Good Watercolor Paper For Beginners

Watercolor paper for beginners often becomes a source of confusion and frustration among artists. The quest for good quality paper can be accompanied by hefty price tags, leaving artists uncertain if they are truly getting their money’s worth.

But fear not, for we shall delve into the world of watercolor papers and shed light on this perplexing matter. Let’s begin by demystifying the various types of watercolor papers, paving the way for a clearer understanding.

Here’s an excellent beginner’s watercolor guide if you care to dig in…

If you use regular printer copy paper for example, or sketchbooks for drawing, you’ll notice that your paints look flat, patchy and dull, and the watercolour becomes impossible to work with. You need good watercolour paper to create smooth blends and watercolour effects.Source Emilly Wassel

Here it is, the absolute best watercolor paper money can buy!

Let’s begin with sheets. This is the most common paper type and used most by experienced artists. Besides being cost effective, they’re very versatile and if you tape it down to a firm board it’s similar to blocks.

Fabriano Artistico – Best Sheet Paper

I highly recommend, and use Fabriano Artistico Cold Press. It’s made of 100% cotton fibers and acid-free and pH neutral. The paper comes in hot press, or smooth surface, cold press and rough press which has more texture. I’ll discuss this later on in this article.

Fabriano Artistico can handle heavy washes very well. High quality paper should absorb water and dry quickly, and this does exactly that.

The 140 lb. cold press is more suitable than hot and rough press options unless you are doing very detailed work. In this case hot press would be a better choice. With cold press you get the lovely texture plus it can handle some smaller details as well.

Additionally, opt for full sheets which measure 22″ x 30″. This way you can reduce them to quarter size sheets which measure 11″ x 15″.

Buy Fabriano Artistico at Blicks

Buy Fabriano Artistico at Amazon

Fabriano Artistico Bright White – Best block paper

Maybe you prefer blocks over single sheets and that’s totally cool. In this case I would stick with Fabriano Artistico block that comes in bright white, 140 lb cold press. It’s offered in various sizes but 12″ x 18″ is ideal for studies and beginner finished art.

There are a total of 20 sheets per block/pad. And use the back as well. Many students only use one side of paper and miss out on the other side. After-all, you will probably invest most of your time doing studies, exercises and sketches. So, why not use it all and get more mileage out of the paper?

Buy Fabriano Artistico Blocks at Amazon

Buy Fabriano Artistico Blocks at Blicks

Fabriano Studio Watercolor Paper – Best Runner Up – Budget Friendly

Fabriano Studio Watercolor Paper cold-press is made with a blend of high quality lignin-free cotton and cellulose. It is acid-free and has internal and external sizing making it ideal for absorbance. Fabriano Studio Watercolor cold press is a blend of high quality lignin free cotton and cellulose. It has both internal and external sizing which makes it extremely absorbent.

It is a fantastic sheet for artists at all skill levels seeking high quality paper at a modest price. It is acid-free and has internal and external sizing, gives Fabriano Studio a good strength to withstand vigorous painting. The quality & value of Fabriano Studio Paper is an exceptional offer, and appropriate for both the beginner and the student of fine arts. With these paper producing techniques it makes this line of paper perfect for watercolor techniques as well as tempera, gouache, acrylic, ink, drawing and markers.

Buy Fabriano Studio Paper at Blicks

Buy Fabriano Studio Paper at Amazon

Fabriano Studio Watercolor Blocks – Runner Up and Budget Friendly

As you can see I’m a fan of the Fabriano brand. They do a great job of producing quality products at affordable prices.

The Fabriano Studio Block is great for painting on location! It’s a professional-quality paper is 100% cotton, acid-free, gelatin-sized and archival, ideal for watercolors artists.

Shop Fabriano Studio Blocks at Blick

Shop Fabriano Studio Blocks at Amazon

Two things you need to know about watercolor paper

1. Paper weight is specified by how much 500 sheets of that paper weighs in lbs. (pounds). The higher the weight, the thicker and more durable the paper. With shopping for high quality watercolor paper, you want to go as heavy as your budget allows. Good watercolor paper for beginners starts with at least 140 lb cold press (CPS). You shouldn’t go any lighter, or really any heavier. It can handle all types of watercolor washes and techniques.
2. One factor that is very important, but often not talked about is sizing. Sizing reduces how much a piece of paper soaks up water allowing you to paint for longer before it buckles which causes your painting to pucker and wrinkle – no fun! Good watercolor paper for beginners should have sizing already built in so that you don’t have to fuss with paper and focus on other more important things like color, values and so on.

What’s The Difference Between Hot, Cold And Rough Press?

• Hot press: this is a smooth surface suitable for very detailed work. It’s also a fav for illustrators that prefer to use ink pens and draw over their watercolor washes. Paint can be more difficult to control with a slick surface which makes this a more challenging paper for beginners.
• Cold press: this has a slightly rough texture to it which makes it easier to control washes. Beginners often find this somewhat difficult and confusing at first. The texture allows the water to move around a bit and will often dry with some random qualities. Again, beginners who try to control the wash too much will fuss over this and typically that will ruin the work.
• Rough press: basically cold press on steroids. It’s suited for very loose work and those watercolorists that really want to push the randomness of the paint. The wet washes will settle into ruts in the paper and often dry unevenly as compared to cold press paper.

My preference is Fabriano Artistico, 140 lb. cold press. I purchase full sheets in bulk and usually reduce them to quarter sheets.

Watercolor Papers To Avoid For Beginners

• Popular papers such as Arches: it’s overpriced and overrated in my opinion. It costs about 20% more than Fabriano Artistico and really doesn’t make any difference in the outcome of your work. Many beginner watercolor artists blame their mistakes on materials but usually it has more to do with their technique, not paper, paint or brushes.
• Student grade papers: it’s made of wood pulp and maybe a little cotton if you’re lucky. The paper just doesn’t respond well to the characteristics of the medium. Plus it dries very slow and will buckle when wet which makes your washes puddle up in random places. This puddling will also cause ballooning, or a cauliflower effect.
• Sketchbooks: they look so cool but really a waste of money. Buy full sheets or blocks to the job and I would personally recommend saving your money and investing it in other things like more paint. Be sure to check out these other articles where I share thoughts on watercolor brushes, and the perfect watercolor setup for beginners.

Ultimate Decision

It really comes down to how you prefer to paint. Blocks are great because they’re lightly sealed, or glued, along the sides which helps reduce buckling. While loose paper would need to be taped to a firm board to help prevent buckling.

My personal choice is Fabriano Artistico, bright white, 140 lb. cold press, full sheets. I find them very flexible and easier to work with because I can reduce them to smaller sizes and have several paintings going at once.

Everyone is a little different so why not try both to see how which you prefer?

One thing for sure both options are suitable watercolor surfaces for beginner and experienced watercolorists. And whatever you decide on please avoid cheap, student grade paper if you have the budget. They just don’t respond the same and can easily cause more frustration in the long run.

Here is our top 10 watercolor supplies used and recommended for all levels.

I hope you enjoyed the article and it helps you decide on which watercolor paper works best for you.