What is mixed media paper good for?
When creating a paper line that would be perfect for the Life of Colour community, we researched a great variety of paper options. In the end what stood out to us, was versatility to be used with different art mediums.
Mixed media paper is the best for beginners and advanced artists because it's easy to test new materials and develop a daily art practice.
For dry mediums, like crayons, pastels and oil pastels, pencils and graphite, mixed media paper is the right choice without a doubt.
For watercolour and other wet techniques, you'll need to be mindful of your water control, which we'll discuss in this article to make the best recommendation for your needs!
Mixed media paper vs watercolor paper
What is the difference between mixed media paper and watercolour paper? The main difference is in the paper sheet’s weight and paper surface texture.
Mixed media paper’s weight is usually 180gsm to 260gsm. Life of Colour mixed media paper is heavyweight 200gsm, to set an example.
Watercolour paper starts at 300gsm, and goes all the way up to 600gsm for experienced artists that use heavy amounts of water in their paintings. On watercolour paper you'll also need to test a few different textures to figure out if you like cold press, hot press, torchon or rough.
With mixed media, you are getting a surface with subtle texture.
The best thing about mixed media paper is its versatility, being useful for both wet and dry media.
Can you paint on mixed media paper?
Yes, you most certainly can paint on mixed media paper using both dry and wet mediums, we'll show you a few of your options below.
The weight of the paper makes it perfect for colored pencils, crayons, oil pastels, silky stix, paint pens, acrylic paints, acrylic paint pens, watercolours, watercolour brush pens and more materials.
Mixed media paper for acrylic
Mixed media paper can be very good for acrylic, this is a very common question we face when purchasing paper for this medium since the most usual material is canvas and wood.
Life of Colour mixed media paper is archival, acid-free and wood-free, making it perfect for creating art with acrylics and acrylic paint pens.
You will feel very comfortable using masking tape for clean edges, layering and adding textures with gesso, brush or collage.
Mixed media paper for watercolour
When answering if mixed media paper is good for watercolours, we need to address the adequate use of water control.
Watercolours and watercolour pens work wonderfully on mixed media paper to create fantastic effects, as long as the artist is wary of the amount of water placed on the paper.
Practice to make sure your water control is good, and you’ll have a wonderful experience with our paper. This means, try not to make big pools of water (if it happens, pat the area dry with a paper towel) and wait for the previous layer to dry before adding extra water.
Techniques relying on copious amounts of water should be reserved for watercolour paper 300gsm and higher.
You can find watercolour ideas suitable for mixed media paper in our blog.
Mixed media paper sketchbook
Another benefit of mixed media paper is the ease of use when turned into your regular painting or drawing sketchbook.
You usually get more sheets of paper per sketchbook, having more surface for creating your works of art.
The versatility of the paper helps you feel comfortable experimenting with new techniques.
You can find Life of Colour mixed media paper as A4 glue-bound sketchbook pad of 30 sheets, or a handy box of 30 A5-sized loose cards (suitable for card making and doodling).
Are you trying mixed media paper? Show us your creations!
