That's up to you of course... I've never pasted. I play around with hones enough to maintain my own edges, and shoot me a PM if you want some of my lame opinions on cheap finishing stones. You're not far away from The Superior Shave in Jacksonville, and while Jared has just recently shut down his brick and mortar storefront he's a wealth of knowledge (and 30% crazy), his online operation is going strong, and he'll almost certainly meet you in person to assist.

I have two Tony Miller strops and love them both for very different reasons. One is a 3" cotton/red latigo (I'm not sure Tony makes those anymore as he seems to like the roughout better, but he may comment). The other is a 2 1/2" linen/horsehide. Personally I would never paste either for fear of contamination, and would go with a reasonably priced paddle strop if that's where you want to go. Folks seem to use a lot of the honing films as well, which would probably work as a cheap touch-up (and way cleaner than pastes)... someone else may chime in but it's also getting off topic.

In any case, glad you're getting the hang of that strop. It will service you for decades with proper care (which is really... keep it clean and oil very very infrequently). Try the light-to-no pressure on the cloth side, and gradually increase slight pressure on the spine until you're getting great results.