Sarah, you are the art friend we all wish we had in real life. Keep geeking , I’m here for it!

"I've already spent the money. There's no reason not to use it." I needed that insight, thank you!

Just found you 🎉! I’m an old painter 👩‍🎨 and I just wanted to say you are a wealth of knowledge and inspiration❣️ You are one of the most valuable watercolor teachers out there because of your ability to share, techniques, thoughts & emotions about painting❣️

Sarah! You are a wonderful friend and mentor! This is so very helpful, not just for the paper tests but also for the encouragement to play in sketchbooks. My parents grew up during the Great Depression and my grandparents were refugee immigrants who came to America with almost nothing. I had so many injunctions about not wasting paper that I never had permission to play and experiment with art. I didn’t realize that this was holding me back so much until I watched this video. I am now going to make a conscious effort to do nothing but play in sketchbooks. Thank you so much! Love and hugs. 🥰

I’ve had good luck, so far, with Hahnemuehle’s 100% cotton sketchbooks. Heavier paper than the Etchr everyday books (but less than 300gsm). May be a bit less expensive, too.

Appreciate your conversation on sketchbooks. And the purpose of them. I remember hearing on the Draftsmen podcast a few years ago a great anecdote that stuck with me: sketchbooks are there to help you “fail fast,” so that you can iterate and learn in an accelerated way. So when people try to just make coffee table pieces out of their sketchbooks, they lose that freedom and learning.

this is exactly the kind of high-stakes thrill ride I subscribe for, thank you

In watercolour for me paper is most important then brush and last paint.

Amazing video! Thank you for the reminder to not worry about how sketchbooks look, I really struggle with that. I love Sea White of Brighton sketchbooks

I have so much difficulty finding watercolor journal that suits me.... Strathmore and Stillman & Birn journals are popular but they currently only use cellulose paper which I hate working on. I actually just started making my own journal with imperial-size loose sheets of cotton paper ; to me that's currently the only way to get what I want 😅

I always love paper / sketchbook videos! I also love your statement that once the money is gone, it’s your supply and you should just use it and not be precious with it. I have a tendency to want expensive supplies to be used for “perfect” art or that I should hold off until I’ve learned more (which is ridiculous, I’m still learning so much every time I paint). I’m getting better about using things, but there are still some items I tend to “save” (A Gallo paint being the main one, I think). My local art store recommended Arches when I first started shifting to watercolour and I haven’t really explored a lot of papers since falling in love with that paper. My store frequently has sales on Arches pads (and I work in my sketchbooks a lot of the time anyway). Etchr and Stillman & Birn seem to be the predominant sketchbooks on my shelf. I finally created a Discord account but never think to read/post there!

Hullo Sarah, well I am going to say that most of the gouache paintings that I have done have been done on illustration board. I have avoided thinner paper as it cracks much to often! I guess that I am going to have to try some of these thinner stock sheets of paper. The beige is the more interesting at present, but we will see. Thank you for sharing this sweet video about papers and books with everyone! I have been letting the algorithm pick videos of yours for me! So I guess that I will need to go lookup some topic centered videos for future viewing. Thank you, now please take care.

Having ten minutes plus drying timeis just something to dream about in the hot Aussie summer here…but love your process and I can experiment with hot temperatures..thanks

Late on this video, but my favorite sketchbook for watercolor is from Cheap Joe's, I can't find it anywhere else *grump.* It's kilamanjaro 100% cotton cold press 140 lb paper, 25 pages, it's spiral bound and can lay flat, it takes scrubbing, heat gun, tapes, lifting, ink, very wet washes, and masking fluid! With no bleed through! My only complaint is I can only find it from one place and shipping can impact the product price. Thank you for the video, excellent as always! I've also really fallen in love with Bockingford cold press for cellulose paper, it can hold and take plenty of water for a limited number of washes and I was impressed.

My favourite paper discovery this year has been my Bockingford Fat Pad. It's another goodie from St Cuthbert's Mill. I bought it to try for plein air painting, and it surprises me every time I use it (between lack of bus fares and the weather, there hasn't been a lot of plein air this year, which keeps the surprise fresh 😅) It behaves in a surprisingly cotton-like way, and I have done a very loud "Oooh" in a busy park before now.

Paper sample packs are great. I am always looking for an affordable deal on watercolor paper that performs. Thanks for your look into the options.

Your videos are always inspiring. In this one, the "AHA" moment for me was when you are talking about sunk costs. Once you buy the paper, use it! It will cost you no more money to use it!

Thanks for the reminder about Paul Rubens sketchbooks. I just got a Cyber Monday deal on Amazon.

Love sketchbooks - have a LOT of them!

Everyone that I know only uses the Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbooks for ink and wash or pencil/pen sketches. The Beta series is the one they use for watercolor. I haven't tried either of those yet. The first of their books I tried was the Zeta. It's really thick smooth paper, almost like card. I used it mainly for Inktober and some sketching. Then last year I did a watercolor course through Skillshare on it. It's ok for layering but not great for washes. The paint sits on the paper for ages and seemed to be either sopping wet or completely dry with nothing in between lol. Probably a bad choice for me starting out in watercolor but it was what I had at the time. Lately I've been using the A5 Winsor and Newton blue covered 100% cotton sketchbooks. I can get them quite reasonably priced here in New Zealand compared to some of the other big named brands. It's half the price of the equivalent sized Moleskine.

You are a shining example of how one can make a difference to the lives of so many! I likely missed it, but what tape did you use? Thanks ever so much!

Just purchased your 7 piece gouache brush set. Am surprised at how lovely the packaging is for these brushes. So wow! I look forward to using these. Thank you for selling high quality gouache brushes that arrive so well presented. Awesome.

wow just yesterday I was watching a ton of videos about paper, what amazing timing!

Always benefit from your videos & appreciate them - want you to know how much I like the background music you choose 👍

Thanks for geeking out on paper! Very helpful information.

Dunno if this helps but i read somewhere that Etchr uses Baohong (academy) paper for their everyday sketchbook and Fabriano artistico for their Signature sketchbook.

When i first saw your video, i thought oh I'll watch only a bit for now. I ended up sitting for the whole thing, lol. That's how great you are to listen to. 😊 Very helpful to learn all this!

Thank you for the paper testing technique. I will make sure to try it from now on.

great content Sarah, thanks again

Super interesting video!!! Thank you, Sarah!

Sarah, I thought I knew what i needed to know about watercolor paper after 2 or 3 ten-minute videos, but they didn’t include your experiments. Nor were their titles as humorous as yours so I couldn’t resist watching all 48 minutes. Thank you, you lucky lady living in Scotland! I’ve visited Scotland 3x, fell in love with it.

Thx for sharing , gave me a better insight on sketchbooks and paper🎉

Thanks! That was really interesting to see some different papers that I haven’t used before. Agree with you about Moleskines! My most favourite paper is Fabriano Artistico Hot pressed, I use it for highly detailed work and also fantasy works with lots of wetness, it takes both. I also use coloured pencil over the w/c and it takes that beautifully. However, there are no sketchbooks, so I buy the great big sheets and make my own, learned how to do it on KZfaq. Five big sheets makes an A4size for a fraction of the price of a bought book, and you can make it any format you like. Jackson’s are always having sales of it, so it's not too expensive to do so. 100% cotton. Once you find your ideal paper nothing else will do! (Unfortunately they’ve changed their rollers, and it is supposed not to be so good, I am using up my stock of the old papers fast 😥). I bought a Fabriano sketchbook, but the texture is horrible, sort of woven. Love my sketchbooks 💖

Hi Sarah, Thank you so much for making these technical videos. I learn so much about materials and techniques that help strengthen my art practice. I'd love to see more of these in the future. Sending you many merits from America. 😊🙏🧡

LOVE your style - watercolor & Gouache

Thank you Sara. You are so nice! This was very helpful….

So helpful. I haven't tried the Stillman & Birn Nova yet. Thanks for all the ideas and info!

A very nerdy deep dive is always welcome❤

Interesting. Thanks!

I've never tried the Baohong artists' grade paper, but I LOVE the Baohong Academy. It's super affordable here in the States and readily available on Amazon. I have run across a few pages here and there with some minor sizing issues that can make the water/paint act a little weird in places, but for the price and ease of access I can live with that. And it's been my experience that you can paint on both sides, which makes my frugal/miserly side happy. 😁

Geek away❣️ Great information And ❤ your tests

Thanks, Sarah for the paper analysis, very valuable information. I truly understand the $ spent on art materials. Just bought Daler Rowney gouache (very new to this medium)on sale at my local art store @ less than 50%. Needless to say, I went overboard, and when I got home, I regretted it and thought why did I not just buy the three primary colours and top up as I go? When you said the money has been spent…..just use the supplies. I felt instantly better. FYI Baohong paper is available in Temu at very good prices and shipping (mostly free) and is super fast all over the world.

this is such a cute video, you have such amazing energy ❤❤

This is so informative!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us!

Very interesting and helpful!

I love Strathmore, Arches, Fluid & Baohong watercolor papers. I also like the Paul Rubens & Etchr watercolor sketchbooks. Thx for you video Sarah.

So belpful. I love the testing structure. Also so nice to hear how you use your sketchbooks. I'm still pretty new to my art practice so bounce between one-book- all-things and what feels like too much one-book-only-this. I appreciate the more balanced approach that comes from experience!

I really like the Hahnemuehle coldpress watercolor paper sketchbooks for watercolor. Interesting to hear others experiences.

Thanks Sarah for sharing this informational video with us. You have managed to give me so much valuable information to think 🤔 about with my various types of cotton & cellulose papers & sketchbooks. I also have realized that I use certain techniques for the certain papers that respond to those techniques. I too am finding that I am using certain papers more for certain mediums. I also enjoy using sketchbooks more for finished pieces on my learning journey than individual sheets of paper or blocks/pads. Have a great weekend! 💕

Thank you Sarah, so informative. Masses of info there, especially the sketchbooks, brilliant. You put a lot of effort into this video well done. Thanks again.....Alioban ❤

This video is a game changer for me😊

I have so many different sketchbooks (majority are 100% cotton) that I’ve purchased and some were a little pricey (etchers)YET I havent painted on even one of the pages!!! Oh, you have given me such help with this video…especially about the sketchbooks.. It’s just been so intimidating plus the uncertainty about what to put into them….They are sitting nicely on the shelf😊 I just received two Fatpads (cold & rough) from Jackson’s this week with the intention of using as a dedicated sketchbook since they were so inexpensive. What a gift to have found your channel ❤

I enjoyed how you explained the different papers and what they were doing. That is an interesting test to do. I never thought of doing a timed drying test for adding color in. The paper I have ended up settling on for finished work is the Stonehenge Hotpress 100% watercolor paper. It handles layering well, it's smooth enough for my dip pens and it's easier to get softer edges than other hotpress watercolor papers I have tried. Well, except for the Paul Rubens hotpress 100% cotton watercolor journal which I bought after having seen you use it. I absolutely loved the paper.

While I was in London, I purchased some Stillman and Birn notebooks: Beta White and Ivory Gamma. I think I’ll save these for the Gouache tutorials. I am trying some Fabriano and it has been working nicely. I am still an Arches devotee but it has been fun trying new papers. Thanks for this!

I've tried sooo many papers but I've found I rarely end up painting on my blocks. I've probably gone through the most of the 5x7 Fabriano Artistico (CP and Rough), but I also like Kilimanjaro (for it's affordability in the US), Saunders Waterford, and I'm finally learning to like Arches. However, I find something about sketchbooks so much lower pressure, so I tend to buy Kilimanjaro in sketchbook format, Arches spiral sketchbook, Bee 100% cotton (not the best, but affordable and smooth enough that ink works well), Stillman & Birn Nova (gouache), and occasionally Etchr Everyday or Hahnemuhle 100% cotton (more for travel when I don't want a spiral snagging on things). One I haven't seen others mention that I go through like crazy is Canson XL Mixed Media, especially the 7x10 size. I love this for all sorts of experimental splashing around. It's definitely not designed to be great for watercolor, but works fine for quick sketches. It's good with ink, pencil, and gouache. I fill many pages just doing swatches and mixing tests. It's cheap so I never feel guilty and I've filled more of them than any other sketchbook. Of course, as you said, paper unused is more wasteful than paper where I experiment and make a mess! I'm trying to get better about allowing myself to use more expensive paper, which performs how I want it to perform, for more play and experimentation.

My first sketchbook was a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook as well. I wasn't able to do any of the stuff that I wanted to try, and as a result, I only played around in it once or twice before giving up. (And my cheap cellulose paper pads weren't much better, so I actually gave up on watercolor for a few years, while getting into Gouache.) I also found that Gouache works well in the Moleskine, but before I found that out, I wasn't sure what the heck I would do with this sketchbook. Interesting that we basically started out with the same sketchbook struggles. Sadly, I have yet to get into a "use your sketchbook to play around and try stuff" mindset. Thank you for the watercolor paper tests. That must have taken a long time! I've heard many good things about Baohong as well, so I might try to get my hands on it in the future. I've kinda collected way too much paper, though... XD Wish they still sold the Strathmore journals. I never got to try them, but everyone seems to love them. I love my EtchR hot pressed one, but it takes some time to get used to how watercolor behaves in it. It basically lifts super easily. I've used it for portraits, which will go through an utterly ugly first layer, only to smoothen out beautifully with the next layer or two. Definitely a super different painting experience from working on Arches. One of my favorite journals is still the cellulose Inktober x Viviva watercolor journal. The paper is very fragile (don't try lifting on it!), but always surprises me in how well it handles water. I've painted some watercolor landscapes in it which turned out well. Somehow I just instantly understood how to work on this paper. I wish that one had been my first watercolor journal instead of the Moleskine one.

I love testing paper but I've never done it this way with the timed swatches. Very clever!! I also like how you judged the time for each paper, instead of just using the same times for each paper. Jealous about you being able to get Hahnemuhle tape! I love their paper, The Collection. I also love Lanaquarelle, which is now owned by them. You might enjoy trying Bockingford, a UK cellulose paper of great renown... In the US it's rather expensive for cellulose, but I believe it's much cheaper in the UK.

If you haven't yet, give Canson Heritage a try. I've only used the cold pressed, but it's amazing at both water retention, drying time, and vividness of color. The latter may be due to differences in sizing. Canson will also be easy for you to get in the UK. I also really love Saunders Waterford (white or high white). I need to revisit Arches, as the last batch I had was one where they suffered sizing issues and the quality was absolutely terrible.

Thanks as always for a very thoroughly done video! My favorite paper (and I’ve tried them all!) is the Fabriano Artistico SOFT PRESS. It’s LUXURY. Not sure how available it is in the UK but if you can get some, I highly recommend trying it! I also love their cold press, which is what’s in the Etchr TPS Limited Edition sketchbook you like so much! (Me too! I’ve purchased several!) So that’s my two cents! ❤

Sarah the Etchr signature sketchbook they use Fabriano watercolor paper. I love the video I’m a paper snob myself. I think paper really makes a difference on what you want to use it for. Happy painting my friend and Wolfie your doing amazing filming Sarah ❤

Sarah, you didn't show the handmade watercolour journal with the metal rings that you made using Arches paper......you inspired me to make my own version using Saunders Waterford. In Australia EVEYTHING dries quickly so when you said that SW dries so slowly for you I understood why I love it so much here. TFS!!

I love the Strathmore sketchbooks and I am so sad they discontinued them. 😢 On another note, you can get Baohong sketchbooks with their lovely student grade paper in it, everybody’s raving about them. I just bought a tiny one recently but haven’t started using it yet.

mixed media paper was the only I could get toned paper

I may have questions in the future ❤. I’m going to have to get some practice in first… I love Ian’s style and paintings. I’m guessing you went to a workshop of his 😊. I’m hoping you were able to video some so I am off to search ❤

Hi Sarah, really enjoyed this video! Just wondering where you get your inspiration for your paintings in your sketch books. Each one is so different. Do you use a reference photo?

If I remember correctly Lindsay from the frugal crafter did some testing on the baohong paper & meedan papers & had the suspicion that they are the same paper & the student grade performance out rated the professional one

Hey Sarah new subby here 😊 I'm so happy to have found your channel as I'm new to gouache...thanks so much for sharing your knowledge 😊😊😊

Ooh a good geek out! Love it. Completely off topic but would you mind saying where you got your glasses from? I think they're cool, just the right thickness, I am struggling to find some that suit my face 😆

Very very nice video! I tested Arches, Fabriano, and baohong student and artist. For me, arches and baohong either grade worked very similarly. M The Fabriano I used must have been a bad batch - the colors were feeble and faded. All were cold press, 300gsm.

In watercolour practice is most important than anything...whatever you see or attend...still practice over many years is the only hope...no master can make you paint well..only you who masters the medium over a long time

Thank you for a very informative video! I have to say I do not like Sauders Waterford 300 gsm for watercolour, it always leaves white specks , like fibers that do not absorb the colour. Even if I heap layers upon layers Ican still see white fibers peeking through. But with the 600gsm and over of the same brand it it so different, no white specs at all! So now I only use the 300gsm I have left for gouache or for colour samples and instead I paint on the Saunders Waterford 600 ( or is it 640?) gsm when I paint w watercolours. A paper I like, although it is cellulose, is the Bockingford, it behaves almost like cotton! You can get it in the fat pads too.

Thankyou for such an informative lesson on what different papers to use. It has taught me a lot. You are so good at explaining things on how they work. Have you used watercolour pencils or intense pencils? Could you show a lesson on how to use them. Just a thought as something different to being creative. It is so relaxing to learn from you. 🙂💕

Don't know if you've tried the Stillman & Birn Beta series sketchbooks yet, but those seem to be the ones that handle watercolor the best. I did a few portraits in them, and it handled it pretty well, minimal buckling, but like all cellulose paper you sometimes have to work in fewer layers. In comparison to other cellulose watercolor/mixed media sketchbooks I've tried, it held up the best.

Hi, another great video 👍 BTW, what is the name of the masking tape that you used?

I was afraid to use my more pricey sketchbooks but now I’m not going to save them for the perfect art. Thanks

I found lanaquarelle cold pressed watercolour paper the best besides arches

Loved this video ... made some Earl grey tea , and just geeked out with ye ... so fun . Where can I buy that tape ?

My all time LEAST favorite sketchbook is the watercolor version of the handbook travelogue sketchbook. Omg I couldn't layer AT ALL. It all just blended and moved around and got so dull. It was so frustrating. I do love the mixed media version though. Even though the pages are very thin, it works better with watercolor than the watercolor version for quick sketches.

Hi Sarah, Strathmore has 100% cotton Mixed Media sketchbooks but they're only 90LB, 190 gsm. I found them on Amazon.

Jacksons are selling Baohong and its on offer. I ordered some artists cold press yesterday

Have you tried Winsor & Newton paper? I haven't tried it, but it's on my wish list.

The Arches uses animal gelatine and the Baohong uses vegetable gelatine. The Daler Rowney paper used to be great but they changed the paper quality and it is nowhere near as good as it used to be.

I love seawhites

Very useful video, thank you. What sort of paper will be included in the monthly boxes? Will it be the same sort each month?

Hi Sarah, I was wondering is there a way to keep gouache from transferring in the sketchbook? I’ve noticed that if I paint gouache there’s the tendency for the pigment to start smudging off on the adjacent page. Using window newton gouache on cellulose watercolor paper

I feel spoiled by the amount of content you are putting out! Thank you!

I do believe that the Strathmore Travel Journal is their 500 series paper, and you could make your own books with that. It is ironic since it's the one US watercolor paper there is.... and you aren't here anymore! It's an odd texture between cold and hot press... so I totally see why you like it for pen and gouache as well as watercolor. You might like the Hahnemuhle 100% cotton? It also has a in-between texture, and it's very reasonably priced. I have no idea how anyone makes the S&B Alpha look good - I used one just as a swatching/mixing book, and it makes the paint look horrible! I understand the Beta is much better, but much more expensive. I won't buy S&B again.

Etchr is expensive. It’s the weight of the paper that determines how water colour will work. Probably 200 -300gsm. Moleskine is too light weight for watercolour. Not found the right one yet, have had a go at making my own!

I love etchr everyday but I could never buy the signature series. It's just way too much. The every day is expensive for me but that's my "nice" sketchbook that I use for really taking my time ❤

Arches I bought stinks like seaweed when wetted, I can’t use it. It’s gross. I have used Aquafine pads like you showed for a year or so, finally invested in expensive paper and am so disappointed. Do all cotton papers stink?

You are missing Bockingford from St Cuthberts Mill. 100% cellulose

Mont Marte is the worst paper I've painted with, then I learn't no name's are useless they bleed too often, Arches are to expensive but Stathmore are still on the shelves so my tastes started to change thats my sketch book, Canson brand are great for all mediums. there is another one but I can't spell it.