Bee Paper 6" x 9" Watercolor Paper Pack, 140lb, 50 Sheets

I really like this paper. As with most brands of professional art supplies, it is worthwhile to test things out before leaping right into an important projects. It is rare to find two like items by two different brands that act exactly the same. This paper does not behave like Arches, or any other pro watercolor paper that I’ve tried. I think the other reviewers have been pretty spot on: both positive and negative. It just remains to be seen if any given artist can make the most of its advantages, while minimizing problems by heading them off at the pass. For example, plot out a color strategy before you begin, start with light washes of color and keep a Kleenex and clean water handy. That being said, I’ve achieved some breathtakingly beautiful glazes on this paper. For me, the good aspects far outweigh any negatives. Regarding the reviewer who mentioned that the sizing is different on each side: keep the paper with the wrapper/ label on for storage, and I would paint on the side that is closest to the label. Once you get to know the paper better, you may find that the side that has a satiny finish is the nicer side to paint on. I wasn’t sure what I would think about the 6 x 9” size, but I love it. This paper is kept handy and I reach for it often, because it is inexpensive enough and of a good size that it isn’t too precious for me to use for virtually any task….be that practice, swatches, studies, or a full blown painting. It’s all good. Also have the watercolor sketchbook in a large size, and I don’t use that one as frequently. Even with its micro perforated pages, it still feels too grand for the likes of me, lol. The 6 x 9” sheets are awesome, and I’m going through them quickly.

This is my favorite watercolor paper. For people who are having problems: please note there is a FRONT and a BACK side to this paper. The back is not well "sized" meaning it will not absorb watercolors properly and the colors will look more dull and dingy on top of spreading out oddly. I hate how hard this paper is to tell which side is the correct side, but the pack I received worked very well on ONE side. This 140# version of bee paper can handle a generous wet wash of paint without pilling or overly buckling. Tape the edges and I get no buckling. Its so cheap I feel like I can practice without being scared of wasting paper. My colors look more vibrant and I can achieve better effects with the paints than I can on less quality papers. I almost said cheaper papers, but this paper is actually quite cheap and somehow still high quality. Most paper at this price point is not 100% cotton rag. I recommend it for professional and beginner alike. I especially find granulating paints in a wet wash really go wild on this paper, which is ideal for special effects. I do not use the "lifting" method for shading, and I would not recommend this paper for that. Legion's Stonehenge Aqua or Arches papers have a much more durable surface that can handle scrubbing. The bee paper is better for basic techniques and true colors with very little surprises. Sometimes other brands do weird things, like my Strathmore 500 makes colors speckle or granulate differently than my Bee paper. I've used this paper for acrylic painting with much success. I was able to use it for heavy pours of paint as well by using masking tape and adhering the paper to any firm board/panel/tray. I poured my acrylic onto it and waited for it to dry before removing the tape. Once dry it was only very slightly wavy/bent, which was easily fixed by sitting the painting under a stack of books overnight. Great versatility here for such an inexpensive paper.

Once I learned from The Mind of Watercolor on Youtube the reasons to use cotton paper, I tried Stonehenge Aqua, which is very good (he finds it quite close to Arches, which is more expensive). But he also mentioned Bee as worth trying. What I've noticed is Bee has a nice color and texture; color similar to Stonehenge Aqua, texture of the front (more textured side) a bit less "diagonal" and in some ways I prefer that. The back is less textured and in addition behaves a bit differently. It's not a huge difference and you can definitely use both sides, but one day I painted something very similar on both sides, and on the front of the paper I didn't get a backrun, and on the back I did. Actually both sides produced very pleasing results, but there was that difference. I concluded the backside dries a bit faster and so an uneven wash or a deliberate leaving of more pigment at one "end" or charging in is more likely to make a backrun. It wasn't a huge cauliflower--just a delicate line. (I was using Ultramarine and maybe a bit of Payne's Gray). The size is perfect for folding into a nice greeting card and you can buy a hundred brown Kraft envelopes here an Amazon for under fourteen dollars. So for about fifty cents you can make someone a handpainted card. I've only used the 6 by 9 Bee. I don't think it comes in standard sized pads or blocks, but you can also buy larger sheets and cut them up. I've seen occasional flaws in the paper--a dark speck or some such--but since Bee is also a nice swatching or practice paper you can just save the flawed sheets for that. I'm helping someone take first steps and the Bee is so inexpensive that we don't mind using it, which is essential!

I been using a sketchbook for my watercolor drawings for the longest time, and what made me not want to try watercolor paper is because it was too expensive for me to invest in. I watercolor a lot and going through a pad of watercolor papers (which tends to be like a few sheets) is going to be very expensive to continue buying over time. I happened to go to an art store one day and noticed these loose sheets and read some reviews on them. I was sold instantly. I actually like the size of paper. I tend to draw a bit big not super large but big enough to fit the page. I tend to draw around that size so the paper was perfect for me. I also like the small texture the paper has. One side has a bit of tooth to it whereas the other side still has texture but it is slightly smoother. It is nice to have the option on which side you would prefer. I have never really used actual watercolor paper before (sad I know) so I was a bit afraid how it would affect my skills since watercolor paper is different than other papers I have used, but luckily it was very easy to adjust. I do not draw backgrounds so I tend to fill the background with a solid color and it did not warp any drawings whatsoever (then again I did tape the sides down to prevent it, but still impressed). I also layer a lot of colors over and over again and the paper did not tear. Overall, great purchase. Like seriously, $15 for a stack of 50 high quality sheets of watercolor paper, it cannot get any better than that. I definitely recommend giving this a shot. Although I have never really tried 'professional' papers like arches or anything like that, but I am not lying when I say it was a dream to work with this paper.

This is incredible quality watercolor paper for its price point, and is now my go-to for swatching and drafts. Its a good weight and doesn't buckle as much as many other similar papers. It would work great for painting holiday cards or for an art journal. Ngl, it doesn't quite compare to the top cotton rag papers. The sizing works well for a few washes, even a light, quickly removed coat of resist, but expect some tearing/staining with colored resist that stays on too long. And the size doesn't hold up to even a gentle scrub unfortunately. Even still, watercolors move beautifully over this paper, so I will be using this as my primary test paper going forward. Great product.

I love this paper. As a beginner/intermediate watercolor painter, this is my favorite paper for practice. It's a heavy, 100% cotton paper, so it behaves much better than a wood pulp paper when using wet techniques. For a cold process paper, the texture isn't too rough, which is good for control, but it still has enough to grab the pigment. The 6x9 size is perfect for beginners, as I find making smaller pieces to be lower pressure. And I don't feel like I'm wasting a bunch of money if I don't like what I painted. I love how affordable it is and that it comes in giant packages of 50 sheets. I highly recommend this paper for watercolor work.

I’ve been meaning to write a review on this watercolor paper. I’m new to watercolor so I bought it last year to practice painting using watercolor and I’ve read from Artists on YouTube that this brand is decent for beginners and it’s also less expensive compare to other professional brands. What I like about it: -IT DOESN’T CURL. For me, it’s a lot better than Arches. After practicing enough, I also bought Arches Watercolor so I’d see the difference between this and Arches. To my surprise, this brand outperformed Arches! I had high hopes with Arches because I’ve heard many great things about it and it’s also more expensive but when I finally tried it, it curled so bad. But I didn’t experience it with this brand. -ABSORBS WATER PRETTY WELL. Since I am a beginner, I have wet my paper couple of times but surprisingly, this paper absorbs it pretty well and my watercolor paints go on smoothly. Please watch my time lapse videos. -GREAT FOR MIXED MEDIA ARTS. I’ve used this paper with gouache, acrylics and pens. Overall, I love this watercolor paper! It exceeds my expectations and it’s less expensive. It’s great for beginners and professionals. Please watch my time lapse videos on YouTube to see how I used it for my paintings.

TLDR: Positives: cheap, cotton paper that handles water better than wood pulp, lots of paper to learn from or do full pieces, and just a good paper to try for the price. Negatives: Light sizing making water absorption fast, wet in wet not good on this paper, and paper hold on to paint making it not so good for lifting. Bought this pack of paper quite a while ago. Held off on making a review till I got a feel for it. There are some good qualities to this paper and some not for me. So the positives in this paper is the price. You get fifty sheets that you can make studies or practice technique. You get a good amount to test out or to do full pieces. The price of fifty 9x5 sheets make this economical to learn on. Also, this paper is cotton so you can try out some effects. Cotton is better at more evenly distributing color and bringing out brilliance. ( Although sometime saturation has to do with how white the paper can be as well as how it sits on it.) So all in all this is a great value. I would recommend this to people learning watercolor. My tip would be to try other papers as well to see what stick with you because not every paper is going to work with how you paint. However, trying this paper and experimenting with it is a good deal. So you know all that's great with it I would just suggest in just a couple of negatives in my opinion. This paper feels like it isn't sized or maybe just lightly. My reasoning is that the paper dries faster than my other papers. It's hard to keep it wet for the way I work or to apply the wet on wet technique. Also the paper holds on the paint and it doesn't flow as easy. I find it happening even with my non staining colors. This makes it more difficult to lift up paint within reason. So this paper is more of a wet on dry technique paper in my eyes. There is nothing wrong with this kind of paper. It's awesome but once you know how you work or want to experiment this information could help. Or I hope this helps. The more you experiment the better you get.

Papier aquarelle facile à utiliser et de bonne qualité.

Ich hab dieses Papier auf Grund einer Empfehlung gekauft und bin nicht enttäuscht. Ich kaufe es immer in der größe die ca DinA5 ist (50er Pack) - die Maße scheinen amerikanisch zu sein, aber das stört mich nicht besonders. Ich verwende das Papier für kleine Bilder oder auch als Papier um Farben zu testen, etc., damit ich nicht das ganz teuere dafür "verschwende" Ich würde sagen es ist nicht die gleiche Qualität wie z.B. Arches, aber ganz nah dran.

I'm happy with this paper, I'm learning to paint water color. This is a more economical way to paint while learning. I love having the size sheet that I want.

Great paper at a great price

This paper was suggested to me on YT by a popular watercolor artist I follow. I was so happy to find it in Canada at a good price. I love using it for card stock or a second round of my paintings. I’m a beginner-medium watercolor painter at best. It works well with wet on wet and simple practice painting. You won’t be disappointed.