Nevue Fine Art Marketing

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Contact
    • About Nevue Fine Art and Marketing
  • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Affiliate Link Disclosure Policy
  • Craft Show Sales Printable Tracker
  • Printable Craft Business Planner – 16 Pages
You are here: Home / Art Supplies / Strathmore Bristol Vellum Paper – Best Paper For Realistic Drawing

October 5, 2015 By Dave Nevue

Strathmore Bristol Vellum Paper – Best Paper For Realistic Drawing

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Are you new to graphite art? Do you want to know what is the best paper to use for realistic graphite drawings?  In this post, you are going to discover why in my opinion, Strathmore bristol vellum 400 is the best drawing surface for pencil drawings.

Strathmore Bristol Vellum Paper

Stathmore Bristol Vellum Surface

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase by clicking on an affiliate link, Nevue Fine Art Marketing may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Affiliate relationships include, but are not limited to, Bluehost, Tailwind, Skimlinks, SareASale and StudioPress. To learn more visit Affiliate Link Disclosure Policy

Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad 9 by 12 – Inch, 20 Sheets

Strathmore Bristol Vellum Paper for Realistic Drawing

Tobi – By Dave Nevue

Over the years, I have tried many different artist papers for my drawings.

The drawing paper produces the best results for my delicate art drawings Strathmore Bristol Vellum.

Sometimes I use Strathmore Bristol Smooth, but I use Strathmore Bristol Vellum Paper for most of my commissioned and original drawings.

The Strathmore Bristol Vellum that I use is 9 x 12-inch heavyweight sheets.

The paperweight is 100 pounds and is an acid-free paper made in the USA.

What Is The Difference Between Bristol Vellum And Bristol Smooth

Best Place To Purchase Strathmore Paper

You can find Strathmore paper in most local art and craft stores like but I like to purchase my drawing paper and supplies online at Blick Art Materials.

By purchasing my paper online, I do not have to worry about customers touching the drawing surface in the local art stores.

The drawing surface will be unusable if someone flips through and touches the paper.  The oils from their hands will make the graphite darker, making it impossible to draw smooth value changes.

You will not know if the paper is soiled until graphite touches the surface.

You do not want to be in a situation where you can’t finish a drawing because the drawing surface has been soiled.

It is more convenient and less expensive to purchase art materials online and reduce the risks of someone touching your paper.

Here is a list of the different sizes that Blicks offers:

  • Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad, 20 Sheets 9” x 12”
  • Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad, 20 Sheets 11” x 14”
  • Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad, 20 Sheets 14” x 17”
  • Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad, 20 Sheets 19” x 24”

What Is Bristol Paper

Strathmore Bristol Board (paper) is 2-ply and has a postcard feel. It is thick and will not bend or fold easily as regular paper does. This makes it perfect for matting and or framing commissioned artwork.

The term Bristol derives from the early days of European papermaking when mills would send their finest papers to Bristol, England to be pasted together. (Source: Strathmore)

What Is The Difference Between Bristol Vellum And Bristol Smooth

Depending on what style of art you create and what medium you use for your drawing will determine what the best Bristol paper will work best for you.

Strathmore Bristol Board comes in a smooth or vellum surface.

Smooth Bristol board contains less tooth giving the paper a smooth surface. The tooth of the paper adheres to the graphite on the paper. It is challenging to get darker values using a smooth bristol board.

Smooth Bristol works better for pen & ink, markers, airbrushes, and mechanical pencils.

Vellum Bristol board has a lot of tooth (peaks and valleys), which grab dry media like graphite and allow you to add multiple layers of graphite to create deeper tones.

Bristol Vellum works excellent for graphite, charcoal, colored pencil, and crayon.

Some artists even use pastels on Bristol vellum. I never had luck using pastels on Bristol papers because I add a lot of layers, and Bristol paper can not support the multiple layers I use for my wildlife pastel paintings.
Bristol vellum is an excellent drawing paper for artists who draw realistic drawings.

What Side Of The Paper Should I Use

You might have heard artists say they will use the backside of the Bristol board for their drawings. I suggest learning what both sides have to offer by practicing similar techniques. You will then know what will work best depending on your style and the subject you are drawing.

Depending on what I am drawing will determine what side I am using.

Stathmore Bristol Vellum Surface

Strathmore Bristol Vellum Pad 9 by 12 – Inch, 20 Sheets

Drawing Tutorials

How To Draw An Apple

Art Challenge Ideas Spark Creativity

Over 100 Ideas Of What To Draw And Sketch

5 Awesome Art Techniques Using Various Mediums

Realistic Drawing Tips You Must Know

How To Draw Realistic Cat Eyes

How To Draw Realistic Eyes Step By Step

How To Preserve Pencil Drawings

How To Keep Graphite Drawings Clean

How To Draw Realistic Hair With Graphite

How To Shade Drawings With Graphite

How To Draw A Tulip

Drawing Tips For Enhancing Your Drawing Skills

Drawing With An Eraser

Drawing Tips For Realistic Drawings

Best Paper For Charcoal Drawings

Filed Under: Art Supplies, Blog, Drawing Tutorials Tagged With: drawing supplies, realistic drawing, strathmore bristol

About Dave Nevue

Dave Nevue is a Professional Pastel Wildlife Artist and the founder and CEO of Nevue Fine Art Marketing. He also authored the eBook The Productive Artist How to Live Your Dreams, and provides courses on art marketing at Nevue Fine Art Marketing Courses.

Ad - Web Hosting from SiteGround - Crafted for easy site management. Click to learn more.

Newsletter signup

Join Nevue Fine Art Marketing's Newsletter to receive the latest art marketing articles.

Please wait...

Thank you for sign up!

Art That Sells

Art Marketing

Selling Art Online

How To Sell Art Prints

How To Price Art

Best Oil Painting Supplies

Best Acrylic Paint Supplies

Best Drawing Pencils

 

Disclosure:

Disclaimer: Some links in this post are affiliate links, which means I receive a commission if you make a purchase. Affiliate relationships include, but are not limited to, Bluehost, Tailwind, and StudioPress. To learn more visit Affiliate Link Disclosure Policy

Not every link on this site is an affiliate link.

Related Resources:

Affiliate Link Disclosure Policy.

Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

 

Where To Start

Art Marketing - Complete Guide For Marketing Art Online

Sell Art Online Startup

Free Drawing Tutorials

Copyright © 2023 nevuefineartmarketing.com · cookie policy[cookie_settings]