If you are looking for the best Ink For Stamping a lot of that will depend on what you are stamping onto and what you are going to do with the stamped images. There are a lot of types of inks out there for papercraft and most are specialised in how to use them. What ink you choose for stamping can be a difficult choice and there are some important points that you need to keep in mind when picking up the ink pad.
There are several types of Ink For Stamping which include:
- Dye Ink
- Pigment Ink
- Craft Ink
- Permanent Ink
- Specialty Inks
Each of these inks are used for special purposes which are described below:
Dye Ink
Dye Inks are water based inks which dry quickly. The come in a huge range of colours, even beautiful rainbow pads and are very versatile. They are best stamped onto paper/card and are easily cleaned off your stamp. Make sure you choose a high quality paper/card though to stamp on or the image will bleed.
The important thing to remember about dye inks are that they are water based, so if they get wet they will run. Therefore they are not suitable if you are going to colour the image in with markers or with watercolours. You need a permanent ink for that. You can of course use the fact that they run to your advantage if you are creating a distressed project and you can spritz the paper with water to purposefully create interesting effects.
I really like using dye inks when I am colouring with chalk, or using them with sponging blocks and craft sponges. I also like using them with solid stamps, especially rainbow pads) and when I am creating landscapes.
Examples of dye ink include:
- Adirondack Dye Inks
- Tim Holtz Distress Ink
Pigment Ink
Pigment Ink is a slow drying ink which is quite viscous. There are several types of pigment ink available on the market and you need to check whether you need a heat tool to set the ink, if it needs embossing or if it will dry naturally. Pigment inks do not blend into the paper, so remain quite solid and therefore have a vibrant colour.
Most of the time, to be safe, it is best to emboss an image which has been stamped with pigment ink. If you use a clear embossing powder then the colour of the ink will show through. If you use a coloured embossing powder then you will no longer be able to see the colour of the ink underneath. If you are going to be using embossing powder then it is advisable to buy an embossing ink, which is specifically designed for embossing powder.
Pigment Ink is slow drying and is a good Ink for Stamping if you have the time to let it dry as you will have a beautiful stamped image. It will not dry on glossy surfaces, even if you use a heat gun – you will need to emboss the image.
Examples of pigment ink include:
- Emboss It
- Adirondack Pigment Inks
- Perfect Medium
- Encore Metallic Ink
Craft Ink
Craft Ink is usually used for stamping onto fabric and is similar to pigment ink. You can set craft ink with a heat gun or an iron to make it permanent.
Examples of craft ink include:
- Fabrico Craft Ink
Permanent Ink
Permanent Ink is great to use if you are going to be colouring an image in with watercolours or markers. Over the past few years these inks are now being released in a variety of colours as the selection just used to be black. These inks are great for using on glossy surfaces as they don’t need to be heat set.
One problem with them though is that they are permanent so can be difficult to clean off clothing and also a real pain to clean off stamps. Most of the time they do stain the stamp, but that is not really a problem as they will not damage your next project, even if you are using a completely different colour as long as it has dried.
Examples of permanent ink include:
- Archival Ink
- Briliance
- Staz-On
Specialty Inks
There are a few inks out there which don’t fall into any category except as specialty inks. Specialty Ink For Stamping includes those inks which are good for watermarks like the Versamark. Sometimes they can be considered to be a perfect ink as they will hold chalk, Perfect Pearls, they will watercolour and also emboss.
Examples of specialty ink include:
- Versamark
- Perfect Medium
There are some great craft inks out there which are matt, glittery, chalky, metallic. Most stampers should have a permanent black ink, embossing ink and a range of dye inks in their collection. I suggest having three shades of each dye ink (light, medium and dark) so that you can create wonderful effects with blending and stamped images. With all that there is to choose from, hardest thing will be not to buy every single Ink For Stamping there is on the market!
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i do miss an ink at the permanent inks; versafine!
And dye inks; memento
Btw, Brilliance is a pigment ink, just like colorbox, not a permanent one, only if it’s heatset it’s permanent.