Watercolors are a lovely medium and it’s one of my favorites to work in. You can get some interesting layers of textures and colors because of its transparency. It has a great ability for being light and washy, and also deep and detailed. But, as many beginner artists find, working with watercolors can be challenging when your page gets wavy and warps while working on it. There are a few methods for holding your watercolor paper flat on your work surface. In this tutorial, I’ll show you my favorite way to keep watercolor paper flat while I’m working.

Here is the list of materials you’ll need for this method of stretching watercolor paper:

• Preferred watecolor paper (sheets instead of blocks/pads preferred—I am using Fabriano 300lb Hot Pressed)
• Light duty staple gun and staples
• Metal edged ruler
• Hollow wood (or lightweight) drawing board (here is one of the drawing boards I use, made by Helix)
• Flat-head screwdriver
• Source of water in a large sink/tub