Watercolor Papers Soaking & Stretching Techniques
Soaking and stretching is recommended when lighter weight papers are used with a quantity of water (e.g. 150g/m², 190g/m², 300g/m²), because the paper will move and buckle/cockle.
Why does the paper move?
When applying water to paper it moves and buckles (known as cockling by papermakers) because the application of moisture to the sheet will cause one side to expand slightly. However, the other side remains dry, and due to the sizing contained within the sheet does not expand. To counteract this expansion on the wetted side, the paper does the only thing it can and bows and buckles. This is very unsightly for the finished painting and difficult to work with because the paint will pool in the waves of the paper
How to soak and stretch watercolour paper
1) Immerse the sheet of paper under running water from a tap, taking care not to touch the area you intend to paint (the paper is fragile when wet and finger marks will show up in the wash) for 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
2) Place the soaked sheet on a sturdy board.
3) Blot any excess puddles of water with a clean paper towel.
4) Wet some gummed tape (do not soak) and place around all four edges of the paper, and leave to dry on a slight tilt.
5) Leave the paper to dry overnight. When dry the paper will be stretched tight on the board and when water is added with the paint the paper will not move.
Important
When soaking the paper it is very important NOT to accidentally contaminate the paper with residue detergents found in areas like baths, kitchen sinks. These detergents attack the sizing causing the paper to become very absorbent and unusable.
Why does the paper move?
When applying water to paper it moves and buckles (known as cockling by papermakers) because the application of moisture to the sheet will cause one side to expand slightly. However, the other side remains dry, and due to the sizing contained within the sheet does not expand. To counteract this expansion on the wetted side, the paper does the only thing it can and bows and buckles. This is very unsightly for the finished painting and difficult to work with because the paint will pool in the waves of the paper
How to soak and stretch watercolour paper
1) Immerse the sheet of paper under running water from a tap, taking care not to touch the area you intend to paint (the paper is fragile when wet and finger marks will show up in the wash) for 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
2) Place the soaked sheet on a sturdy board.
3) Blot any excess puddles of water with a clean paper towel.
4) Wet some gummed tape (do not soak) and place around all four edges of the paper, and leave to dry on a slight tilt.
5) Leave the paper to dry overnight. When dry the paper will be stretched tight on the board and when water is added with the paint the paper will not move.
Important
When soaking the paper it is very important NOT to accidentally contaminate the paper with residue detergents found in areas like baths, kitchen sinks. These detergents attack the sizing causing the paper to become very absorbent and unusable.
posted by Anonymous at
7:26 PM
1 Comments:
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