How To Stretch Watercolor Paper Before Painting. Below is a watercolor painting of one of my rose paintings displayed to show how these watercolor canvas look like. Once the paper is dry, it will be stretched tight on the board and will not warp when watercolor is added.
Lift the sheet of watercolor paper, and gently shake off the excess water. I'm going to show you now how to prepare your water, your freshly stretched watercolor paper, as if you're going to use a critic like it's water color. And since i've yet to finish the small projects i'm working on and can't post new finished painting pictures yet, i thought i'd use the time to share some knowledge instead.
I do experience minimal buckling of the paper, especially around the edges.
For stretching, you can soak the paper in the water for 10 to 15 minutes and put it on the flat board. Staple one corner of the paper to the board. Take your sheet out of the water, drain as much water from the sheet as you can and place it on a clean, sturdy board. You can also use a damp sponge.