Since I've been sharing the little paintings I did in my new Stillman & Birn sketchbooks, I thought I'd share a little info about the books for those who haven't tried them. This is just the Beta version (they have 7 different "series" versions - for various media usage - so you have to choose what works for you).
I think I bought mine from DickBlick.com and it's the 6 x 8" version (I have a 7" x 10" version, too) of the Beta Series. It's heavy weight paper and good for watercolor washes and sketches as well as for drawing or pen and ink work.
I had to buy one after Pam Johnson Brickell (see here for her nature blog) recommended it. So I bought one. Then I forgot all about it and bought another one. Good for me, they are different sizes! ha ha
The first time I got the book out was for this latest trip to AMI and I'm glad I took it.
From the reviews about it online, people describe it as rough press - but it's not rough press like watercolor paper rough at all. It's smoother than that. One reviewer described it as somewhere between coldpress and hotpress and I think that may be more accurate for the feel of it.
I tried to take a decent photo of the paper itself, to show you the texture on it, but it's not that great. But I'll share it here, anyway.
The hardest part of the purchase is deciding what series you want and if you want the ring binder or the book binder type. But it's fun to decide, isn't it? You may want one of each series! ha ha
If you're interested in these, just go to the Dick Blick site here
and do a search for Stillman & Birn and all of the versions will come up. Happy hunting!
I think I bought mine from DickBlick.com and it's the 6 x 8" version (I have a 7" x 10" version, too) of the Beta Series. It's heavy weight paper and good for watercolor washes and sketches as well as for drawing or pen and ink work.
I had to buy one after Pam Johnson Brickell (see here for her nature blog) recommended it. So I bought one. Then I forgot all about it and bought another one. Good for me, they are different sizes! ha ha
The first time I got the book out was for this latest trip to AMI and I'm glad I took it.
From the reviews about it online, people describe it as rough press - but it's not rough press like watercolor paper rough at all. It's smoother than that. One reviewer described it as somewhere between coldpress and hotpress and I think that may be more accurate for the feel of it.
I tried to take a decent photo of the paper itself, to show you the texture on it, but it's not that great. But I'll share it here, anyway.
The hardest part of the purchase is deciding what series you want and if you want the ring binder or the book binder type. But it's fun to decide, isn't it? You may want one of each series! ha ha
If you're interested in these, just go to the Dick Blick site here
and do a search for Stillman & Birn and all of the versions will come up. Happy hunting!
5 comments:
Oh and I just had to order one the other day, after reading about it on your blog..
Mine is coming from D.B . also.
Sure I needed a few other goodies , and they were having free shipping on orders over $59.
So away we go... also trying out Fabriano c/p paper.. I've always used Arches but we'll see ..
BJ
Looking forward to seeing some drawings and paintings in your new sketching pad, have you tried pen and wash?
Thanks for the tip, Rhonda!
So happy you are enjoying your S&B journals :) I like the Alpha (100# paper) series, too. Love that their papers are sized and the colors remain bright.
Hope you enjoy it as much as I do, Barbra Joan.
You're welcome, Sherry :)
Caroline, I'm going to use these when I travel and take some pencils and my wc kit along - should work well.
Pam, thanks for turning me on to these - sorry, I didn't put your WHOLE name on the post but will correct that now (brain freeze, I guess, is my excuse!) and will put in a link to your site as you use these all the time with your nature sketches.
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