Watercolor pencils are a delightful way to color, but slow slow slow slow slow. It’s almost impossible to find an exactly perfect paper and ink combination to use. Book paper works fine if you are super careful, very thrifty with the water, and press your picture periodically to smooth out any surface buckling.
Watercolor paper means you need to copy your design to the page, and opens the door to runny ink or flakey ink or ink that’s uncooperative in all kinds of ways. And watercolor paper is often unbleached, so its cream color softens the colors of your pencils. Nice if that’s what you want, less nice if you want brighter tones.
I’m using Neenah Solar White cardstock, which works pretty well as long as I use a very light touch with the water. And to avoid printer ink flakes from my laser printer, I’m using an Epson photo printer with lovely smooth ink. The only problem is that the ink will run if you get it wet – so that means I need to use the tiny paint brush and avoid getting water on the black lines.
Today’s coloring progress slideshow:
I really believe that as soon as you leave the world of general, basic coloring book papers you cause as many problems as you may fix. Things that sound convenient, like perforations, can be super inconvenient in real life – tearing unevenly and leaving ragged edges. Maybe not so much on page one or two of a book, but get to drawing number 47 and it’s going to be like old fashioned paper check books where perforations get more and more temperamental the further you get through the book.
Heavy “media proof” papers aren’t ideal either. Ones that resist water damage may be the same ones that gobble up alcohol ink or abrade marker nibs. Anyone who likes to keep their books intact probably isn’t super keen on having inflexible pages. And for any thickness or style of paper you may find, you can always find really inviting coloring tools that will find a way to seep, run, bleed, resist, chip or whatever.
When you want to color with certain techniques, all papers and pencils and inks will be some kind of a compromise – and what you love and what irks you is going to be so incredibly personal. You may even be like me and find that one day you are going to want your watercolor pencils to look super bright, and another day you are going to want paper that lets you go nuts slopping water all over for lovely runny effects – and maybe you can actually put up with beige paper and duller colors for a day in order to achieve that.
As far as making copies of book pages go – no artist wants you to fire up the copier so that you can copy her hard work and give it away. Most are OK with you making a copy of a page for personal use if you want to get creative or experimental with different art papers. Just be warned in advance – the search for the ultimate paper is one that never ends! But there is a lot of fun to be had along the way experimenting with all of the different ways your coloring media can interact with various types of paper. (I’ve even got waterproof paper on hand for when I want to sketch in the bubble bath, lol!)
Today’s book: Transcend For Crayons And Wide Tipped Markers (Angie’s Gentle Mood Menders – Volume 4)
Colored with: Faber-Castell Albrect Durer watercolor pencils.