Cotton Paper Recommendations
Having painted most of my life, on and off, for watercolour I have always used Bockingford which is a pulp paper. Occasionally, these days, I sometimes paint on Jackson's Eco Paper, which is a cotton paper made in India from old tee shirts! I like it for some subjects, but it is a little strange to paint on until you get used to it. Consequently I have adapted my painting techniques to pulp paper, for instance, I frequently " lift out" paint, I believe this is not so easy on cotton paper. I would like to try conventional cotton paper as it seems the majority of members on the forum use it. So could any of you kind people out there recommend a cotton paper, and also any difference in painting techniques/ paint behaviour on the paper. Not too expensive! I'm not only retired, I'm also extremely mean😀
You can’t go wrong with Arches. It’s the gold standard of watercolor paper, but it’s not cheap. If you’re looking for something more economical so you won’t have that “good paper hoarding syndrome.” I strongly recommend Baohong Academy paper. I haven’t found a better value for practice paper. It’s 100% cotton and beats all other paper at the same price point. I’ve also done tests comparing Baohong Academy, Baohong Artist Grade, Arches, Saunders Waterford, Hahnemuhle the Collection, and Strathmore 500, so I can say this with confidence. Full sheets cut down to size are the best value.