Q: I relocated from the States to the Caribbean and have
found that all the watercolor paper--Fabriano, Arches, Winsor &
Newton--is too absorbent to float the watercolor paint. Is there
something I can buy to resize the paper or save it somehow so that it
is once again workable? How would I apply the sizing? How many coats? I
have about 100 sheets of very good paper.
A: This is a curious question. Fabriano adds sizing to the
paper pulp and then dips each sheet into sizing, so therefore the paper
contains both internal and external sizing and should perform well
under all conditions. There is a solution, however, called Hercon 70
that can be sprayed on your paper. It is not a hard sizing such as a
starch or gelatin that is put into wet paper pulp, but it will help.
Hercon 70 is an alkenylketene dimmer-based emulsion that is used to
impart water resistance. It can be purchased from paper-making
companies such as Magnolia Editions in Oakland.
--by Camille LaPointe-Lyons