Arches Cold Pressed Blocks

No, Meeden and Yoohoo and Baohung doesn't hold a candle to the Arches blocks, especially in the larger sizes like this (and the heavier 300lb weight, too, with the teal cover). I haven't tried my Fabriano Artistico (I really should, and compare it), but when I want a real work of art, I'm grabbing the Arches blocks. I didn't think I'd ever paint this large, but you just end up needing to, and the 9 x 12" are more like practice technique papers now, and yeah, got the 16 x 20" too. And the rough pressed. It's 100% worth it, cold pressed is the exquisite quality paper; and I can scrub real hard, throw tons of water and paint on it, get lots of textures and ..the paintings almost paint themselves. I feel like I'm cheating, but the more you paint, the more you know this is the easiest contest: just pick the Arches and focus on your paintings, you'll come out WAY ahead in the long run. THIS IS WHAT TO GET.

I haven't got around to using this shipment, but I have used the same product before with excellent results. I think it is the world's best watercolor paper. It is 100% cotton with a great finish.

Always consistently good papers nice organic texture. Lately I’ve been using Baohong a bit more (I prefer the surface), but Arches is good quality paper, albeit expensive.

I've been painting since the 1970s and using Arches Watercolor Blocks since the 1980s. The paper they use is reliably high quality and not yet found it's equal in other brands. The glue they use at the edges to hold the paper flat and taught is strong, yet easy to cut through with a palette knife. Still, although the glue is strong I have to be careful to keep the larger blocks flat and not stress the pad to avoid breaking the bond between the paper and backing board. Treat the block with care and you will have a wonderful product to the last page.

It wasn’t packaged in a box, but it arrived in perfect condition, nonetheless - about the same price as Blick Art Supply. It is a good size for portability and being in a block makes it certain that the paper will dry flat. And, of course, Arches cold press is always the best paper available for watercolor.

Not much NOT to love about this paper. For me, it’s top of the line. The texture of the hot pressed is very fine, which is my preference, as I like to do mixed media and use pen, marker, pencils etc etc in my artwork, and the fine texture allows me to do that with good results as opposed to the cold pressed - which is nice too, but for just plain watercolor. I have both, but prefer the hot pressed. It seems like I used to remember the price point being much higher than the others, which isn’t so much the case anymore. If you’re a serious artist, it’s pretty much a prerequisite that you have this paper in your stash. Arches has little buckling or warping (which sets it apart), and paint reacts well with the paper, allowing lots of different effects - blending, granulating, gradient washes, whatever. It’s a great paper. Zero complaints.

Arches is ALWAYS the best quality. I use it for my cyanotype prints.

I made a wet on wet color wheel to try both Fuumuui block watercolor paper ($20.95 for 22 sheets) and arches block watercolor paper ($46.00 for 20 sheets) 100% cotton cold pressed paper 9x12 300 g/m 149lb. I used Holbein permanent red, gamboge yellow, and ultramarine light, wet on wet paint fresh from the tube on a clean palette. I did both tests at the same time trying to keep wetness and color saturation even. Thoughts: 1)The fuumuui paper is smoother and whiter, the arches is more textured 2) the blooming on the arches paper was a bit more than the fuumuui 3) the colors are *slightly* brighter on the arches (but the white of the fuumuui paper makes the colors stand out as well) 4) both paper blocks minimally warp and both surfaces absorb water pretty equally. I’m no expert water colorist so I’m just presenting what I found. For my level of painting and creating, they come out pretty equal. I didn’t find the fuumuui ‘budget’ or ‘student’ grade. Take my thoughts with the understanding I’m just a novice painter, but you can look at both and make your own choice. ETA my sister, who trained in art in college, walked in and from two feet away said, “the better paper is on the right” which is the attached paper. Lol