Watercolour Paper and Paint Grade Comparison

[@ciznuk7]

I really love your laid back attitude towards materials...a lot of art channels only recommend horribly expensive paint and paper and pretend it's only possible to create something when using the most expensive stuff...but you are right when you say that even cheap materials allow you to be creative and to have fun. Of course better materials can allow you better results but you still can create art even when you are just a beginner or when you can't afford them. I find your point of view very encouraging especially for beginners.

[@godzandheros]

Who are you watching? All the watercolour channels I started watching when I got into watercolour always would give recommendations at different price points, letting you know which brands have the best performing paint that ranged from cheap to expensive and often had full reviews of the inexpensive paint because it's so requested. Also a lot of them get sent PR of cheaper Amazon brands to try and review.. sooooo idk what you're talking about.

[@ciznuk7]

@@godzandheros idk what you are talking about - there are still quite a few channels that are only recommending expensive supplies. Nevertheless I'm happy you didn't make that experience and by nkw I also found some channels with variety of recommendations.

[@Ladyfirebird84]

I started out with cheap supplies to get a feel for the watercolor experience. I gave up. A few years later I met an artist who talked me into trying again. I purchased expensive supplies. I fell head over heels in love. Paper is most important.

[@JustMeYouSee]

Same with me! I love granulating paint for some things!

[@mojasmine8841]

same for me the best paper and best Sennelier, Old holland and Schmincke Colours

[@SuperCutealien]

@@mojasmine8841I just ordered a set of Schmincke.

[@lauraenuco7219]

Very interesting to see the differences…I’m glad you had a Canson XL paper to show….paper really makes a difference. I love your channel! Thanks for encouraging us to practice…and to be patient with our skill level. You’re the best! Also…I loved your paper comparison video!

[@swat4recon]

EMJ: Great info. Thank you!! Just FYI - Words are hard when we are immersed into the creative side of our brain. Trying to articulate a sentence while in the creative flow really IS hard (and totally relatable) so don’t apologize for being real! Trust me, if someone is speaking flawlessly while painting, it will be apparent that they are not “creating” - they are “producing” intellectually. So stumble away my friend, laugh it off & say “words are hard” and keep going! 🥰

[@madilyndevaney3315]

Thank you for linking everything in the description. Even though I am using cheaper supplies I have deeply enjoyed watercoloring over the last few months. I have learned so much in such a short amount of time from these instructional videos! I have watched a lot of different youtubers on this subject and no one else is quite as clear and direct, and most importantly gracious! My sweet hubby is going to upgrade my materials for me. So excited to experiend good quality supplies. Thank you for all your videos!💜

[@mommyreesa]

I really love your videos and you're so real! As a beginner, I get intimidated right away with tutorials using expensive brands and all but whenever I watch you I feel otherwise. I've been watching your videos for a while now and even binge-watch a couple more and you didn't change even if you've upgraded your paints. At I thank you for that.

[@LisaYoungmpp]

Thank you for doing these comparison videos, Emma! They are very helpful and informative. I would personally consider Canson XL as a Student-grade watercolor paper. I agree that Windsor and Newton Cotman paints are a great choice for people who wants to start a decent watercolor palette before upgrading to professional watercolors. I've enjoyed my Cotman paints for over a year, and I've just started building my Professional watercolors. Thank you for providing a list of the professional paint colors you use most on your Instagram and being a very good color mixing teacher.

[@andreakoronkiewicz6938]

Thank you for doing that final comparison with Canson... Really helpful video!

[@RendaJane]

I do LOVE Beam paints and especially supporting their business. They are great to work with you. They sent me a bonus surprise when I ordered too. They sent a brush I still use a lot and a surprise pan of green! (My favorite)

[@mollypenwhistle7918]

Great video Emma, as always, lovely the way you chat to us, thank you xx

[@webpig711]

My inner scientist screams when test is performed by changing more than one parameter at a time, but in spite of that a very interesting and informative video. Thank you, Emma, I really like your tutorials!

[@shirleyupvall9360]

I like your attitude. You are very helpful, I have been following you for 3 years. Thank you

[@macCALICOmac]

Crazy pants!! 😂😂 Thank you for that. Love it. New favourite saying. Thank you for adding the canson experiment too!!

[@joycemiskowitz714]

Thanks emma This was very informative. Love your painting technique.

[@pamelalarson3427]

I use the inexpensive supplies in my crafting paintings for cardmaking. Backgrounds for stamping and diecutting etc. They still look good and I don't feel bad thinking that they are going to eventually end up in someones trash can.

[@RendaJane]

Hopefully recycling bin at worst.

[@michelesantos1585]

Very informative! Really enjoy watching your videos for all the good tips. It really helps us to improve and even find our passion on watercolor painting. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@jennepherg5]

Im a beginner and just purchased a palette from mungyo and omg such a huge difference from my cheap palette! Also I’ve followed your pointers on paper and paints. Paper does make a huge difference!!! Thank you so much for these amazing videos, you’ve taught me (and my little ones who love to color with momma😍) sooo much!! Your an amazing artist

[@RendaJane]

I love me some Emma Jane tutorials 💙💙💙💙💙💙🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@melissachurchill8256]

I’ve been debating whether to upgrade my paints/paper for ages and this has definitely shown me that upgrading my paper is way more important than upgrading my paints! Thank you so much for this Emma - so so helpful to have a proper comparison! Think this was just the push I needed to invest but in the right areas of my supplies!

[@anijol76]

For me, trying cotton paper was very important. I was getting very frustrated because I couldn't get those bleeds I saw everywhere. And nobody explained to me that paper was so important for that. So, thank you Emma for explaining it.

[@samanthaquant7411]

My husband gifted me with a set of the professional tubes W&N, and I do love them even though I’m a beginner.

[@yomamma7982]

Thank you 🙏 great video! Nice to see your personality show through!

[@woodywood1951]

Agree with you: paper is THE most important ingredient! The paint is the second one. SInce good paper is VERY expensive, I practice on CANSON XL and I paint on ARCHES. Thanks for your time!

[@jenniefiedler9854]

Remember all the hard work, dedication and determination required to achieve what you have so far. Congratulations! 👍

[@amandastratton8242]

good information Emma on the paint and paper thank you for sharing it with us

[@Linda-td5si]

Thank you, Emma! A very helpful comparison tutorial! I am looking forward to trying out some of the 50% cotton paper.💚🌿🌟

[@godzandheros]

The Cotmans take longer to activate because of the binder to pigment ratio. I've learned that from the professional paints that have more binder than pigment in them because they contain a hella expensive pigment, like Lapis Lazuli for instance.

[@monica-NJ-123]

Thank you Emma , that was so informative , I’m going to put this to the test by using my Windsor Newton paper xoxo

[@elizumba]

Great info, as always. I just upgraded from cheap paints and brushes to student grade Windsor Newton and Princeton Snap and can def tell a difference. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and talents with us, Emma!☀️🌺

[@debbiesheehan8681]

Hi Emma - Can you talk or write about the difference between cold pressed and hot pressed for a beginner ? Thanks! Love everything you create!

[@Deedster56]

Excellent video, Emma! You managed to cover all the bases in your inimitable fun way. These are important steps/facts and you did a wonderful job of explaining the difference the use of materials can make in watercolour. I love my Arches too, but I tend to want to ‘save’ it (don’t ask me for what LOL). The Paul Rubens 50% cotton seems like a great ‘practice’ paper and I’m going to try the 100% cotton as well. Thanks for your videos, Emma ❤️

[@EPMunzert]

This was fabulously helpful. Thank you so much.

[@AmyGChicago]

Excellent video… I followed you from the beginning of my journey and agree with everything you said on this comparison.

[@lynnrush7166]

I personally prefer Strathmore 400 paper over Canson XL. It’s still cellulose and thus inexpensive, but has a little more texture and seems to dry a little more evenly. Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us. ❤️🇨🇦❤️

[@Brvfan2012]

I’m still at student grade paints, but the good good paper has made a world of difference. Next step is professional paints…..after I have progressed a little further with my painting..Ha can’t wait

[@Brvfan2012]

PS. I thought I was using too much water but the cheap paper wasn’t allowing the water to absorb into the paper so all I had was cauliflowers and hard lines. Buy the best paper you can afford. Makes all the difference

[@carolinecarvalho9479]

Omg, loved this video, thank you

[@lunaazul5244]

This was super helpful!!!! Thank you so much!!! 💕

[@isabellechauveau7267]

The both are amazing, just a little more pigments in the professionals.but you paint so well that it 's always nice .

[@carollycett1329]

Absolutely Emma very interesting I’ve got the Cotman Studio includes 2 artist colours 37 colours in total half pans set

[@godzandheros]

I hate to be that person, but my favourite version of this painting is on the Canson paper BECAUSE of those back washes and light bits created from the pooling. It looks so, so good and way more interesting than the others 🤗 also why I prefer cellulose paper to cotton 90% of the time lmao

[@penneynoss9552]

Thank you, this was a great help.☺️

[@mlastorga2678]

Super clear! Tks 🖌🎨

[@dreenyan]

Me: OMG EMMA, CHILL, why are you talking so freaking fast all of a sudden??? Also me: accidentally hit a key on my keyboard that set the video to 1.25x T____T Love this kind of video by the way! I'm still fairly new to watercolor painting (but am in absolute love with it) and it helps SOOOOO much to see the impact that proper material has on one's paintings...

[@valasafantastic1055]

Paper matters most depending on style and technique I agree. Spend the most on paper actually. Lightfastness is primarily based on pigment not grade of paint. Some colours in full art grade are NOT lightfast. The pigment matters most for lightfastness. Spray paint with a mister a couple of minutes before painting to 'prime' them before painting. Especially with the cotmans. Many full art grade windsor and newton paints are not intended to be dried in apallet and may have long term rewetting issues if you do pallet artist grade windsor and newton mist them extra. I only have the green gold for W+N artists and it re-wets for me perfectly fine. This re-wetability varies by colour and pigment. Cotmans have tons of annoying binder. I'd recommend, Van gough which I consider full art grade. BUT see whats available locally or where you live for a reasonable price as this varies. I use mixed media not only watercolours so the way I prefer to paint often allows use of cheaper papers. I've trained for years to struggle against cheap paper and invent painting and mixed media techniques to be able too use cheap paper! Ex: ?Large dollar store makeup brushes. However for more full traditional watercolours great paper is a must.

[@jennyyeh4730]

White nights paints a good budget option !

[@cindyp.9030]

This was a big help showing the difference between the papers. I started out with the Windsor/Newton Pocket Sketchers pallet and love it. My biggest issue has been with paper. Currently I am having trouble getting watercolor paper where I live, even the cheaper stuff. But I find the Mixed Media paper everywhere, do you know anything about this paper, it says you can use it for watercolor? I was thinking that maybe I could just use that for practicing on and save my watercolor paper for when I do an actual painting. I know you can order better paper online but sometimes the price is more than my budget can handle. Any information or suggestions would be helpful. Thank you for the great information.

[@mindsQuill]

Such a lovely video Emma! I am now very curious as to how the artist loft paints would work on the paul rubens 50% cotton paper! 😁

[@AlienBunnyRabbit]

I've been thinking of buying 5 Daniel Smith colors (primary and a black and a brown). I'm still a student, but I'd still like them. I've been using Cotman since January of this year.

[@majo77]

I'd suggest you change the black and white for a nice purple and Payne's gray. In my experience you hardly ever use black and white is not necessary in watercolor painting

[@AlienBunnyRabbit]

@@majo77 oh yeah Paynes Grey was my go to with my Cotman paints, I just tend to call it a black.

[@majo77]

@@AlienBunnyRabbit and it's so much prettier than black, that bluish tint makes all the difference.

[@lizzy9975]

@@majo77 I agree. I dont think I've ever used the black. And I would go a paynes grey any day of the week. I have white gouche. A way better choice.

[@OldVillagePaint]

Is there a ultra violet inhibitor spray to protect the Colour for watercolors?

[@EmmaLefebvre]

I’m not sure

[@lynnrush7166]

Krylon makes one. I have not tested if it works well. The best way to keep your painting from fading is to do some research on the pigments used in the paint. Then purchase the most lightfast ones in any brand. KZbin has lots of videos on this topic also.

[@macCALICOmac]

Cotman are lightfast. You can confidently sell work done with Cotman. X (or so w&n say)

[@demsmustgo]

I’ve always heard that the paper is most important, then paint, and I agree, brushes…totally a personal choice. My cheapest brushes are some of my favorites and nearly all the very expensive ones stand there and look pretty. I go back to them occasionally thinking that maybe they’ll seem better now that I have more experience. Nope!

[@virginiabaer1110]

Love your videos 👍😍. What are your palettes called?? I like your type of palette better than the ones I’ve seen, thank you.

[@paulinedavis3660]

Hi Emma I managed to get a set of Princeton snap brushes from Amazon UK for just £15 very reasonable 😀x

[@Vika0885]

This is a great video! I was wondering whether you can comment on cellulose paper, such as Canson Montval?. I’m brand new to watercolor and i started with Canson Montval paper and I somehow find it hard to do nice bleeds on it.

[@LulluNatic]

This paper is terrible. You won't be able to do any layering, it won't bleed and you'll end with blotches everywhere because the water sits on top of the paper and dries fast.

[@EmmaLefebvre]

Yeah, it’s not great. Better for practice strokes

[@Vika0885]

@@LulluNatic omg you describe exactly the issues I’ve have experienced. Thank you for your comment!

[@Vika0885]

@@EmmaLefebvre Thank you for your feedback! I’m definitely going to look for an alternative for actual paints and keep the Canson paper for strokes and drills only. Btw, i love your videos! You explain everything so clearly and they’re fun to watch. They definitely keep me wanting to paint everyday ♥️

[@LulluNatic]

@@Vika0885 Yes, because I've been there, used that paper 😅 100% cotton cold press is way easier to use and you'll get the true experiment of watercolor. (Hope I'm making myself clear as I am not a native speaker, just a poor French 😉)

[@WoodlandApothecary]

Can you layer acrylic paint on top of watercolor for accents?

[@majo77]

Yep, especially white gouache/acrylic paint are great for that

[@WoodlandApothecary]

@@majo77 Thanks!

[@godzandheros]

For anyone who comes across this video PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE _DO NOT_ get the cheapest watercolours she recommends. Yeah, she says they can still create beautiful art and I don't doubt that *but these types of paints do not perform in the way watercolour is supposed to* and could potentially turn you off from watercolour all together because they will be working against you, instead of with you. Just do yourself a favour and spend the little extra on the W&N Cotman 12 pan field box, White Nights 12 set, or any of the Kuratake Gansai sets, it'll make the experience SO MUCH BETTER. I promise you.

[@macCALICOmac]

Ahhhh forgot how nice the Princeton snaps were.

[@kimmiewilk7665]

What do you soft brushes on? What do you use the springy, firm brushes on?

[@EmmaLefebvre]

It’s just a preference of what you like to use

[@anstykarkada]

hi. nice video. just an off topic qt, why are your nails dark colored?

[@DavZell]

If you revisit this, changing paints AND paper makes it difficult to compare, so doing comparisons like the last Canson-to-Rubens-50% is better. What would be great would be to divide a page of each type of paper into thirds and paint with each of the three paint types in them. You'll end up with 9 sample sample areas to comment on.

[@brittanybowmaster6503]

I would love to see this too !

[@madisonmastroianni2498]

Does anyone know where i can get princeton snap brushes or heritage brushes in australia? :)

[@sunitadsilva5070]

Really learnt something from this ....I too would like to get Windsor and Newton paints, but they are very expensive in India. Hoping I win some giveaway . Thanks Emma

[@hand_art]

ممكن فتح ميزه الترجمة العربية؟

[@andreatorraca8755]

Tks E

[@askialuna7717]

I think it is relatively difficult to find a good cheap paper in this huge selection of cheap papers that exists. I can understand that many people skip this price category and prefer to take something more expensive, higher quality and also recommend it to beginners. The Canson XL is not my teacup either, because of the cauliflower effect that forms on it and this very regular grid-like structure that is unfortunately often found on cheap watercolor papers. I'm still looking for a cheap, high-quality paper that is also available internationally. Which I can recommend to beginners on KZbin and so on. I have a good cheap paper that I like to use, but it is from a European wholesaler and that doesn't bring much for people outside Europe either. That's why I often recommend paper from the student grade category price-performance ok but not very cheap. So that they can practice at least often and not only rarely so that the expensive block lasts longer. I also find it difficult to switch from a paper on which the color behaves very differently to another paper, I can't adapt to that right away. That's why I don't find it ideal to practice on cheap paper and to paint on expensive paper. It is also important that the materials are easy to handle for a beginner, so that there are more feelings of achievement than when fighting the material. Or start with other hybrid material first so that they can slowly feel their way. I found it difficult to control the amount of moisture and the paints were very runny, either deserted or flooded, I couldn't manage anything else. It shouldn't have been the quality, I started with a Schmincke Academy Student grade box. The watercolor box that I had was then unused in the drawer for a few years and if I hadn't even received watercolor pencils as a gift with which I could practice water and paint separately, it would lie there for a few years longer.

[@deniseb2571]

Very helpful. Just curious, if it's 50% cotton, what is the other 50%? 🤷

[@elizumba]

If I’m not mistaken, I believe the other 50% is cellulose.

[@fionabromby4546]

Pulp

[@stephanieeggen5425]

Is there an Amazon link for Wonder Forest brushes linked to you?

[@lizzy9975]

I purchased my set directly of Wonder Forests website.

[@stephanieeggen5425]

Thank you. I really enjoy your site. I finally treated myself to some 100% cotton paper. I was thrilled with the results.

[@OldVillagePaint]

Colour retention

[@mommyreesa]

Call me weird but I love seeing dirty palettes. 🤪 *Dirty meaning messed up with mixes of paint.

[@DeniseBrooks1955]

👏🏼👏🏼

[@OldVillagePaint]

I’m not sure the length of activation would be something I’d even notice…. Lol

[@LulluNatic]

Are you feeling better? Don't know when this video was shot.

[@EmmaLefebvre]

Yes :) thank you

[@LulluNatic]

@@EmmaLefebvre That's great news Emma, glad to read this.

[@jacquelinehardouin9771]

Hello

[@kayecurren3342]

Cheap never looked so good.

[@ladyt1277]

Wow. I wish you had done some research on pigments and lightfast ratings before you spoke about it. You're merely stating your opinion, not fact. Lightfastness has to do with the pigment, not student versus professional. Opera Rose has a very low lightfast rating even though it's mostly found as a professional color. Professional quality Alizarin Crimson has a lower lightfast rating than professional quality Permanent Alizarin Crimson. Also, even in professional quality paints, you will find some pigments harder to re-wet than others. Student quality paints have a lower pigment load than the professionals. More binder and less pigment equals cheaper price. Those people who gifted you the WN paints went to another brand for a reason. And, my opinion of WN is that it's not top quality, even in their professional line. I gave my WN tubes away too. Best decision. Daniel Smith, Holbein, Schminke, and PWC are by far better in my opinion.

[@kayecurren3342]

We like you weird.