Product Review: Liz Steel reviews Schmincke watercolour paints

If you like Schmincke watercolour paints - or have always wondered about trying them out - you should definitely take a look at Liz Steel's unique review - in her sketchbook journal - of the Schmincke paints she took to Europe this summer - see her post 110906 Schmincke Set review

Liz Steel Reviews her Schminke set - September 2011
copyright liz Steel - used with her permission

You can see a larger version of this review in her journal in her Flickr account

If you've done a review of a product send me an email containing a link to your review blog post

Caran d'Ache NEOART Pastels

I came across Caran d'Ache NEOART Aquarelle Pastels for the first time at Patchings recently. Always a sucker for a big wooden box full of juicy colours I took a photo!

Caran d'Ache NEOART Aquarelle Pastels
The finest wax pastels

...and then started to try and find out a bit more about them to see if they're likely to be something I want to investigate further.  (I've got to that point where any new product needs to earn its place in my home).

I particularly wanted to know what was the difference between these bigger NEOART pastels and the smaller Neocolour II pastels.

This post provides links to:

• the Caran d'Ache product pages for Neoart Aquarelle Pastels
• explains the difference between NEOART and Neocolor II
• comments by bloggers and people participating in forums

Caran d'Ache NEOART Aquarelle Pastels


This is how Caran d'Ache describe them

NEOART™ Aquarelle
Pastel of large diametre recommended for works on big surfaces
Bright and semi-opaque colours
Very high pigment concentration

Now - these are:

• NOT dry media (ie soft or hard pastels as we normally think of them)
• NOT another name for Caran D'Ache Neocolor II wax-based water-soluble pastels used by a lot of artists for underpaintings

Both NEOART and Neocolor II are water-soluble wax pastels - but

• Do they work in the same way?
• What, if any, are the differences?

These tables summarise their characteristics.  They persuade me that those using Neocolour II for underpaintings would do well to check out their favourite colours in the NEOART pastels

NEOART AQUARELLE

Water-soluble wax pastel

Artist / Professional Grade

Very high pigment concentration - provides exceptional purity and intensity

Excellent Lightfastness

Strong, bright semi-opaque colours (60 in total) - available in sets and individually

dry or wet drawing on all supports

techniques: watercolouring, washes, scraping back (Scraffito)

Large diameter (width of large marker pen)

Brochure (PDF) Colour Chart - PDF

Neocolor II

Water-soluble wax pastel

Hobby Artist Grade

High pigment concentration for bright and opaque colours

excellent lightfastness

exceptional covering power

dry or wet drawing on all materials

widest range of colours for water-soluble pastels on the market

normal pencil stick breadth

Brochure - PDF

Colour Chart - PDF

Product Reviews by artists online

This is what I could find from artists commenting online

• Neoart Watersoluble Wax Pastels- Charts is a long post by an artist participating in the Water Media Forum of Wet Canvas.  She's done a good overview of the colours

A big difference to the artist between the two is the size and hardness. The Neoart pastels are harder and seem a bit waxier than the neocolors. Since they come in a large size, they are a bit more awkward to hold in the hand, and the ends are blunt, not sharpened, so control can be a bit more difficult to achieve with them.

• Kelly Kilmer is a mixed media artist/tutor and major fan of NEOART Pastels.  She describes them as "must have supplies" and she ships and repackages them for her students

Caran d'ache Neo Art Watersoluble Wax Pastels (NOT oil based at all, these are big chunky crayons) I Love these to add color "here and there" on a page. I mostly use them dry with a heavy hand and "rub" them into the page using an old rag. Yet, since they are watersoluble anything "wet" will move them around. I have two sets of the 60 colors (one for me, one for classes) and these puppies last a LONG time. I dumped them out of the box and put them in a bag and they're not so "precious" once you do that ;)

• Jolene in Orange County, California shows us what you can do with them in a 2007 post Caran d' Ache 

After everything was dry I started coloring with the wax pastels. I smooshed them around with my fingers and rubbed them with an old rag. Then I grabbed the first sharp object I found on my art table (a needle I use for bookbinding) and I began to scratch into the pastels. And oh how I loved the effect I was able to achieve! 

UK Supplies

In the UK it appears that you can order sets from Jacksons Art.  The stall that brought them to Patchings was Caran d'Ache working with Gadsbys of Leicester

Jonathan Linton's Review of the lightfastness of White Oil Paint

Jonathan Linton (Theory and Practice) has published images of the results of his comprehensive test of various white paints - oils and alkyds - in The White Test. . . 5 Years in the Making 

These are the white paints he tested

Winsor & Newton (Artist Oil Colors)
    Titanium White  37 ml
     Zinc White  37ml
     Flake White #1  37 ml
     Foundation White  37 ml
     Cremnitz White  37 ml
     Transparent White  120 ml
Winsor & Newton (Griffin Alkyd)
    Titanium White  37 ml
     Mixed White  37 ml
Gamblin (Artist Oil Colors)
    Titanium White  37 ml
     Radiant White  37 ml
     Titanium Zinc White  37 ml
     Zinc White  37 ml
     Quick Dry White  37 ml
     Flake White Replacement  37 ml
     Flake White  37 ml
Grumbacher (Artist Oil Colors Pretested)
    Titanium White (soft form)  1.25 fl. oz.
     Titanium White (original form)  1.25 fl. oz.
     Zinc White  37 ml
     Flake White  37 ml
Holbein (Extra Fine Artist Oil Colors)
     Ceramic White  50 ml
     Zinc White  50 ml
Lukas 1862 (Finest Artist Oil Colors)
     Opaque White  37 ml
     Zinc White  37 ml
     Titanium White  37 ml
Old Holland (Classic Oil Colors)
     Mixed White #2 (zinc & titanium)  40 ml
     Titanium White  40 ml
     Cremnitz White  40 ml
     Flake White #1 Cremnitz & Zinc  40 ml
Vasari  (Classic Artist Oil Color)
     Titanium Zinc White  40 ml
     Zinc White  40 ml
     Titanium White  40 ml
Permalba (Artist Oil Color)
     Original White  150 ml
     Zinc White  37 ml
     Titanium White  37 ml
     Iridescent White  37 ml
Chroma (Archival Permanently Flexible Artists Oils)
     Titanium White  40 ml
Chroma (Professional Artists Oils)
     Tinting White (Pearl/Titanium)  40 ml
C.A.S. Alkyd Pro
     White Luster  70 ml
     Titanium White  70 ml
Rembrandt (Extra Fine Oil Colors)
     Transparent White  40 ml

His colour charts group paint by type (eg Titanium, Zinc, Flake etc) and then go on to demonstrate

• how the white behaves when painted over a black stripe ie what is its covering power; how opaque or transparent is the paint and how does it behave when used as a glaze
• what it's like when mixed with black
• what colour the paint is after five years - in both solid form and brushed out

I give you the results of this expanded White Test (or Off-White Test, as it is known in-house.) 

The charts demonstrate which remain the same and which change - and, if they change whether they have a tendency to go towards orange or yellow.

A small sample of Jonathan Linton's colour charts for white oil paint

His charts when clicked produce large images and it's very easy to read which paint is which.

He then produces a ranked list for

• those which remained white, 
• those which practically turned orange and 
• those which had a distinct lemon yellow tint.

This is definitely a RECOMMENDED READ for all painters. Do also make sure you read the comments as they contain interesting discussions about different paints and indicate what he's now planning for the next tests!

The Best Art Business Books

I've produced a new "resources for artists" information website called The Best Art Business Books. Many thanks to all those who are already tweeting it and 'liking' it on Facebook!

Why did I create this new site. Well - as I've indicated before (Making A Mark - Amazon assigns ludicrous categories to Art Books 11 May 2010) it's sometimes really, really difficult to find the book you're looking for on a topic you're interested in on Amazon because of the way they are categorised and tagged - sometimes with very odd labels.

What I've also noticed is that there has been a fair few new books relating to the art business which may be of interest to artists - if they ever came across them!

So what this new site aims to do is provide a curated collection of the what appear to be the better books on Amazon which are about the art business and the business of being an artist or illustrator.

I've tried to sort books into appropriate categories and these relate to artists, illustrators, people selling in galleries and in less traditional venues, those setting up galleries and those who collect art!

• Do you want to learn more about the business of being an artist?
• Looking to improve your marketing of your art - and your sales?
  
• Want to make the jump to full-time artist or illustrator but not sure what you don't know that you need to know?
  
• Thinking about setting up and art gallery and looking for tips?
• Need a form for an art business transaction?
• Seeking legal advice on some aspect of the art business?
  
• Starting to collect art and wondering whether there's a book that can help?
  

If any of the above apply then The Best Art Business Books has a book which can help you.

This selection of books about the business of fine art and illustration are a combination of my own personal recommendations, recommendations by artists and art bloggers I know and rate highly and books which have achieved a high rating on Amazon.

These are the topics which it covers.

You can find out about......
click a link to go straight to the topic

• BOOKS: Making a living as an artist
• Book Reviews by Art Bloggers #1
• BOOKS: Marketing and Selling Fine Art
• BOOKS: Fine Art Business Forms
• BOOKS: The Illustration and graphic art business
• Selling Art Online
• BOOKS: The Art World Business
• BOOKS: Running an Art Gallery
• BOOKS: Buying and Collecting Art
• The Art Economy, Art Law & Copyright
• BOOKS: Law and copyright in the Art Business
• BOOKS: Art and Copyright on the Internet
• Comments and Suggestions

This is still a work in progress as I add in links to artists and illustrators who have blogs and posted a review of art business books they have read.

Can you help?

I'd be interested in your impressions and suggestions for how it could be improved.

Two questions for you:

• Do you have a favourite book about the art business which you have found helpful?
• Do you have a book about the business of being an artist which you have reviewed on your blog?

Product review: Jakar Electric Pencil Sharpener

Product: Jakar Electric Pencil Sharpener - Model 5151(V-8)

Summary: a very efficient and effective pencil sharpener which can, with care, be used with coloured pencils. Needs to be fed pure graphite sticks periodically to be kept really happy. It works well with all brands of pencil. I find the oil based brands achieve the best points.

Technical Details: 3.3" x 4.3" x 6.5" big and heavy (for domestic use only) weighs 2.5lb or 1.1kg

Who should buy this?: Dedicated pencil artists and anybody else requiring a sharpener which produces a very sharp point time and time again.

Who should not buy this? Hobby artists who've not yet decided whether or not they want to pursue pencil art - simply because although it's invaluable to the pencil artist, it is also expensive as well. Wait until you've got the pencil bug - and then it's a good investment.

Highlights: features a helical cutter - the best cutter available for getting long needle sharp points the helical cutter blade can be replaced thermal cut out preserves the motor large shavings drawer - easy to access and remove extremely useful for people with hand injuries or arthritis type disabilities as it means there is no need to twist or compress as normally occurs in hand sharpening action safety precaution - it does not operate when the shavings receptacle is removed as this exposes the cutting blades

Think Again? it's very large and heavy and is not easily portable mains-powered hence not as green as hand sharpeners - and you've got no sharpener in a power cut! always manages to cut out just before you you start to sharpen the pencil you need to use right now! use with care or else you'll be shaving all your pencils away

Manufacturer / Distributor: Jakar Jakar International Ltd Hillside House 2-6 Friern Park London N12 9BX Tel: 0208 445 6376 Fax: 0208 445 2714 Email: info@jakar.co.uk

Suppliers: Available from: Artifolk and art fairs and some B&M art shops (but not often found on the hight street)

I bought my very first Jakar electric pencil sharpener in 2004 for £25.99. When I was in hospital having a major operation in 2005, I missed it so much that I asked "he who must not be bored while I sketch" to bring it in so I could carry on drawing through my recovery! The consultant was greatly intrigued!

This sharpener got a real "power user" battering from me over the course of three years and started to have problems no matter how many graphite pencils I fed it!

In 2007 I started to get worried about not being able to find a new one as I very rarely saw it in shops and I was also very concerned about the cost of postage for such a heavy item. So while at the Art Materials Fair at the NEC I took the opportunity to buy two more for £26.95 each. One of these has been battered and I'm now using the second.

What I didn't realise for a long time is it's possible to buy the helical sharpening blades separately. I can find this sharpener for sale on the internet at Artifolk. They also sell the Jakar Spare Cutter Blade for Electric and Large Desktop Sharpeners

How it works

This sharpener has a helical cutter (not a blade cutter). This is much more effective than a blade and produces excellent long needle points on coloured pencils (see right) and the finest wood shavings you've ever seen. The results in part depend on the brand of pencil you are sharpening. My personal view is that the oil based brands (Faber Castell Polychromos and Lyra Rembrandt) achieve the best results in terms of points.

Once you get this sharpener you'll discover an urgent need to sharpen your entire pencil collection as you marvel at the points it can achieve!

You can see mine on the right after my first encounter with this sharpener.

This is also when you discover that it has a thermal cut-out feature. This cuts in (and stops the sharpener)if you start to overload it by sharpening too many pencils one after the other. The sharpener also refuses to sharpen when the shavings box is full.

The box now says it's suitable for use with good quality coloured pencils of up to 8mm thickness whereas previously it used to say it couldn't be used with coloured pencils. It's probably still the case that it always benefits hugely from being fed a stick of graphite on a regular basis. This cleans and lubricates the cutter area which can get clogged up with waxy pencils.

The only drawback with this sharpener is that it can gobble pencils if you're not careful. On the other hand it cuts pencils much more effectively and consequently puts less strain on the pencil and they are less likely to break or contort in the sharpener.

Recommendation: I highly recommend the Jakar mains powered pencil sharpener with the helical cutter blade. My recommendation is guided by three facts - I like sharp points and I've got tenosynovitis which limits my capacity for hand sharpening. It also may seem expensive but the reality is that one of these lasts far longer than other sharpeners for artists who are need a sharpener which can cope with heavy duty pencil sharpening.

I've commented previously on pencil sharpeners on Making A Mark - but most are old posts. This week and next I'm going to do a series of posts about pencil sharpeners of different types and brands. If you've written a post about pencil sharpeners do let me know.

Links: Art Equipment - Resources for Artists: Pencil Sharpeners

Art Equipment - Resources for Artists

This site is for visual artists. It provides links to: items of art equipment and tools recommended ways of putting together toolkits and recommendations for equipment for working in the studio or plein air

Roz Stendahl tests Stonehenge Paper

Roz Stendahl (Roz Wound Up) has been testing Stonehenge Paper. This post links to her various blog posts this year on this topic.

The colours of Stonehenge Paper

As a preamble I'd like to emphasise that although it is used by artists for a variety of purposes, Stonehenge is actually a printing paper. Consequently it can't be expected to behave in the same way as, for example, a specialist drawing paper or watercolour paper. It's technical specification (sizing etc) is designed for getting the best results when using fine art printing methods. Nevertheless it is used by artists for artwork other than fine art printmaking as the reviews cited by Legion Paper indicate.

I've extracted some comments to give you a flavour of Roz's views. However each post is a detailed review and I really do RECOMMEND a proper read of each post if you use this paper or are interested in this paper. You can also click the images in each post and see a bigger image of the tests done.

Bear in mind that Roz's aim in doing these tests was to identify a good quality paper for art journaling which was readily accessible and which her students could use in a variety of ways.

Stonehenge Paper: A Test in which Roz sets out her objectives and why she is testing Stonehenge.

Historically I have not been fond of this paper. A friend even made me a button featuring my distaste. But I'm eager to find something workable for students just getting into visual journaling who don't want to spend $5 or more for a sheet or paper..............Several friends who work with graphite, however, love this paper and are always singing its praises. Printmaking friends tell me how much they love this paper.

Bell Museum Sketch Out: Part 2—and Some Thoughts on Stonehenge Paper in which Roz conducts various tests and comments on its use in a variety of different ways

I know this is a well-loved paper. Keep in mind that my comments are meant to alert you to characteristics of this paper that may matter to you in the way you bind books or work in your visual journal. Something that I find might be a negative characteristic might be just the characteristic you're seeking.

More Thoughts on Stonehenge Paper

In general I find watercolors, gouache, and acrylic to look flatter on this paper than on other printmaking papers I've painted on. Flatness of color is to be expected on a printmaking paper when using watercolor inks as the paper isn't sized to hold the ink floating in the sizing like a watercolor paper.

Stonehenge Paper: More Tests—A Deal Breaker

These two results: the soft paper taking an impression of what should be only light lines, and the rubbing off of non-smudgeable media such as ink on the previous pages are DEAL BREAKERS for me.

For me, the dissatifactions of working on this paper, even with simple work-arounds and adaptations to approach given a specific medium, leave me uninterested in working with this paper in my visual journals at this time. I'll give it another try in 5 to 10 years! This also means I won't be using it in my classes, even though it is so affordably priced. While I want to find my students "deals" on materials, my first priority is always to provide a successful experience.

Stonehenge Paper: More Tests—Colored Pencil in which Roz conducts a number of tests involving different brands of coloured pencils. Roz teaches students in journaling classes how to use coloured pencils. She comments on the response of different brands and you can see several examples of the tests she did

I found that the paper was resistant to blending and it was no fun to push the pencil around on this paper. I use light pressure and even with light pressure I found it difficult to cover change of direction of previous strokes, and in the areas that I worked for full coverage (negative space beneath the dog) pilling and slickness quickly appeared (something I don't like in my colored pencil drawings.) The paper had little ability to hold the light layers I like to use to build up my colored pencil drawings.

Stonehenge Paper: More Tests—Concluded in which Roz comments on the suitability of this paper for use in handmade art journals and comments on alternatives

if you want to work with heavy layers of gouache in a fairly dry-brush mode, Stonehenge is heavy enough and strong enough to stand up to that. Too much water and things take forever to dry. Too little coverage and you'll see splotches and pilling that may not please you...

I'm sure you will agree that Roz gave Stonehenge a thorough 'going over'. It's not her paper of choice for journaling however that doesn't mean to say it's not a jolly good paper when used for other purposes.
___________________

This blog is not dedicated to my own product reviews - it's about widening our collective knowledge of what's out there!

I'd be very interested to know about posts by anybody else who has been product testing. Do let me know if you think you've done posts on your blog which you think I might be interested in.

Product Feedback: Winsor & Newton sketchbooks

If you're ever dissatisfied with a sketchbook it's always worthwhile letting the manufacturer know exactly what you think, especially if you are a watercolourist. A lot of people who sketch don't only use light watercolour washes. A number want to produce proper watercolours and will always need a paper that will cope with this.

Check out out what happened to Sue Smith (Sue's Sketch Blog) - see Sketchbooks - when she tried to buy a Winsor & Newton sketchbook which had paper heavy enough for proper watercolour washes and what happened next.

• Sue was after more supplies of her favourite Winsor & Newton White Paper Hard Back Sketch Books - 170gsm with a blue cover
  
• she could only find a White Paper Hard Back Sketch Books –110gsm (with a black cover) in her local art shop. The product guidelines indicate that this is suitable for use with pencil, pen and ink and light water colour washes - so this is, of course, not suitable for somebody who wants to do proper watercolours
  
• Her local art shop advised her that the sketchbooks with the heavier weight paper were still made (now with a black cover) but need to be ordered - so that's what Sue did
• When the new sketchbooks arrived she found that the paper was completely different
  

I collected my new books expecting them to be the same quality as the blue covered ones I have used for years, so was sadly disappointed to find that they were not. The paper did not respond well to wet in wet watercolour or heavy washes, the surface breaking up and going fluffy.
Sue Smith - Sketchbooks

• I checked the website description of the product she had been been supplied with and it states that These heavy weight paper sketch books are suitable for pencil, pen and ink and light water colour washes. Basically exactly the same as the 110gsm sketchbook!
  
• Sue wrote to Winsor & Newton asking whether they had changed their paper. It turns out they had - and you can read their reply in Sue's blog post Sketchbooks.
• Winsor & Newton also sent her one of their Luxury Artists’ Water Colour Sketch Book as a gesture of goodwill (see right to see what this looks like)
  

Paper changes

Winsor & Newton, like a number of other art material manufacturers are faced all the time with changes in their supplies of paper.

Sadly, that's just a fact of life. Paper mills have been going out of business for a long time now. Life becomes very difficult for art materials manufacturers because their view is that the art paper market is extremely price sensitive. Obviously they only want to design products they feel confident they can sell.

It makes for some very difficult decision-making - and it's an area where manufacturers could do with more input from their customers!

It's very important therefore that artists let manufacturers know when they really like their products and also when they don't. Are you really price sensitive - or do you just want a good quality product that does the job?

A Luxury Sketchbook and woodfree paper

This Luxury watercolour sketchbook is described as having woodfree paper.

The Woodfree fibres used in manufacture ensure the paper is 100% acid free, increasing the longevity of your paintings.

This means it's actually NOT the same as the best watercolour paper. It struck me as very odd that a sketchbook which is described as luxury should not use the best watercolour paper.

For the record the best watercolour paper is made from 100% cotton fibre (eg Arches Watercolour paper) or a mixture of cotton and linen (eg the Royal Watercolour Society Watercolour paper)

How to find and buy a Winsor & Newton Luxury Artist's Watercolour Sketchbook

I've never ever seen these luxury sketchbooks in any of the art shops that I frequent in London. (If you want the best try looking at Cornelissen's supply of watercolour sketchbooks and sketchpads)

So I decided to try and find out where it was possible to buy them and I did a search on the Internet. Some of the biggest online art materials suppliers do not stock them - according to the description used on the Winsor & Newton website. I could only find three small less well known stockists - and one of them was out of stock. However if you try different product descriptions - which I discovered only after 15 minutes of trying different combinations(!) - you can also find them at Heaton Cooper, Ken Bromley and Discount Art - none of which popped up in response to using the W&N description as the search term.

Curiously, these sketchbooks are not even available through Winsor & Newton's own online shop. Which considering it's obviously a very specialist product seems most unusual!

Feedback

Winsor & newton get a thumbs up from me for providing a feedback form on their website. It makes providing feedback very easy.

Conclusions

Quality: I find it really surprising that an art materials manufacturer which is so well known for its artist quality watercolours shouldn't make more of an effort to make sure that a sketchbook described as luxury actually used the best watercolour paper.

Customer satisfaction: Three cheers for Winsor & Newton for providing

• an appropriate response to Sue's experience. She gets to try a suitable sketchbook for free and to make up her own mind what she thinks about the paper and its relative value for money (ie it only contains 15 sheets)
• a way of providing feedback, comments and asking questions on their website.
  

Customer dissatisfaction: Winsor & Newton get a big thumbs down from me in relation to

• the quality of paper used in the 170 gsm sketchbook,
  
• the briefing provided to their suppliers about their products and
  
• distribution arrangements for their ONLY sketchbook which can be used for proper watercolour.

Recommendations

My advice is to have a think about you how can get the best sketchbook for your needs and also influence future product design and pricing by providing feedback to the manufacturer.

For example:

• Think about learning how to make your own sketchbooks from your own favourite watercolour paper. That way, you get to determine the type and quality of the paper you want to use.
  
• Always provide feedback to the manufacturer if you are ever disappointed with a product. Let them know precisely why you are disappointed. If you want a better quality product tell them!
  
• Always provide feedback to your local art shop - they need to know when products aren't doing the job as good suppliers will also provide feedback to manufacturers.
  
• Write about your experience with your sketchbook in your blog. Intelligent art materials manufacturers keep an eye out for what people are saying about their products! I've know completely new products emerge as a result of adverse comments by artists on the Internet! :)
  

Check out my resource site Paper and Non-Canvas Supports - Resources for Artists to find out more about different papers and sketchbooks

Product Review: Moleskine Folio A3 Watercolor Album

Vivien Blackburn (Painting, Prints and Stuff) has reviewed the new large A3 Moleskine - Folio books - REVIEW. Click this link and visit her blog to read her review and see examples of what her work in this new Moleskine Folio Book looks like

Here's an overview of what she had to say.

Product: Moleskine Folio A3 Watercolor Album

Manufacturer / Distributor: Moleskine

Technical Details: The Folio A3 Watercolor Album is bound in cardboard, with a 'moleskine' cover having rounded corners and an elastic enclosure. Size: 11 ¾ x 16 ½ in. (297 x 420 mm) / List price $40.00 The 60 pages of heavy, 200 gsm (25% cotton fiber) cold-pressed paper are thread bound, and the notebook includes an expandable pocket in the back made of cardboard and cloth. Each Moleskine journal has a ribbon placeholder and removable card with the history of Moleskines.

Summary: A new - and expensive - A3 sized product in the Moleskine product line. Designed for sketching in watercolour or fluid media on paper which is 11 ¾ x 16 ½ in (or 11 ¾ x 33" for a double page spread)

Suitable for: Artists who want to sketch using fluid/mixed media in a larger than average sketchbook

Highlights: Paper takes liquid media beautifully and performs well when using watercolour, acrylics, acrylic inks paper does not buckle when using liquid media and will also take a reasonable amount of scratching and working. performs well when using coloured pencil, oil pastel and inktense over or with watercolour/acrylic/acrylic inks. performs well when using Charcoal, Pitt Pastel Pencils, charcoal pencils, Tombo double ended water soluble pens and pencil. (not shown here) paper is OK with watercolour pencils and Derwent Inktense pencils (although these probably work better on hot pressed, smooth paper)

Think Again? An expensive product. The paper is NOT the same as the Moleskine Sketchbooks Only 25% is cotton fibre. Hence the paper is NOT the same as the Moleskine Watercolour Sketchbooks (small and large sizes) (these contain 72 pages of acid-free, 200 gsm, archive-quality (ISO 9706) cotton-fiber paper) Coloured pencil can be used on dry/on its own but other papers will work better There are cheaper alternatives if the paper is the equivalent of cartridge paper.

Suppliers: Moleskine - Moleskine Folio A3 Watercolor Album Item #MS-31977 Amazon - Folio Watercolor Album Notebook Moleskine artist Book