Paper/Supports Reviews & Articles
Click on any of the images below to view the article of interest to you. New articles are added to the website every three months. We also like to keep current articles updated, sometimes changing the format of the page entirely to add more information or make it more aesthetically pleasing, so please do visit often. You can SUBSCRIBE to our quarterly newsletter if you want the latest articles sent straight to your email as soon as they are available. Not all articles below are currently available to view. A few may be in progress right now or will be created in the near future. I hope you find these articles very informative and should you wish to request a specific article, get in touch via our contact page.
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If you wish to support the growth of this website, which receives no funding, you can support us by 'Buying us a coffee' from just £3/$3, which helps us add even more free content for all artists around the world.
Art Spectrum | ColourfixArt Spectrum® Colourfix™ papers are sheets of acid-free, 300gsm hot pressed watercolour paper with a fine, deep tooth. It is a superb surface for pastels, oils, acrylics, inks, oil pastels, gouache, watercolours and dry media such as charcoal and pencils. Available in 20 lightfast colours.
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Art Spectrum | Colourfix smoothFor anyone who is a fan of the Colourfix paper, did you know that Art Spectrum, also has a smooth version too? Find out more about the Colourfix Smooth, compare between other surfaces and see where you can buy some.
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Canson | Mi-tientes 'Touch'A highly innovative and unique surface - this versatile, finely textured paper is perfect for pastel, charcoal, pencil, & acrylic artists and suitable for both dry and wet media techniques.
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Clairfontaine | PastelmatThis is one of the most prized surfaces, especially among pastel artists. This article provides an extensive analysis of the paper and explores the characteristics and abilities in depth. It can be used with other mediums too, not just pastels. Find out what this paper can offer you as an artist.
UPDATED FEBRUARY 2022 |
Legion | StonehengeThis is a high quality affordable paper with quality fiber composition, archival properties and its suitability for multiple mediums including pencils. Want to know more about this popular paper, read our article.
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Tim Fisher | Fisher 400Developed by Tim Fisher specifically for painting with pastels. The paper has no surface pattern, which can otherwise show through, on your painting, and it will take layer after layer of pastel. Suitable for both fine, detailed work and also for more impressionistic painting. It is also very good for mixed media.
ARTICLE NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
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St Cuthbert's Mill | BockingfordLooking for a smooth watercolour paper suited to pencils and paints that is acid free and archival? Bockingford might be the one for you.
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St Cuthbert's Mill | Bockingford Tints (Not)A tinted watercolor paper available in 5 colours, suitable for pastels, pencils and acrylics. Find out more on our blog.
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St Cuthbert's Mill | SomersetLooking for an acid-free & archival tonal paper? This paper is available in three textures and eight colours, including black. Suitable for pastels, pencils, charcoal, pen and ink and animal friendly! Click the image to find out more about this paper.
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Strathmore | Bristol 500 Plate & VellumFor those artists that like to work on a very smooth paper, the archival Strathmore 500 plate surface may be just what you are looking for. See how it compares with both coloured & graphite pencils.
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Assorted watercolour papersRead information on different hot pressed watercolour papers before buying. Compare the size, weight and brightness of each and see which are vegan friendly too.
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UArt | Dark sanded paperHere we trial coloured pencils on the latest UArt dark sanded paper. How did it compare to other papers? See how we got on.
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Buntpapierfabrik Ludwig Bähr | UrsusAn acid free coloured paper suitable for pencil artists and craft work. This is a low cost, high colour, paper available in 56 tones including high white suitable for graphite pencil work.
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Help | Working with tonal papersCan coloured paper help to advance your techniques and improve your art? In this article, we provide lots of examples and offer you plenty of hints and tips to get you started.
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Tips for working with textured paperAre you a coloured pencil user thinking of trying your pencils on an abrasive surface and need some advice on how best to approach it? Here are a few ideas to get you started.
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Canvases and Boards
Ampersand boardsLooking for a high quality canvas for your art? Ampersand have a collection of boards available for artists of all mediums from paint to scratchboard.
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Ampersand GessobordThis superior quality gesso ground does not dull colours and the lightly sanded surface provides excellent brush control, perfect for all painting styles with oils, acrylics and mixed media.
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Ampersand PastelbordThis canvas is an ideal surface for many different mediums, not just pastels and in this article I show what is achievable using acrylics & coloured pencils.
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Jackson's Art | Gesso panelIn this blog we review Jackson's Art Gesso panel. A pre-prepared fine tooth surface suitable for all painting styles including oils and acrylics. It features a professional acid-free gesso ground in grey or umber. We also compare it against the popular Ampersand Gessoboard.
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