The 8 Best hard Pressed Papers (2023 reviews)

This "paper" contains some cotton, which helps prevent the surface of the paper from disintegrating when it gets wet and you try to erase a mistake. Because of the smoother surface this paper is great for "cleaner" more detailed paintings or times when you might want to layer colored pencil on top. It has one glued edge like a normal pad of paper so the pages are easy to remove. This also comes in a pad, which means you have to stretch your paper first to prevent buckling.

This item is "hot press" which means it is smooth. It can be used for pencil, pen, watercolor and more. It has a finer tooth than cold-pressed, so you can achieve more detail. The quality really shows when making corrections or removing colour.

Why We Like This:

Absorbs watercolor faster than cold press paper
Incredible for calligraphy, authentic gold gilding, sketching, and any paint
One of the new comers and featured product

Best For portrait: Canson hard Pressed Paper

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The canson hard pressed paper is satisfactory and appropriate and fits well with your daily usage. These are really nice quality papers. It works for watercolor and tombow markers. It is great for testing, not so much for finished work. The paper has great texture and it is fun and flexible to paint on. It doesn't wrinkle from too much water and it blends colors so well.

This paper is good for small pieces like tags. The paper does not permit alot of scrubbing, no need to scrub very much, paint will lift so well. It also comes in different sizes. It is great for small pieces like tags.

Why We Like This:

Definitely works well for heavy use of water
You can cut it without a problem and water absorption amount is perfect
Doesn't warp with a lot of water

Best For travel: Arches hard Pressed Paper

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It is the best quality paper for painting watercolor watercolors. It has a totally different feel from cold pressed and rough watercolor paper which both have a texture. They take paint smoothly, keep the paper tight when you paint, and the paper is smooth (no warping) when it dries. It provides extra protection from light and elements, meaning this paper is made to last for years to come.

Glued on all sides to preserve paper integrity, each arches hot press block boasts a protective cover sheet and ph-neutral paper with a harmonious natural grain and no optical brightening agents. The paper can still take a lot of water and many layers of paint. The Rough surface allows/absorbs numerous layers of paint for blending as opposed to a smooth surface which will not. This is really great for paintings where the texture of Cold Press interferes with the texture of the composition.

Why We Like This:

Rough has more texture than cold press
Rough is rougher and better for require texture
Perfect for gouache and plein air work

Best For beginning And intermediate Watercolor Artists: Misulove hard Pressed Paper

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The misulove hard pressed paper might be a relatively new release, but it's still nothing short of impressive this year, thanks to multiple price cuts and added new features over the past few months. This value-priced, handy-sized pad is a boon for visual notes and experimentation in watercolor, ink, gouache, or collage. The paper works great and dries nicely and if you’re looking for something to test out your watercolors, small and portable, or something simple in case you’re not totally sure you want a full fledged canvas or setup, then this is definitely worth it. You can use this paper for your watercolors, oil, and acrylic paints.

The sheet pad is medium weight with a linen-like textured surface on the front and a smoother surface on the back. It is strong enough for all types of artistic projects, such as drawing, pastels, inks, painting or sketch book with markers, pencils or brushes. The paper quality of the coloring pages is thick and good.

Why We Like This:

Compactly sized, great for mixed media pieces
Great for beginners, curious artists, and those looking for something portable
New and hot release

Best For Really responsive Paper: Strathmore hard Pressed Paper

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We know from years of feedback from readers, customers and amazon sellers, what most people want in a convenient and appropriate paper. The strathmore hard pressed paper is exactly that - it's a simple paper that hits all the right notes. It is ideal for paper for pen & ink, watercolor or acrylic artwork. It provides greater water hold-out, improved color lifting, and blending. The hot press watercolor is quite smooth and having it precut to framing size is a good advantage. It stands up very well for laying down many layers of wax, and burnishing.

The paper withstands multiple layers of wax from pencil, holds up to erasures, and of course watercolor applications. It is convenient to carry with you for painting away from home. These would be great for sketches while traveling, though a journal/notebook/pad format would probably be easier to wrangle than the pre-cut sheets. It is easy to handlebudget friendly for beginners.

Why We Like This:

Colors lift extremely well, blending is smooth
Color blends beautifully, looks sharp (not dull at all) on the paper
Great for making water color cards and economical for teaching
Great for high quality gouache and watercolors

Best For Water Colors: Arteza hard Pressed Paper

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The arteza hard pressed paper might be a relatively new release, but it's still nothing short of impressive this year. Premium watercolor paper is typically thicker (think 140 lb), but is made of cellulose. It works fine enough with acrylic style gouache techniques, which is when you use less water and more paint, and you use it like it is acrylics. It can stand up to multiple washes and no buckle. It is great for water colors and scetching.

The paper quality is great, very textured. It is easy to carry around and keep in one place or to remove the pages. It is good for quick pencil sketches.

Why We Like This:

Great size and paper quality for a beginner
Good quality paper,holds the paint well and takes a lot of water
Endurable and thick enough to scrape off and remove paint
Good paper, has serrated edge to tear out if wanted

Best For beginners: Strathmore Watercolor Paper

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Strathmore is known for creating pragmatic and minimalist paper for people on the go, and its line of strathmore watercolor paper definitely falls in line with that reputation. It is good for water coloring. It is easy to use and high quality for a beginner that's dabbling in watercoloring. This spiral bound pad is easy to flip over or tear out a new page to use. It's nice and thick with light texture on one side.

The quality of the paper is great and the watercolor looks sharp and dries fast and great. It is good for beginners or smaller projects. This paper is fine for the beginner who has no experience. It is good for any kid to have their own pad for the watercolors.

Why We Like This:

Lifting is easy, providing you do not use staining watercolors
Great paper you will love the way it takes watercolors and also acrylic paints
Paint dries fairly quickly, and paper does not tear or peel
Great paper, very thick and sturdy

Best For Fine detail: Paul Rubens hard Pressed Paper

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The paper itself is very decent paper, but needs a frame or trimmed due to messy edges. It is a block of paper rather than pages that can be turned and kept in the book. It is glued on all four sides, held securely in place by glue all around to ensure that the paper does not warp even after absorbing large amounts of water, stays nice and flat after the painting is dried. The rubber type sealing around the edges protects the bottom pages from leaking, but does not keep the paper flat with wet washes.

Since this paper is smooth it's perfect for ink. It also comes with a greeting card thanking you for buying. It comes in a nice box and vacuum plastic bag. There is also an inner cover which offers further protection, just be sure your project is completely dry before closing it.

Why We Like This:

Super cute heavy hot press paper
Accepted glazing, pen work, sealed from leaking, lifting
Perfect for the artist on the go
Great quality and value hot press paper