Watercolor paper for glazes, washes and textures

Watercolor paper for painting with water

Watercolor paper works with you as you paint. It absorbs water and pigment, lets colors flow into each other and should buckle as little as possible. That's why it's much heavier and more absorbent than regular drawing paper. Here you'll find watercolor blocks and single sheets in different sizes, weights and surfaces.

How to choose the right watercolor paper

Hot-press, or smooth, paper suits fine details and precise lines. Cold-press paper with a light grain is the versatile standard, while rough paper with a coarse grain brings lively texture to landscapes. The heavier the paper, the more water it can take, and 300 g/m² is a proven weight for wet techniques. Cotton paper is more forgiving and lets you work wet-in-wet for longer, while cellulose paper costs less and is good for practice.

Many watercolor blocks are glued on all four sides. The paper stays taut while you paint, and only once it's dry do you separate the top sheet from the block with a knife. Single sheets give you more freedom in size but should be stretched on a board when you use a lot of water.

• Hot-press, cold-press and rough surfaces
• Weights from about 200 to 300 g/m²
• Watercolor blocks in A4, A3 and other sizes
• Single sheets for custom sizes

Tip: Test new paints and techniques on a scrap of the same paper first. Every type of paper reacts a little differently to water, and you can see in advance how the paint dries.