Updated 6/2013 Alcohol Inks & Sharpie Markers

I have been playing around for the last few days with alcohol inks, by Ranger Inks. Have you tried them out? If not you really should as these are so much fun.

I decided I wanted to make some drop necklaces for an upcoming Craft show and wanted something unusual. I saw a few pictures of these on Etsy and Pinterest. Its really about technique to create that something special effect using the inks. They don't mix , really & can become muddy if you add too much. I suppose if you do make a mistake one plus and a big one at that is you can correct it to a point by using a small piece of felt and the blending solution and "erase' and start again.

I also decided to make so tile art too. This was even more fun. Drop, drop , drop of ink, blow with can aired or straw , drop ink aging repeat,a few more times and viola! you have an amazing cool ( not heat) trivet, coaster etc. However, I would really cover your ink with MOD-PODGE or a glossy medium to protect  the surface design.Tried the drop style, did not like how it came out, but YOU can paint pictures with the alcohol ink, here are a few I did. Just remember you have to move quickly, because alcohol inks dry fast, any detail add after ink has dried, like the fir trees in the top left picture.                                                                          

As for the sharpie part of this note, well, I tried making Sharpie scarves, well lets just say, this project takes a lot of skills, now if you know me, I can't do it is not in my vocabulary. I love art, I will try anything at least once. For these i have tried three times.One on a cotton/mix base was okay, but nothing like the pictures I have seen from artist Suzanne McNeil and one of her workshops. She really made it seem simple. maybe i am over complicating it. The first I did on a silk scarf I had purchased for .50 cents. I artfully marked all over the surface, then i carefully dipped it into my alcohol solution. Mud does not even try and describe it. It totally fades out my art work, with faint sharpie lines still visible. Mmm... down one silk scarf, (maybe I can use it again). The second was the cotton/ mix base. But the third well I decided to use another silk scarf as this was really what i had them for, and I can't is not in my dictionary. We went with a zigzag print. I fold my scarf in half, set it on a plastic board,  and using  about twenty different rainbow chisel and fine tip markers i zigged and zagged over the entire piece, making sure to exert enough pressure to let the sharpie bleed through to the other side. I carefully gathered up my misting alcohol bottle and went outside to cover its surface in a well ventilated area and await the magic.

I suppose it did do what it was suppose to at least on half of my scarf. It bled beautifully, just not where it needed to bleed.


I want the washers to dry quickly so I
can finish the necklaces. They're colors are starting to lighten up and they have a nice rounded hard surface forming. I will probably add some wire and beads to glitz them up. And add a felt circle to the back so they will rest nicely on the skin.

Oh, yeah I stopped by a nice shop at Etsy called Wysteria, they had the most amazing variegated wool. I bought four packs. A blue, a green, a lavender and one called sunset with is orangy coppers.
May just make up some new clutches this weekend.


-TNfrmgrl