Gator Board Foam - Tips on the Wet Wash Method

I am an avid artist who tends to see watercolor works as one of the more difficult mediums to paint with. I beleive that many artists who have never used watercolor to paint with dismiss the difficulty involved with your paper buckling when a wash is placed. I also think that watercolor is one of the only mediums that mistakes are nearly impossible to hide. Having stated two of the items that make watercolor painting very difficult let me offer reasons why gator board foam can help to ease the difficulty of the process.

First, the use of gator board foam to stretch the paper allows the artist to concentrate on the painting process instead of the concern of buckling paper. If you place a wash on the paper and start to worry that it will buckle you will lose concentration on the work itself.

Second, by having your watercolor paper stretched tight you will be able to use a scrubber or a stiff bristled brush to "correct" items you dislike. I have actually started to employ the technique of scrubbing out color that I have previously painted in order to provide some amazing detail and effects. I owe this new development to the use of gator board foam.

I hope I have convinced you to look into using gator board foam to stretch all of your watercolor paper prior to starting your painting process.

To see my artworks and passion for watercolors, fly fishing and fly tying visit my website: http://www.dryflywaters.com/

Gator Board Foam for Watercolor Paper - White Background

I am a huge fan of gator foam board for stretching my watercolor paper prior to laying down any washes. There is one major bonus to the use of the gator board that is available for purchase on this site. The main bonus is the pure white color. If you ever look at watercolor works displayed in a contest or a gallery you will notice that the mat board is almost always a white. This allows the art work to stand for itself and also provides a measuring stick by which the true values of the colors in the art work will be measured allowing the artist to see exactly where their work stands. I have found that when I paint a watercolor art work on standard board I am always hunting for a white mat to use to temporarily see how the work looks.

By using the gator board foam core method of stretching watercolor paper you will always have a wonderful white background to use as a color reference for your work. It is just one more inherently wonderful advantages of using gator board foam as a tool for painting with watercolors.

Gator Board Foam - Stretch Watercolor Paper without Tools

If you have a household stapler or some push pins then you have the required items to stretch watercolor paper properly with gator board foam. All that is required is to adequately wet the paper and allow it to soak for about 5 minutes. This allows the paper to expand without removing the sizing from the fibers. Once the paper has soaked just drain off the excess water and place it on the gator board. Staple down one side of the paper and then pull the opposite side gently and staple it to the board. Then turn the board and staple another side completely down. Turn the board one last time and gently pull the unstapled side tight and staple.

This allows the watercolor paper to be pulled gently tight. As the paper dries the moisture leaves the paper and it will tighten. The gator board foam then acts as a stable force in keeping the paper tight. Gator board foam is a great way to stretch watercolor paper.

Gator Board Foam - The Advantage of Light Weight Watercolor Stretching Board

During my youth I started to become seriously committed to art as a passion and a hobby. I am one of those who tends to dabble in multiple mediums during certain periods of time. I will use Charcoals for a while then switch to pencils and then spend seven months painting. My true passion has always been watercolor painting. The discovery of gator board foam is one of the best things that has happened to my artistic experience.

I enjoy painting on location or outdoors when possible. I even enjoy being able to bring my watercolor painting stretched on gator board foam to the kitchen table for detail work.

The use of gator board foam for watercolor paper stretching has made the watercolor painting process so portable and enjoyable I find myself focusing mainly on watercolors. The gator board foam that I use and sell is 1/2" thick which provides enough rigidity to properly stretch the paper. However, the gator board foam is unbelievabley light weight allowing the artist to take the painting anywhere without the weight of a wood board or a watercolor block.

Please take the time to look at the artists pack of gator board foam available for purchse. You will love the smooth wrinkle free paintings you can produce.

Tips for Using Gatorboard to Stretch Watercolor Paper

The following are some quick tips on how to properly use gatorboard for stretching watercolor paper:

1. Sketch out your final drawing on dry paper.
2. Soak the watercolor paper with clean water. You can use a 2" wash brush, a clean sponge, or you can soak it in your tub.
3. When paper is thoroughly soaked, lay it on the Gatorboard. If any bubbles or buckles appear, simply lift on the side of the paper to the buckle. Now, slowly lay the paper back down on the Gatorboard while applying gentle pressure with your wet brush to remove the buckle.
4. Once it is completely flat, lay paper towels over the entire surface to remove the excess water. The paper should be damp to the touch, but no glisten to it.
5. Now is the time to put down your washes.
6. Use a household stapler and staple the four sides of he paper to the gatorboard.
7. Allow the paper to dry or use a blow dryer to speed up the process.
8. You can use a letter opener or a dull kitchen knife to pop out the staples once the painting is completed.

5 reasons to use Gator Board Foam for Stretching Watercolor Paper

Gator board foam has many advantages over using solid wood as a material to stretch watercolor paper. The following is a list of the advantages of using gatorfoam board for stretching watercolor paper:

1. No tools required other than a normal office stapler.
2. Allows the use of inexpensive 140 lb paper instead of 300 lb paper.
3. Creates a white border to use for color reference.
4. Very light weight compared to wood
5. Non-absorbent material.

Keeping these 5 items in mind it becomes clear that gatorboard is the best option on the market for stretching watercolor paper. Check out the artists pack which includes 3 sizes so you can have multiple works going at the same time.

How to Cut Gator Foam - Saw Required

Many fellow watercolor artists often ask me how to properly cut gator foam board to custom fit their painting requirements. Gator foam board actually has a very thin layer of wood veneer on both sides of the foam. In order to properly and cleanly cut gator foam board I have found that using a panel saw or a table saw is required.

If you are looking to use gator foam board for stretching watercolor paper then I recommend that you purchase the Artists Pack that I sell. It is composed of the three sizes of watercolor paper that mos often are used by artists: Full Sheet, Half Sheet and Quarter Sheet.

You will get a ton of use out of the Gator Foam Board Artists Pack.