Have you ever considered using black paper with your colored pencils? Have you wondered which one is best? In today’s post, I’ll share the ones I’ve used, as well as my favorite black papers.
My Favorite Black Papers
There are a number of options if you want to use black drawing paper. While all of them claim to be good for colored pencil work, they each have different qualities that may or may not suit your drawing style. At least that has been my experience.
Black Papers I’ve Used
I don’t use black paper very much anymore. I prefer to make black or dark backgrounds by shading and I use white Pastelmat for that most of the time.
So I’ll begin by listing the black papers I have used in the past. It’s a fairly short list. Strathmore Artagain Black; Canson Mi-Teintes Black, Fabriano Black Black. Stonehenge also comes in Black, and it seems like I used some of that at some point in the distant past, but I can’t be sure.
I have a sheet of Colourfix Deep Black in stock, but have yet to make use of it. I started a piece or two on lighter colors first to get a feel for Colourfix, but I have yet to get to the black paper!
My Favorites
My favorite paper overall is Clairefontaine Pastelmat. They don’t make black paper, but they do have a very dark gray called Charcoal Grey (formerly Anthracite). I have used that quite a bit and like it, especially for dark and stormy landscapes.
Among the papers that are actually black, my favorite is Strathmore Artagain Black. It’s a smooth paper made partially from recycled materials. A medium weight paper (60 lb), it’s nowhere near as sturdy as Pastelmat or even Stonehenge, but colored pencil works extremely well on it. When I was using it, I used it for portraits, since I hadn’t yet started doing landscapes at the time. It’s smoother than Stonehenge, but not as smooth as the Bristol I use (Bienfang Bristol Vellum).
Artagain is available in pads and in full sheets.
Stonehenge is a good paper and they have a version in black. I don’t currently have any in stock, but I like Stonehenge in general and have no reservations about mentioning their black paper here.
Stonehenge is available in full sheets (which I recommend) and pads.
Black Papers I Don’t Use Much
As already mentioned, I have in stock an assortment of Colourfix papers that includes a color called Deep Black. I have done just enough with Colourfix paper to know it’s a useful paper, but not my favorite.
It’s a textured paper, but differs from Pastelmat in tooth and feel. I can’t really recommend the black because I haven’t used it yet, but I haven’t given up on the paper as a whole, either. If you’re looking for a different paper, this one is worth a try. It is available by the sheet, so you can buy just the colors that interest you.
Canson Mi-Teintes is also a nice paper, though I’ve grown away from using it. I like more textured surfaces better. If you’re an artist who prefers a smoother paper that still has decent tooth, Canson Mi-Teintes should be on your list of papers to try. It does come in black and you can buy it by the sheet. It’s also available in pads.
Black Papers I Don’t Recommend
Fabriano Black Black paper is a beautiful paper to look at, but I do not recommend it at all. I wrote a review here that explains what I liked and didn’t like about this paper. In short, it’s not archival.
Oil-based colored pencils also just didn’t layer on it as well as I would have liked.
My Favorite Black Papers
That doesn’t seem like much help for those of you looking for recommendations on black paper, but I use primarily white paper these days. When I do choose a color of paper, it’s usually an earth tone, so I have very little recent experience with black paper of any kind.
Even so, I hope I’ve at least given you a place to begin!
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