And Another kind of Watercolor Pad

I'm still trying out watercolor sketchpads, and I found one that I really like. This one is a Kiliminjaro pad from Cheap Joe's (www.cheapjoes.com) .  It has 140 lb cotton watercolor paper and sketching paper.  This could be a good pad for traveling and journaling. Paint on one and journal on the next.  I also used tape on it, and it came off without tearing.  I think this is the one we will use for our trip to France this summer.  I also like the size of this one.
The painting is once again from Île d'Yeu.  I had a beautiful lunch and lots of laughs on this sunlit patio with good friends.  (JB, does this house have a name?)

"Ker Chalon"
3" x 5"

Watercolor

NFS

Here is the pad I used.

Speed Painting

I tried to do one small painting in an hour tonight.  However, it probably took about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  This is another painting from Île d'Yeu in the same location as the previous post.

I used the little Moleskin sketchpad and liked it better this time because it didn't curl as much. I used the Koi travel palette and mostly conventional brushes.  I tried using the water brush, but kept picking up the old standbys, both from Cheap Joe.  I wanted a flat brush tonight and I always turn to the Golden Fleece by Cheap Joe.

Here's a picture of my set up as I worked from the computer screen:

Testing Watercolor Sketching Supplies

I am trying to find the perfect watercolor sketchbook, watercolor palette, and travel brushes for a summer trip to France with 8 high school girls.  Last night I painted on a Moleskin watercolor sketchbook, with a palette I made from an old Prang watercolor kit filled with Utrecht watercolor paint. This is my result.

Oops, the picture has the Koi palette, but I used the Prang one. I didn't love the Moleskin.  Notice how the paper curls up.  The paper also had a texture I didn't care for,  and I wish the paper had been a little heavier.  It might have prevented the curl.  But the final result was not too bad. I did use masking tape to create a border and the tape stuck to the paper.   This sketchbook paper has perforations so you can easily remove the painting from the book if you like.  Personally I like to fill up a sketchbook.  I have other books and palettes to try.  I will post those soon.