Lots of New Papers to Test

Thanks to Curry's shipping department's lousy handling of my watercolor paper order, I find myself with tons of new papers to test.

I had ordered a 5-sheet package of their 200-lb, 100% cotton paper – a good deal at the sale price of only $4 a sheet – and two 9 x 12 pads and two 9 x 12 blocks of their 140-lb, cold-pressed 100% cotton paper, also a good deal at only $3.69 per pad of 12 sheets.

However, all the sheets arrived with one smashed corner, and one of the blocks had smudges and dents. Not good, for a first order with a new supplier.

So I wrote Customer Service, and got a huge apology and a free replacement order. Next time, I'll be sure and ask for extra careful packing.

While looking for how to paint footsteps in the sand for my next painting, I came upon Susie Short's website, Susie's Watercolor Tips. She did have a demo on footprints in the sand, but also a short demo called "Painting the Beach, Rocks, and Reflections in Wet Sand", and wet sand being another one of my projects, I decided to try doing this painting on both papers.

First the 140-lb cold-pressed paper from the pad:

Reflections I, Watercolor on Curry's 140-lb cold-pressed paper, 9" x 12"

I like this paper a lot. The texture is quite nice, I like the way the paints perform on it, and it's ever so economical. You can see the texture by clicking on the picture to enlarge it.

And here's the 200-lb paper version:

Reflections II, Watercolor on Curry's 200-lb paper, 7.5" x 11"

I like this paper too, though I don't agree with their description of it as "cold press"; I find it quite rough, somewhere between cold press and rough. But that's okay, I like rough paper, I love the stiffness, which makes it possible to work without a board – and the price is right. (Click on the picture to see the texture.)

I'll keep testing both papers and report my findings here.

SUSIE'S DEMO

About Susie's demo, instead of just following the free one, I decided to buy the PDF download. I figured that for $6 I would get what the free demo was missing: which colours to use, some techniques, and especially, a copy of the finished painting.

This is the free demo from Susie's website:

Not bad for free stuff... however, after paying $6, guess what I got? Exactly the same thing, plus this lousy photo:

Oh, and there was also a larger version of the sketch in the first square, which I had already enlarged for free by taking a screen shot.

This is like a chef who gives you the recipe but leaves some ingredients out! Totally unethical.

Needless, to say, I have written and asked for a refund. If the famous Susie Short ignores my request, I'm stuck because last I heard PayPal won't refund you for downloads.

And if she does refund me, I'll let you know.

P.S. I had to ask for it twice, but I did get the refund from Susie Short.