Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

As others mentioned, this stuff buckles--and very severely, in my experience. For a recent piece, I decided to apply an acrylic ground (for more surface tooth), only to see the sheet curl, warp, and buckle like a tortilla in a hot fryer. What's worse, the 3 subsequent sheets also started buckling. I tore out all 4 sheets and tried the various solutions proposed here, with zero to moderate success (wetting and then stapling worked best).

That said, on my very first attempt with the product, I had no issues. I used the sheet "as is," and painted with acrylic and oil stick. But I don't know whether the canvas cooperated due to the painting mediums or the fact that I clipped it onto a piece of cardboard (only at the top) prior to any paint application.

Whatever the case, the product is a hassle for something marketed as ready-to-use. It might be fine if you put in some effort (e.g., mount it to hardboard before painting, wrangle with water and different drying methods, etc.) but then gone is the convenience, which is what drew me to this product. Basically, it's cheap, and that's all.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

I noticed the buckling problem also. I think I have found a fix. You must first soak the watercolor canvas in hot water for five minutes, and let it dry by air, or iron it dry. You will notice that it has shrunk. This is probably because the cotton used was not preshrunk. Also, I was not happy with the coating. The off-white color is OK but not uniform. I gessoed it with a thin coating of white acrylic gesso. I use this canvas for gouache and watercolor and am happy with the results. I realize that this fix may not be for everyone, but it did work for me.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

It isn't the fact that the problem with water so much is the weight of the paper in the pads. It is not in the ad, so one thinks it is a heavy weight, to prevent buckling simply take your water sprayer (that you spritz your paints with and spray the back of the paper - it will straighten right out) All paper will buckle to some minor degree, you simply cannot use a lower weight paper. I think some things have been miss lead However I have LOVED the canvas itself. This will be good to finish up on cards or what have you. I'm too afraid to order what I can't see anymore. I will come to the store to check it 1st then enjoy ordering, the many miles between...

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

I've worked with this canvas as well as other papers a bit more since my first reviews and found an additional technique for flattening buckled paper. Since most of my work is done in detailed layered sections, I use a hairdryer to thoroughly dry each application on BOTH sides of mounted project by flipping it frequently on both the heat and cool air settings. Using only the heat setting tends do more damage to the buckled area and cause the mounting board (foam board or mat board) to curve. I've also found this process useful on 90lb. Canson Foundation paper as well as other lighter weight papers. It's a lot of work to do to but I've found the results to be worth it. A light wash of tinted absorbent ground or tinted gesso helps prepare the surface and also minimizes buckling while preserving the texture of the canvas.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

My ratings are based on product quality with an exception on the buckling. Has anyone found a solution for this besides the one posted as it didn't work for me? I wipe the water from the brushes before dipping them, but the paper still buckles from the moisture that is left. The combination of Wyland acrylics with Wyland glaze on the canvas is beautiful, and for this reason I don't want to give up on the problem. The buckling doesn't happen using a gel medium with acrylics, and a wiped dry brush. I'm going to try wOils with the pads next. If anyone has anwers I will be happy to try them. Because I'm a prolific artist the pads are the most cost effective for me.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

I have used Fredrix stretched watercolor canvas since it first came out, and love it. Because of this I ordered the canvas pads for paintings to use for print sales with the originals filed away for future use. I have just spent hours trying to solve an unexpected buckling problem when water is used with acrylics or the brushes have moisture in them. The buckling does not happen with acrylics and gel medium, only with water and acrylics. I taped,smoothed, and rolled over the canvas to a piece of hardboard and had no problem with the acrylics and gel medium, but it buckled and lifted with the tape when water touched it. I am going to try the mounting board suggestion to see if that stops the buckling instead of hardboard. The acrylics and gel medium paintings turned out great. I have to rate the pads as Best, and Solid Value with the buckling exceptions.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

I have always liked the Fredrix Water color canvas. It has always worked well for me. I use watercolor pencil and it provides me with both the traditional look of watercolor and also a much more precise look when I want.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

Has great application to my artwork,

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

I am pleased to update my review of this WC canvas pad. Since I really enjoyed working on the canvas surface, I was determined to find a way to resolve the buckling issue.

Originally, I cut (2) sheets of 12 x 16 in half creating (4) 8 X 12 pieces. I mounted these on various backing board I had available. These sheets were taped down firmly on all four sides and patterns were sketched. The first piece was mounted on foamboard and it was the disaster explained in my original review. I had (2) other sheets mounted to old pieces of Crescent mat board. Surprisingly enough, the canvas taped to the matboard did not buckle at all using the same process that caused the foamboard test to fail. I can only guess that the foamboard repels moisture and traps it causing the buckle. Using this canvas mounted on mat board is really nice. Using watercolor and gouache in thicker layers has the feel of oil paint.

Both Blick an Fredrix were more than helpful with their attempts to resolve the buckling issues. They recommended stapling the canvas down on all four sides at 1" to 1-1/2" intervals. I will try this on my next test on foamboard. Using staples instead of tape should help the condensation to escape instead of being trapped to force buckling.

Comments about Fredrix Archival Watercolor Canvas Pads:

My first experienced with this canvas was a total disappointment. While the texture is nice for acrylic and watercolor washes, the canvas buckled badly and did not flatten when completely dry. I have used Blick's cavnas pad, several different canvas papers,watercolor papers and have never had buckling to this extreme before. I did tape the canvas down firmly on all four sides before beginning as I do with all watercolor paper and canvas pad sheets. I did not wet the whole sheet but just applied an acrylic wash to the subject of a figure study. While the acrylic was still wet I applied layers of gouache in varying thicknesses and set it aside because it buckled too badly to continue. The canvas is now completely dry and some of the buckling has diminished but it is still too bad to work with. If I find a way to correct this, I will update my review.