Artist Review
Khadi Papers Hardback Sketchbook
The Perfect Paper Company know that I'm a total paper geek and I love experimenting with different materials, so it was only natural that they asked me to try the Khadi Papers Hardback Sketchbook and jot down my musings. I did, read on to find out why this sketchpad changed my life.
Let’s be clear the Khadi Papers Hardback Sketchbook is a thing of beauty. The handmade paper is thick (210gsm but it feels thicker) and luxurious. Although this is the ‘smooth’ sketchpad it’s handmade paper so it’s still textured with some inconsistencies; it has just got a very low tooth. The hardback covering and binding makes this feel like a real artefact and worthy of your respect, the only downside to this is you’re going to be scared to actually use it.
I always carry my sketchbook around with me so hardcover is the only real option, I also treat my sketchbooks very badly, scribbling in them while ‘developing’ ideas, dragging them about and lending them to anyone who wants a go, so durability is essential. The Khadi Papers Hardback fulfills these demands without issue and at 30 x 35cm the size is perfect for developing work without being too cumbersome to transport.
Khadi papers are very absorbent and that makes this the perfect paper for a mixed media sketch pad, I like to work in a variety of materials including pencils, pen, markers etc, but I also do a lot of watercolour work and really like to overwork my pieces. The problem with working like this is that it places a lot of demand upon the paper but the Khadi Paper Hardback Sketchbook happily accepted everything I threw at it.
For example, this piece started with heavy ink washes before being over worked with Ecoline Watercolour Markers and then splattered with paint.
Not only is the paper perfect for wet work but it was often possible to work on both sides of the paper which of course adds to the value for money and I’m from Yorkshire, so frugality is my middle name. As you might expect there is some bleed on the paper but even when working in pen and ink, I found it negligible. The paper is a pleasure to work on and if you think that sounds geeky, you’re right, but nothing will destroy the joy of sketching/doodling than fighting with your materials. The Khadi Hardback Sketchbook bindings were incredibly durable and overall, I was thrilled by the durability of the product as a whole and the quality of the paper.
As you can see here there is no noticeable bleed when using pen and ink before colouring with Inktense watercolour pencils
The only quirk I found was that when working in pencil or pen the paper will feather slightly if you use a lot of pressure, this is also true if you apply multiple wet layers without rest. However, this wasn’t an issue in terms of the consistency of the paper or the overall finish I just brushed it off.
It's time now to borrow a line from Edwin Starr and ask the question, what is it good for?
In my opinion the Khadi Hardback Sketchbook is genuinely the perfect paper, it’s good for everything and an absolute pleasure to use. The hand-made papers are a real luxury, but this is a true mixed media book which excels when it comes to wet media, the paper loves to absorb everything you can throw at it and given time to dry it’s happy to go again and again. As a book it’s also incredibly durable I’ve been dragging it round and working in all kinds of places and it is as solid as when I started - with the addition of some coffee stains.
We have various sizes and textures of the Khadi Hardback Sketchbook, Click Here to view the range.
Image Credits;
G.William Illustrator