Through my connections in the USA, and with the Pastel Society of America, I recently discovered WALLIS paper, a paper invented by American Pastellist, Kitty Wallis, which she developed for her own use as an artist.

Many leading American pastellists now work almost exclusively on Wallis paper. Oil and acrylic painters also use this surface, appreciating, amongst other things, the great advantage of being able to crop easily, which is difficult with a stretched canvas. And given the paper's special qualities, this is hardly surprising.

Wallis papers are archival, tests have shown that the papers will last 300-500 years.

• The Professional Quality Sanded Paper uses a base of neutral pH wood pulp cardstock, buffered and acid-free. It has an estimated archival life of 300 years . It has a double primed surface. It is 240 gsm.

• The Museum Quality Sanded Paper is made of cotton rag paper , which is naturally archival, it does not produce acid from its fibres, and neither needs, nor has, buffering. It tests out at 500 years . It has a triple primed surface with a primed back. It is 300 gms. The paper meets Library of Congress standards for permanence.

• The sanded surface is created with a tough aluminium oxide grit, slightly less hard than diamonds (9 on MOHS scale) which provides a tooth, similar to fine sandpaper, which is remarkably durable, and unlike other non-acid-free art sandpapers, its coating protects the paper against acid migration from any art medium, or from pollution.

• The surface reworks repeatedly without losing tooth. If an area becomes slick or too impacted with pigment, it can be wetted , and the pigment brushed off. It accepts underpainting processes beautifully, unlike its nearest competitor in the UK, which smells vile when wetted!

These papers have not been available in UK shops, since obtaining them from the US involved long delays, import duties and high freight costs.

Now, however, you can obtain the paper from me, as Kitty and I are working together to promote her paper here in the UK. Usually, I am either painting or writing, but I am delighted to endorse this marvellous product, and am happy to distribute to those who would like to use it. It is, as you will see, not inexpensive, but it is so superior to any other similar product available here in the UK, that you may well feel it is worth the extra cost. If you would like a price list please send me an email and I will forward one to you.