Strathmore Wire Bound Visual Journal, 140 lb. Cold Press Watercolor Paper, 5.5 X 8 inches, White, 22 Sheets (460-55)

I do a lot of watercolor journalling, usually using bound watercolor journals but saw these wire bound watercolor journals and thought "why not?" The journals came quickly and I was very surprised at the nice quality of the paper. Many times a journal is supposed to have 140lb paper, yet when the journal comes, it is lighter in weight. I would say this is definitely 140lb Cold Press watercolor paper. Strathmore makes a good paper which is sized nicely and holds the paint well. It does not bleed through to the other side of the page. The wire bound makes it easily lay flat and stay flat without having to clip the pages down like in a bound journal. The wire binding also makes it much easier to remove a page from the journal should I wish to do so for framing. The size 5-1/2" X 8" makes it easy to carry with you for travel journalling and will fit into a standard 5"X7" cut mat. Behind the front "cover page" is a brown "leather look like" cardboard cover (front and back cover). The price was very reasonable for the good quality of the journal. I bought two and when complete would buy them again.

I purchased two 5 1/2 x 8 watercolor sketchbooks in May it is now October and I’ve completed both of them. This paper is great for pencil, Ink, alcohol markers, paint pens, gel pens and watercolor. The fish page was filled in with alcohol markers, I had a few spots that I went pretty heavy and the bleed through to the other side is minimal so I can lightly gesso the other side and add another sketch to that page. I used multiple mediums on the abstract page and the only bleed through again was very light alcohol marker bleed, The acrylic paint pens work great no streaking or bleeding. The birds were done with watercolor and then I went over with the micron fine liners which write really smooth on this paper. I highly recommend these sketchbooks. They are great value. The binding is very strong. The front cover is thick and sturdy. The back is a thicker cardboard press board. Since I’ve completed the two books I ordered in May I did order two more today.

I love this sketchbook. I had a bigger one in the past of this same brand and it was a great book as well. I didn't pay attention to size when I ordered this one so when I got it in the mail I was a little mad at myself lol It's 5×8 and I've never used anything this small. But it turned out to be a happy accident because I am totally in love with how the size lends itself to artists on the go. Usually I'm wrangling children and animals while trying to water sketch something to ink later and before, I always had to gravitate around a little art station at the table. With this book and a water brush (the kind you fill the handle with water) and an absorbent wrist band on my non dominant hand I can be on my feet walking around and still painting. Just have to stop in for a quick dip in my water cup when I want to use any clashing colors. It fits in my purse with a pencil case of pens and some brushes and would likely fit in most purses unless it's smaller than 5×8 lol The cover is hard and sturdy, does a great job at protecting the work inside. Some books seem to neglect the back cover and let it be flimsy but not with this one. And lastly but most importantly, the paper is good quality. It's not Arches but that isn't what I'm looking for in a sketchbook so I have no issue with this one. It takes a good amount of water to get it to fail, more than I expected for the price. It doesn't pill when blending which again shocked me considering the low price. When it comes to cons about this book, there aren't many. The pages do get a little warped if you dont press it with something heavy for a few days. I put mine under hand weights and it flattens out just fine. Overall I like this product and will continue to buy more as I need them.

Great little watercolor sketching companion. I primarily work in ink with light wet in wet washes. What I liked... *Cost. If you're trying to sketch daily, wc paper gets pricey fast. This book is 1/3 the cost of most watercolor sketchbooks. *Size. 5 x 8 is perfect to toss in my handbag or backpack. *Spiral binding. I need the ability to fold my sketchbook back on itself. I don't do 2 page spreads often for daily sketch work. *Heavy 140# paper...hard to find at this price point. No buckling, even with a heavy wash. *Stiff covers. Seriously stiff. No table or clipboard needed for support. *Dries super fast. Ideal for on location sketching. *Takes pen exceptionally well. This was huge for me. My last wc sketchbook resisted pen ink. *My Koi travel sketch kit works well on this paper. What I don't like... *No elastic closure. Using one of my daughter's stretchy headbands or a binder clip. *This is heavy paper, but does not perform like traditional sized watercolor paper. The front of the pages allows for a little softening off and lifting, and wet in wet works moderately well. I couldn't scrape back or do my normal pulling or softening off. *My QoR paints looked dull on this paper compared to regular wc paper. Weird! Visual Journals advertise themselves as a "no pressure playground where imperfection is perfectly amazing." I wanted a durable sketchbook for daily field use, and this is a bargain for that purpose. This is not a journal I'd choose for a trip abroad or for trying to learn and practice watercolor painting technique. For everyday skill building, the fast drying watercolor and easy pen work outweighed the negatives on this paper for me. I don't like waiting for watercolor to dry between washes in the field, and I HATE trying to work on buckled paper in the field. Thank you, Strathmore, for journals that encourage lots of use. If you decide to buy this journal, I highly recommend Signo pens and a Koi travel watercolor kit to go with it.

I have bought these multiple times over the past few years and I absolutely love them. I've taken the smaller one backpacking/hiking/on planes. It's small enough to paint while flying or in a tent when it's raining. The one in the pics has pressed flowers in Alaska and brought them safely back on a plane with the help of a binder clip. The pages stained a little bit but the paper held up. The second pic had deep purple stains from the flowers and you would never know thanks to a white paint pen. Maybe some minor creasing but once I started painting it smoothed out completely. That's definitely outside recommend usage and it took it like a champ. If anything the stain just shows how well it holds pigment. The paper is really thick (140) and has enough durability and texture to paint on both sides. That's uncommon with most watercolor paper. Huge win, especially for traveling. I tend to use the little one for travel and the larger ones for sketching. They're cheap enough that I don't feel guilty just sketching on them. Then if I want to paint it later I can because its good paper. The cover is surprisingly durable as well. Having a hard cover means the pages don't bend in transit. Like I said these are hands down my favorite sketchbooks. I'm rough on my stuff and I know I can trust these with whatever I put them though.

Even though it’s not 100% cotton, it’s a great watercolor sketchbook. The book is very sturdy and the paper is really good for the price and just in general. This is now my go to sketchbook for home and travel. I’ve used them for watercolor and mixed media and am very happy with the results. Highly recommended!

Strathmore makes very good paper. It is pleasant to work on and does not buckle. Reasonably priced.

The Strathmore sketchbook is a fairly portable size, making it a good choice for travel. Its spiral binding makes it quite comfortable to use, as you can fold it back without worrying about dirtying or damaging the adjacent pages. The paper is not completely white but has a slight beige tint, which is subtle and not overpowering. With a weight of 300gsm, it can withstand quite a bit of water. Although it isn’t made from cotton, it performs very very well. However, the back of the pages is less porous than the front, so sometimes water may slide off. I’ve found that using the back for gouache painting works well. Overall, it’s an affordable and comfortable sketchbook with decent quality paper.

Le papier 300g n'est pas forcément facile à trouver sous forme de carnet, celui-ci à une texture grain moyen, agréable à travailler des deux côtés, il supporte bien les lavis comme les techniques sèches. J'apprécie la couverture (elle est derrière le visuel sur lequel il y a toutes les informations) qui est rigide sans ressembler aux autres.

This is my second Strathmore journal. The paper is very good quality and takes watercolour and water-colour pencil well. I like the size as it is neither too small to allow for street scenes, fields etc nor too big to be ungainly to transport.

Highly recommended, not only for the quality of the paper but also the price, three times cheaper on Amazon than buying at the shops, so I bought a few in one hit.

The size is perfect for traveling! As can be seen in the photo, I bought 2 sizes for comparison. One side is rougher than the other. The rough side MAY result to good bleeding when I do my painting. I have yet to try and will update this post as soon as I have tried it. But I have high hopes. 😊

El papel es de buena calidad y me encanta el tamaño así como la relación calidad/precio. Lo recomiendo.