My new journal is an A5 landscape Hahnemühle 100% Cotton Watercolour Book,
and it is not only a new journal, it is a new brand from Hahnemühle!
I’ve had it for a bit and been testing it out.  I LOVE it!!!

The journal itself is strong and everything you would expect from Hahnemühle.  The book is covered in the nicest dark black canvas, very sleek, very architectural.  When it opens it lays flat.  The back has no pocket but it is the easiest thing for me to add a pocket: I use a sentimental envelope so every time I see it ai have a lovely memory.

But of course, the star of this
show is the paper.

The natural white 250 gsm fine grained 100% cotton rag paper is sturdy.
It can take heavy wet on wet painting.  And it is, simply, beautiful. 
Both front and back of each of the 30 pages shows off the brilliance of watercolors in a way that makes me want to ditch all my other journals.

I always start a journal by painting my Current Palette (follow that link) to test the paper and to record my palette at the time.  The paper was not too toothy for my fine nibbed fountain pen (Platinum Carbon pen and ink) or my stub nib, shown below in lettering.  The jewel tones and rich earthy colors popped off the page, above.

My next sketches were floral, of red Indian paintbrush (right) and pink eucalyptus blossoms, bottom of this page.

I did a sketch of Mitchell when we were out getting our boosters, above.
A simple sketch with watercolors done on-site at Walgreen’s.
I had no doubt that the paper would be lovely to sketch on in these situations.

Ink loves the
Hahnemühle 100% Cotton Watercolour Book,
evidenced in my chocolate bunny sketch in Robert Oster Chocolate ink, above, and lupines, below.
For the bunny I used a Sailor fude pen and Pentel waterbrush to move the ink onto the paper.

All Robert Oster inks except for
the Platinum Carbon waterproof inked linework.

 In a third Wild Test (follow that link) I layered Sennelier Shellac ink, gouache and colored pencils.  I’ve never had that much luck with colored pencils over a painted surface but the did well on this surface!

  I’ve already placed an order from Wet Paint
for another A5 and a larger A4 landscape!

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 ©D. Katie Powell.
My images/blog posts may be reposted; please link back  to dkatiepowellart.

☾