J H S
April 29th, 2015, 09:44 PM
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Just as I was thinking about pressing the buy button on a roll of Arches 90hp, I remembered the impulse buy I made some time ago on a cheap roll of 100% cotton rag paper, sold under the name Bee, for a ridiculously low price of $23. The Bee roll (lol) I have on hand is called heavy watercolor paper, it's not, a 90 lb cold press is not heavy.
There are other Bee surfaces to consider as well, but I don't have samples to torture.
The paper also comes in sheet and pad form for those who don't want the hassle of roll paper. By the roll is where the absolute value is though, and cutting it isn't hard....I use a Japanese folding wood saw of 32 teeth per inch, and cut the roll like a log into the page Width that I want. Then, a razor knife or hand-held Logan mat-cutter trims to the length I want. Many times I over cut and then rip with a straight edge to achieve a deckle edge...(hard crease with a bone folder and slobber the crease first for best results.) The rolled paper does have a memory, and it will take time between boards to relax flat...sometimes I mist lightly so as to not disturb the sizing and then dry between felts or non-waxed cardboard panels so the moisture dries out.
Flat paper in pads are likely more user friendly for most.
http://s6.postimg.org/wwdtz15y9/JHS_paper_arches_and_bee_1.jpg
As casual paper for light wash, and pen and ink, I got no complaints. My cold press sample is not smooth like hot press, but the texture is interesting and is slightly different front, from back.
Bee paper does not take the place of Arches 90 hp, but it don't cost a zillion dollars either. The usual suspects carry it, and I call it worthy of a trial to anyone looking for a 100% cotton rag paper that doesn't break the bank.
The whole 'weight of paper' thing seems a shell game to me, designed to drive people insane....the arches 90 hp is more like a cover paper to put in summer bicycle spokes; compared to the prone to flop Bee 90 cp, but they both have their charm.
http://s6.postimg.org/6pcn32noh/JHS_paper_arches90hp_cu.jpg
.
http://s6.postimg.org/49ff2yuzl/JHS_paper_bee90cp_cu.jpg
Sizing issues must also be considered. Ink stands thinly on the stony Arches, while the Bee paper has soft cotton thirst, that drinks a heavy line of ink without feathering.
I've been hunting a cheapish all-round paper, that will serve bold words from my fountain pen, and survive my growing doodle bug habit, while weathering the spit I throw into those special moments that demand a wash.
.
I would like to learn of other casual papers, that I won't feel guilty 'messing up'; there's some brush pens comin, and I got a lot of messin up to do. Not knowing enough to evaluate the 100% cotton of Strathmore 500 series, or Stonehenge, I can only say that for the money, and this is in no way just about money, Bee paper gets my buzz.
Jim
.
Just as I was thinking about pressing the buy button on a roll of Arches 90hp, I remembered the impulse buy I made some time ago on a cheap roll of 100% cotton rag paper, sold under the name Bee, for a ridiculously low price of $23. The Bee roll (lol) I have on hand is called heavy watercolor paper, it's not, a 90 lb cold press is not heavy.
There are other Bee surfaces to consider as well, but I don't have samples to torture.
The paper also comes in sheet and pad form for those who don't want the hassle of roll paper. By the roll is where the absolute value is though, and cutting it isn't hard....I use a Japanese folding wood saw of 32 teeth per inch, and cut the roll like a log into the page Width that I want. Then, a razor knife or hand-held Logan mat-cutter trims to the length I want. Many times I over cut and then rip with a straight edge to achieve a deckle edge...(hard crease with a bone folder and slobber the crease first for best results.) The rolled paper does have a memory, and it will take time between boards to relax flat...sometimes I mist lightly so as to not disturb the sizing and then dry between felts or non-waxed cardboard panels so the moisture dries out.
Flat paper in pads are likely more user friendly for most.
http://s6.postimg.org/wwdtz15y9/JHS_paper_arches_and_bee_1.jpg
As casual paper for light wash, and pen and ink, I got no complaints. My cold press sample is not smooth like hot press, but the texture is interesting and is slightly different front, from back.
Bee paper does not take the place of Arches 90 hp, but it don't cost a zillion dollars either. The usual suspects carry it, and I call it worthy of a trial to anyone looking for a 100% cotton rag paper that doesn't break the bank.
The whole 'weight of paper' thing seems a shell game to me, designed to drive people insane....the arches 90 hp is more like a cover paper to put in summer bicycle spokes; compared to the prone to flop Bee 90 cp, but they both have their charm.
http://s6.postimg.org/6pcn32noh/JHS_paper_arches90hp_cu.jpg
.
http://s6.postimg.org/49ff2yuzl/JHS_paper_bee90cp_cu.jpg
Sizing issues must also be considered. Ink stands thinly on the stony Arches, while the Bee paper has soft cotton thirst, that drinks a heavy line of ink without feathering.
I've been hunting a cheapish all-round paper, that will serve bold words from my fountain pen, and survive my growing doodle bug habit, while weathering the spit I throw into those special moments that demand a wash.
.
I would like to learn of other casual papers, that I won't feel guilty 'messing up'; there's some brush pens comin, and I got a lot of messin up to do. Not knowing enough to evaluate the 100% cotton of Strathmore 500 series, or Stonehenge, I can only say that for the money, and this is in no way just about money, Bee paper gets my buzz.
Jim