From vellum and tracing paper to visual diaries and creative journals, we have everything you need to nurture your love of sketching. Our drawing pads and art paper are suitable for a range of dry media, including pencils, charcoal, and soft pastels.
The type of paper you use to create your next masterpiece can have a huge impact on the finished results. With differences in texture, absorbency, thickness, and more, some drawing pads are more suited to certain media than others. It’s important to consider your needs and options before making a decision.
Today, we’ll be introducing you to some of the many types of drawing pads and art paper available to you at Riot Art & Craft. We hope this will help you decide what paper you should be using and when.
Suitable for a range of media and pretty much all styles of drawing, cartridge paper is a heavier paper that often features a more prominent texture. Thicker than regular printing paper, cartridge paper typically has a weight of over 100gsm.
While there are many different types of cartridge paper, it’s often characterised by a rougher and more textured surface. This can really enhance your drawing and linework, allowing you to achieve a number of effects that you just couldn’t get from smooth paper.
Cartridge paper is often quite sturdy compared to regular printing paper, making it less prone to tearing and wrinkling. This makes it popular for a range of different media, including pens, pencils, charcoal, pastels, and crayons. It can even stand up to light washes.
The term ‘Bristol paper’ is used to describe a type of art paper that’s been pasted together to form multi-ply sheets. This offers a stiff, strong, and sturdy surface to work on without the need for mounting. Ordinarily, you can draw on either side of your Bristol paper.
Bristol paper is an excellent option for illustrators who are looking for a lightweight yet sturdy alternative to illustration board.
Bristol paper generally comes in two different textures: smooth and vellum.
Smooth Bristol paper has little to no tooth at all, making it ideal for highly detailed drawings and fine linework. An excellent option for pens, ink, and mechanical pencils, the texture of smooth Bristol paper also makes it suitable for working with markers, as it allows for smooth and consistent linework without causing damage to the tips of your markers.
Vellum Bristol paper, on the other hand, is much more textured, with a greater tooth that makes it perfect for ‘grabbing’ dry media such as graphite, coloured pencils, charcoal, pastels, and crayons. Vellum Bristol paper usually allows for deeper tones, greater shading, and a more textured look. However, it’s important to note that the tooth of this paper may make it harder to achieve finer details.
Visual art diaries come in a range of different shapes, sizes, and thicknesses. An excellent option for sketching and creativity on the go, visual diaries are popular for drawing, art journaling, and producing mock-ups and thumbnail sketches for larger pieces.
Some visual diaries even feature black paper for a more unique drawing experience which allows you to experiment with black negative space.
Visual diaries with thicker, more textured paper can be used for a variety of media, including light washes (though we wouldn’t recommend heavy painting in a visual diary).
A unique paper that’s rarely used for finished artwork, tracing paper is a thin, semi-transparent paper that’s designed for tracing images. This is a great option for transferring a sketch from a low-cost piece of paper onto a high-quality paper or canvas, ready for the final piece.
Tracing paper can also help kids improve their hand-eye coordination while they’re learning to draw, as they can practice following the lines of an existing image.
Here at Riot Art & Craft, we’re dedicated to supplying our creative community with all the tools and materials they need to produce their best work. We’d love to see what you’re able to do with our range of drawing pads and visual diaries.
When sharing your work on Instagram, don’t forget to tag us @riotartandcraft so we can celebrate your incredible achievements as well!
