Working on LaCarte Pastel Card

'Texas Spring'                 9x12                pastel               ©Karen Margulis
available in my Etsy shop  $175

 Paper choice does make a difference. I have blogged about paper choice before but it is always a good thing to keep in mind. I choose my paper type and color to help me convey my message. I usually recommend that anytime you try a new paper you use it exclusively for awhile so you can get to know it. Eventually choosing the right paper for a painting becomes intuitive. The more you experience and get to know your paper options the easier it will be to choose the right paper for the job.

The paper for today's painting gave me a distinctly different effect than my usual favorite paper (Uart) for landscapes. It gave me a softer look and feel.

Today's painting was done on tan LaCarte Pastelcard by Sennelier. This paper is sanded but it is a vegetable fiber based sanded surface. This gives it a very soft touch. Yet the paper still holds many layers of pastel. I  like to use LaCarte paper for animals. The softness of the paper is perfect for painting fur and feathers.

I usually like a crisp feeling in my landscapes. I may paint some areas with a soft focus of soft edges but overall my paintings are crisp with bolder mark-making. I decided to try my same technique on the LaCarte paper. The result was a much softer and dreamy feel to my painting.

Paper choice made the difference! I will be trying more landscapes on LaCarte!

closeup 

Here are two painting crops that illustrate the difference between a painting done on LaCarte and one done on another sanded pastel paper (Pastel Premiere). The first  painting is on LaCarte. Notice the softer quality? The painting at the bottom has a crisper look.

TIP FOR WORKING ON LACARTE PAPER: I love this paper but it is a bit delicate. It does not take a wet underpainting.The sanded surface will come off when wet even by small drops of liquid revealing the shiny paper that will no longer accept pastel. If you do have this happen you can fill in the unhanded areas with any pastel ground to restore some tooth.