Ink in a Nutshell – Part 1

Stampin, coloring, spritzing, sponging, brayering – there's so much you can do with ink.  When you flip through the Stampin' Up! catalog you'll see markers, ink refills, and ink pads, oh my!

All of this can be a little overwhelming.  Each type of ink gives different results, which in turn provides tons of creative options, or  it can all go terribly wrong if an ink is used incorrectly. 

Today, lets take a look at solvent based and pigment based inks.  Say what???

Solvent based inks are permanent and waterproof when dry, such as StazOn ink.  StazOn ink features crisp, permanent ink.  It is acid free and archival safe.  It's best for stamping images that you can watercolor or for nonporous surfaces like Window Sheets.  When using StazOn ink, clean stamps with StazOn cleaner.

Pigment Based inks are super sticky.  They leave a coating of ink on the surface of the paper so it doesn't really get absorbed and that's why it takes a while to dry.  Because it's sticky you  can emboss with it for some fabulous results, but it's also great on it own.  Theses inks are water soluble. 

VersaMark is one sample of a pigment based ink.  It is a versatile clear ink that is acid free and archival safe.  It's best for embossing or creating tone-on-tone or watermark effects.  Use with a hear tool to adhere embossing power to stamped images.

Craft Stampin' ink is another pigment based ink with a rich, permanent pigment.  It is also acid free and archival safe.  Craft ink is best for embossing or to create an opaque look on dark card stock.  Craft ink can be used to stamp on cloth, but you must heat-set it.  Allow plenty of time to dry before continuing with project.

Thank you for joining me today.  Hopefully, this review has helped you in determining different typed of ink and how best to use them.

Stay tuned for Ink in a Nutshell – Part 2 / Dye based inks.