A bit of a play, on a piece of 4” x 6”, 290gsm Canson canvas paper, with watercolours, and little bit of gouache. Both mediums worked well on this paper. I drew over the paint with a few ink pen lines for some definition.
No pilling…the washes lay longer on the surface than with watercolour paper. This can make for some interesting marks, when moving the paper around. I rather like it’s obvious textural pattern. You can see the surface more clearly on my previous post, where I’ve used it to inkjet print on.
I’ve found Canson papers so versatile – with lovely finishes. I often use the Canson 220gsm drawing paper in my inkjet printer. And it also takes ink pen, pencils, and watercolour washes beautifully. If it buckles a little, I just place it between heavy books for a few hours…
I’ll try some Canson Heritage 300gsm watercolour paper soon. It’s bit expensive, and I found it difficult to source here in Australia. So I hope I don’t love it too much!
You can’t really see it over the flowers, but I’ve used a cold wax medium, as a varnish on this work. It gives it a lovely satiny sheen (not too shiny!). Also enriches the colour a little. It’s simple and quick to apply; and has a sort of pleasant honey smell – though toxic if swallowed!
No glass frame required…yay!
I usually do small works, so it’s easy for a varnished watercolour/gouache to be sat on a little easel, or propped up on a mantle piece – and with care, it can be handled and viewed closely.
The brand I used is called Dorland’s, apparently there’s also a cold wax made by Gamblin. I don’t use a fixative first, (though others do) and have no problems.
Some info on this link, here. If you do a search, there’s lots of information on using cold wax on watercolours… Seems to be popular, but I think perhaps some watercolour artists may not approve… Anyway, good fun to try things out. Spoilt for choices, and thankful†.
Enjoy your weekend!
Janette Leeds Art 
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