Dear Reader, I originally thought to warn you about using crappy watercolor paper. If you’ve been studying watercolor for long, then I’m sure you’ve heard advice to use quality watercolor paper.

Before I got so snobbish about paper, I actually bought a pad of the cheap stuff. And people have given me pads over the years. So I’ve got quite a bit of it. I’ve never  used much of it because I got all highbrow early on in my watercolor journey. And it is hard to work with; badly sized, this paper sucks in the paint and leaves dull, lifeless washes that look sort of speckley. It buckles as soon as you add water, fights with me like mad racoon, and generally leaves me feeling like this pose.

But I’ve been using this cheap stuff for quick life-drawing warm ups, because then I don’t feel like I’m using up the precious resource of my luscious #300 Arches. And while the buckling, the disappearing paint, and the overall junkiness of this paper really frustrates me, in the end, I put in a lot of brush time on it, and work out a lot of solutions that I remember when I paint using the “good stuff”. So if you limit your painting experience because you’re  afraid to use up your fancy-schmancy, double-sized, extra-heavy oo-la-la papier, grab something cheap at your local art and craft store and get some mileage on your brush.

(Brushes, however? Get the best you can afford.)