The Paper Witch
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Happy Easter, everyone!
I’m taking the weekend off. Not going anywhere, just not doing anything.
Well, I live on a farm. Of course I’m doing something. Just not art or computer stuff, okay?
Anyway, today we’re taking a short break from our Color Cube series to update my search for an XPI replacement.
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THE PAPER WITCH
Back in February, X-Press It Blending Card disappeared.
It wasn’t discontinued. They didn’t go out of business. XPI’s world-wide distributor simply got fed up and quit.
XPI is now only sold in Australia. You’ve gotta bribe a kangaroo to get some.
I’m pretty sure I can’t put Quantas tickets on the supply list for my beginner Copic course, The Blend, so I blew over $300 in March testing new and new-to-me paper, desperately searching for an XPI replacement.
And I didn’t find anything.
Nada.
Once upon a time, wayyy back in the 1690’s…
A bunch of folks in Massachusetts learned their neighbors were transforming into cats or toads at night. Some of them were incubating demon eggs in the kitchen fireplace.
You just laughed a little, didn’t you?
Oh, those wacky Puritans! It must’ve been hard being so stupid.
Yes, that was a long time ago but we’ve never really lost our taste for a good old fashioned witch hunt. We might not burn people at the stake anymore but we love to gather in angry crowds, wave signs, and yell stuff— even when we can’t really explain what the fuss is about.
And I’m not talking about political people in far-away cities. I’m talking about you.
Because this is exactly what colorists did ten years ago.
I know, because I survived the Polychromos Trials.
I’m not kidding. It got vicious.
Colorists openly attacked people on Facebook and forums for not using 100% lightfast colored pencils.
Polychromos pencils are the only pencil mentioned in the Bible. So back in 2016, if you didn’t blow half your paycheck on Polys and Poly related accessories, you must be possessed by the devil.
Hello, my name is Amy and I can wiggle my nose.
Every couple’a days, someone would write me a mile long email helpfully explaining why Prismacolor was evil in a stick. I should repent with a large set of Polychromos.
It got so bad, I nailed this to the church doors in 2017 so I could link to the article instead of typing another exhaustive reply.
Yes, I mixed my metaphors but Luther would approve.
And here’s the really weird thing— the Polychromosians were getting all worked up over whispers, rumors, and zero logic.
They weren’t colored pencil experts. They had 10 minutes of experience and two Lawn Fawn stamps.
But Prismacolor was bad because someone said so.
And that someone had 20 minutes of experience and three Lawn Fawn stamps— so hey, let’s kill the witch, eh?
I’m glad those days are over. We’re much smarter now.
Anyway, the reason I started today’s article with fond memories of getting curb-stomped over Prismacolor…
Is because Colorists love magical thinking.
Most people don’t know or care how markers, colored pencils, or paper actually work. Chemistry, schmemistry.
“This is good and that is bad” coming from the right colorfluencer is more than enough for most colorists.
And I know, when X-Press It went down-under, you were waiting for someone prominent to say that JoyArt Funtime Paper is exactly like XPI.
Sure, that $5 pad of see-through paper is the perfect replacement for a highly engineered polished card stock made from virgin fibers soaked in a high performance slurry of fine grade minerals.
That sounds legit.
Why is X-Press It Blending Card so darned special?
Watch my deep dive analysis at YouTube:
I talked with a friend this week about my XPI woes, he’s in the art supply business. I was begging for anything remotely XPI-ish.
He kinda thought my frantic search was silly. Amy, there isn’t one best marker paper for everyone.
I totally agree.
Your coloring is not like my coloring. We use different colors, different ratios of marker to pencil, different techniques.
But I also rolled my eyes when he said it, because that’s not how coloristing works.
The truth is, most of you are not coloring on the best paper for you.
You color on the best paper for me.
You’re not even trying to find your own best paper. You only ever try best-for-someone-else papers when a new haul video pops up in your feed. What do they like?
Colorists survive on recommendations and other people’s opinions.
And sadly, too many colorfluencers are paid for recommendations. They wouldn’t care if they found a good marker paper because next video, they’re praising something else.
Which means many of you will probably never color on the best marker paper for you.
So I started to think about how I test paper, so I can teach you to do it too.
But I don’t do anything fancy. I scribble some swatches, blend some blends, I use the worst staining markers and most finicky inks I can find.
And I look at everything with an extremely critical eye.
I push the limits of the paper, trying to see how it performs under maximum stress.
It’s not a proper test until the paper explodes in ball of blue fire.
I also flip back and forth, comparing the results of each paper against all the other tests in my stack. Endless compare and contrast.
Then I thought about how you test paper.
I’m guessing you color a fun project on it. If your coloring doesn’t suck, you might use that paper again sometime. If your coloring looks bad, you lay in bed at night wondering why everyone else colors better than you.
You test yourself, not the paper.
But it’s important to test the paper, not your self esteem.
And you need to test it yourself. Your colors, your project size, your pens and accessories, doing the things your hand normally does.
Not coloring random projects but listening to the paper as you repeat movements and force the paper to tell you what it can’t do.
You can’t keep blaming yourself, or even worse, going after the paper witch on YouTube when her favorite paper makes your coloring look bad.
I’ve taught my testing process in several classes and even a free livestream but I think I need to start teaching it more prominently and more often. But to really teach it, I need to understand what runs through my head as I’m testing.
That’s the hard part to explain.
So I started to think about thinking— the evaluation process happening in my head, the stuff I don’t normally write down.
And when I actually did write stuff down, I found something I wasn’t looking for.
If I could go back in time, I’d choose different mixed-media media. Of all the doofus decisions I’ve made in life, choosing to use colored pencils over marker was the doofiest.
Markers and pencils are complete opposites. Yin and Yang. Godzilla and the city janitors.
Markers prefer an ultra-smooth surface. Pencils like it rough. Good pencil paper will tear yo’ marker nibs apart. Meanwhile colored pencil on marker paper is like eating jello with a hot fork.
So in my head, I rate every paper twice— once for markers and again for pencils.
I have this mental quadrant grid where I rank the papers I try.
And note, this is just off the top of my head, not a comprehensive chart. I’ve got 63 paper brands sitting here and 30+ years of paper experience. My real chart would be gigantic.
Anyway, green and blue zone papers are really good for one medium but a serious challenge for the other.
The gray zone is rubbish.
And I know, some of you are itchin’ to burn a witch over your favorite paper sitting in the garbage corner. But stress tests don’t lie.
Focus please, because the pink stuff— these are rare gems.
Smooth enough and even thick enough for marker but also toothy for pencil.
I teach all my intermediate and advanced classes on Strathmore.
I’d give up Strathmore in a heartbeat if Cryogen ever came back. I only put Cryogen (RIP) on the grid to show you what a tragedy it was when the company went out of business.
But it wasn’t until I started tossing more papers onto the grid to show you my ranking system…
Uh ohhhhh. There’s another paper in the pink zone.
It takes something special to hit the pink quadrant.
OLO Premium Blending Card. It’s relatively new and it’s not trending on social media, at least not that I’ve seen.
It’s a pretty good little paper.
In fact, I enjoyed the heck out of coloring this elegant seahorse for my April Color Coach lesson. The inks stayed crisp and I could’ve gone even heavier with the pencil.
So why am I not teaching with OLO?
Well, to be honest, I wrote it off.
I was looking for a high green zone replacement for XPI, something to use in beginner marker classes where we barely use colored pencil. I don’t need a pink-zone paper for beginners.
I wasn’t looking for a Strathmore equivalent.
But the more I thought about it this week, maybe I do need a Strathmore substitute.
Because as nice as Strathmore is for coloring, it’s a total <bleep’in> <bleep> in your laser printer.
So no, I still haven’t found an XPI replacement for marker beginners.
And I probably won’t be teaching The Blend on anything that isn’t a beyond-excellent marker paper.
The search continues, I have a few more leads.
But once you learn good blending techniques and start to add more colored pencil, working larger projects…
If your printer jams constantly on Bristol
And you’re wasting hours tracing my line art by hand
Give OLO Premium Blending Card a try.
This could be the best for you paper you should be looking for.
No witchcraft, just a well engineered paper.
IF YOU LIKED TODAY’S ARTICLE, SUPPORT FUTURE FREE LESSONS
Olo comes in in 8.5×11” standard but also 11×14” through their website above.
SPRING SESSION - COMING SOON!
We’re wrapping up January’s session of The Blend which opens space in my schedule for a new session of The Point.
My 12 week colored pencil deep-dive course takes you from bare beginner to independent intermediate.
By the end of The Point, you’ll color this fruit tart with amazing realism. Heck, some students even get photorealistic results. The best part is, you won’t be copying my tart — you’ll actually know what to do and which colors to do it with.
How? In The Point, we focus on learning to sculpt realistic forms with efficient grip and pressure.
My courses are lean, effective, and worth every penny.
NEXT POINT SESSION OPENS MAY 1st
Enrollment is via waitlist only. You must be on the waitlist to enroll.
COLOR THEORY TAKES PRACTICE
Color theory is one of those things you don’t truly understand until you practice it. That’s what Color Coach is here for, hands-on color theory experience.
This seahorse isn’t just a couple of aqua markers and turquoise and turquoise pencils. To make blue-green look it’s best, you need a host of supporting colors.
I teach students to play with color— finding their own coloring style and unique color voice.
SECOND TUESDAY STREAM
Ever had a pale marker go crazy, damaging the beautiful blend it was supposed to smooth?
Maybe that stinker ate into the dark color and left a bunch of speckle spots?
Or even worse, the pale marker left a dark bathtub ring after it dried?
Join me for a serious look at ink chemistry. It’s a total myth that you can blend with any ol’ light marker. No matter what brand of markers you use, there are hidden bombs in every color family just waiting to destroy your beautiful coloring.
Tuesday, April 14th at 2pm EDT
(recorded version will be added to our lesson library)
2nd Tuesday Streams are one of the many benefits of a Color Wonk membership. Join today for instant access to dozens of workshops, video archive, and supportive community.
Sweet eyes, fluffy fur, and a twitchy pink nose…
Oh, look at the cute white rabbit! Which gray markers and pencils did you use?
Lynne’s Bunny is a much needed lesson on white fur. Let’s ditch those boring gray art supplies and color realistic fur with an artistic flair.
And for added fun, let’s do it on brown paper!
Lynne’s Bunny is only available through Color Wonk
A library of new and classic courses is waiting for you. Instant access. No deadlines.
Real art lessons, not nifty novelty techniques
CURRENT PASSWORD: RubberDuckie
MY FAVORITE COLORED PENCIL ERASERS
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For light mistakes and gentle lifting. One pack lasts for years!
Erase tiny areas with maximum control, clean-up edges, or smudge
For true mistakes, can lift most of the wax back to the paper level
