Prior to buying something I always try to do my research to make sure I'm making the best choice.
Unfortunately when it came to ink brands, colours and swatches there really wasn't that much info to be found.
But since I got 10 sets of Tim Holtz alcohol inks for Mother's Day (Thank you Hubby & Baby) I figured why not review each set and include colour swatches while I'm at it?
You know... Log it on the blockchain for future reference ☺️
To start, if you didn't already know, alcohol inks are best used on non porous surfaces so the ink can flow and move across. That said, you can also use it on other surfaces like canvas but unless it's been prepped for ink, expect the ink to settle quickly instead of gliding on the surface.
My surface of choice is glossy ceramic tiles. As a beginner I found them to be an excellent choice. $25 for 15 600x300mm and 7 300x300mm, plus assorted off cuts from Facebook marketplace, it was a great starting point for me.
The awesome thing about tiles is that you can erase what you've done by adding more alcohol and then wiping it off. Another bonus is you can use a heat gun without having to worry about the surface buckling.
Another thing I had to get was isopropyl alcohol which is actually really hard to source at the moment thanks to covid-19. But easier to get than blending solution.
Great colours, great pigmentation. As a set I think the colours blend together harmoniously.
I had better results this time around using this set. Don't know if that's because I shook the bottles before I added drops or because I'm using 100% isopropyl alcohol instead of rubbing alcohol ~ or maybe both?
This was interesting and definitely a mixed bag.
Pitch Black contained all 3 colours: Pitch Black, Rust and Stonewashed. I ain't even lying. You can see it in the top half of the image below.
Rust and Stonewashed, imho wasn't very pigmented or as impressive as Pitch Black.
A thing to note is that when adding more alcohol to the surface to reactivate the dried ink, it's best to turn the hair dryer off first otherwise you'll end up with streaks ☝️
But the good news is, a bit of alcohol on the offensive part, plus hair dryer action and you can fix the composition. 👇
A spray of isopropyl alcohol added droplets and here's what I ended up with.
Which set did you like best?
My next inky post will be on two of the Tim Holtz pearl sets. I'm telling ya now I wish I knew about them more before buying them.
But hey, this is why I'm writing these series of posts so stay tuned for the next one!
