Reviewing the New Weight of Clairefontaine Pastelmat | Materials Guide

I have been quite lucky in the past to be sent a few products to try out from the kind people at Clairefontaine, and I was recently sent a piece of their new weight of Pastelmat. So, I thought it might be helpful for anyone wondering what it’s like and whether it’s worth buying if I did a quick review to share my thoughts.

Anyone who knows me knows I love using both the Pastelmat Board and the sheets - I use them in so many of my drawings - so, it was great to have the chance to try out a new weight of Pastelmat. The difference with this Pastelmat is that it comes on a roll, which means you have a much bigger surface area to work on (perfect for coloured pencil artists who love doing big drawings!). 

It’s lighter weight than the board and the sheets, so it feels a bit more like ordinary paper, however, it still has the shiny backing and the typical Pastelmat surface you’d expect, which is brilliant. One of the things I have always loved about Pastelmat is the slightly abrasive surface, which allows you to lay down lots of layers, and this new version hasn’t changed that. I did find it slightly grittier than normal, which had its own benefits, and meant that I could get lights over my darks that are even better than those I’d get when I’m using the board. You can also continue to use all of the techniques you’d normally use on Pastelmat without any issues, which is perfect. 

One of the things I did struggle with when I came to testing this out, however, was, with it being on a roll, it curls back up once you’ve unrolled it. It wasn’t a huge issue, as it stayed down on my drawing board with the help of my usual magnets (even better than normal, with the paper being thinner), and after a few days of drawing, only the edges curled, but it did make me worry that the drawing would get more easily damaged.

The other thing that concerned me was how easy it was to wrinkle when you moved it around, meaning you would have to be very careful when using it and, you know me, that’s easier said than done when you have three big dogs and a cat in your studio! 

But, all in all, I was happy with it. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll be rushing out to buy it as I’m already so happy with the Pastelmat Board and I don’t tend to need such a large sheet of paper, but Pastelmat is such a fabulous surface, and this is another great addition to the range. 

Click on the video at the top of this page to listen to my full review and to see what the paper actually looks like.