"8 x 10" Coloured Pencil on Pastelbord
Copyright Nicole Caulfield
Nicole Caulfield began experimenting with a variety of abrasive surfaces this summer and, on her recommendation, when I was in New England in September, I bought an 11” x 14” Pastelbord by Ampersand to try out. I sourced mine from the Charettes retail art store in Woburn, just north of Boston.Copyright Nicole Caulfield
Reader - I am in luuurve! This is just so perfect for me – so long as I can work to the sizes and colours it is supplied in. I've only tried the grey shade so far but the other three colours - green, sand and white - look very useful. I've also only used it for coloured pencils but given the level of adhesion I do not doubt it will be good for pastels as well.
It's available in most American standard sizes (i.e. inches not metric) between 7" x 5" up to 24" x 36" with the grey shade having the most options. 18" x 24" is the most easily available large size. Further information is available on the websites of Ampersand and USA suppliers (see the end of this post for links).
What is pastelbord?
I’m going to quote from Ampersand's excellent information sheet which comes with each sheet.
"Pastelbord is a clay-coated hardboard panel designed for pastels that is suitable for paints of all types, especially acrylics. The granular marble dust finish holds many more layers of pastels than traditional pastel papers and can be reworked wet or dry without affecting the integrity of the surface......the rigid 1/8" hardboard backing makes this an ideal panel for on-location work and standard sizes fit in pochade boxes and carriers easily. pastelbord is acid-free and non-yellowing, making it a truly permanent museum quality surface. Choose from Gray, Green, Sand and White"Concerns about yellowing, curling, warping and separation are apparently a thing of the past with Pastelbord. Preparation and benefits, according to Ampersand, includes:
- hardboard base is made using a wet manufacturing process that removes the lamella from the wood that can cause discolouration in paintings
- the tempered hardboard is manufactured without thick tempering oils and is made from Aspen trees, which have more unform fibers and a more neutral Ph than that of other woods
- less prone to warping due to the highest tensile strength of any art hardboard available
- acid-free ground produced by using two coats of acrylic to seal the hardboard before application of the acid-free clay coating.