When Hahnemühle came out with the Grey Book I wondered if they’d eventually make a tan version. Well, that’s the Cappuccino. I thought I couldn’t love toned paper more but I was wrong. I also thought grey toned paper was my favorite, wrong again. Who knew? Maybe it’s because of the name. You all know how much I LOVE coffee, lol.
The Cappuccino has the same good qualities as the Grey Book (review here). It has a luxurious hard cover with 40 sheets/80 pages, excellent 120gsm smooth paper and a bookmark. The Cappuccino, just like the Grey Book is available in A4 & A5 portrait sizes. This sketchbook is not meant for watercolor but my friend Sandra has successfully use watercolors in it. You just want to be careful.
Sandra of Life Imitates Doodles did an excellent review on Doodlewash of both the Cappuccino and the Grey Book. Check it out. She points out that the experience of having light dominate over dark makes creating art on toned paper a unique and wonderful experience. I agree.
There’s something kind of awesome about using toned paper. To me, it’s a total luxury and always feels quite different from using white paper. When I get bored, I move toward toned paper. I work differently in it than I do any other book. The rich smoothness of this tanned paper is nearly hypnotic. My Zebra pens slip over it beautifully. I really get in the zone as I produce line after line. Truthfully, the color in this piece only took about half an hour! After the lifework was done, all I did was get out the colored pencils.
The other nice thing about using toned paper is that it gives you an opportunity to learn more about color. When adding colored pencils to the paper, you have to consider that you’re not starting with white paper. This forces you to analyze what your colored pencil will do on the tan paper. It gives the artist in you a little work out. I love that.
I also used my new favorite toy. As I mentioned in another post, I poured some white ink into a brush pen and TADA, my own white ink brush pen on the cheap. It works spectacularly. If I want very bold white I just have to squeeze more white into the brush. But if I want delicate or light white, I just let it go a little dry and it gives only a suggestion of light.
I want to say something else about this piece. It started out ugly. Yep. This colorful Easter bouquet started out as an ugly toddler. I learned something REALLY important from my good friend Tracey Fletcher King when I took her Delicious Paint course.
“All art goes though an ugly teenager phase.”
The trick is to stick with that ugly teenager and wait for it to grow out of it. Sometimes that’s hard. You have to believe, believe that you will get there eventually. After really taking that in, I found that most of my art came through that ugly phase. Although I’ll admit, sometimes it was a squeaker! I have had paintings be in the ugly phase for the entire time I was painting, only to have them, at the last minute, spring forth into beauty. It’s a great lesson.
Compare the first photo to the second. The top photo is so tentative, the second one is much bolder.
With this drawing I realized I was just being way too tentative. Somehow I had it in my head that I was gonna screw it up. It happens. Talk your monkey off the ledge and get back to making good art. Believe in your abilities and you can only get better. As Angela Fehr pointed out in her piece on Doodlewash “Who’s your favorite Artist“, you should be your own favorite artist. I want to be my own groupie, my own cheering squad and the person I listen to most about what I like about MY art.
With the above in mind, I did finally go back and add white as a highlight to a black & white ink drawing I did last week. Here is the before white ink and after.
So as you can see, my Cappuccino is becoming my flower book. Here’s the other piece I did. It’s titled Neesie’s Daffs. I encourage you to try toned paper. Hahnemühle has both grey and tan. It’s so worth your time, effort and money.
Here are several other links with reviews of the Cappuccino book. It’s great to see all that you can do in this beautiful sketchbook.
Other Reviewers:
I’ll be back soon with more art. Later Gator!
sandra strait
Fantastic review and even more amazing art! I’m always amazed at the extent of your knowledge and talent.
Thank you for the shout out!
Jean Marmo
Thank you for the review and for this gorgeous piece of art! Loving this cappaccino paper!
Susan C
Those daffs really popped once you added the white. Great idea re the white ink pen.
Terri Young, CZT16
You have painted my favorite flowers – Daffodils! They are beautifully done, too. I like the white paint brush idea and will have to try this for myself! Thanks for sharing.