A good paper can either make or break your art piece, especially if it’s art made of ink. Choosing the right paper is as important as the ink itself when painting. Whereas choosing the wrong paper can lead to ink spillage and eventually deteriorate or, worse, destroy your workpiece.
Ink drawings require a specific thickness of drawing paper for pen and ink. They also need a specific absorption capability and dimensions depending on the type of art.
In this article, I listed the top 10 best paper for ink drawing available in the market to make things easier for you. Furthermore, some tips on storing and using them are also provided in this article.
I personally recommend the Bazic SketchBook to daily users. For its competitive price and multipurpose use, I feel that it is the perfect combination with the bonus of lightweight. However, there are lots of other papers that might suit you better.
Our Favorite Best Paper for Ink Drawing
Different Types of Paper for Drawing
Before we get into the product list first, I would like to tell you about the different types of papers that you may use for ink drawing.
- Acid Free Paper: These are papers of neutral pH that are useful to sketchers. Paper with an acidic pH is prone to turning into yellow after a while.
- Acrylic Paper: These are lightweight papers. An artist tends to use them when dealing with pencil sketches mostly.
- Bristol Paper: Bristol papers are multiply cotton fiber papers. Bristol paper drawing is considered to be a more high standard as the papers are made to be more versatile and durable.
- Drawing Paper: These are ideal papers with good absorbent and thickness. They can be used for a range of different types of drawing, including ink drawings.
- Marker Paper: They are sketching papers with higher absorbent. They can handle higher pigment ink and marker ink without causing smudges to the art.
- Sketching Paper: These are the ideal paper for sketching and ink drawings, especially for their texture.
Top 10 Best Paper for Ink Drawing- Buying Guide
I searched the internet for hours, so you don’t have to. And finally, I was able to shortlist 10 of the best paper for ink drawing. So without any further ado, let’s check them out!
1. U.S. Art Supply Premium Spiral Bound Sketch Pad
First up, we have the premium spiral sketch pad from US Art Supply. It is made up of 100 sheets; the company ships these high-quality drawing papers in various sizes. If you’re looking for the best paper for ink drawing, this might be the one.
Special Features
Lightweight: If you’re an artist on the go, one of the major features you should be looking for in a sketch pad is its weight. The US Art Supply makes one of the most balanced spiral drawing paper pads in the market to address that issue. The key is to make sure the product has enough weight to sustain the ink and enough light to be carried in your backpack.
Smooth Finish: The pages consist of a smooth finish to ensure a better drawing experience. A rough-surfaced paper can heavily affect your art since the extra friction can deteriorate the flow of your pen.
Top-Spiral: The drawing pad has a top spiral with perforated pages, easily tearing them off during your ink drawings. The spiral being on top will provide you with better gripping.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 60lb
- Number of Sheets: 100
- Binding: Top Spiral
Pros:
- Top Quality Pages
- 100 Sheets With Perforated Edges
- Acid-Free Papers With Neutral pH
Cons:
- Cannot Draw Using Markers
2. Canson XL Series Drawing
Next on the list is the Canson XL Series drawing papers with side-bound spiral binding. These acid-free 150 gsm paper can perfectly withhold any ink or markers and give you the best art experience. Made up of 40 pages, this is the ideal drawing notepad for those always on the go.
Special Features
High Paper Weight: Heavyweight matches the perfect requirement to use acrylic markers and opaque pens. Having just the option to use markers is quite relieving for an originator.
Side Spiral: Tear any pages any time anywhere with Canson’s specially built side spirals that make it easy to tear those mistakes. Furthermore, side spirals are designed for those who prefer to draw with a landscape orientation.
Fade Resistant: You don’t need to worry about those paper chemicals slowly killing your art. Its fade resistance is always at work 24/7.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 92lb
- Number of Sheets: 40
- Binding: Side Spiral
Pros:
- Perforated pages
- Can handle high pigment ink
- Can withstand watercolor
Cons:
- Only 40 pages per pad
- Not good for erasing
3. Bachmore Drawing Pad
Bachmore Drawing Pad is just a way for an artist to explore the world and capture its reflections in their notebook. Their high-quality thick drawing paper, which can be used for wet and dry mediums like watercolor, could be useful.
Special Features
Handmade Hard Covers: Hardcovers by other artists provide you with the artistic vibe you’re seeking for. With the right amount of grip, these hardcovers won’t let your artwork slip away in a rush.
Seamless Textures: The texture of the paper has a big impact on your passion for creating. With their well-finished textured paper and silky patterns, these pads have ensured that your enthusiasm for creativity remains consistent.
Sufficient Pages: With roughly 60 pages, you’ll have more than enough opportunities to make mistakes and start over on a new page. A good number of pages is a fantastic place to start for an amateur artist.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 122lb
- Number of Sheets: 60
- Binding: Top Spiral
Pros:
- Any piece of paper can be flushed away
- Can be used with Watercolors and Acrylic
- Thick Papers
- The company itself provides complete refunds
Cons:
- Not the best for markers
4. BAZIC Sketch Book 30 Ct.
If you are looking for a notebook that can be used for multi-purposes, Baztic is the way to go, without a doubt. Available with packages that offer bulk packs to save costs, Baztic has got its way with teachers and students.
Special Features
Numerous Purposes: Bazic SketchBook hasn’t limited itself to one but for a variety of purposes, ranging from poetry to writing. If you are into everything, one notepad will serve to carry around with you at all times.
75 GSM Paper: It is only because of the thickness that made it perfect. You can sketch without fear of bleeding and destroying your finely crafted masterpiece with this thickness. Hence making it the overall best drawing paper for pen and ink.
Available In Bulk Packs To Save Costs: The expense of creativity should not be a barrier. Exploring your creativity with these best papers for sketching shouldn’t be too expensive. Its low-cost sketch edition is available to teachers and students.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 20 lbs
- Number of Sheets: 50
- Binding: Spiral Side Bound
Pros:
- Perfect for rough sketches
- Small In Size
- Multipurpose Use
Cons:
- Thin Back Cover Cardboard
5. Strathmore 300 Series
Drawing Books with extra thickness can come in handy when using water-based drawing materials. Having the ability to absorb all your hard work properly adds a little spiciness to it.
Special Features
Thickness: Heavyweight drawing paper that makes it the best paper for drawing as it can withhold a lot of pressure on those pages for your drawing to be accurate.
Acid-Free: After a few days, the paper will not turn yellow and damage your painting. You don’t have to race to show it to someone special before it turns the sky yellow.
Strong Surface: Most papers aren’t the finest when it comes to erasability. With this product, you can erase smoothly if you have a strong surface. And as a result, you won’t even notice your pencil was there.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 70 lb
- Number of Sheets: 50
- Binding: Top Spiral And Side Spiral
Pros:
- Easily Erasable
- Fashionable
- Available in top and side spirals
Cons:
- Big in size
6. Castle Art Supplies Artists Sketch Books
An artist’s biggest fear is spilling and ruining all their hard work at once. Castle guarantees an exit to your fear of spilling with their laminated sketchbook. Next time you don’t need to worry about drinking near your portrayal.
Special Features
Laminated: Your crucial sketch book’s cover is laminated to protect your sketchbook from any water getting near it and ruining your effort. A feature that is very handy for that artist that is always on the go.
Handy Size: Only 22cm width and a length of 30.48cm with a great finishing touch. All of these just so you can carry this stylish sketchbook anywhere and be able to do your favorite hobby without a thought of “Where am I going to draw.”
Great Number of Pages: It is a great plus point for a sketcher not to limit their canvas. The 200 pages are a great deal for sketchers to make their sketch perfect and error-free.
Specification:
- Size: 9×12 Inches
- Paper Weight: 41 lbs
- Number of Sheets: 200
- Binding: Side Spirals
Pros:
- Smudge Resistant
- Hard Backs
- Acid-Free PH
Cons:
- Can only be used in dry media
7. Bianyo XL Bleedproof Marker Paper Pad
Smoothness is what your paper thrives on while trying to sketch on it. Bianyo, the best drawing paper, has fulfilled your paper’s need for you to draw in these bleed-proof papers with markers.
Special Features
Bleedproof: Non-bleeding papers are always the best drawing paper for marker and ink. That means you can say no to those annoying bleeds that your paper does to ruin your drawings.
Smoothness: Drawing or sketching with those inks or graphite isn’t very satisfying when the paper is just not smooth. Bianyo has committed to smoothness when it comes to their paper.
Great Absorbent: Spongy-like materials are present on your canvas to absorb your swift touches of ink. Absorption is a very important feature, mainly for ink drawing, to prevent ink spillage that can ruin your art piece. And hence, this is the best paper for dip pens.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: 18lb
- Number of Sheets: 50
- Binding: No spiral
Pros:
- Stylish
- Thinner Pages
- Does not bleed through papers
Cons:
- No Spirals
8. Bellofy Drawing Paper Pads
It’s a mess if you’re a rookie and your sketching sheets aren’t good enough to use an eraser on. Bellofy’s unleashed formula is all it took for a beginner like you to erase as much as you wanted in their premium papers.
Special Features
Can be Erased Frequently: Finally, there’s a paper that you can erase frequently, and your sketch will still look fresh. All the sketcher’s dreams have come true with this ingenious product. If you’re looking for the best paper for sketching, this might just be the one.
Dry Media Specialist: These drawing paper pads have a fine tooth surface suitable for dry media like pencils and pens. Ensuring that this is the best drawing paper, Bellofy has chosen the best dry media drawing. Thus, this paper is nothing but the best in terms of experience for any sketcher.
Compact and Lightweight: Your best drawing paper should not be as heavy as your art. Bellofy Drawing Papers have ensured it to be compact and as lightweight as possible to carry it all along.
Specification:
- Size: 9 x 12 Inches
- Paper Weight: 60lbs
- Number of Sheets: 300
- Binding: Top spiral
Pros:
- Frequent erasing
- Not Heavy
- Smudge Resistant
Cons:
- Ideal for dry media only
9. Sax Sulphite Drawing Paper
Looking for an all-rounder at both wet and dry media? Of course, no sketcher wants to bound their specialties only because the paper is not compatible with it. No longer will you be needed to compress your creativity.
Special Features
Wet And Dry Media: While most papers are dry media, Sax Sulphite’s secret recipe has pushed them to the top high quality drawing paper on our list. It allows the artist to utilize watercolors and tempera paints without difficulty.
Perfect Texture: Texture is a way of enhancing an artist’s work. It is quite easy for even a beginner artist to draw without any trouble with the help of flawless texture. Especially when it comes to ink drawings, texture brings you the surreal drawing experience.
Extra Crisp: When you draw on such crystal white papers, whatever you seem to draw appears to be extremely crisp. Having this feature will bring out the extra glow in your art. Furthermore, it makes your black and white sketches even more bright and exclusive.
Specification:
- Size: 9 x 12 Inches
- Paper Weight: 50 lb
- Number of Sheets: 500
- Binding: No Spiral
Pros:
- Can be used by a newbie
- Compatible With Markers and Crayons
- In Between thin and thick
Cons:
- Not So Smooth
10. Moon Child Art Paper Pad
Moon Child features paintable finger paper for your child to play with. Encouraging creativity with their best dip pens paper ever that comes with extra thickness. Great initiative compared to other paper companies for their primary goal of encouraging creativity to kids.
Special Features
Finger Paint: Children love to finger paint instead of other sketching pencils. Moon Child Art Paper focuses on prioritizing children to extend their creativity.
Removable Sheets: No spirals are provided, but there’s always an alternative. Tear-away bounds are present at the top to tear away pages neatly for sharing your kid’s drawings with your friends.
Thick Papers: Papers with thickness is a blessing for the designer to begin with. Having not to worry that the sketches will bleed through the next one is all this thickness is about. Making it the best paper for the dip pens to take place without any trouble.
Specification:
- Size: Multiple Size Range
- Paper Weight: N/A
- Number of Sheets: 60
- Binding: No Spirals
Pros:
- Great for kids
- Thick Papers
- Recycled Paper
- Does not Bleed
Cons:
- Risky To tear off without spirals
Buying Guide of the Best Paper for Ink Drawing
Now that you’ve looked into the different products. Let’s look into some conditions and key factors that will help you choose your best paper for ink drawing.
Binding
Most papers for ink drawing come bound in a pad. The pads are usually spiral bound on either of the two corners, top or side. To choose which is better for you, you must first identify the orientation of your art. If you draw horizontally, then side binding will suit you. However, for the vertical art pieces, top binding is preferable.
Paper Weight
The most important specification of an art paper is its weight. Paper Weight directly reflects the types of ink or color used on the drawing. For inks that are heavier or need more absorption, you must go with a paper with greater weight.
Size
The size depends on the artist’s preferences and the type of art. If you aim to draw small portraits, then 11×14 paper is the ideal choice. However, if you wish to make drawings containing multiple objects, you must go for bigger sizes.
The medium consists of two to three objects with a paper size of 16×20. Whereas a large size can fit up to 4 objects on a portrait orientation, with dimensions 18×24.
Finish
Last but not least, the finishing of the paper is quite an important factor to consider as well. Often artists opt for smooth finishes, which gives them a better drawing or sketching experience. Furthermore, acid free or neutral pH papers hold the color of the art longer and thus are widely preferred.
Acidity
The ideal choice for all artists is to seek acid-free papers. The issue with acidity rises over time as the paper turns yellowish. If you wish your art to be preserved over a long period, opting for a neutral pH paper is a must.
How to Store Paper?
Drawing papers must be stored flat and not folded at any cost. Since most ink drawings are made in spiral pads rather than loose sheets, some useful methods are to preserve your art.
- Let the ink dry: one of the worst mistakes you can do is to close your drawing book immediately after drawing. Often ink requires 2-3 minutes to dry off completely and it is advised that you wait for it to be dried off completely to avoid smudging.
- Do not tear off the paper until you need to: Most of the drawing notebooks you’ll come across come with spiral binding either on the side or at the top. Tearing it off makes it harder to store without causing any folds.
- Keep away from the damp environment: Papers are humidity sensitive and hence to prevent your art from smudges, make sure no water ever reaches it. Even for an empty piece of paper, humidity ruins the texture of it, making it unpleasing to draw on.
What is the Use of Drawing Paper?
The general purpose of ink drawing paper is to make sketches using pens and pencils. However, one can do more with a drawing paper of greater quality. Down below are some of such properties and their uses:
Greater Thickness: great thickness means greater absorption, meaning the paper can withstand a range of inks and markers. Furthermore, greater thickness paper means they can withstand greater physical pressure than pens and pencils.
Oil-Painting Papers: these are papers specifically made for oil paintings to withstand damp conditions. Using oil painting pages makes working with heavier inks or makers much easier for ink drawing.
Eraser Friendliness: Sometimes, when sketching with pencils, one might require to erase repetitively. And eraser-friendly paper makes erasing off easier without leaving traces or marks of drawings.
Binding: Binding is an essential property that allows artists to share their sketches. Since artists cannot carry small sketch papers individually, they come in pads. And so binding gives a proper utilization of the pages and makes it easier to tear off.
Frequently Asked Questions
You’re likely scratching your head over some general concerns at this point, so let me address some of the most common concerns customers have about tonneau covers in this section.
- What Is Drawing Paper Called?
There are various types of drawing paper, each based on their specific purposes. For example, the drawing paper is called sketching paper, whereas a typical painting paper is a canvas.
- What Is the Difference Between Drawing and Sketching Paper?
Sketching is the act of producing sketches while applying pencils only. Whereas drawing can include various forms of colors.
- What Kind of Paper Is Used for Art?
Art papers are different from the general papers used for everyday academic purposes. A typical art paper is heavier and has a different texture that improves both the outcome and experience of artists.
- Is Printer Paper Good for Drawing?
Printer paper is generally lighter and thus cannot soak paints without being damp.
- What Size Paper Do Artists Use?
Most artists do not have a specific paper size and work according to the task. However, the most common size is imperial, 762 × 559 mm.
- What Is A3 Watercolor Paper?
A3 watercolor papers are specific watercolor papers with the dimensions of A3, 297 × 420 mm. Like most watercolor papers, these papers withhold watercolor remarks upon it.
Final Thoughts
This article looked into the top 10 best paper for ink drawing. I shared the ins and outs of each ink drawing paper and provided you with a guideline to find the best match for you.
Consider the size and drawing you expect to make before investing in one. And always consider the usability of the papers and how frequently you might need them to decide on the paper volume.
I hope you found this helpful article, and may you have the best experience producing art. Until next time, happy painting!