Bee Paper - 9"x 9" Super Deluxe Mixed Media Sketching Pad, 60 Sheets

Short answer, YES. They come in a multitude of sizes to fit all needs. They are 50 sheets (100 pages) of 153 gsm paper that is 25% cotton and sized for watercolor, internally AND externally. Despite this being literally half the weight of watercolor paper, it takes water like a champion and then i deliberately scrubbed it. NO damage! Each right sheet has a lightly textured surface for oil pastels and watercolor with each left sheet is smoother for marker, lettering ink etc It took gesso like a champ on both sides and of course gouache works great on many papers. The ONLY things i dislike about this sketchbook is the sharp corners of the thick covers that aren’t big enough to protect the sheets inside properly. The other thing is that i wish the sheets were slightly heavier, say 180 gsm and more texture on the textured sheets. They say it’s a medium rough surface but it’s more like a simple vellum finish. Not enough tooth for my liking but it gets the job done just fine. It’s a travel MUST HAVE

Timeless

Not multi-media at all. Will buckle at the merest hint of water. Not bad for colored pencils/markers.

Though I am still using my first one of these sketch pads, I have just ordered my third one, because I want to have a stash of these for the future. This has become my all-purpose sketch book, planner, list keeper, note pad, dream journal. It was driving me crazy to use different journals for all those things. The paper is great (haven't tried water color, mostly using pens, colored pencil) and I love the big sturdy spirals and nice thick covers. The size is perfect for my purposes, fits nicely in my purse. I am easily intimidated by big pages of blank space - I like to work small, so this size is friendly to my way of working.Just a quick note on how I manage to do all those things in one book - I use a two-page spread for my to-do's, shopping lists - the day-to-day planner type of thing. But instead of using a new page each day, I have a small sticky note at the top upon which I write the date, cross out and write the new day's date. Huge paper savings, I have been using my current one for 2 weeks. It obviously isn't a good system if you rely on looking back to figure out when things happened, etc. But this works for me - no carrying things over to new pages daily, etc. Eventually, the 2 pages are crammed with things and it's time to start a new 2-page spread.(I should note that I keep a small separate calendar for appointments as well, only jotting them in my sketch pad planner on the day they happen.)Meanwhile, on the following pages, I have been writing drafts of poems, making sketches for my fiber arts projects, etc. I just go to the next blank 2 pages, putting a paper clip on one so I know just where to open the book for my current tasks & lists.I decorate the covers, add a some stacks small of sticky notes to the inside cover. My pen fits perfectly inside the spiral.

The reason I'm only giving this Super Deluxe sketchbook four stars is not because I don't love it because the paper is a lightweight, sized, drawing paper. I was under the impression from several reviews that the paper in this book was suitable for watercolor, but it's not.The pages are white and bright and SUPER sturdy. They hold up to a ton of water. I literally put puddles of water all over the first page and while there was some *slight* buckling there was NO seeping through to the back of the paper at all.And the book is packed with paper- 60 sheets! That's amazing.The issue for me is that the pigment in the watercolors fade considerably on this paper- I tested it with a variety of paints, everything from Holbein to Twinkling H2Os and all the colors faded quite a bit when painted on this particular paper when compared to regular, run-of-the-mill watercolor paper. I'm super obsessed with color, and with the crisp and bright gradients of color that happen with controlled washes, so to see the colors fade so much was a huge disappointment. I haven't tried treating the paper with a wash of gum arabic before painting- that might help. But I was hopeful this paper might be sort of a lightweight watercolor paper, and it's not. It can handle the water and the moisture, but it sucks in the color.While I won't dedicate this pad to watercolor work, it is absolutely perfect for art journaling (probably *the* best art journal I have found- large, sturdy, perfect for mixed media, tons of pages, perfect size...) and a variety of other mediums- ink drawing, markers, pastels, etc. Anything *mostly* dry, or anything that you use a layer of gesso for would be an ideal use for this journal.

This is the sketchbook I always carry with me. Paper is thick enough for ink, markers & watercolor w/o bleed through of excessive warping.

The Bee Paper sketchbooks are high quality and well made. I personally know some artists that love them for sketching. Oddly enough, the high quality of the sketch paper doesn’t work well for me when I’m trying to loosely sketch with a pencil, pen or a copic marker. The porous texture of the paper makes my pencil and ink lines are little more smudgy than I would like. Copics, for me, work better on a smoother paper as well. On the Bee paper, the Copic lines get soaked up too quickly. I do like using this sketchbook for watercolor sketches, which the paper seems more suited to handle. Maybe when I get more precise and confident with my pencil and ink lines, I’ll make better use of the Bee Paper sketchbooks. Until then, I’m going to stick with sketchbooks that have less spongy paper.

Lovely little hardcover sketchbook. Each page has two textures, with the toothier side comparable to a slightly rough hot press. Suitable for light washes, paper is heavy enough for mixed media (I have used pencil, micron pens, and watercolour on this). The spiral binding is quite heavy duty, the metal is not especially flexible - it's well made! Front cover seems to be foamcore, with a slick water resistant inside surface. back cover is a thick cardboard. Could use an elastic to hold the book closed between uses.

I love these sketchbooks. I brought my first one whilst I was in California. I am so pleased that I have sound a supplier closer to home.

Must admit the paper is good. But for the size 6x4 inches the price is outrageously expensive. Could have bought a pad of watercolour pad for that price.

Superior paper!

format carré j'adore