Ink Washes

[Rabid]

Does bristol stand up well to multiple ink washes? Thinking of incorperating more color in my sketch book but I don't want bleeding paper....was thinking bristol...opinions? Suggestions?

[CCThrom]

Now this might depend on the brand, I've tried it with Strathmore and Bienfang... but my experience is that Bristol will buckle and bleed-through like crazy when touched with water. I'd suggest starting with either a good watercolor paper (you can go with "hot press" if you want a smoother drawing surface) or Crescent board.

[Grief]

ive used bristol a bit in monotype printing and it seems strathmore bristol (vellum finish 100lb) has issues of warping when a large portion of the surface is moderately wet.

bleeding really has to do with paper weight and if its hot press or cold press (the surface). cold press papers tend to bleed less than hot press or hand made papers, but they do not soak in the medium as much, rathe rit'll sit on the surface of the paper. its a thick enough paper that i wouldnt worry too much about it being porous and bleeding beyond where you intend. although i cant say ive specifically done multiple ink washes with it.

[chaosrocks]

bristol does not work well
you really want a hot press watercolour papr
such as pescia magnani, or some thing like that
smooth surfface but absorbant
you need to tape it down for multiple washes like a water colour
which in essense it is. \I do washes and then ink over them with a pen
you need really sturdy paper for that
luckily Im married to a printmaker so I have access to lots of different papers. thers a kind called "silk screen" and I cant remember if its hanemuhle or fabriano that I make my sketch books out of.... it works really well
crx

[HunterKiller_]

luckily Im married to a printmaker so I have access to lots of different papers.

Yes, aren't you lucky. :(

[rpace]

No, Bristol doesn't take water well. I've heard stories of older bristol caterpillaring under india ink from a nib due to absorbing mild humidity.

Watercolour paper or good old illustration board is the way to go. . . although the latter would make for an odd sketchbook.

~R

[Rabid]

Thanks for the replies, I have bienfang 360 that I use for marker use now and it seems to tolerate bleeding well. My fear is that I need something that can withstand very fine ink and pencil work and still retain washes well over it. I guess now would be the time to know what Coro's sketchbook is, considering every page was a colored wash. Definetly need a hot press paper since the pens that I work with tend to be about the size of a human hair 0_0....

[CCThrom]

the pens that I work with tend to be about the size of a human hair

Thanks for the further info, you might find that even hot-press paper is a bit too "toothy" though it is your best bet as far as watercolor papers go. Very good for pencil and wash or brush and wash. You will want to do some experimentation though... drawing and wash together is a tricky and personal balancing act. Papers that are good for wash tend to be worse for drawing & vice versa.

The real reason I'm writing back, though is to suggest you look into "paper for pens" (Yes, that's actually what it's called) It's made by Pentallic and Borden & Riley... both manufactures equally good as far as I can tell. And it's not expensive.

What's good about this paper is that it's thin but with a very dense weave... the surface is very smooth and relatively impervious (almost like tracing vellum). I love it for pen and ink or brush and ink. It will not bleed and it will not "pill" or snag your pen. The downside is that it's thin and will buckle with water. Also because of the low porosity of the surface, your ink wash can look a bit "puddly" and you don't want to use a lot of water because it will dry slow.

Still if you work controlled, use a light hand with the water, and don't mind a bit of puddly texture in your final wash this might be a really good paper to try.

[Rabid]

Thanks CCThrom, I'll take all of that into consideration when purchasing and sampling paper for my ink wash pieces!