+Andy Simmons Thanks for the feedback, I have done quite a few videos using them but the ones from the last year are probably the better quality ones ;) I've included a link to a playlist with the videos on, some are long but others are pretty quick :D: ua-cam.com/play/PLor13ECtJsrg0IubcSgqOg5wm77NSxbbI.html
this was extremely helpful! I received a set of the Windsor and Newton brand for Christmas, and was at a bit of a loss as to how to use them to get the effects I wanted, and this video helped a great deal
No problem! You might want to check out my Pink Waterlily tutorial video too, where I go into greater depth and how I used them to paint the flower. Thanks for watching and commenting!!
I absolutely loved this video! I enjoyed the commentary and the clarity of the video and how simple and straightforward it is. Please do make more and show more tips and tricks for working with watercolor markers. Love your channel!
+Keren Duchan Thank you so much :) I thought i'd 'begin at the begin', as it were! Sure I can do more, showing how I use them to do something, like a leaf or a face. Thanks for the feedback, it really helps me plan for future videos.
No problem - i'm glad it was useful to you! It seems that there's even more to it, as the 'sizing' of the paper affects how well the pens work too, but its quite difficult to find out just how much sizing a paper has... :) Thanks for watching and commenting though! :D
I have watercolor markers and had no idea how to use them.... I thought they were just like 'markers', til I saw your vid where you add water. Who knew? Thank you, this was so informative.
You're welcome, I'm glad you found it helpful! I'm thinking of doing another one sometime, so if there is anything you want to see domonstrated, just let me know 😊
Thanks for this! I had almost given up on my markers because of the staining problem, they had been relegated to the back of a cupboard after ruining a couple of pieces - I had no idea that the paper could be an issue! I had been using 300gsm as well, but Ill try switching to other brands and hopefully see a difference in how they perform. Fingers crossed anyway!
No problem and thanks for feedback! I also get the water on soon after adding the markers if that helps! Let me know how you get on with the different papers :D
Thank you for the feedback!! I spend way too much time editing and second-guessing my explanation/narration so i'm pleased you find it clear and easy to understand! Thanks for watching!
Thank you for your response to my question and encouragement. I have watched a lot of videos on these markers. Yours are the only good ones...most people reviewing them had no clue how they work. Thank you for all the beautiful art, the great information and the great variety of information.
You are so welcome! I still enjoy using them and have some plans for a couple of upcoming videos, maybe an animal or a still life object...? Thank you so much for watching and commenting! :)
The bit about the paper was so helpful I have been trying to use my water color marker on strathmore paper and that was horrible! Trial and error i guess i have some canson mixed media that works ways better now! thanks!
Happy it was helpful! I think just like classic watercolours, the right paper can make all the difference to the outcome and how they handle! Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the videos on these markers. I was so impressed watching you work with them, that I bought a 12 piece Letraset and just ordered 2 more 6 pc sets. I looked into the Winsor and Newton markers and they are much more expensive. Also, the bit about the paper was very helpful. Although I use most Arches, I went to Amazon (what would we do without Amazon!!!) and picked up some Langton and Bockingford. I am thinking these markers would be great for painting on the go!
I'm happy you feel confident with them :D You know, I thought I would use them 'on the go' more as well but I actually find them good enough to do sit-down detailed, colourful artwork too! As with a lot of art materials, using the right paper is essential!! Good luck with them! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Its interesting you should say that because I might be guilty of assuming that watercolour doesn't need a 'beginners' video but... people must be using watercolours for the first time everyday!! (I can be a bit slow to figure these things out sometimes :D) So I think a future video should be a beginners guide to watercolour too...! :D Thanks for the feedback and the accidental idea ;)
This video was fantastic. I would love to see a video in this style showing the execution of different textures in different mediums. Right now I am working on a piece with bone and would like to practice in a few different mediums before deciding how to proceed with the finished piece.
+HeavyMetalJess Showing texture with the markers would be tougher than using 'classic' paints (pans/tubes) but I'm sure it could be done. I have a few ideas...
+HeavyMetalJess I would probably try to do bone with watercolours, because they can show a 'stained' effect really well, especially using all the lovely yellow ochres and browns to show aged bones?
Thank you for sharing ,I love watching these videos as they save me money and time, I always use Indigo paper and Arches, I will have to try them on these but will order the paper you recommended,again thank you!
Hi, thanks for commenting and I hope the paper works for you the way I find it does! I got some more watercolour markers before christmas so i'm going to be doing some more soon! :D
I’ve recently just bought some aqua markers and this was really helpful in figuring out what was going wrong hopefully I can use them better now thank you
Cool - I'm glad you found it useful!! Some of my other watercolour marker videos go into more detail, if you check the playlist 'Watercolour Markers and Aquamarker paintings' you'll see what I mean :D Thanks for watching!
This helps a lot! I recently got myself some watercolour markers to try out and I was surprised to see it didn't work too badly with mixed media paper. It actually gave it an interesting stained look which I love
Really good tutorial, great explanation and demonstration. I have some of these markers, but they weren't working for me. Obviously not using them properly, you've inspired me to give them another go. Thank you!
Thank you!! That's one of the best feedback comments I can get: when a viewer is encouraged to give the media a second go and try it again!! They are a lot of fun - good luck with them!! :)
This is so useful ive had w&N watermarkers for about a year now i got them super cheap at cass art and had no clue how to work them 😂thank you so much!
Excellent tutorial. I too was getting awful results with a thinner paper. I did not know you could blend the colors from marker to paper, right on top of each other. A couple of questions: how long do your markers typically last? Do you find that the small nibs tend to dry out? I keep my markers stored horizontally, but the thick nib is very saturated, and the small nib is drier and lays down a much paler hue.
Hi! Yes, i have found that the thick nib is always saturated and the thin nib gives a paler colour :) its why I tend to use the thick nib most of the time! I've had most of mine for 3 years now, store them horizontally and they are still going strong (fingers crossed!) and overall they get light to medium use because I use them on a small scale most of the time. Glad you found it useful! :D
Thank you for the very informative video, it's the first of yours I've watched, but it definitely won't be the last! I've been seriously considering buying the W&N Watercolour Markers, and I think you answered just about every question I had to start with in is this one video. I very much appreciate that you started with the very basic information essential to success with these watercolour markers. You have a new subscriber here, for sure! I'm off to watch more of your videos! Thanks again!
Thanks for the feedback :D and thanks for subscribing!! Its always a difficult balance to pitch a video to the widest audience (is it too simplistic? is it too advanced?) so I'm glad that this beginners video fits the bill! I was wondering about doing an intermediate-style one - any ideas on what you would like to see demonstrated or explained in that? :)
Cool - i'm glad you liked it! I have many other watercolour marker videos on my channel, so if you want to see more of the techniques I share in the beginner video but on a practical subject, please check them out!
Thank you for the video! I bought a pack of watercolor markers (a much cheaper one, it's not professional at all) but I didn't have a clue about how to use them. This is really helpful.
super helpful! I got some of these as a gift, and it's been a struggle. I tried a few different things, but it just left blotchy pigment spots and streaky marks. I'm going to try a few different papers and see if I've got one that works better, I'm a bit of a dope and didn't even consider maybe the paper was the problem. I'm also using a water brush, so maybe I'll try a regular brush instead. thanks so much!
No problem - I'm glad it was useful to you :D I understand completely, after the amount of times i've been using things and had trouble getting them to work right (pigment markers springs to mind, before I got the right paper!!) I think the waterbrush might be fine on different paper, it is probably a synthetic tip with less spring than a nice posh watercolour brush. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the great video and what you said about the papers. I actually found out that I also can use the aquamarkers on coated paper (same you would use for copics). One question: What is the difference between the aquamarkers from letraset and the winson&newton watercolour markers? I can get the aquamarkers for about 1,99 € online, and the w&n markers are much more expensive - about 3,52 at Boesner here in Berlin. Thanks for the answer in advance!
Hi! I use both types of markers and tbh, I don't find much difference between them apart from the fact the W&N ones have a brush nib instead of the the thick bullet nib that the aquamarkers have. I THINK that the Aquamarkers may have been discontinued so you if you want the continuity of an ongoing product then maybe W&N are the better bet. But if you're looking to just experiment and have a bit of a 'play' with them then maybe the Aquamarkers are better? Thanks for watching and commenting :D
Hi, thanks for the quick answer! In the meantime had a closer look at the two aquamarkers I got from some time ago, and there aren't any pigments listed on them. So they might not be lightfast and the colours might be based on dye instead of pigments (which would explain the price difference).
I did a bit of searching and this link explains all about Aquamarkers if you scroll past the other markers: www.letraset.com/shopcontent.asp?type=WhichMarker It describes them as 'water-based pigmented ink' calling them acid-free and lightfast :) Hope this helps!
Aw thank you! Feedback like that encourages me to keep creating those UA-cam videos, so thank you for that! I know what you mean, I have to DRAG myself away from some of the channels I sub to! :D
Wow. 11/10 tutorial! I think I found my problem! I am not using the correct paper! Gonna run over to Michael's and change that! I appreciate all your help! -Also, I think "rub bing through the paper" is what I was trying to say on my last comment!
I just got some watercolor markers and I had no idea how I was supposed to use them, this definitely helped. now my only concern is if it will work on mix media paper
Hi! Glad the video was useful to you - as to whether they will work on mixed-media paper, I do not know! I get a few people saying that the markers 'stained' the paper when they are using different or thinner watercolour paper. I would use a small bit of the mixed-media paper first and experiment on it to see if they work okay or not :D Hope this helps!!
Thank you! I'm glad you liked it and found it helpful! If you check out a lot of my other flower painting tutorials, they are done with watercolour markers too! :D
Hi! I have heard of them but I haven't used them yet!! I'm trying to just get better with the media that I have :D if I get more, I feel guilty for not using them!! Thanks for watching and i'm glad you found it useful. :)
Hi, I don't know if that is a thing! There are lots of watercolour books, but watercolour markers? I haven't seen one 🤔 maybe if a publisher gets in touch with me? 😁
Thanks. It was very useful. I started with copic markers and the next step supposed be watercolor. But now I reconsider and started think that I can use watercolor markers instead the original watercolor.
They are a really cool watercolour tool! I've tried a lot of other 'watercolour' products and the watercolour markers are the one i've enjoyed using the most. Thanks for watching!
First, you are a very talented artist, thank you for doing this, it is very helpful. I am an experienced artist in colored pencils and acrylic, Watercolors is such a beautiful media, so I wanted to try it out and bought the WN marker, and Caran Darch Museum watercolor pencils and a small box with WN pans, now I just need the paper. I know the paper is equal as important as the media from my experience with colored pencils, therefore I have one question, what is best, Hot or Cold pressed or Rough paper?
Great question! (and thanks for the feedback!) I think it depends on HOW you work. I do a lot of layers and like the thickness of the paper to work with the paints, sometimes again & again. So for this, I think cold pressed and rough suits me. Also I quite like it when the paints 'separate' and fill the little troughs you get in rough paper, giving you texture. I THINK hot pressed is maybe better for confident painters who work with single brushstrokes and like a smoother surface to work on. I only say THINK because I only used it the once and didn't like it, didn't like the way the paint blended - it was like painting on Bristol Board which is a totally different proposition to regular watercolour paper. I know its a bit of a cop-out answer but i'd try to get some free samples of each, both HOT & COLD press and have a go with each to see which suits? If you email/call most companies and ask for some free paper samples i'm sure they would send you some to try! Hope this helps!
Thank you, it helped a lot. I often look at the end result of a piece of art and I choose the paper that goes with that style. First I will try out the cold pressed paper with texture but I also think I would try and order some samples, that is a great idea. Thank you again.
+Jeanie Gregory Thanks! I didn't know how basic to make it but i figured might as well start at the beginning and cover the basics first :D Thanks for watching!
Hi, the only way to know for sure is to test them on that paper. A bit of trial and error is needed to find out what works best. They are a wonderful medium when you get the right paper that works best with the brand you have 👍🙂
I have never tried it!! I would probably try it first on a bit of canvas to see... my instinct suggests that the rougher surface of the canvas would be tough on the nibs of the markers but you never know?? Thanks for watching!
Hi, I don't usually find I get warping when using watercolour markers, because I just use less water than when I'm using classic watercolours. I usually use quite a thick paper though, 300gsm Bockingford by St Cuthbert's Mill so that might limit warping. I don't use a block, just a spiral pad of about 12 sheets; tear em out, paint on them and then frame! It seems to work but I do remember the poinsettia I painted in classic watercolours did warp (I needed thicker paper or I should have stretched it!) but that's because I used sooo much water in with the colours! Hope this helps and thanks for watching 👍
Thank you so much for this, it was a very insightful video :) I have a couple questions for anyone who wants to answer 1. I’m still dabbling in different mediums quite a lot, so I don’t want to overcommit and buy something really expensive. As such, I’ve currently only got Artist’s Loft watercolor brushes. I know it’s not an incredibly high-quality brand but I have to ask - is it normal for brushes to lose bristles when they’re new? When I paint my brushes tend to leave trails of bristles 2. Like I said, I’m trying not to go in over my head buying a really expensive set of markers, brushes, etc.. Obviously I don’t want to get Crayola or Prang but I want to know, are there any other kind of decent quality, not-too-expensive brands that are better than Artist’s Loft?
Thanks for watching and for the feedback :D 1) If you're losing bristles then they must be poor quality brushes, at a guess. 2) I started out with synthetic watercolour brushes, Cotman by Winsor & Newton and used them for years. It was only in the last 10 years that I've got sable brushes to use. I would definitely try a few synthetic brushes if you can.
gee massam Art Awesome, thank you. Fortunately I just started a painting class which gave me some higher quality brushes haha. But I’ll see about some synthetic brushes for sure. Thank you again :)
A bit late but the reason they work with some papers and not others isn't due to cotton nor weight. It all depends on the way and strength of the size applied to the paper when it's made. Basically the recipe of the watercolor paper. So unfortunately what this means is that you need to actually experiment with the papers you are thinking of using. I've found that Arches Oil paper is actually really really good for WC markers while it's horrible for watercolors. Thanks for the other two recommendations. I'll definitely check them out. I also saw someone else ask about the usefulness of WC markers and the W&N WC marker can be used with regular watercolor paintings and still maintain the painting as a watercolor painting as it is pigment based. Unfortunately the others would make it multimedia. I find the bullet nib useful for making lines (especially with a ruler) that I might not create as easily with a brush. Only downside is that their quality control sucks. And I've found a total of 4 different sizes of bullet nibs in my watercolor markers ranging from fine to too far for any kind of linework. The fattest I've gotten is thicker than if I used the chisel to create a line by drawing down the this side of the chisel.
Oh. They also work with Canson Montval watercolor paper. It's one of the cheaper papers they work well with. Certain colors might leave staining marks but as long as you work at a reasonable pace they achieve the effects you would normally want with WC markers.
Wow! I didn't know the nib shapes changed like that!! I have a had a couple of markers with the brush tip 'blunted' for want of a better word... Frustratingly, I also find that the tone that comes out of the fine tip can be quite light, compared to what comes out of the brush tip and sometimes vice versa!! I think the effectiveness and 'staining' quality of the markers is a complex equation that maybe involves ALL the factors we have been discussing, which is a pain, as its more difficult to figure out what works where! As an example, I have some colours that stain the paper more than others for a start (its been suggested that possibly Hues stain more readily than other colours??) and I have some papers that it doesn't matter what markers I use they ALL stain. I think the sizing, cotton, thickness and marker colour itself might all have a part to play!? You are spot on with the recommendation about experimenting though, it looks like I'll be swatching all the colours I have on several different papers as an experiment :D Thanks for the in-depth reply!
Thats a good point about the WC markers and why some markers might stain more than others. It makes me wish I had a complete set so I could 'stain' test the lot of them!! I have wondered before about putting 2 colours on top of each other as well, if the colour put on SECOND is the staining colour, then maybe it will stain less than if you put it on first, raw? Yeah, I think storage is a factor, it definitely used to be with the Aquamarkers by Letraset. Looking at my W&N ones, there is no advice about storage written on the barrel but Aquamarkers used to say 'store in a horizontal position' on them. Because of that, I've always stored the W&N ones the same way - horizontally! :D
gee massam Art I have the complete set. Some were gifted to me by W&N to test out so they might be early production and like everyone else, I hated them until I found they worked well on Montval (which is a paper I don't like for watercolor so I had reason for my Montval pads). Then recently I found they worked amazing on Arches Oil (which I have a stockpile of), so I bought the rest of the colors on sale. Do you have an Instagram?
Wow, that was a really great and helpful tutorial. I have the Aquamarkers as well, when I first tried them I used Canson Mixed Media paper, the result looked horrible, that type of paper absolutely does not support those markers.
Thanks for the feedback :) Yeah, I tried Aquamarkers on Bockingford tinted paper once and they kind of just soaked in and stuck... i couldn't get them to move with water afterwards :D Its all trial and error (lots of error ;))
To me the paper thing was incredibly helpful. Recently I got a ser of watercolor markers advice been using them on the wrong paper ( it obviously said dry mediums only but I just ignored it)
I have been there!! I totally understand - it can be a mind-boggling array of papers with different descriptions and numbers. A little trial and error goes a long way but it's good if fellow artists can point you in the right direction, as many other youtubers have done for me with their videos! Good luck with your paintings!
Thank you for this video. Super helpful! I like that palette, what is it made of? Do you know where you got it or something like it online? I guess my normal plastic watercolor palette would also work but yours is pretty lol
It is pretty I guess :D but its good to hold as well, as its a lovely smooth piece of ceramic! I got it with a watercolour set a few years back but i'm sure you can get one from ebay; its a 'flower' shaped ceramic palette. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Really helpful! Yesterday i bought a black watercolour marker (only one because I just want to try it), and I thought I had to dip the nib into water... Now I know I have the use a brush XD Again, really helpful! Thanks!
No problem!! I suppose you can still dip the nib in the water if you want, but I don't know how long that would last!! I know that some folks dip their watercolour pencils in the water but when I tried that, the wood got saturated and when I tried to sharpen it, big chunks of wood came off in the sharpener!?! Thanks for watching!
Hi, You can totally use them like normal markers but they are NOT alcohol markers, so they won't blend together unless you add water - water is the medium that allows them to blend. Also if you mean printer paper, that may be too thin for them to work on, meaning if you do add water the paper will buckle or 'cockle' or might even disintegrate if you work it too much with the brush. Hope this helps! :)
@@gee355Art Thank you! Though, I'd like to add that the colors of my Winsor & Newton do seem to mix if I do it directly on their tips while they're dry - which was the technique that I was shown originally. Is this problematic in the long run in any way (with or without me washing the tip), or will it work just fine?
Hi! Alas, I think they stopped making them when Letraset merged with Winsor & Newton! But fear not, there are some really good alternatives on the market: W&N watercolour markers are good, as are NOVA watercolour markers (and very reasonable!) and I also have some Faber Castell ones that I haven't had a chance to try yet... I will make an upcoming video about them though... My advice would be grab the primary and secondary colours of any brand and have a go with them, try em on a few watercolour papers... Hope this helps!! 👍
What if I put my watercolour pen into the clean water and start colouring on paper there. Will the pen get damaged because of the water entering the colour source and cause something permanent?
I have not really done this, because of the problems you describe!! I suspect that the pen absorbing water directly would NOT be a good thing so I've avoided using them this way. I'm sure you could use them like that but I think you might have problems like you do with watercolour pencils; some people dip the pencils directly into water and then draw with them but I found that the pencil wood absorbs the water and then when you try and sharpen them, big chunks of wood come off!! I suppose if you have duplicates of some colours you could experiment and try it out?
Hi! I would say yes, it probably will stain it. I would test on a small corner of a page you're not too bothered about, just to be sure! And if you've already done the drawing and you find out it stains, just trace/lightbox it onto a nice piece of watercolour paper.... :) I'd be really interested to find out what happens, so let me know what paper you're using and if it stains or not? :D
I think I got them on a deal from somewhere like Cowling & Wilcox in the UK, about 2.99 each and maybe a buy 4 get one free thing? I shopped around a bit because some places were asking 4.99 each - no chance!! You could always get the primary colours and then blend all the colours you needed from that? Thanks for watching!!
I tried this with Arches 300 GSM and had staining :( I will have to keep trying, buy more paper I guess .. I am determined to make these markers work for me!!!!!! :)
Wow - I figured any 300gsm would be good! It just goes to show how different watercolour papers can be :O I can only suggest the W&N artists watercolour paper 300gsm or the Bockingford St Cuthberts Mill - it sounds like you'll see a huge difference!! :) I also think some colours are more prone to staining, maybe reds? And try a synthetic brush to add/mix water with the markers when they are directly on the paper?
i used arches as well on my second try i had almost no staining and created some neat drawings but arches is apparently not the best for this medium i gotta try his recommended paper :) but maybe give arches a second try
+Crystal Quartz Yeah, especially when you apply them right to the paper and THEN add water. Its one of the things I was attracted to straight away about them. Thanks for the comment!
Thank you so much for the overview! I did a quick experiment with papers, because I was curious to see if it was about the cotton content, the texture, the weight/thickness, or the sizing of the paper that allows the markers to be activated properly. (A good resource for anyone else who reads this and has no idea what I'm talking about is handprint.com/HP/WCL/wpaper.html) I used my collection of Winsor Newton Watercolour Markers using just the larger brush tip side of the marker (since the fine tips tend to be pretty harsh no matter what paper you use). I used the following papers: --Winsor and Newton student grade cold press 300gsm non-cotton watercolour paper, which in my extensive testing has shown to have variable sizing in the paper --Winsor and Newton non-cotton watercolour postcards, which has virtually no sizing in the paper (it's almost like a blotting cloth) --Bockingford cold press 300gsm non-cotton watercolor paper, which has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper --Bockingford hot press 300gsm non-cotton watercolor paper, also has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper --ExaClair Clairefontaine Goldline 200gsm cold press paper that was 50% cotton and 50% non-lignin cellulose, has both internal and external sizing--meaning it is very close to being hard sized --Saunders Waterford 100% cotton 300gsm cold press watercolor paper, which has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper (I didn't have any hot press on hand to test against). The fast version of my results: --Bockingford 300gsm Hot Press paper was the best performing of the group--you could easily brush out any marker lines (almost no effort--and I was using a soft squirrel mop), and work the paint mixes directly on the page. Of course the caveat here, is that Hot Press takes some skill to use, because it's a less forgiving with mistakes. It also doesn't do well with super wet washes. Great for botanical and detailed portrait/figure painting. --Bockingford 300gsm Cold Press and Saunders Waterford 300gsm Cold Press performed almost identical to one another. It works well, but I'd call it second to the Hot Press because I had to work harder to brush out any marker lines, and had to work really really fast for color mixing. However, while it takes more to get the marker lines to blend, it is an easier paper to use with water. Most people will do best to stick with Cold Press for this reason--it's more forgiving for mistakes, and works super well with wet washes. --ExaClair Clairfontaine Goldline 200gsm cold press paper wasn't as great. I couldn't get the marker lines out, even when laying flat washes. However, because of the sizing, color mixing was a breeze. --Both Winsor and Newton papers performed dismally. Marker lines were very apparent, no matter how much I worked the page (and I've found with W&N paper if you work the page it will start to pill and become damaged). Color mixing didn't happen--instead it looked like a child layering markers on top of one another with distinct horrible lines. I do not recommend. Notes on the test: --Sizing of the paper makes an ENORMOUS difference in the performance. The papers that performed best with the markers, had good quality sizing that was consistent and balanced--and sizing is going to be key to mixing your colors on the page. Sizing is essentially what makes watercolour paper what it is, rather than super absorbent thick and expensive paper. And watercolour markers NEED this. This is also the most telling difference between professional and student grade paper (other than archival quality and cotton content). --Hot press seems to allow the marker to sit on the surface of the paper, so it is easier to activate with water, get rid of marker lines, and mix colors superbly. I can see this being a boon for anyone doing botanical or highly detailed portraiture. --Cold press does soak the marker up a bit faster, but the lines can be worked out of the paper (so long as you go with a professional paper that doesn't pill). --Weight makes a difference--the much thinner 200gsm pape very quickly soaked up the marker. Considering the 200gsm paper has the most sizing and still activated and mixed colors well, the only explanation for it soaking up the marker and leaving marker lines is that the weight is too light. So I would go no lighter than 300gsm, and if you can go higher you'll probably have better results. I might test this in the future with some 600 and 800+ gsm papers. --Whether it's cotton based or not doesn't make a significant difference, unless you're worried about archival quality of your paintings. Bockingford is made of cellulose and it performed beautifully; Saunders Waterford is 100% cotton and it performed at an identical level of usability and ease. The markers don't seem to perform much differently between cellulose and cotton itself. Hope this helps anyone looking for clarity on the paper issue. Not all papers are created equal. Often you get what you pay for. The good news is that Bockingford (in both cold and hot press) can be bought in affordable fat pads at different dimensions. I like to buy mine from Lawrence Art Supplies in the UK (since I'm in Ireland currently), but I've also seen them on Jacksons and Amazon UK. This is probably the most affordable option for a high quality paper :)
Wow!!! Thank you soooooo much for this in-depth reply!! You should have recorded your findings for a youtube video - people would have loved the explanantion of this!! I use the bockingford 300gsm usually and have found it terrific for the watercolour markers but I didn't know WHY! I think you have just cleared up for me why that kind of paper is so good for these markers (and why some others are sooo bad!) As for hot press, I might give it a shot with a smaller pad, only because I tried it once and HATED IT :D but that was with a landscape painting when I had been used to using cold-press. I have to say I'm really impressed with your investigations into this and thank you for sharing!! Have you shared a blog of your findings?? I think people around the world would appreciate your efforts! :D
Thank you for the compliment :), and I'm super happy it helped! I've played around with the idea of writing a blog, but I have a couple of issues with it. First, most of what I'm doing is laid out on handprint.com or something I found on UA-cam. I'm insane and will read through very dense material to learn about the supplies I'm using, which I know is not for everyone. But for those who want to learn, that resource is already out there! And secondly, I'm still very very much a student. Again, I understand that art is kind of like signing up to be a lifelong student, but I am at the beginning of my journey. So I'm not entirely comfortable with teaching on such a broad level until I have a bit more experience under my belt. Also, to be completely candid, I would rather spend the time making art at this point, haha! You do a lot of these tutorials and thought that maybe a paper investigation would help to understand why the markers work really well on some papers, but horribly on others :)
How do you find that working for you?? I did not have very good results when I tried it :D Mind you, I could never use watercolour pencils that way either - when I sharpened them, big chunks would come off the tip :O
It's working out pretty well. I'm still toying around with them, so I haven't really made anything serious with it, but I just think it's another useful way to use the markers. :)
Absolutely!! I'm always aware that when I post beginner guides that these are just the ways that I have found to use the medium. I love hearing and seeing how other people use them too, especially if it's in a way i haven't thought of OR just didn't work for me the first time I tried it. :)
Hi! Well, they are and they aren't: they were absorbed into parent company Colart in around 2016 😄 that's how Promarker came to be rebranded as Winsor and Newton (also owned by Colart) moving forwards. Same pens though 🤷🏻♂️ I miss Letraset tho 🥺 Thanks for watching!
Hi, thanks for watching! Yes, Winsor and Newton have absorbed and rebranded the Letraset range but the W&N watercolour markers did come out before Letraset Aquamarkers 'ended' and consist of a different range of colours. I think there are now fewer colours than before and ofcourse the W&N watercolour markers have a brush instead of big bullet tip, which is far better for 'painting' with :D Now their Promarkers are just a straight swap and rebrand, as far as I understand it - as W&N had better brand recognition than Letraset...
😃 thanks for watching! After checking with google, I have learned something new! There is a shorter British pronunciation of aqua and the American version has a slightly longer aa sound at the beginning! This suddenly explains the pronunciation of Anna in the movie Frozen! 🤣 It's good to know there are 2 versions for future but I'll have to stick to my roots 😉 🇬🇧 👍🏻
This is really good. I've never considered using watercolour markers. I'd most certainly be interested to see more. Thanks.
+Andy Simmons Thanks for the feedback, I have done quite a few videos using them but the ones from the last year are probably the better quality ones ;) I've included a link to a playlist with the videos on, some are long but others are pretty quick :D: ua-cam.com/play/PLor13ECtJsrg0IubcSgqOg5wm77NSxbbI.html
this was extremely helpful!
I received a set of the Windsor and Newton brand for Christmas, and was at a bit of a loss as to how to use them to get the effects I wanted, and this video helped a great deal
No problem! You might want to check out my Pink Waterlily tutorial video too, where I go into greater depth and how I used them to paint the flower.
Thanks for watching and commenting!!
oh! I'll definitely check that out, thanks so much again :D
Thanks for sharing these techniques I’m definitely gonna try them
No problem, I hope you enjoy using them!! Thanks for the feedback!
I absolutely loved this video! I enjoyed the commentary and the clarity of the video and how simple and straightforward it is. Please do make more and show more tips and tricks for working with watercolor markers. Love your channel!
+Keren Duchan Thank you so much :) I thought i'd 'begin at the begin', as it were! Sure I can do more, showing how I use them to do something, like a leaf or a face. Thanks for the feedback, it really helps me plan for future videos.
A great help . I learnt also that paper makes a big difference. Thanks
Thank you! Its good to hear feedback, so thankyou for letting me know!
Very helpful info about the paper thicknesses as well as the best uses of those markers. Thanks!
No problem - i'm glad it was useful to you!
It seems that there's even more to it, as the 'sizing' of the paper affects how well the pens work too, but its quite difficult to find out just how much sizing a paper has... :)
Thanks for watching and commenting though! :D
I have watercolor markers and had no idea how to use them.... I thought they were just like 'markers', til I saw your vid where you add water. Who knew? Thank you, this was so informative.
You're welcome, I'm glad you found it helpful! I'm thinking of doing another one sometime, so if there is anything you want to see domonstrated, just let me know 😊
Thanks for this! I had almost given up on my markers because of the staining problem, they had been relegated to the back of a cupboard after ruining a couple of pieces - I had no idea that the paper could be an issue! I had been using 300gsm as well, but Ill try switching to other brands and hopefully see a difference in how they perform. Fingers crossed anyway!
No problem and thanks for feedback! I also get the water on soon after adding the markers if that helps!
Let me know how you get on with the different papers :D
I like your instruction. You teach in a quick, easy, clear manner. Glad to have found you! 😎
Thank you for the feedback!! I spend way too much time editing and second-guessing my explanation/narration so i'm pleased you find it clear and easy to understand!
Thanks for watching!
I got a set of 8 markers so it was really helpful to watch your video for papers and techniques. Thank you!
:D No problem - I'm glad you found it useful!!
Thanks for watching!
Thank you for your response to my question and encouragement. I have watched a lot of videos on these markers. Yours are the only good ones...most people reviewing them had no clue how they work. Thank you for all the beautiful art, the great information and the great variety of information.
You are so welcome! I still enjoy using them and have some plans for a couple of upcoming videos, maybe an animal or a still life object...?
Thank you so much for watching and commenting! :)
The bit about the paper was so helpful I have been trying to use my water color marker on strathmore paper and that was horrible! Trial and error i guess i have some canson mixed media that works ways better now! thanks!
Happy it was helpful! I think just like classic watercolours, the right paper can make all the difference to the outcome and how they handle!
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the videos on these markers. I was so impressed watching you work with them, that I bought a 12 piece Letraset and just ordered 2 more 6 pc sets. I looked into the Winsor and Newton markers and they are much more expensive. Also, the bit about the paper was very helpful. Although I use most Arches, I went to Amazon (what would we do without Amazon!!!) and picked up some Langton and Bockingford. I am thinking these markers would be great for painting on the go!
I'm happy you feel confident with them :D You know, I thought I would use them 'on the go' more as well but I actually find them good enough to do sit-down detailed, colourful artwork too! As with a lot of art materials, using the right paper is essential!! Good luck with them!
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Thank you! Very easy to follow instructions 😁
Hi, thank you 🙂 and thanks for the feedback!
I love this. I must try it!
Really helpful as i'm a newbie to watercolours good insight to not only markers but paper too.Thank you !!
Its interesting you should say that because I might be guilty of assuming that watercolour doesn't need a 'beginners' video but... people must be using watercolours for the first time everyday!! (I can be a bit slow to figure these things out sometimes :D)
So I think a future video should be a beginners guide to watercolour too...! :D
Thanks for the feedback and the accidental idea ;)
That would be fantastic!!! Look forward to ore of your tutourials
This video was fantastic. I would love to see a video in this style showing the execution of different textures in different mediums. Right now I am working on a piece with bone and would like to practice in a few different mediums before deciding how to proceed with the finished piece.
+HeavyMetalJess Showing texture with the markers would be tougher than using 'classic' paints (pans/tubes) but I'm sure it could be done. I have a few ideas...
Most commonly I use both colored pencil and marker but I'm excited to see your ideas!
+HeavyMetalJess I would probably try to do bone with watercolours, because they can show a 'stained' effect really well, especially using all the lovely yellow ochres and browns to show aged bones?
Very useful! Thanks for your input!!
Hi, i'm glad it was helpful to you! Thanks for watching.
Thank you for sharing. Tutorials are fantastic.
+Asia Zawadzka-Lazuchiewicz Thank you for watching :D and for the feedback :)
Thank you for sharing ,I love watching these videos as they save me money and time, I always use Indigo paper and Arches, I will have to try them on these but will order the paper you recommended,again thank you!
Hi, thanks for commenting and I hope the paper works for you the way I find it does! I got some more watercolour markers before christmas so i'm going to be doing some more soon! :D
Thank you, I really learned a lot in watching your video.
Thank you! That's a lovely comment and that's good feedback to help me plan future content 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Excellent information. Thank you very much. You have an easy to listen to voice!
Thanks for watching! And thanks for the feedback 😊
What an excellent example! Thanks!
No problem! I'm glad it was useful to you and thanks for the feedback 👍🙂
I’ve recently just bought some aqua markers and this was really helpful in figuring out what was going wrong hopefully I can use them better now thank you
Thanks, I'm glad that the video helped! They can be a bit tricky but also a lot of fun - stick with them. 😄
finally, a guide on how to start watercolor markers, this really gave me a good insight, thanks :D
No problem! Glad it was useful to you :D
I was just ready to ditch my proart wc markers. I'll try them on another paper first. Thanks
No problem!! Paper is (almost!) everything when it comes to watercolours :D
Glad to help, and thanks for watching!
Super helpful tutorial. Thank you!
Cool - I'm glad you found it useful!! Some of my other watercolour marker videos go into more detail, if you check the playlist 'Watercolour Markers and Aquamarker paintings' you'll see what I mean :D
Thanks for watching!
This helps a lot! I recently got myself some watercolour markers to try out and I was surprised to see it didn't work too badly with mixed media paper. It actually gave it an interesting stained look which I love
That is cool - I haven't tried that kind of paper with them yet, but thanks for the heads-up on it!
Thanks for watching and the feedback!
gee massam Art No problem my dude!
Thank you. Very helpful.
Hi, thanks for the feedback! I'm glad you found it useful.
Most interesting..didn’t know there were watercolour markers..good to know
Really good tutorial, great explanation and demonstration. I have some of these markers, but they weren't working for me. Obviously not using them properly, you've inspired me to give them another go. Thank you!
Thank you!! That's one of the best feedback comments I can get: when a viewer is encouraged to give the media a second go and try it again!! They are a lot of fun - good luck with them!! :)
Thank you! Very helpful. I need different paper!
I know what you mean - it's like a little breakthrough when you find out these things watching someones video!
Glad it was helpful to you!
This is so useful ive had w&N watermarkers for about a year now i got them super cheap at cass art and had no clue how to work them 😂thank you so much!
Thank you :) I'm glad it was useful to you and I hope you get some use out of them now - good luck creating!! :D
Excellent tutorial. I too was getting awful results with a thinner paper. I did not know you could blend the colors from marker to paper, right on top of each other. A couple of questions: how long do your markers typically last? Do you find that the small nibs tend to dry out? I keep my markers stored horizontally, but the thick nib is very saturated, and the small nib is drier and lays down a much paler hue.
Hi! Yes, i have found that the thick nib is always saturated and the thin nib gives a paler colour :) its why I tend to use the thick nib most of the time!
I've had most of mine for 3 years now, store them horizontally and they are still going strong (fingers crossed!) and overall they get light to medium use because I use them on a small scale most of the time.
Glad you found it useful! :D
These was useful. Thank you. I bought markers not really knowing how to use them and what to expect.
Thanks so much for this! It made using my water colour markers so much easier and more understandable!
Thanks for the feedback and for watching! I'm glad it was useful to you! :D
Thank you for the very informative video, it's the first of yours I've watched, but it definitely won't be the last! I've been seriously considering buying the W&N Watercolour Markers, and I think you answered just about every question I had to start with in is this one video. I very much appreciate that you started with the very basic information essential to success with these watercolour markers. You have a new subscriber here, for sure! I'm off to watch more of your videos! Thanks again!
Thanks for the feedback :D and thanks for subscribing!! Its always a difficult balance to pitch a video to the widest audience (is it too simplistic? is it too advanced?) so I'm glad that this beginners video fits the bill! I was wondering about doing an intermediate-style one - any ideas on what you would like to see demonstrated or explained in that? :)
This was very helpful as I just ordered a set of arteza watermarkers, can't wait to try them out.
Cool - i'm glad you liked it! I have many other watercolour marker videos on my channel, so if you want to see more of the techniques I share in the beginner video but on a practical subject, please check them out!
Thanks! This was really helpful! I just started to use watercolor markers, and this really cleared things up for me. Great job!
Thank you for the feedback, it all helps me plan my future videos :) I'm glad it was useful to you and thank you for watching!
Thank you for the video!
I bought a pack of watercolor markers (a much cheaper one, it's not professional at all) but I didn't have a clue about how to use them. This is really helpful.
Thank you for the feedback :D and I'm glad it was useful to you! Hope you enjoy using them!
Very useful thanks.
No problems! Thanks for watching and the feedback!
super helpful! I got some of these as a gift, and it's been a struggle. I tried a few different things, but it just left blotchy pigment spots and streaky marks. I'm going to try a few different papers and see if I've got one that works better, I'm a bit of a dope and didn't even consider maybe the paper was the problem. I'm also using a water brush, so maybe I'll try a regular brush instead. thanks so much!
No problem - I'm glad it was useful to you :D I understand completely, after the amount of times i've been using things and had trouble getting them to work right (pigment markers springs to mind, before I got the right paper!!)
I think the waterbrush might be fine on different paper, it is probably a synthetic tip with less spring than a nice posh watercolour brush.
Thanks for watching!
Great help! Thanks 👍
No problem! 🙂
this video was extremely helpful for me. thank you!
Thanks for the feedback! I appreciate it.
Thanks for the great video and what you said about the papers. I actually found out that I also can use the aquamarkers on coated paper (same you would use for copics). One question: What is the difference between the aquamarkers from letraset and the winson&newton watercolour markers? I can get the aquamarkers for about 1,99 € online, and the w&n markers are much more expensive - about 3,52 at Boesner here in Berlin. Thanks for the answer in advance!
Hi! I use both types of markers and tbh, I don't find much difference between them apart from the fact the W&N ones have a brush nib instead of the the thick bullet nib that the aquamarkers have. I THINK that the Aquamarkers may have been discontinued so you if you want the continuity of an ongoing product then maybe W&N are the better bet. But if you're looking to just experiment and have a bit of a 'play' with them then maybe the Aquamarkers are better?
Thanks for watching and commenting :D
Hi, thanks for the quick answer! In the meantime had a closer look at the two aquamarkers I got from some time ago, and there aren't any pigments listed on them. So they might not be lightfast and the colours might be based on dye instead of pigments (which would explain the price difference).
I did a bit of searching and this link explains all about Aquamarkers if you scroll past the other markers: www.letraset.com/shopcontent.asp?type=WhichMarker
It describes them as 'water-based pigmented ink' calling them acid-free and lightfast :)
Hope this helps!
Wonderful!
Thank you so much! :D
This was extremely useful thanks for the video
No problem at all - and thank you for the feedback!!
Really nice tutorial, I could watch you all day....if only I didn't have other things to do!
Aw thank you! Feedback like that encourages me to keep creating those UA-cam videos, so thank you for that!
I know what you mean, I have to DRAG myself away from some of the channels I sub to! :D
Wow. 11/10 tutorial! I think I found my problem! I am not using the correct paper! Gonna run over to Michael's and change that! I appreciate all your help! -Also, I think "rub bing through the paper" is what I was trying to say on my last comment!
Oh yeah, if you're rubbing through the paper then its either too thin or you're just over-working the paper!!!
Good luck with the new paper :)
I just got some watercolor markers and I had no idea how I was supposed to use them, this definitely helped. now my only concern is if it will work on mix media paper
Hi! Glad the video was useful to you - as to whether they will work on mixed-media paper, I do not know! I get a few people saying that the markers 'stained' the paper when they are using different or thinner watercolour paper. I would use a small bit of the mixed-media paper first and experiment on it to see if they work okay or not :D
Hope this helps!!
This was very useful, having just purchased some water colour pens from Lidl this was great info and they seemed to work great.
Thank you! I'm glad you liked it and found it helpful! If you check out a lot of my other flower painting tutorials, they are done with watercolour markers too! :D
Very useful thanks
Thank you!! That was always the plan - stick to the basics and the FAQ about them!
Thanks for the feedback too!
Very useful! I have some ecoline brush pen and zig clean color. Do you use those?
Hi! I have heard of them but I haven't used them yet!! I'm trying to just get better with the media that I have :D if I get more, I feel guilty for not using them!!
Thanks for watching and i'm glad you found it useful. :)
Soo much useful thank you
No problem at all! Thanks for watching :)
Thank You! Absolutely helpful for me! 👩🏻🎨I will follow you from now. 👍🏼
Thanks for watching and following :D
Thank you this is great!
Thank you :D you're welcome!
I am looking for a book how to draw or paint with watercolor markers. Something like this tutorial only in a book format.
Hi, I don't know if that is a thing! There are lots of watercolour books, but watercolour markers? I haven't seen one 🤔 maybe if a publisher gets in touch with me? 😁
Thanks. It was very useful. I started with copic markers and the next step supposed be watercolor. But now I reconsider and started think that I can use watercolor markers instead the original watercolor.
They are a really cool watercolour tool! I've tried a lot of other 'watercolour' products and the watercolour markers are the one i've enjoyed using the most.
Thanks for watching!
First, you are a very talented artist, thank you for doing this, it is very helpful.
I am an experienced artist in colored pencils and acrylic,
Watercolors is such a beautiful media, so I wanted to try it out and bought the WN marker, and Caran Darch Museum watercolor pencils and a small box with WN pans, now I just need the paper.
I know the paper is equal as important as the media from my experience with colored pencils, therefore I have one question, what is best,
Hot or Cold pressed or Rough paper?
Great question! (and thanks for the feedback!)
I think it depends on HOW you work. I do a lot of layers and like the thickness of the paper to work with the paints, sometimes again & again. So for this, I think cold pressed and rough suits me. Also I quite like it when the paints 'separate' and fill the little troughs you get in rough paper, giving you texture.
I THINK hot pressed is maybe better for confident painters who work with single brushstrokes and like a smoother surface to work on. I only say THINK because I only used it the once and didn't like it, didn't like the way the paint blended - it was like painting on Bristol Board which is a totally different proposition to regular watercolour paper.
I know its a bit of a cop-out answer but i'd try to get some free samples of each, both HOT & COLD press and have a go with each to see which suits? If you email/call most companies and ask for some free paper samples i'm sure they would send you some to try!
Hope this helps!
Thank you, it helped a lot.
I often look at the end result of a piece of art and I choose the paper that goes with that style. First I will try out the cold pressed paper with texture but I also think I would try and order some samples, that is a great idea. Thank you again.
Thanks for the great video Gee! I will need this information when I run out of my practice stuff. :-)
+Jeanie Gregory Thanks! I didn't know how basic to make it but i figured might as well start at the beginning and cover the basics first :D Thanks for watching!
Wauw thanks a lot, good explaning!
No problem at all!! Thanks for watching and I'm happy it was useful to you!! :D
It's awesome....
:) They are a lot of fun, whichever brand you use!!
Thanks for watching and commenting!
I have aquarelle watercolor markers , will they work on regular sketch paper ?
Hi, the only way to know for sure is to test them on that paper. A bit of trial and error is needed to find out what works best. They are a wonderful medium when you get the right paper that works best with the brand you have 👍🙂
This is great stuff..!
Thank you! If there was anything in the video that you wanted to see but I didn't cover, then just let me know :D
Would these work ok on a canvas? I already sketched my drawing on it and would love to try these. Ty.
I have never tried it!! I would probably try it first on a bit of canvas to see... my instinct suggests that the rougher surface of the canvas would be tough on the nibs of the markers but you never know??
Thanks for watching!
Do you find any of these papers warp from the markers? Would you recommend using blocks?
Hi, I don't usually find I get warping when using watercolour markers, because I just use less water than when I'm using classic watercolours. I usually use quite a thick paper though, 300gsm Bockingford by St Cuthbert's Mill so that might limit warping. I don't use a block, just a spiral pad of about 12 sheets; tear em out, paint on them and then frame! It seems to work but I do remember the poinsettia I painted in classic watercolours did warp (I needed thicker paper or I should have stretched it!) but that's because I used sooo much water in
with the colours! Hope this helps and thanks for watching 👍
gee massam Art awesome thank you ✌️✌️☺️
Thank you so much for this, it was a very insightful video :) I have a couple questions for anyone who wants to answer
1. I’m still dabbling in different mediums quite a lot, so I don’t want to overcommit and buy something really expensive. As such, I’ve currently only got Artist’s Loft watercolor brushes. I know it’s not an incredibly high-quality brand but I have to ask - is it normal for brushes to lose bristles when they’re new? When I paint my brushes tend to leave trails of bristles
2. Like I said, I’m trying not to go in over my head buying a really expensive set of markers, brushes, etc.. Obviously I don’t want to get Crayola or Prang but I want to know, are there any other kind of decent quality, not-too-expensive brands that are better than Artist’s Loft?
Thanks for watching and for the feedback :D
1) If you're losing bristles then they must be poor quality brushes, at a guess.
2) I started out with synthetic watercolour brushes, Cotman by Winsor & Newton and used them for years. It was only in the last 10 years that I've got sable brushes to use. I would definitely try a few synthetic brushes if you can.
gee massam Art Awesome, thank you. Fortunately I just started a painting class which gave me some higher quality brushes haha. But I’ll see about some synthetic brushes for sure. Thank you again :)
A bit late but the reason they work with some papers and not others isn't due to cotton nor weight. It all depends on the way and strength of the size applied to the paper when it's made. Basically the recipe of the watercolor paper. So unfortunately what this means is that you need to actually experiment with the papers you are thinking of using. I've found that Arches Oil paper is actually really really good for WC markers while it's horrible for watercolors. Thanks for the other two recommendations. I'll definitely check them out.
I also saw someone else ask about the usefulness of WC markers and the W&N WC marker can be used with regular watercolor paintings and still maintain the painting as a watercolor painting as it is pigment based. Unfortunately the others would make it multimedia. I find the bullet nib useful for making lines (especially with a ruler) that I might not create as easily with a brush. Only downside is that their quality control sucks. And I've found a total of 4 different sizes of bullet nibs in my watercolor markers ranging from fine to too far for any kind of linework. The fattest I've gotten is thicker than if I used the chisel to create a line by drawing down the this side of the chisel.
Oh. They also work with Canson Montval watercolor paper. It's one of the cheaper papers they work well with. Certain colors might leave staining marks but as long as you work at a reasonable pace they achieve the effects you would normally want with WC markers.
Wow! I didn't know the nib shapes changed like that!! I have a had a couple of markers with the brush tip 'blunted' for want of a better word... Frustratingly, I also find that the tone that comes out of the fine tip can be quite light, compared to what comes out of the brush tip and sometimes vice versa!!
I think the effectiveness and 'staining' quality of the markers is a complex equation that maybe involves ALL the factors we have been discussing, which is a pain, as its more difficult to figure out what works where! As an example, I have some colours that stain the paper more than others for a start (its been suggested that possibly Hues stain more readily than other colours??) and I have some papers that it doesn't matter what markers I use they ALL stain. I think the sizing, cotton, thickness and marker colour itself might all have a part to play!?
You are spot on with the recommendation about experimenting though, it looks like I'll be swatching all the colours I have on several different papers as an experiment :D
Thanks for the in-depth reply!
Thats a good point about the WC markers and why some markers might stain more than others. It makes me wish I had a complete set so I could 'stain' test the lot of them!! I have wondered before about putting 2 colours on top of each other as well, if the colour put on SECOND is the staining colour, then maybe it will stain less than if you put it on first, raw?
Yeah, I think storage is a factor, it definitely used to be with the Aquamarkers by Letraset. Looking at my W&N ones, there is no advice about storage written on the barrel but Aquamarkers used to say 'store in a horizontal position' on them. Because of that, I've always stored the W&N ones the same way - horizontally! :D
gee massam Art I have the complete set. Some were gifted to me by W&N to test out so they might be early production and like everyone else, I hated them until I found they worked well on Montval (which is a paper I don't like for watercolor so I had reason for my Montval pads). Then recently I found they worked amazing on Arches Oil (which I have a stockpile of), so I bought the rest of the colors on sale. Do you have an Instagram?
yes! Its geemassamart :D do you have one too?
Have you tried them on bristol board.
No, not yet. I think I thought they would just stain into Bristol Board but you're right, I should try it, just to see!!
Thanks for the idea!
Cool thanks for the reply.
Wow, that was a really great and helpful tutorial. I have the Aquamarkers as well, when I first tried them I used Canson Mixed Media paper, the result looked horrible, that type of paper absolutely does not support those markers.
Thanks for the feedback :) Yeah, I tried Aquamarkers on Bockingford tinted paper once and they kind of just soaked in and stuck... i couldn't get them to move with water afterwards :D Its all trial and error (lots of error ;))
Thanks for the fast reply :)
It's okay - I was uploading a new video :D
Watching it right now :)
Thanks!!!
To me the paper thing was incredibly helpful. Recently I got a ser of watercolor markers advice been using them on the wrong paper ( it obviously said dry mediums only but I just ignored it)
I have been there!! I totally understand - it can be a mind-boggling array of papers with different descriptions and numbers. A little trial and error goes a long way but it's good if fellow artists can point you in the right direction, as many other youtubers have done for me with their videos!
Good luck with your paintings!
Thank you for this video. Super helpful! I like that palette, what is it made of? Do you know where you got it or something like it online? I guess my normal plastic watercolor palette would also work but yours is pretty lol
It is pretty I guess :D but its good to hold as well, as its a lovely smooth piece of ceramic! I got it with a watercolour set a few years back but i'm sure you can get one from ebay; its a 'flower' shaped ceramic palette.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
this is really close to the one I have: www.ebay.co.uk/p/Porcelain-Ceramic-Daisy-Palette-7-Well-Artist-All-Media-Paint-Mixing-Dish-125mm/1708892903
Really helpful! Yesterday i bought a black watercolour marker (only one because I just want to try it), and I thought I had to dip the nib into water... Now I know I have the use a brush XD
Again, really helpful! Thanks!
No problem!! I suppose you can still dip the nib in the water if you want, but I don't know how long that would last!! I know that some folks dip their watercolour pencils in the water but when I tried that, the wood got saturated and when I tried to sharpen it, big chunks of wood came off in the sharpener!?!
Thanks for watching!
There's no problem if I use them like normal-markers-that-I-can-actually-mix-colors on printing paper, right?
Hi, You can totally use them like normal markers but they are NOT alcohol markers, so they won't blend together unless you add water - water is the medium that allows them to blend. Also if you mean printer paper, that may be too thin for them to work on, meaning if you do add water the paper will buckle or 'cockle' or might even disintegrate if you work it too much with the brush.
Hope this helps! :)
@@gee355Art Thank you! Though, I'd like to add that the colors of my Winsor & Newton do seem to mix if I do it directly on their tips while they're dry - which was the technique that I was shown originally. Is this problematic in the long run in any way (with or without me washing the tip), or will it work just fine?
Where can we buy Aquamarkers
brand?
Hi! Alas, I think they stopped making them when Letraset merged with Winsor & Newton! But fear not, there are some really good alternatives on the market: W&N watercolour markers are good, as are NOVA watercolour markers (and very reasonable!) and I also have some Faber Castell ones that I haven't had a chance to try yet... I will make an upcoming video about them though... My advice would be grab the primary and secondary colours of any brand and have a go with them, try em on a few watercolour papers... Hope this helps!! 👍
What if I put my watercolour pen into the clean water and start colouring on paper there. Will the pen get damaged because of the water entering the colour source and cause something permanent?
I have not really done this, because of the problems you describe!! I suspect that the pen absorbing water directly would NOT be a good thing so I've avoided using them this way. I'm sure you could use them like that but I think you might have problems like you do with watercolour pencils; some people dip the pencils directly into water and then draw with them but I found that the pencil wood absorbs the water and then when you try and sharpen them, big chunks of wood come off!!
I suppose if you have duplicates of some colours you could experiment and try it out?
@@gee355Art Okay, thanks for the reply, I really appreciate it.
will it stain if i use watercolour markers on sketchbook paper?
Hi! I would say yes, it probably will stain it. I would test on a small corner of a page you're not too bothered about, just to be sure! And if you've already done the drawing and you find out it stains, just trace/lightbox it onto a nice piece of watercolour paper.... :)
I'd be really interested to find out what happens, so let me know what paper you're using and if it stains or not? :D
gee massam Art ahh i see!! thanks for the reply! I'll see what i can do ^^
How much did one Winsor and Newton marker cost?
I think I got them on a deal from somewhere like Cowling & Wilcox in the UK, about 2.99 each and maybe a buy 4 get one free thing? I shopped around a bit because some places were asking 4.99 each - no chance!!
You could always get the primary colours and then blend all the colours you needed from that?
Thanks for watching!!
THANKS
You're welcome!! Hope it was useful!!
I dont know if its the paper but my markers just dont work :( they are even the same brand I dont get what's wrong
Hi, which brand do you have? 🙂
@@gee355Art winsor and newton
I tried this with Arches 300 GSM and had staining :( I will have to keep trying, buy more paper I guess .. I am determined to make these markers work for me!!!!!! :)
Wow - I figured any 300gsm would be good! It just goes to show how different watercolour papers can be :O
I can only suggest the W&N artists watercolour paper 300gsm or the Bockingford St Cuthberts Mill - it sounds like you'll see a huge difference!! :)
I also think some colours are more prone to staining, maybe reds?
And try a synthetic brush to add/mix water with the markers when they are directly on the paper?
i used arches as well
on my second try i had almost no staining and created some neat drawings
but arches is apparently not the best for this medium
i gotta try his recommended paper :)
but maybe give arches a second try
Brilliant. That explains why my markers are staining so much :) thanks
No problem - happy it was useful to you!! :D
Thanks for watching!
The aqua markers are so bright
+Crystal Quartz Yeah, especially when you apply them right to the paper and THEN add water. Its one of the things I was attracted to straight away about them. Thanks for the comment!
+gee massam Art I hope u liked it
Thank you so much for the overview! I did a quick experiment with papers, because I was curious to see if it was about the cotton content, the texture, the weight/thickness, or the sizing of the paper that allows the markers to be activated properly. (A good resource for anyone else who reads this and has no idea what I'm talking about is handprint.com/HP/WCL/wpaper.html)
I used my collection of Winsor Newton Watercolour Markers using just the larger brush tip side of the marker (since the fine tips tend to be pretty harsh no matter what paper you use). I used the following papers:
--Winsor and Newton student grade cold press 300gsm non-cotton watercolour paper, which in my extensive testing has shown to have variable sizing in the paper
--Winsor and Newton non-cotton watercolour postcards, which has virtually no sizing in the paper (it's almost like a blotting cloth)
--Bockingford cold press 300gsm non-cotton watercolor paper, which has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper
--Bockingford hot press 300gsm non-cotton watercolor paper, also has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper
--ExaClair Clairefontaine Goldline 200gsm cold press paper that was 50% cotton and 50% non-lignin cellulose, has both internal and external sizing--meaning it is very close to being hard sized
--Saunders Waterford 100% cotton 300gsm cold press watercolor paper, which has balanced and consistent sizing in the paper (I didn't have any hot press on hand to test against).
The fast version of my results:
--Bockingford 300gsm Hot Press paper was the best performing of the group--you could easily brush out any marker lines (almost no effort--and I was using a soft squirrel mop), and work the paint mixes directly on the page. Of course the caveat here, is that Hot Press takes some skill to use, because it's a less forgiving with mistakes. It also doesn't do well with super wet washes. Great for botanical and detailed portrait/figure painting.
--Bockingford 300gsm Cold Press and Saunders Waterford 300gsm Cold Press performed almost identical to one another. It works well, but I'd call it second to the Hot Press because I had to work harder to brush out any marker lines, and had to work really really fast for color mixing. However, while it takes more to get the marker lines to blend, it is an easier paper to use with water. Most people will do best to stick with Cold Press for this reason--it's more forgiving for mistakes, and works super well with wet washes.
--ExaClair Clairfontaine Goldline 200gsm cold press paper wasn't as great. I couldn't get the marker lines out, even when laying flat washes. However, because of the sizing, color mixing was a breeze.
--Both Winsor and Newton papers performed dismally. Marker lines were very apparent, no matter how much I worked the page (and I've found with W&N paper if you work the page it will start to pill and become damaged). Color mixing didn't happen--instead it looked like a child layering markers on top of one another with distinct horrible lines. I do not recommend.
Notes on the test:
--Sizing of the paper makes an ENORMOUS difference in the performance. The papers that performed best with the markers, had good quality sizing that was consistent and balanced--and sizing is going to be key to mixing your colors on the page. Sizing is essentially what makes watercolour paper what it is, rather than super absorbent thick and expensive paper. And watercolour markers NEED this. This is also the most telling difference between professional and student grade paper (other than archival quality and cotton content).
--Hot press seems to allow the marker to sit on the surface of the paper, so it is easier to activate with water, get rid of marker lines, and mix colors superbly. I can see this being a boon for anyone doing botanical or highly detailed portraiture.
--Cold press does soak the marker up a bit faster, but the lines can be worked out of the paper (so long as you go with a professional paper that doesn't pill).
--Weight makes a difference--the much thinner 200gsm pape very quickly soaked up the marker. Considering the 200gsm paper has the most sizing and still activated and mixed colors well, the only explanation for it soaking up the marker and leaving marker lines is that the weight is too light. So I would go no lighter than 300gsm, and if you can go higher you'll probably have better results. I might test this in the future with some 600 and 800+ gsm papers.
--Whether it's cotton based or not doesn't make a significant difference, unless you're worried about archival quality of your paintings. Bockingford is made of cellulose and it performed beautifully; Saunders Waterford is 100% cotton and it performed at an identical level of usability and ease. The markers don't seem to perform much differently between cellulose and cotton itself.
Hope this helps anyone looking for clarity on the paper issue. Not all papers are created equal. Often you get what you pay for.
The good news is that Bockingford (in both cold and hot press) can be bought in affordable fat pads at different dimensions. I like to buy mine from Lawrence Art Supplies in the UK (since I'm in Ireland currently), but I've also seen them on Jacksons and Amazon UK. This is probably the most affordable option for a high quality paper :)
Wow!!! Thank you soooooo much for this in-depth reply!! You should have recorded your findings for a youtube video - people would have loved the explanantion of this!!
I use the bockingford 300gsm usually and have found it terrific for the watercolour markers but I didn't know WHY! I think you have just cleared up for me why that kind of paper is so good for these markers (and why some others are sooo bad!)
As for hot press, I might give it a shot with a smaller pad, only because I tried it once and HATED IT :D but that was with a landscape painting when I had been used to using cold-press.
I have to say I'm really impressed with your investigations into this and thank you for sharing!! Have you shared a blog of your findings?? I think people around the world would appreciate your efforts! :D
Thank you for the compliment :), and I'm super happy it helped! I've played around with the idea of writing a blog, but I have a couple of issues with it. First, most of what I'm doing is laid out on handprint.com or something I found on UA-cam. I'm insane and will read through very dense material to learn about the supplies I'm using, which I know is not for everyone. But for those who want to learn, that resource is already out there! And secondly, I'm still very very much a student. Again, I understand that art is kind of like signing up to be a lifelong student, but I am at the beginning of my journey. So I'm not entirely comfortable with teaching on such a broad level until I have a bit more experience under my belt. Also, to be completely candid, I would rather spend the time making art at this point, haha! You do a lot of these tutorials and thought that maybe a paper investigation would help to understand why the markers work really well on some papers, but horribly on others :)
When I use my markers, I dip the nib into the water...
How do you find that working for you?? I did not have very good results when I tried it :D Mind you, I could never use watercolour pencils that way either - when I sharpened them, big chunks would come off the tip :O
It's working out pretty well. I'm still toying around with them, so I haven't really made anything serious with it, but I just think it's another useful way to use the markers. :)
Absolutely!! I'm always aware that when I post beginner guides that these are just the ways that I have found to use the medium. I love hearing and seeing how other people use them too, especially if it's in a way i haven't thought of OR just didn't work for me the first time I tried it. :)
I didn't understand why my markers stained the paper so much, turns out I was just using the wrong paper! Thank you!
Hi, the paper can make all the difference! Let me know how you get on with a different paper 👍🙂
I still haven't used my Markers and the # 5 brush! Help me get into the virus! lol
You've gotta have a go!! :D ;)
Omg I’m stupid! I never used water when coloring with water color markers 😤
You're never too late to start!! :D ;)
Man I can’t believe Letraset Still in the Market....
Hi! Well, they are and they aren't: they were absorbed into parent company Colart in around 2016 😄 that's how Promarker came to be rebranded as Winsor and Newton (also owned by Colart) moving forwards. Same pens though 🤷🏻♂️ I miss Letraset tho 🥺 Thanks for watching!
😘👍
You did know Windsor and Newton is the same as letreast just rebranded
Hi, thanks for watching! Yes, Winsor and Newton have absorbed and rebranded the Letraset range but the W&N watercolour markers did come out before Letraset Aquamarkers 'ended' and consist of a different range of colours. I think there are now fewer colours than before and ofcourse the W&N watercolour markers have a brush instead of big bullet tip, which is far better for 'painting' with :D
Now their Promarkers are just a straight swap and rebrand, as far as I understand it - as W&N had better brand recognition than Letraset...
I make too much happy accidents.
:D You can never make too many happy accidents!! The other kind, the unhappy accidents, they are not so good...
Thanks for watching!
Very interesting. Please learn to pronounce the word aqua
😃 thanks for watching! After checking with google, I have learned something new! There is a shorter British pronunciation of aqua and the American version has a slightly longer aa sound at the beginning! This suddenly explains the pronunciation of Anna in the movie Frozen! 🤣 It's good to know there are 2 versions for future but I'll have to stick to my roots 😉 🇬🇧 👍🏻
Thanks for your tutorial... very helpful!
Thank you for the positive feedback and for watching! 🙂