Handbook Watercolor Journal, 5.25" x 8.25" Large Landscape, 200 GSM Cold Press Paper, Natural Linen Cover, 60 Pages

I brought this watercolor sketchbook because my favorite artist Polina Bright uses them and I must say they are worth the money! The colors appear very vibrant on the watercolor paper. The pages are thick and they don’t bleed through! They are perfect for travel size as well! The only downside is that the paper dries very fast, so when using this paper make sure u do a WET on WET application.

The media could not be loaded. I really like this sketchbook! It takes heavy watercoloring really well!! I’m used to using the canson xl watercolor paper, I wanted to try something new and decided to purchase this one. The pages warp a little bit , but that is expected with watercolors ! The paper is pretty good with how well it takes heavy water ! I’m also able to use both sides of the paper which I like ! Definitely would buy again :)!

Update: I still love this sketchbook. I both pre wet or not pre wet my pages and it holds up fine. I use the lighter weight of the two options. I work in other watercolor books (spiral, glued, and bound) and I still favor this book brand specifically. I do not know why. I think I favor the lack of bleeding and that it can take all the digging I put it through with so many layered mediums. I have finished two full sketchbooks of these, the larger square and the 8x5 and I like them both. I plan to continue to purchase these in the future.I do a lot of multimedia in sketchbooks, and this is one where I felt comfortable with the size, weight, and smoothness of the paper that I finished the whole sketchbook. I bought this in 2014 and am reviewing now because I was going through old sketchbooks, this is one of the few where I enjoyed working in it because it laid flat and I could easily do two-panel pieces or just a single page. The pages are warped in areas where I was not patient with my watercolors. I got mad at myself for having so many unfinished sketchbooks, but this is one that I am okay buying more of since I know I can do anything in it. Attached images show the use of ink, watercolor, gouache, acrylic, acrylic ink, ink, marker and pencil. I use it at home so I can't say anything other than it survives my backpack.

I ordered the 200gsm large portrait.Perfect size for color swatching your materials. Managed to swatch all my colored pencils, pens, acrylic paint pens, wax pastels, water-based markers, alcohol based markers and still have half the book left.Grain is a little rough for colored pencils, but then 200 gsm isn’t made for them, anyways. Wax pastels went on beautifully, but obv transferred.Sharpies were visible on the opposite side, but didn’t bleed through.Alcohol markers (last pictured) obviously showed through with only a little bleeding, but was easy to work around for my purposes.I think it works best with my water-based markers, which only slightly show through.Acrylic paint pens worked well, but had to be very wet or it tore up the paper.Size was really the selling point for me: small enough to fit on any stack space and be grab and go. Large enough that I can see a decent amount of colors at one time. Was previously using a much larger book that I found myself avoiding using, which lead to just winging colors, which defeated the purpose of having swatches.If I had to do it again, I’d probably order the 300gsm just to be maximally compatible with alcohol markers, but otherwise, very pleased :).

Preface: I LOVE the Global Art Handbook journals. Ever since I discovered them, I've bought five, and they've never let me down. I really enjoy using them, but I wanted a journal with the same binding with watercolor paper, hence why I purchased this to try.I'm struggling to get through this sketchbook, which isn't usually how I am. However, this sketchbook feels too precious. What I mean is, the paper feels more expensive (although it's really not compared to other journals), and the presentation feels very professional. Overall, it's a good quality sketchbook until I find little spots of the paper in the journal to have this weird texture that resists the watercolor paint? I'm not sure why, and it's a bit frustrating. It's not on every page, but it's on a good handful of them.The watercolors look great on it, and there's only bad buckling if you dump water onto it. It's not a bad sketchbook, but I'm skeptical to try it again. It might just be the journal I got that had the weird water resistant spots, but if you like your journals to lay flat and want a hardcover watercolor journal with fairly good paper, this might be the one for you.

Love the paper- easy to use and like texture of hard cover

Bought for a traveling watercolor painter. Great size for messenger bag. Paper quality and thickness is good.

The cover is sturdy and well constructed and the pages stand up well to water media and collage techniques.

Wonderful watercolour book that’s small enough to carry with you in any bag for any occasion. The paper quality is very nice and works well with the paint.

This is a really beautiful art journal. It's a bit pricey, but definitely a gorgeous journal for art work. The pages are heavy - great for watercolour with a bit of tooth. Absolutely lovely!

Love love love this sketchbook. The weight of the paper is perfect - a lot better than most watercolour books on the market. Will buy every time! The linen cover is also a wonderful touch.

It’s perfect for watercolours. Been looking for cold press sketchbook.

Good quality paper. Good for watercolour sketching. A great size for landscapes and easy to put in your pocket when out and about