Bockingford Tinted (NOT) paper - Product recommendation

As a coloured pencil artist that likes to use tonal papers, I was recommended the Bockingford tinted paper over on Twitter the other day by Ken Bromley Art, the online art store. It was such a good price that I thought I would try it out and share my findings with you.​ 
This paper is generally used for watercolour art but can be used with pencils, pastels and acrylics too. This article covers coloured pencils on the paper.

Details

Only available in sheets 300gsm - Size 76cm x 56cm (30" x 22")  Acid free and Archival
Suitable for:  Watercolour, Acrylic, Gouache, Pastel, Pen & Ink, Pencil and Charcoal

• Superior surface stability
• ​Acid Free & Archival - The paper will last for hundreds of years (in good storage conditions) and won’t discolour or fall apart.
• Quality at an Affordable Price - High quality paper at a much lower price  
• Excellent Colour Lifting Abilities - Easy to lift the colour wash to get back to the white base paper.

If using water or solvents on this paper, it may be beneficial to soak it first to avoid the paper cockling (buckling).

The paper is the NOT surface, which has a slight texture, which offers both positives and negatives. A paper with a tooth grabs the pigment better, but it means the tooth can always been seen, so for those who prefer a smooth finish, such as skin tones, this might not make the paper suitable.

LAYERING & BLENDING

​The first thing I noticed was how well the paper grabs the pigment. I used Caran d'Ache Luminance and Derwent drawing for the portrait below and hardly needed to touch the paper for excellent colour transfer. When it came to blending, this is one paper where you can blend exceptionally well with little effort. I first applied the colours which made up the skin tones and used the Derwent Drawing white to blend. Big mistake! The pigment grabs too well (as already mentioned) so the Chinese white saturated previous colour tones due to it being so opaque. I had never had this issue before with any pencil range, usually it becomes harder to layer the more colours you add, but this paper seems to accept the layers much easier. I erased the white pencil (which was easy to do) and used a different tone to blend.

Before blending

After blending

​Easy layering & application of fine detail

This paper accepts numerous layers, allowing you to apply both soft pencils for base layers and backgrounds, and hard pencils for the fine details. There is usually a level of saturation, where the pigment starts to slip off the paper, but this paper allows for extensive layering and with ease.  I haven't used a paper that allows many layers with continuing ease. Usually it becomes harder to layer the more colours you add, but this paper allows for numerous layers because heavier applications are not needed due to the pigment grab.

​Using Zest-it pencil blend on Bockingford tint paper

The Bockingford (NOT) paper is an excellent surface for mixing Zest-it pencil blend and coloured pencils together. As the paper grabs the pigment so well, blending with the Zest-it solvent creates a smoother finish, making it much easier to cover larger areas and create soft, tonal backgrounds such as the one above.

I recommend that you soak and stretch the paper before applying a solvent such as Zest-it to avoid the paper cockling (buckling).

If you would like to purchase some of this paper, you can purchase via the Ken Bromley online store, click the link below
(Ken Bromley ship worldwide)

Purchase the Bockingford Tints (NOT) watercolor