I am personally liking the more textured paper (toothed) but I suspect my opinions on that to change as I progress. Thank you for all the details you’ve shared. I completely appreciate every single word.
Carrie, next time, instead of Canson Montval, I'd love you to try Canson Moulin Du Roy. I've recently discovered it as the 100% cotton version of Canson.
Canson Moulin Du Roy seems comparable to Langton Prestige but slightly cheaper. 25 square centimeters more per sheet and save about 3 dollars. Langton is also machine made, 300 gram and 100% cotton. Available both cold- and warm pressed. I've been using it for quite some time and want to try something else. Will get my hands on Canson.
Jerry Hall Langton is amazing, I only got to try it once, it was sadly out of stock ever since in my country. Moulin du roy is more “spongy” which is amazing. But I miss Langton Prestige (especially rough) very much.
Great review, very informative. I have been looking for a decent watercolor notebook/journal for everyday doodling and play, and was thinking about trying out the bee paper, and your review just convinced me that the bee paper is worth a try. Thanks!
There are many Hahnemühle Papers, I personally like the Britannia in Hot Pressed, it is worth trying out the different Papers. In Germany it is the most common watercolor paper brand :) There is a pad from Hahnemühle called AquarellSelection 12, where there are all different papers to try.
@@WaterColorMisfit You will also find that Cheap Joe's paper is always the same price as using a 50% off coupon at Michael's or Hobby Lobby! I am lucky enough to live only 20 miles from Cheap Joe's.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Stillman and Birn watercolour sketchbooks. Their sketchbooks are expensive but seem to be really high quality, now if they're actually worth it is another matter altogether. Their paper is archival quality too
I tested their Beta Series (270 gsm cold pressed) and Zeta Series (270 gsm hot pressed). Smooth gradients tend to end up blotchy on hot pressed paper and that is definetly the case with Zeta. But details work great, no feathering with brush pens. Just like your average hot pressed paper I'd say. The Beta Series makes better gradients, but again, nothing special for a cold pressed paper. BUT it has problems with glazing, as soon as the 2nd layer, it creates a weird texture, the more layers, the uglier. Honestly, one of the worst cold pressed papers I ever tried :/ I bought a total of 4 sketchbooks from them bc they were the only ones with thicker watercolor paper at the time. I can't recommend them, their paper is just average to under average for the Beta. It's 0% cotton and all cellulose, overpriced in my opinion. I now bind my sketchbook myself, it's actually really easy and there are many YT tutorials.
sypherianlp Hey! I actually really love arches and prefer it over Fabriano which has been my go-to paper cause it is, of course, really nice and also costs a little bit less than arches. So if you hate arches and you've been using some alternative can you let us know what it is? I'm trying to find an alternative to Fabriano cause I've been having some issues with it and it'll be nice to find an alternative that is not arches.
What do you dislike about it? I've never tried it, but I've been curious to. I typically hear good things and would like to hear what you hate about it
Good series Carrie! Agree with your findings. Artists in the Splash annual (when doing a rough paper census through the book) use mainly Arches with Fabriano Artistico a distant second. Arches just takes a licking and keeps on ticking! Thanks for the reviews.
Thank you so much for this series. It's so helpful for someone who wants to try watercolor like me to consider on which paper to get start in both quality and prices. Hope more watercolor series from you cuz your videos are so easy for beginners to follow up. ❤️
That's the paper I love. Fabriano. I do a lot of fine detail, smooth blended gradients and mixed media into my watercolor. Fabriano is better than Arches for that. I still Use Arches, but more for playing around with, not commissioned work. Thanks for posting, very informative.
Aw, I'm jealous of your "Its a three dollar shipping" what with me living in a country where its generally a $20 shipping minimum. My latest attempted amazon paper purchase was $8 of paper "+ $36.58 Shipping & Import Fees"
Thank you so much Carrie. I think I missed the last poll! But one of my favorite artist uses Arches all the time. She creates the most amazing paintings! Love u! Liz 😊💗
I knew that Arches is going to win basing just with the price of that paper and the raving reviews. I myself prefer textured paper so I'm inclined to that of Arches. That being said, it's nice to know the alternatives like Fabriano
Choice of paper is really subjective, Arches isn’t a favourite for everyone. 🙂 I love Fabriano hot press but find their cold pressed to be awful, dulling colours regardless of brand of watercolour. Arches is ok but not my favourite as it too, tends to very slightly dull colours, not as much as Fabriano but there’s a definite slight cloud. I find Saunders Waterford better. My two favourites are Mulin Du Roy (excellent different texture, not seen in other brands) and doesn’t dull colours, and Claire Fontaine (100 percent cotton version.)
@@Kyomiibrown Oh wow you did tried a lot. That's awesome! At least you do know what works for you. I admit I haven't tried a whole lot. I'm just lucky that my sister had some left over Arches paper for me to work with and I'm inlove right away although it's so expensive. I'm going to try out different kinds of paper like bamboo watercolor paper which are available locally in my country.
Meuni Chap Search online to see if you can get a watercolour paper test/variety pack that contains sheets from different brands - it’s the cheapest way of testing :)
I just bought arches hot press to do ink and watercolor work and my fineliner pens drag a little bit on the paper. Do you think the fabriano hot press would suit me better? I’m looking for the smoothest paper possible!
I didn't see Baohong on the list. Haven't tried their hotpress but the cold press is wonderful. but probably a lot toothier than you would like since you choose the Fabriano. I am moving towards hotpress as well and am hoping the Baohong hotpress is as good as their cold press. I believe you can get Baohong in large sheets as well.
Thank you, Carrie! This was a FABULOUS series and you covered a great deal in it. We sure appreciate your videos and posts! Look forward to following you in the future. :)
Can someone help me? I watched the previous video and this one, but unless I missed it, I never saw the reveal of which number paper (1, 2, & 3) correlated with which brand. I know Arches won by vote, but which NUMBER was it? same with the Bee and Fabriano. Any insight on this would be helpful, thank you for the video.
I really love Daler Rowney Langston Prestige. It is difficult to find, but Jackson’s carries it. I like it more than Arches and Fabriano. LOVED this series! Thank you!
I started on Langston normal paper as a kid/art student, so I have a lot of respect for Daler and their Aquafine is a bargain and acts amazingly well for pulp paper. That's usually one of my beginner recs. Not tried the prestige, it's a bit pricey even in the UK. Would like to....weird how an Italian paper is cheaper though per sheet (Fabriano)
I love arches, but I prefer the Fabriano. I hated arches hot pressed which is so funny because so many love it! For me, the Fabriano cold pressed and arches cold pressed are the best. I have never tried bee paper so it’s one to try! I’m in the UK so I need to see where sells it!
Oh and I think the price of arches is ridiculous! If I felt it was worth it I would get more of it but the Fabriano I prefer because of the tooth which is definitely smoother even though it’s cold pressed. I think arches and winsor and newton (cotton/professional range) are way more toward very wet watercolour 😀
@@Star-eyes7 I have never tried Arches - am in the UK too - cos of the exorbitant price. Always went 100% Fabriano, Artistico is my 'go to' paper cos it's so lovely. Would also love to try Bee Paper but it's not available here, at all. Saunders I'd love to try as well, but again, price per sheet vs Fabriano is always more, weird for a local paper vs an imported one, even after Brexit?
I've enjoyed this video series and hearing your thoughts. I don't think testing papers as if they are basketball teams by bracketing works (because Arches was eliminated right off, for example), but comparing papers was still a great idea for a series. I use the Strathmore 400 watercolor paper for everything except final paintings (it was my starter paper). For serious paintings, it's Arches, hot press.
Hi! Great series! Do you know if the Bee spiral book is the same paper as their 6x9 100%cotton packs of paper. Thx so much. I agree about Fabriano vs Arches, and also Stonehenge Legend Hot Press is great too. Actually shows granulation well.
Oh the plight of the Artist. I find now after 35 yrs of painting....Our Art is like our signature. We can try to copy other art, but it really is more our own hands that define what we are good at doing with that paintbrush.
I came back to see if you had tried the Canson Heritage line of papers? I tried using some of the Fabriano papers and the Cheap Joes Kilimanjaro house brands , Not bad! I was given a rough Heritage block and I might get more! I am more of a cold press Artist, yet I am still trying new papers because Arches has been disappointing me more often these days. I am hoping you are doing better and starting to enjoy yourself and painting again. See ya soon?
Just found your channel. I love the informative videos. I want to try the Fabriano because I have been getting into mixed media. And it's true Arches has alot of texture. My first painting instructor insisted on Arches and I never departed...time to explore😊
I wish I could find this Bee book in France. Amazon only sells the sheets and I can't find the binded papers anywhere... But anyhow, thanks a lot for the series! I'll try Fabriano!
I like Arches but I find it so dark. I’m looking for a lighter paper and I will try the Fabriano. I never tried Fabriano before. Thank you for all the wonderful work you do🌸
I prefer smooth paper over the rough and/or the cold press because of detail work. Also, I never want a bump in my paper to cause a crooked line, etc. Hot press is my favorite and *one affordable way to purchase it is through* Amazon you’ll find Strathmore offers a package of 5x7 hot press paper. They come in a baggie. Yes, there are better papers out there, but for practice the price point is the best. I believe Arches is pronounced: ARrr-shay or Arshhh.
I tried fabriano rough, wish I could send a pic to you, it rally is rough. It is rougher than Saunders Waterford cold press. (Bee paper is very smooth and is smoother than Saunders CP.)
I think that it is a very subjective thing, when you test watercolor papers. Personally, I love Cheap Joe’s house brand Kilimanjaro for swatching color chips. It is one of those papers where it really is amazing, but it is for me harder to add several wash coats on. If you load your brush up well, you won’t have to do a second wash. With that said, I personally LOVE Hahnemühle Cezanne and Arches Cold Press. I kind of go back and forth with them depending on what I am painting. Thanks for taking the time to make this video.
“That being said.....” ... this was so helpful, thanks for the feedback, using your experience. Oh “that being said”, keep up with your tips and tricks. You are very talented.
I love grumbacher paper lol maybe just because I started buying it at Ross for 0.25 a sheet when I was learning. I also use moulin du roy hot and fabriano artistico hp. On another note, grumbacher finest watercolors are the best I've used so far. They're on cheap joe's for $8-10 for a huge 14ml tube. Many single pigments and they are simply...amazing. I prefer them over my Daniel smith and sennelier
You do some great teaching in your videos! I just found you and am bingeing and yelling to my phone screen- 'YES! She gets me! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!' So glad i found you!
I have painted on Canson XL, Daler Rowney and Cass Art paper, and Artistico - and Artistico is my favourite too! As is a lot of the Fabriano papers (F5 is lovely for watercolour as a 50% cotton as is Rosapina, Tiepolo etc - meant for printing but take ink and watercolour well). I have never tried the Saunders - weirdly as I'm from the UK where it's made, I'd ike to - or Arches cos they are always so much more expensive than Fabriano here in the UK per sheet or per block. Bee Paper isn't even available here. I have a feeling you'd love the Botanical smooth from St Cuthberts, usually shipped by RK Burt as pads, Fabriano do another one, or the Fabriano Classico F5 smooth paper. They are the smoothest ones I know (apart from Rosapina which strictly isn't a watercolour paper)
New sub here! Glad to have found your channel. Keep up the good work! I've been out of water color painting for many years and want to get back into the art. Off to get some pigments today, and paper, so glad to have found your channel. Cheers.
thankyou so much for uploading, i love hearing your voice :) (lol you are so cute, you said 'that being said' like 9999 times, adorable). i love your art, thank you for the informative video!!
Hey Carrie- - - I just finished watching all your new videos and I think- - -They are very professionally done, a great beginner's series and have a very positive vibe! I loved seeing your new paintings along the way and wish you well with it all. Happy painting! It was a great review for me, thank you!
Thanks for doing this extensive series! The efforts you've put on it are truly amazing. Regarding the Fabriano vs Arches thing, I used to be a harcore fan of Fabriano, but over time, and specially since I tried Arches, the issues of the paper have been more noticiable to me and I am SO ready to move on. Fabriano was my go-to for comissions since it costs a little bit less than arches and I'm really curious to find some alternatives for fabriano that are around the same price and somehow out-perform fabriano that is not arches:) so if someone sees this comment and wants to give some recommendations please let us know!
Try Legion Stonehenge Hotpress, it is the best alternative (quality wise I could think off to the Fabriano Artistico. I know it's a 2 year late response, but it might still help!
The Saunders Waterford is 100% cotton so not surprising that you liked it. The Winsor and Newton 100% cotton pad is excellent..you showed the student grade
This series has been really helpful! Watercolor is a new medium for me, and I’m just getting back into creating art, so it’s important to get a lot of in-depth comparisons on different materials. Over the course of the series, I decided to try Canson Montval, Arches, and Bee Paper. The difference in tooth definitely has an impact, with Arches seeming too rough for me personally. My thought the entire time I tested it was, “Am I using enough water??? It’s so... DRY. I must be doing this wrong.” 😂 I’ll probably save it for pieces that require a lot of wet-on-wet techniques and layering. But I would say Bee Paper is my favorite to work with so far.
Thank you for this. Very informative and intersting. The Winsor and Newton Paper you have is their cellulose. The full grey cover is 100% cotton. I would love to see you compare Arteza's Expert 100% cotton paper. It does have a rough texture though that you may not like.
Sure am grateful for your investment of time and money to share this with us. Very informative and useful to me. Thank you so much I love your artwork and your videos. You are awesome. 🙂👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
The best thing about Fabriano and Saunders Waterford is that they are EXTRA WHITE. That makes the difference with the others and that is why they are my favorites.
Please, Was both the Arches and the Fabriano, Cold press or hot press papers?? Or maybe the Arches was cold press and the Fabriano Hotpress, so that's why they had that difference, on the tooth?
I have to say something about the Bee 100%. I got the 6"X9" loose sheets in a pack of 50 from Amazon, based on another TH-camrs suggestion. I wanted to love it, as I got KILLER price, about $17. You all...I tried and I tried. Washes, glazing, illustrations..oh the hours.. I eventually realized that its got no sizing (or very little, if any). Lifting is impossible. The pigment absorbs a bit unevenly. I keep it for a very rough layout and scrap paper. I don't know if it's different in the wire bound pad? Has anyone tried both? I'd love to hear your opinions !
Has anyone here tried Canson L'Aquarelle Heritage and/or Moulin Du Roy watercolor papers? For the price point, are they worth it? And how do the papers feel?
Carrie- it is evident that you put a lot of energy, thought and passion into this series- it’s very appreciated. I’m so impressed by how original your content has been on this channel, even when covering something as simple as paper comparisons. Side note: while receiving constructive feedback can be useful, please don’t take all these comments to heart. Repeating “that being said” is not a big deal and the last thing that matters when you’re producing TH-cam content of this Cali we. Thanks for all you do!!! ❤️ keep going!!!!
Thank you for this mini series/death battle/playlist lol! Like you Canon XL is also the first paper I started with. I just started about 2 months ago so it's actually the only paper I've used to far but now that I feel a bit more comfortable painting, I'm trying to find a better and higher quality brand. I don't know how many sheets I completely ruined in the very beginning by overworking it, using to much water AND pressing too hard causing like... wet paper crumbs in multiple areas of my pictures! I've gotten better but sometimes it still happens. Another thing you mentioned, black Friday! I've gone through 2 xl paper pads since starting and am in the middle of my 3rd so I'm excited to be getting a deal on something I clearly NEED to stock up on lol
It's possible my browser isn't loading your blog properly but I can't find any links for the papers used. If I click on the image of any of the papers in the post it opens the blog post in a new tab. I see below the images there is a list of brands but they aren't links for me. Thanks for all your hard work. I really appreciated this series. You've done all the purchasing and testing for us!
HI Carrie...thanks for all your hard work! great job...can u recommend a decent "practice paper? I love Aches and Fabriano for final work but also hate working on crappy paper for practice,,...so..middle of the road??? thanks!
thank you so much. so incredibly helpful!! May i ask, have you painted on both sides of the arches? Some people much prefer the 'smoother' side of arches apparently . Im new to watercolour so don't have enough experience . I hate to ask, but can you possibly try paint on the other side of the arches, and see how it works? I would love to hear your thoughts. Thank you so much again.
There’s cheap 20 sheet 100% cotton paper block from company called Meeden on Amazon and it’s got good reviews. Paul Rubens has a 50% cotton block. As for Strathmore, the 500 series is the good stuff.
Thanks, as always, for your fab videos! I want to make my own watercolour journal. I want to use arches 140lb paper. Question: do you have any experience painting on both sides of this paper? If so, do you find there’s a significant difference in results between the two sides? 🤔
I find that arches cold press paper warps a lot. And while i do like to paint on cold press, this one seems to have a lot of texture, especially if am looking to scan a painting to turn it into a print. How do you handle these little issues? if you find them as such i mean. Thanks.
I just came across your channel now and am newly subscribed. Thanks for such a great and informative series, and I appreciate the time and effort you put into it, as well as the expense! Can you or anyone else tell me if Arches is as white as the Fabriano Extra White? And, is the Arches cream colored, as so many watercolor papers are? I definitely need a white watercolor for card making. Many thanks if you can help.
For those who are interested: Hanuhmule and Fabriano Artistico are vegan friendly paper. Arches is not, so that prevents me from trying that brand.
Thanks Diane, I am interested as I am vegan also. I haven't tried FA paper yet but I will as soon as I can get some of their paper.
Same, I'll go with those other two. I believe Canson and Strathmore are also vegan, if you need a cheaper option.
@ Marie S You may very well know this now, as your post is two years old, but Hahnemühle now has Agave Watercolor Paper, which "is a cold press, natural white watercolor paper made from 70% renewable agave fiber and 30% cotton rag." In addition, they also have released their Hahnemühle Bamboo Mixed Media Blocks, "a unique surface suitable for watercolors, acrylics, and pastels, as well as for sketching and drawing with charcoal. It is made from 90% bamboo fiber, with 10% rag." Infor regarding these papers came from Blick Art Supplies. As you already know, painting with renewable sources is more important than ever in our rapidly changing eco environments. I have used both, but as a mixed media watercolour artist, I do enjoy the Bamboo mixed media paper a bit more, but both are amazing! Happy painting!
@@TrueLoveX1027 working with bamboo paper is.... difficult. I had some bamboo pads and they way they soaked up ink and bleed through the paper made me not want to try any more. It wasn't a mix though, and was cheap bamboo paper, but made me wary. It's like the recycled cotton Indian rag paper - nice in theory, in practice Khadi paper is a nightmare to use. Weirdly sized, and a sh*tshoot what you're gonna get page to page.
I agree about sustainability - why the Fabriano mills are hydroelectrically powered, and how cotton is sourced is a tricky one...but I do find the best thing is to use responsibly sourced paper from reliable companies and use it well and don't waste it. It is better to do one great painting on one paper that waste many sheets cos it doesn't work, after all.
Thanks, makes it clear!
Loved this series Carrie!! You MUST try Fabriano Artistico soft press- the texture is amazing!!!! It’s like velvet, right in between hot press and cold press!! My absolute favorite! Keep up the gorgeous work!
Oh, thanks, didn’t know about F. A soft press! Looked it up and think I’ll try it out next time I have to stock up. I use Fabriano , both hot press and cold press as it’s a cheaper option for me here in Italy.
Hi Charlotte. Where can you buy the Fabriano Artistico? Any big stores like Michael's? Thanks, Ann😊
@@PrairieeGirl I thought I'd answer, because I just purchased some of the soft press. I found the best price was for large sheets at Jerrysartarama.com (double check the spelling, I'm not sure if it was jerrysartArama or jerrysartOrama). They had a special of buy 8 sheets, get 2 free. I cut down the large sheets and it is definitely worth it.
LegendOFame 2.0 I have been using Artisco and got it off amazon. I tried a 5x7 block $14 to try it out
I prefer Arches but mainly use Fabriano because I get it for half the price and it's still a joy to paint on it. Tbh I think any 100% cotton paper from a named brand is fine, the rest is personal preference.
I sure appreciate the time and work you put into this series. Thank you! It's been fun watching along. 😁
I love painting in sketchbooks. It would be lovely if you did a series for sketchbooks like this.
Just bought a 22x30 sheet of Fabriano artistico extra White wc paper after using Canson xl for 6 months! Haven't used it yet, but I'm very excited
Thank you for this! I am a beginner and am working on Canson right now. It is nice to have this reference for when I’m ready to move up to something better. I am personally liking the more textured paper (toothed) but I suspect my opinions on that to change as I progress. Thank you for all the details you’ve shared. I completely appreciate every single word.
Carrie, next time, instead of Canson Montval, I'd love you to try Canson Moulin Du Roy. I've recently discovered it as the 100% cotton version of Canson.
I just discovered that paper! I love it!!
Canson Heritage is terrific, too
I use Heritage and Moulin du Roy. Like both very much. I also have Montval that has nothing to do with them
Canson Moulin Du Roy seems comparable to Langton Prestige but slightly cheaper. 25 square centimeters more per sheet and save about 3 dollars. Langton is also machine made, 300 gram and 100% cotton. Available both cold- and warm pressed. I've been using it for quite some time and want to try something else. Will get my hands on Canson.
Jerry Hall Langton is amazing, I only got to try it once, it was sadly out of stock ever since in my country. Moulin du roy is more “spongy” which is amazing. But I miss Langton Prestige (especially rough) very much.
For the next time you should try Stonehenge and Blick’s house brand watercolor papers. They’re both 100% cotton and they’re not crazy crazy expensive
Careful when buying the Fabriano Acquarello paper as it also comes in a version that is also 300 grams/140 lbs but it only has 25% cotton.
Great review, very informative. I have been looking for a decent watercolor notebook/journal for everyday doodling and play, and was thinking about trying out the bee paper, and your review just convinced me that the bee paper is worth a try. Thanks!
There are many Hahnemühle Papers, I personally like the Britannia in Hot Pressed, it is worth trying out the different Papers. In Germany it is the most common watercolor paper brand :)
There is a pad from Hahnemühle called AquarellSelection 12, where there are all different papers to try.
And the recycled bamboo one! I don't see that one talked about enough.
Thank you, this is very helpful. I will head over to your blog and check out the links.
Cheap Joe's sells sampler packs of artist paper for very reasonable price.
Good to know :)
@@WaterColorMisfit You will also find that Cheap Joe's paper is always the same price as using a 50% off coupon at Michael's or Hobby Lobby! I am lucky enough to live only 20 miles from Cheap Joe's.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Stillman and Birn watercolour sketchbooks. Their sketchbooks are expensive but seem to be really high quality, now if they're actually worth it is another matter altogether. Their paper is archival quality too
I tested their Beta Series (270 gsm cold pressed) and Zeta Series (270 gsm hot pressed). Smooth gradients tend to end up blotchy on hot pressed paper and that is definetly the case with Zeta. But details work great, no feathering with brush pens. Just like your average hot pressed paper I'd say.
The Beta Series makes better gradients, but again, nothing special for a cold pressed paper. BUT it has problems with glazing, as soon as the 2nd layer, it creates a weird texture, the more layers, the uglier. Honestly, one of the worst cold pressed papers I ever tried :/
I bought a total of 4 sketchbooks from them bc they were the only ones with thicker watercolor paper at the time. I can't recommend them, their paper is just average to under average for the Beta. It's 0% cotton and all cellulose, overpriced in my opinion. I now bind my sketchbook myself, it's actually really easy and there are many YT tutorials.
As someone who hates arches, I'm going to try Fabriano. I liked the look of it! Thanks for doing this it opened up my eyes to other papers out there.
sypherianlp Hey! I actually really love arches and prefer it over Fabriano which has been my go-to paper cause it is, of course, really nice and also costs a little bit less than arches. So if you hate arches and you've been using some alternative can you let us know what it is? I'm trying to find an alternative to Fabriano cause I've been having some issues with it and it'll be nice to find an alternative that is not arches.
What do you dislike about it? I've never tried it, but I've been curious to. I typically hear good things and would like to hear what you hate about it
I NEEDED this video! Thank you so much for doing the most in depth and helpful paper comparison ever Carrie! 💖💜
Good series Carrie! Agree with your findings. Artists in the Splash annual (when doing a rough paper census through the book) use mainly Arches with Fabriano Artistico a distant second. Arches just takes a licking and keeps on ticking! Thanks for the reviews.
Thanks Steve :)
Thank you so much for this series. It's so helpful for someone who wants to try watercolor like me to consider on which paper to get start in both quality and prices. Hope more watercolor series from you cuz your videos are so easy for beginners to follow up. ❤️
Aw thanks :D And yes! I'm be gearing future series more toward beginners. :D So stay tuned! :D
@@WaterColorMisfit Great news. I'm so looking up for your new series. 😁
That's the paper I love. Fabriano. I do a lot of fine detail, smooth blended gradients and mixed media into my watercolor. Fabriano is better than Arches for that. I still Use Arches, but more for playing around with, not commissioned work. Thanks for posting, very informative.
I think I actually voted for Fabriano because I like how the washes looked a bit better on the paper.
Aw, I'm jealous of your "Its a three dollar shipping" what with me living in a country where its generally a $20 shipping minimum. My latest attempted amazon paper purchase was $8 of paper "+ $36.58 Shipping & Import Fees"
Thank you so much Carrie. I think I missed the last poll! But one of my favorite artist uses Arches all the time. She creates the most amazing paintings! Love u! Liz 😊💗
that being said
I was thinking that too lol
BUT... lol
Exactly lol
I knew that Arches is going to win basing just with the price of that paper and the raving reviews. I myself prefer textured paper so I'm inclined to that of Arches. That being said, it's nice to know the alternatives like Fabriano
Choice of paper is really subjective, Arches isn’t a favourite for everyone. 🙂 I love Fabriano hot press but find their cold pressed to be awful, dulling colours regardless of brand of watercolour. Arches is ok but not my favourite as it too, tends to very slightly dull colours, not as much as Fabriano but there’s a definite slight cloud. I find Saunders Waterford better. My two favourites are Mulin Du Roy (excellent different texture, not seen in other brands) and doesn’t dull colours, and Claire Fontaine (100 percent cotton version.)
@@Kyomiibrown Oh wow you did tried a lot. That's awesome! At least you do know what works for you. I admit I haven't tried a whole lot. I'm just lucky that my sister had some left over Arches paper for me to work with and I'm inlove right away although it's so expensive. I'm going to try out different kinds of paper like bamboo watercolor paper which are available locally in my country.
Meuni Chap Search online to see if you can get a watercolour paper test/variety pack that contains sheets from different brands - it’s the cheapest way of testing :)
Meuni Chap if you love texture do give Indigo a try .... it’s a rag paper that tolerates lots of water and is very tough
This was an awesome series! Super helpful! I have been wanting someone to do this and you did it best - I love your style in all aspects!
Loved this series! It’s clear you put in so much time and effort into it and it’s definitely appreciated.
Awesome series! As someone who is just starting out with watercolours, this was so informative. Thanks!
I just bought arches hot press to do ink and watercolor work and my fineliner pens drag a little bit on the paper. Do you think the fabriano hot press would suit me better? I’m looking for the smoothest paper possible!
I didn't see Baohong on the list. Haven't tried their hotpress but the cold press is wonderful. but probably a lot toothier than you would like since you choose the Fabriano. I am moving towards hotpress as well and am hoping the Baohong hotpress is as good as their cold press. I believe you can get Baohong in large sheets as well.
Thank you, Carrie! This was a FABULOUS series and you covered a great deal in it. We sure appreciate your videos and posts! Look forward to following you in the future. :)
Thanks Shelia! :) I can't wait to make more!
Can someone help me? I watched the previous video and this one, but unless I missed it, I never saw the reveal of which number paper (1, 2, & 3) correlated with which brand. I know Arches won by vote, but which NUMBER was it? same with the Bee and Fabriano. Any insight on this would be helpful, thank you for the video.
I really love Daler Rowney Langston Prestige. It is difficult to find, but Jackson’s carries it. I like it more than Arches and Fabriano. LOVED this series! Thank you!
I agree
Langton Prestige Rough is one of my favorites!
I started on Langston normal paper as a kid/art student, so I have a lot of respect for Daler and their Aquafine is a bargain and acts amazingly well for pulp paper. That's usually one of my beginner recs.
Not tried the prestige, it's a bit pricey even in the UK. Would like to....weird how an Italian paper is cheaper though per sheet (Fabriano)
Thank you for all your information on papers!!!! You are awesome!!!!!!!!
I love arches, but I prefer the Fabriano. I hated arches hot pressed which is so funny because so many love it! For me, the Fabriano cold pressed and arches cold pressed are the best. I have never tried bee paper so it’s one to try! I’m in the UK so I need to see where sells it!
Oh and I think the price of arches is ridiculous! If I felt it was worth it I would get more of it but the Fabriano I prefer because of the tooth which is definitely smoother even though it’s cold pressed. I think arches and winsor and newton (cotton/professional range) are way more toward very wet watercolour 😀
@@Star-eyes7 I have never tried Arches - am in the UK too - cos of the exorbitant price. Always went 100% Fabriano, Artistico is my 'go to' paper cos it's so lovely. Would also love to try Bee Paper but it's not available here, at all. Saunders I'd love to try as well, but again, price per sheet vs Fabriano is always more, weird for a local paper vs an imported one, even after Brexit?
I've enjoyed this video series and hearing your thoughts. I don't think testing papers as if they are basketball teams by bracketing works (because Arches was eliminated right off, for example), but comparing papers was still a great idea for a series. I use the Strathmore 400 watercolor paper for everything except final paintings (it was my starter paper). For serious paintings, it's Arches, hot press.
Hi! Great series! Do you know if the Bee spiral book is the same paper as their 6x9 100%cotton packs of paper. Thx so much. I agree about Fabriano vs Arches, and also Stonehenge Legend Hot Press is great too. Actually shows granulation well.
Oh the plight of the Artist. I find now after 35 yrs of painting....Our Art is like our signature. We can try to copy other art, but it really is more our own hands that define what we are good at doing with that paintbrush.
I came back to see if you had tried the Canson Heritage line of papers? I tried using some of the Fabriano papers and the Cheap Joes Kilimanjaro house brands , Not bad! I was given a rough Heritage block and I might get more! I am more of a cold press Artist, yet I am still trying new papers because Arches has been disappointing me more often these days. I am hoping you are doing better and starting to enjoy yourself and painting again. See ya soon?
Strathmore makes a 100% cotton 500 series travel pads and journals. 140#, cold press.
Just found your channel. I love the informative videos. I want to try the Fabriano because I have been getting into mixed media. And it's true Arches has alot of texture. My first painting instructor insisted on Arches and I never departed...time to explore😊
Can you please tell us which paper brand was which number you painted on in the other video?
I wish I could find this Bee book in France. Amazon only sells the sheets and I can't find the binded papers anywhere... But anyhow, thanks a lot for the series! I'll try Fabriano!
I like Arches but I find it so dark. I’m looking for a lighter paper and I will try the Fabriano. I never tried Fabriano before. Thank you for all the wonderful work you do🌸
I prefer smooth paper over the rough and/or the cold press because of detail work. Also, I never want a bump in my paper to cause a crooked line, etc. Hot press is my favorite and *one affordable way to purchase it is through* Amazon you’ll find Strathmore offers a package of 5x7 hot press paper. They come in a baggie. Yes, there are better papers out there, but for practice the price point is the best. I believe Arches is pronounced: ARrr-shay or Arshhh.
A very fun series. Thank you for sharing!
I bought that Grumbacher, awwwwwful!
I wonder if the "rough" has a little more tooth in the fabriano? I mean it should. But I wonder if it is more like a cold press should be.
I tried fabriano rough, wish I could send a pic to you, it rally is rough. It is rougher than Saunders Waterford cold press. (Bee paper is very smooth and is smoother than Saunders CP.)
Great series and helpful to beginners.. ty for doing this
You are welcome 😊
I think that it is a very subjective thing, when you test watercolor papers. Personally, I love Cheap Joe’s house brand Kilimanjaro for swatching color chips. It is one of those papers where it really is amazing, but it is for me harder to add several wash coats on. If you load your brush up well, you won’t have to do a second wash. With that said, I personally LOVE Hahnemühle Cezanne and Arches Cold Press. I kind of go back and forth with them depending on what I am painting. Thanks for taking the time to make this video.
“That being said.....” ... this was so helpful, thanks for the feedback, using your experience. Oh “that being said”, keep up with your tips and tricks. You are very talented.
Really wonderful back and forth! I may disagree with your conclusions but I admire your opinion and your rational! Sweet video too!
You should try Nujabi watercolor paper, it’s handmade and has deckeled edges as well as natural elements embedded in the paper!
So informative!! Do you happen to have a video on best brand of watercolor paints?? 🤞
Great series! Thank you!
Really nice series. It was very inclusive. I still prefer Fabriano to arches for my style of painting. really want to see what you do in hot press!
I love grumbacher paper lol maybe just because I started buying it at Ross for 0.25 a sheet when I was learning. I also use moulin du roy hot and fabriano artistico hp. On another note, grumbacher finest watercolors are the best I've used so far. They're on cheap joe's for $8-10 for a huge 14ml tube. Many single pigments and they are simply...amazing. I prefer them over my Daniel smith and sennelier
You do some great teaching in your videos! I just found you and am bingeing and yelling to my phone screen- 'YES! She gets me! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!' So glad i found you!
Thanks 😊
Can you tell me where you got that blanket from? Your video is very informative.. thank u.
Very nice series!! and really no major gobsmackers here. With the next go-around please include a masking fluid tests. Thanks.
I have painted on Canson XL, Daler Rowney and Cass Art paper, and Artistico - and Artistico is my favourite too! As is a lot of the Fabriano papers (F5 is lovely for watercolour as a 50% cotton as is Rosapina, Tiepolo etc - meant for printing but take ink and watercolour well).
I have never tried the Saunders - weirdly as I'm from the UK where it's made, I'd ike to - or Arches cos they are always so much more expensive than Fabriano here in the UK per sheet or per block. Bee Paper isn't even available here.
I have a feeling you'd love the Botanical smooth from St Cuthberts, usually shipped by RK Burt as pads, Fabriano do another one, or the Fabriano Classico F5 smooth paper. They are the smoothest ones I know (apart from Rosapina which strictly isn't a watercolour paper)
This has been such a good series, thanks so much for taking the time to do all this.
Just got a few samples of different papers.
Now trying to decide on subject.
Wish we had coupons in Uk.
Omg I love your blanket and lights and background, so pretty and cozy
New sub here! Glad to have found your channel. Keep up the good work! I've been out of water color painting for many years and want to get back into the art. Off to get some pigments today, and paper, so glad to have found your channel. Cheers.
thankyou so much for uploading, i love hearing your voice :) (lol you are so cute, you said 'that being said' like 9999 times, adorable). i love your art, thank you for the informative video!!
Hey Carrie- - - I just finished watching all your new videos and I think- - -They are very professionally done, a great beginner's series and have a very positive vibe! I loved seeing your new paintings along the way and wish you well with it all. Happy painting! It was a great review for me, thank you!
Thanks for doing this extensive series! The efforts you've put on it are truly amazing. Regarding the Fabriano vs Arches thing, I used to be a harcore fan of Fabriano, but over time, and specially since I tried Arches, the issues of the paper have been more noticiable to me and I am SO ready to move on. Fabriano was my go-to for comissions since it costs a little bit less than arches and I'm really curious to find some alternatives for fabriano that are around the same price and somehow out-perform fabriano that is not arches:) so if someone sees this comment and wants to give some recommendations please let us know!
Try Legion Stonehenge Hotpress, it is the best alternative (quality wise I could think off to the Fabriano Artistico. I know it's a 2 year late response, but it might still help!
Does anyone know which was the Bee paper? 1 or 2?
The Saunders Waterford is 100% cotton so not surprising that you liked it. The Winsor and Newton 100% cotton pad is excellent..you showed the student grade
This series has been really helpful! Watercolor is a new medium for me, and I’m just getting back into creating art, so it’s important to get a lot of in-depth comparisons on different materials. Over the course of the series, I decided to try Canson Montval, Arches, and Bee Paper. The difference in tooth definitely has an impact, with Arches seeming too rough for me personally. My thought the entire time I tested it was, “Am I using enough water??? It’s so... DRY. I must be doing this wrong.” 😂 I’ll probably save it for pieces that require a lot of wet-on-wet techniques and layering. But I would say Bee Paper is my favorite to work with so far.
You deserve a break! Loved this series and learned so much. 😍😍
thanks Tracy!
Great Review!!! Thanks!!!
You are welcome 😊
Thanks for the info Carrie!
What store you usually buy on black Friday and what website you got coupons to art materials?
I like Amazon or Dick Blick in general
@@WaterColorMisfit thanks
Thank you for this. Very informative and intersting. The Winsor and Newton Paper you have is their cellulose. The full grey cover is 100% cotton. I would love to see you compare Arteza's Expert 100% cotton paper. It does have a rough texture though that you may not like.
Sure am grateful for your investment of time and money to share this with us. Very informative and useful to me. Thank you so much I love your artwork and your videos. You are awesome. 🙂👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you for sharing. This has lots of useful information.
So nice of you
The best thing about Fabriano and Saunders Waterford is that they are EXTRA WHITE. That makes the difference with the others and that is why they are my favorites.
So interesting thank you so much for doing all this Carrie. Really appreciate it. 😀❤️
Please, Was both the Arches and the Fabriano, Cold press or hot press papers?? Or maybe the Arches was cold press and the Fabriano Hotpress, so that's why they had that difference, on the tooth?
Both are cold press. Arches and Fabriano cold press have a different tooth.
@@SuperUsername147 Thanks for the response!
Thank you so much this is really helpful to me❤️
You are so welcome 😊 💛
I have to say something about the Bee 100%. I got the 6"X9" loose sheets in a pack of 50 from Amazon, based on another TH-camrs suggestion. I wanted to love it, as I got KILLER price, about $17. You all...I tried and I tried. Washes, glazing, illustrations..oh the hours.. I eventually realized that its got no sizing (or very little, if any). Lifting is impossible. The pigment absorbs a bit unevenly. I keep it for a very rough layout and scrap paper. I don't know if it's different in the wire bound pad? Has anyone tried both? I'd love to hear your opinions !
Nice information about paper. Very helpful!
Thank you for this series! Very helpful!
Has anyone here tried Canson L'Aquarelle Heritage and/or Moulin Du Roy watercolor papers? For the price point, are they worth it? And how do the papers feel?
The Moulin du Roy is nice. Haven't tried the other. Wondering about Stonehenge.
@@cindyhorton6980 alright, thank you for your feedback. Ooh, I've never heard about Stonehenge paper..
@@alisonb3850 thank you for your feedback! Definitely helps
Carrie- it is evident that you put a lot of energy, thought and passion into this series- it’s very appreciated. I’m so impressed by how original your content has been on this channel, even when covering something as simple as paper comparisons.
Side note: while receiving constructive feedback can be useful, please don’t take all these comments to heart. Repeating “that being said” is not a big deal and the last thing that matters when you’re producing TH-cam content of this Cali we. Thanks for all you do!!! ❤️ keep going!!!!
thanks Jennilyn :)
Thank you for this mini series/death battle/playlist lol! Like you Canon XL is also the first paper I started with. I just started about 2 months ago so it's actually the only paper I've used to far but now that I feel a bit more comfortable painting, I'm trying to find a better and higher quality brand. I don't know how many sheets I completely ruined in the very beginning by overworking it, using to much water AND pressing too hard causing like... wet paper crumbs in multiple areas of my pictures! I've gotten better but sometimes it still happens. Another thing you mentioned, black Friday! I've gone through 2 xl paper pads since starting and am in the middle of my 3rd so I'm excited to be getting a deal on something I clearly NEED to stock up on lol
Thanks for doing such a thorough review! Ditto the earlier comment about watercolor sketchbooks/journals.
It's possible my browser isn't loading your blog properly but I can't find any links for the papers used. If I click on the image of any of the papers in the post it opens the blog post in a new tab. I see below the images there is a list of brands but they aren't links for me.
Thanks for all your hard work. I really appreciated this series. You've done all the purchasing and testing for us!
HI Carrie...thanks for all your hard work! great job...can u recommend a decent "practice paper? I love Aches and Fabriano for final work but also hate working on crappy paper for practice,,...so..middle of the road??? thanks!
Canson montval is pretty good middle grade, or strathmore 400
thank you so much. so incredibly helpful!! May i ask, have you painted on both sides of the arches? Some people much prefer the 'smoother' side of arches apparently . Im new to watercolour so don't have enough experience . I hate to ask, but can you possibly try paint on the other side of the arches, and see how it works? I would love to hear your thoughts. Thank you so much again.
There’s cheap 20 sheet 100% cotton paper block from company called Meeden on Amazon and it’s got good reviews. Paul Rubens has a 50% cotton block. As for Strathmore, the 500 series is the good stuff.
Most helpful! Thank you for doing this.
Thanks for the great series! Which paper would you say scans the best with minimal texture? Thanks
Thanks, as always, for your fab videos! I want to make my own watercolour journal. I want to use arches 140lb paper. Question: do you have any experience painting on both sides of this paper? If so, do you find there’s a significant difference in results between the two sides? 🤔
I find that arches cold press paper warps a lot. And while i do like to paint on cold press, this one seems to have a lot of texture, especially if am looking to scan a painting to turn it into a print. How do you handle these little issues? if you find them as such i mean. Thanks.
Whait a minute... arches is also avabliable as hot pressed paper... did you tried it? :)
They do have hot press. That's my favorite paper personality of the ones I've tried.
There are books available with many brands sheet mixed in it
I just came across your channel now and am newly subscribed. Thanks for such a great and informative series, and I appreciate the time and effort you put into it, as well as the expense! Can you or anyone else tell me if Arches is as white as the Fabriano Extra White? And, is the Arches cream colored, as so many watercolor papers are? I definitely need a white watercolor for card making. Many thanks if you can help.