I’m a sketchy person. Not in the sense the nuns at St. Paul’s catechism classes might think. Nah, I make sketches a lot. If you follow me on Instagram, you know I started a new sketchbook recently. I had been using Moleskine sketchbooks, but this time I went with a Bee Paper Deluxe Sketch Pad (the 6” x 9” model. The 36x24x36 model is still on backorder).
What did I think? Watch my newest art supply review video below and read my final score at the bottom of the post!
Video Review: Bee Paper Super Deluxe Sketch Pad 6×9
Watch the video on YouTube if the embed doesn’t work. Make sure to subscribe to my YouTube Channel!
Don’t have time for a video? What are you, some kind of monster? Anyway, read my review below.
Bee Paper: The Only Sketchbook You Will Ever Need?
I like to use different kinds of media in my sketchbook: ink, lead, markers, paint, cat stickers, and colored pencils. Bee Paper likes to claim the Deluxe Sketch Pad is “The Only Sketchbook You Will Ever Need.”
Does the Bee Paper Deluxe Sketch Pad make good on this claim? Yes, I think so.
This sketchbook can handle pretty much everything I throw at it. The paper is thick enough for good watercolor work, but the tooth doesn’t make pencil sketching difficult. At 93 lb. the paper has some heft to it, but in a good way. It won’t tear or rip easily.
In the video you can see it handles ink, ink wash, lead, colored pencil, watercolor, and art marker really well. Only my Copic marker bled through, but that’s standard for art markers. They bleed like a secondary character in Evil Dead 2.
Speaking of watercolor, make sure to check out my review of the Sakura Koi Watercolor Field Sketch Set I used in this video.
Higher Quality, Higher Price
This isn’t a bargain bin sketchbook.
And that’s OK! (I don’t have anything against bargain bins. That’s where I get most of my pants, even though the JUICY on the butt is spelled wrong)
There’s nothing wrong with investing in high quality art supplies, especially paper. If you get this via Amazon, the cost is under $13 (for the 6×9 size). For 60 sheets, you’re paying about 20 cents a sheet. Not bad for this kind of paper. You can definitely get a larger sketchbook for less, but the paper might not be the same quality. It might be the Go-Bots to Bee Papers’ Transformers.
It all depends on what you want to do with your sketchbook, drawing dogs playing poker like your French girls, and what not. If you are only going to do pencil and ink, then you might want to pass on the Bee Paper Deluxe Sketch Pad. However, if you want to play around with watercolor, ink washes or some other wet media, I highly recommend picking one up.
I will say, this is one of my favorite sketchbooks, because of its versatility. You might say it’s the (insert name of famous utility baseball player I don’t know) of sketchbooks.
Spiral Or Not
As I said above, my last few sketchbooks were Moleskine and not spiral or wire bound. I decided to go back to a spiral bound book this time. Why? I got tired of having to hold a sketchbook open while drawing. It also made sketching while standing difficult. Even though I love the look of my Moleskine sketchbooks on a shelf, I had to switch. I’ll find something else for my shelves, like maybe the collected works of Mojo Nixon.
