Hi Connie 🌷 I love Zig brushes and use them a lot! They reveal their brightness and beauty in full only with water. Usually, I copy pages from books on high quality paper . Canson XL series Mixed media paper is best for Zig. You don't need to cover the whole element with the ink. For example, If I color a leaf , I cover only 1/3 of it and then pull down the ink with a wet brush. They work amazingly beautiful with water and on the right paper .

Hi Connie. Just a thought.. maybe a challenge for the both of us, would you try using the brush pens as a true watercolor with water and a brush? I really think it would solve your blending issues and the amount of pigment you are using. Correct me if I am wrong but I feel like you are using them like you would Pitt pens (because that is what you are comfortable with) and these brush pens are so much more than that. I have also glazed paper with the Golden satin glazing liquid and watercolors work so much better on a variety of different paper. There is also a lot less buckling in the pages. Maybe give that a try. I love that we are all learning together. Thank you so much for taking the time to experiment. Love the process! -Callee-

Great testing! Your inner scientist is showing lol. I sacrifice one page in each of my coloring books. (Similar to what you tested in the RJ Hampson book). Usually at the back, or on my least favorite page. I boldly write "Test Page" at the top. I use this page to test out different mediums, blending techniques, color combos, satin glaze, fineliners, etc and make brief notes. For example, I may try 3-4 different types of colored pencils. I color a leaf or small portion and make a note of the brand. I also use a 5-star rating method for each. Then the next time I pick up the book, I flip to my test page to see what I had tried previously. I used to record these details in a separate journal, but it's much more efficient to record it in the book itself. I'm amazed at how even different brands of the same medium work on each page! Keep experimenting!

Ok, Connie you are making me want to order a small set of these Zig pens to give them a try. They look like fun!

Great video! One way to blend is to put a layer of the blender beneath and then color over. I am not sure about the Zigs, but that is how I blend with alcohol markers and Ecoline brush pens.

Paper isn't polished, it's pressed. The three factors in finish are the size and composition of the fibers, the finish of the press itself, and how hard it is pressed. Pressing is typically either screen pressed (the pulp is put on a screen and pressed from above giving a different texture to each side) or roller pressed (the pulp is run though a series of rollers and pressed from both sides at once, giving either the same or different textures to each side). Smooth paper is fine particle, smooth pressed, and hard pressed. High quality printing paper can be so hard pressed it's glossy, and those work better for marker blending. Actual marker paper is coated and typically doesn't work well for anything other than marker. Watercolor paper is sized which controls the absorbancy of the paper... and there are plenty of totally smooth watercolor papers, typically labeled as "hot pressed", although finishes vary between brands. Arches hot press is slightly fuzzy. Fabriano hot press is very smooth (and the paper of choice for many professional pencil artists as it is available in large sheets and archival), they also offer a "soft press" (the only brand I'm aware of that does) which is kind of an orange peel texture. The usual watercolor finish you see is cold pressed which is textured on purpose. Rough is.. rougher. The texture effects the distribution of the pigment in watercolor paint (not an issue with most watercolor markers which are dye based), most use cold pressed because it makes it easier to get even washes, but it's not ideal for pencil or pen. Every brand of watercolor paper has a different texture for any of these categories. Sizing can be internal, external, double sided, or any combination of the above. It can also be made of different materials and have different effects.. most common are gelatin and plant starch. Multimedia paper is typically smoother with some sizing. It's decent at everything but best at nothing. Absorbancy is the usual issue with using wet media of any kind in a coloring book. The problem is that coloring books are made to color in, not paint in, or marker in. We are trying to force them to function off label. Paper that handles marker well generally doesn't do well with pencil as there isn't enough tooth. Good watercolor paper is too expensive for publishers to make entire books out of... I've yet to find any "watercolor" books that have actual decent watercolor paper in them. The only exception to this is a couple I've seen that were handmade on Etsy. There is an entire market for "watercolor" books in Asia that are a thin shiny paper, generally you have to import them. They will say watercolor on them, and are typically set up with a full color plate on one page and and an outline on the opposing page, often hardcover. I'm not 100% certain of the paper composition of these books, but they appear to be used wet on dry with minimal water. The best workaround I know of for waterbased markers in professionally published coloring books is to put them on a palette and pick them up with a waterbrush, this adds just enough water to help them move better on the paper and not get sucked in on contact. Alternatively, some coloring books, especially those produced in Korea and Japan, will allow you to apply a small amount of marker and then immediately move it with the brush, but IMO they still do better off a palette. If you want to use these alternative media (waterbased marker, watercolor marker, or paint) to the best effect, by far the best option is to copy the design onto appropriate paper.. either using a printer, lightpad, or graphic transfer. Let me know if you want a breakdown on any of these.. I've done all three, and each has it's pro's and con's.

Hello Connie Thankyou so much for this wonderful comparison. 🌷

Hi Connie! Because i want to use my zig brushpens, i was wondering how they work in dfferent colouring books….well, this video is just what i need! I just bought the woodland colouring book a couple of days ago to use the zigg’s, sorry to hear that they not working properly in this book… you are a daredevil! Try out the zigg’s at the risk of ruining your colouring books😮!! Nice to hear they work fine on Malpomeni books!

I have been prepping my pages with either watercolor ground or Golden Satin Glazing Liquid in order to use my Zig clean color brush pens! The treatment allows you more movement and time to blend the inks! Game changer!

Thanks Connie, interesting and helpful 😊

Thanks for doing that. ❤️

I have also much pitt pens, they suggest me, after finish a mandala book , all emty...to have paper like smooth paper for handlettering

I’ve been looking for that Korean watercolor book that you showed that has the sample colored page. Then on the facing page is the one for you to color, if you could possibly find that in English, so I know what to put in my Google search I would be forever grateful. I think it’s beautiful and I love watercolor coloring books.

Thank you so much for this video! I love coloring on smooth paper. I have Zig brushables which are double sided and water based. Do you know if they are the same as the pens you are using? Thanks again, Connie, this was wonderful!

Interesting experiment. I do know that watercolor is tricky to blend, in that water is needed to move the colors. In theory, the colorless blender would be needed to blend those pens, especially on the watercolor paper. I always use hot pressed watercolor paper, since it’s smooth, and watercolors are much easier to work with on smoother paper. I am a huge fan of super smooth paper for any medium I use.

Very informative video. Thank you. What pencils case to you store yours in?

Connie may I ask which Staedtler brush pens do you use. 🌷