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Watercolour paper comparison between 100% cellulose and 100% cotton paper. (Patreon)

Published:
2022-08-07 22:10:27
Imported:
2026-10
Tags:

Content

Hi everyone,

Here's a video I made to show the differences between painting on wood pulp paper and painting on 100% cotton paper. I posted it on YouTube over the weekend and I have posted it here without the ads for you. I'll add it to the indexes as well so you can find it easily if you need to.

I painted some sample swatches and I also painted a Freesia on both papers. I was surprised how well the wood pulp paper performed when I painted the Freesia but as I note at the end of the video that's probably because I have experience painting in watercolour. If I was a beginner painter I think it would have frustrated me more.

The paint and water doesn't absorb into wood pulp paper as quickly and as well as it does on 100% cotton paper and that causes issues when you are trying to get a smooth wash and when you are trying to blend the paint. I found the surface of the wood pulp paper was more slippery when I was painting on it.

I hope this video will help you see the differences between the two papers. I will make a tutorial of the Freesias that I painted on the Arches paper for you.

Louise

💕

Files

Comparing wood pulp paper with 100% cotton paper || Watercolor Freesia For Patreon

For Patreon

Comments

Shelly Solle

This was fun to do. The moment I was finished, hands went up to have it. Thank you Louise for another masterful class.

Louise De Masi

That's awesome! I'm not surprised at all - your paintings are beautiful. Thank you Shelly.

Carol Wood

Thank you so much. It was great to see the difference side by side.

Edit M

Thank you for the great video about papers.Very helpful. E.M

Joan Keyser

Thank you so much, Louise! Very helpful

Joan Keyser

if you have done a previous video on how much water to use when doing wet, could you please send a link? I’m still struggling with the amount of water to use when I wet my paper. By the way, your tutorials are wonderful!

Gabriela Martinez

Thanks for this informative video. Since I follow you, I use Arches paper and it means a whole difference. I’m wondering if the freesia tutorial will be available

Janet Ross

Thankyou for another very informative video. I have been thinking I should paint on better paper and this has convinced me it is worth the extra cost. I really like how you showed the comparison. I just love your work and attention to detail

Louise De Masi

My pleasure Gabriela and thank you. Yes it is coming to Patreon- the freesia painting I did on the Arches paper.

Joyce Wicks

Louise, That was awesome! The things you do for love. I was taught early on, to buy the best you can afford when it comes to art supplies. I have been fortunate to be able to buy quality products. It has certainly helped my journey. This video was very informative. An added note, the blooper ending is still precious. I was afraid that might disappear when your videographer ( darling son) came on board. Always makes me smile. Cheers. 🥰

DAVID CORNWELL

Enjoy your paper comparison, thank you. Have ever tried watercolor pencils and if so what did you think of them?

Dionne Conrad

Very helpful to know the difference in the papers. Thanks for doing that tutorial for us. Good to know 💖

Louise De Masi

Thank you Joyce. It certainly makes a difference. Here in Australia good quality watercolour paper is super expensive. It's not something you want to waste so I understand when people can't afford it. Lol- I've given Carl free reign with how he edits the videos but he knows he has to keep the bloopers in. I'm a bit self conscious with him in the room with me when I film but I'll get used to it. 😂

Libby Padovan

As a still fairly new painter (with lots more to learn and explore) this has been wonderful to see and explains a lot of my troubles. I was saving my Arches paper for when I felt I was good enough and doing trials on cheaper paper. Frustrated 100%. Now with your demonstration I know why. Feeling more confident to use the Arches paper first up. Thank you for this video.

Valerie

I still cannot get hold of that Fabriano Artistico 'Soft Press' paper, despite nagging at Jacksons to sell it here in the UK. Well, I say I cannot get it. That's not entirely true. A seller on Amazon.co.uk will sell a pad for £102. 😱 They call it a 10 pack but I suspect that means there are 10 sheets to one block.

Louise De Masi

That's a shame Valerie because I wish you could try it. I've only found it in one place here in Australia.

Pam Stewart

I bought it through Amazon (I am in the US). It came from Acuity Papers. I purchased a 10

colleen

Thank you Louise, this has been very informative and helpful 🌸

Marcela Fernandez del Rio

Thank you for all the information and I love the bloopers, so cute and funny🤣

Maria Thieme

So much great information! Thank you, Louise!

Diane King

Thank you, Louise! I love painting birds, especially shore birds. These are lovely! PS They are encouraging me to paint again after an arthritis flare up.

Louise De Masi

My pleasure Diane. I hope you enjoy painting them. I'm sorry you are suffering with arthritis. 😘

Nettie Moss

Thank you Louise! I saw a tv programme recently about a long established paper mill here in UK - they make it all by hand and it's very heavy and beautifully textured - I checked it out and it's called Two Rivers - Jacksons have some of their papers made esp' for them, so you may have heard of it it's a rag paper? I recalled the hand made is a company called Whatman - supposedly the very best paper there is ... have you heard of them?

Louise De Masi

No I've never heard of it. I'd love to try it though. I'll have a look on Jacksons. Jacksons is such a great store. I wish we had them over here.

Leah

Hi Louise, I know nothing about quality water colour paper. Does GSM count come into the equation also, as I’ve noticed the count varies? I’ve just spent the afternoon playing on the ‘watercolour’ paper I had and none of it was suitable, probably because it wasn’t 100% cotton. 1 of them also had a rough texture that spoilt the effect. Looks like I need to go shopping! Would ‘Mont Marte Premium Watercolour Block 100% Cotton Paper A5 300gsm 12 Sheet’ $15, be suitable? Thankyou.

Louise De Masi

Hi Leah, GSM stands for grams per square metre. It's the weight of the paper or how heavy and thick it is. The most commonly used weight is 300gsm. I love 648gsm paper. It's very thick and robust. I've not used Mont Marte paper so I can't advise I'm sorry. I know it's reasonably priced for beginners. A5 is very small. You might be better off buying larger paper to practise on. 100% cotton is always the best choice.

Leah

Thankyou.

Leah

Hi Louise, Should the paper be a smoother finish, rather than rough/textured? Is Hot Pressed normally smoother? Last Qs for tonight. Thankyou kindly.

Louise De Masi

Cold press paper is probably the best choice when you are first starting out. It has some tooth but it's not as textured as rough paper. Hot press is smooth and generally slightly more difficult to paint on when you are a beginner.

Leah

⚘️⚘️⚘️Thankyou.

Leah

Hi Louise,

Leah

Are you familiar with the Chinese made LEYTON brand? Apparently prepared the same way and offering the same qualities, at just over half the price. Just wondered if you had tried it or know of others who use it? Thankyou.

Louise De Masi

No I haven't tried it. I've tried Baohong Master's Choice paper. It's less expensive than Arches paper and I found it to be good to paint on. I use it for my studies. I also recently tried Stonehenge Aqua by Legion. It was good to paint on too but I found it to be a little fragile. I have a video coming out on YouTube about the Stonehenge paper in a month or so. Saunders Waterford is another paper I have used which is less expensive than Arches but still a good quality paper.

Basia

Thanks for doing this comparison...important to see the difference👍

susan

I currently have the Leyton brand paper - 380 gsm, slightly smaller than A4 but good to paint on. Is very cheap by comparison $11 something for 10 sheets, if I remember correctly.

Jacinthe Boudreau

Thank you for this useful information. I have a little question.....What colour would you use to replace the color Maganese Violet? Thank you 🙏

Louise De Masi

Hi Jacinthe, I think I'd use Permanent Mauve (Winsor and Newton). It's a granulating colour though.

Jacinthe Boudreau

ThNk you for your suggestion😊. I am painting a pink hydrangea and I needed to add a little touch of violet in my permanent rose. I finally decided to use Ultramarine blue which work out fine. Have a nice end of day☀️🌸

Carol Cuesta

Hi Louise, I just became a patron about a month ago and already have done a few of your tutorials. They're great! thank you!

Carol Cuesta

I have a question about paper size. I've been using 9x12 but once I stretch it, the surface is reduced. I am having trouble with some edges, as I apply water and new layers, double edges are formed... I was wondering if it would be better to paint on a bigger paper size so I can more easily see that I apply the water exactly on top of previous layers of paint. If so, what size do you recommend? Also, I've been using inexpensive paper and I can't use a scrubber brush to fix or create highlights as the paper gets damaged. From what I've understood in your videos, the lesser quality of the paper might be the reason, right? Thanks for everything you do! I appreciate you!

Louise De Masi

Hi Carol, The size of the paper does make a difference particularly if you are following a tutorial where I have painted on larger paper. You'd be trying to do what I am doing on a much smaller scale which wouldn't be easy. More importantly though is the quality of the paper you are using. The quality of the paper definitely makes a difference. Use only 100% cotton paper and use the best paper you can afford. All of us would struggle on inexpensive paper. 💕

Carol Cuesta

Thank you so much for your quick response! Just a follow up question, what size of paper do you use on your tutorials? I know you sometimes mention A4 or something like that and what I find here is usually in inches like 9x12, 10x14, 11x14, 12x16, and up to 18x24. Also, I don't know how to tell cheap from quality paper. The one I've been using is Canson XL, which I think is not very good. You have mentioned Fabriano Artistico and Arches, and I think I remember you saying that you didn't like Strathmore. Other than that, how would I know? I usually shop at a store called Jerry's Artarama, either in person or online. They have Winsor & Newton professional, Arches of two different prices (?), etc. Any suggestion will be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!

Louise De Masi

My pleasure Carol. The paper and the paper size I use is always listed on the Supplies Lists that I provide with each tutorial and I mention it in the tutorial as well. I list the size in centimetres and inches. I often use A3 size paper which is 11.7 inches by 16.5 inches. So a similar size for you would be 12 by 16. Arches is the best paper, in my opinion. Cold press is probably the best to paint on when you are a beginner (that's the texture of the paper). Fabriano Artistico is another good paper. You could also try Saunders Waterford which is a little less expensive. If you can buy a pad of 12 by 16 or (A3 size) that would be a good size to work on. Otherwise buy full sheets and cut them into quarters. Always choose 100% cotton paper with whatever brand you decide to buy.

Carol Cuesta

Thank you so much! Your help and expertise is invaluable!!