Inks, Pens & Cleaning

Adirondack Pen Techniques Glossy Paper - Try brayering backgrounds with Adirondack Ink Pads, stamping with Archival Ink, and accenting your stamped image with the Adirondack Pen. Vellum - Stamp and emboss your image on vellum. Turn the paper over and colour the back side of the vellum with the pens. Use a nib to blend out colour lines as well as adding shadows and highlight in co-ordinating Adirondack colours. Fabric - Stamp image in Archival Ink, colour image with the Adirondack Pen. Turn fabric over and heat set the reverse side with a hot iron for a few minutes. Acetate - Create a look of stained glass with the transparent colours of the Adirondack pens. Stamp your image with Décor It or Brillance on acetate and colour the back side of the image with the pens. For added texture try crumpling up the tissue paper, covering the back side of the coloured acetate with Glossy Accents, and then lay the tissue over the top. Turn it back over and you have a textured marbled background. Shrink Plastic - Stamp your image with Archival or Décor It inks. Colour the shrink plastic with Adirondack Pens, apply colour lightly as the colour will intensify once the plastic shrinks. Direct to Stamp - Colour the rubber of the stamp with Adirondack pens (use several colours). Spray the stamp with water and stamp onto watercolour paper. The colours on the stamp will blend on the paper to create a watercolour effect. Scrapbooking - The archival, non-toxic and acid free features of these pens make them a must have. Use them for journalling, outlining, stenciling and anything else on your scrapbook. Stamp It has supplied these tips.

Archival / Permanent Inks Archival / permanent ink pads are available in many brands, colours and sizes. Generally they are quick drying, acid free, non toxic, felt pads, waterproof, fade resistant, clean up with commercial stamp cleaners. This means they are ideal on envelopes that may get caught in the rain, archival projects that need to last over time, images to be coloured with brush markers or water colours as long as they are heat set first or allowed to dry properly. The images will dry permanently on paper or card including glossy surfaces, metal shim etc. Due to these qualities they may stain your stamps especially if they are not cleaned immediately after use. This however will not affect their future use or life. They are ideal for scrapbooking, as they won't deteriorate paper or photos. As the felt pads are raised above the base of the ink case they are ideal to use with any size stamp. It is to be noted that more advanced ink pads are being manufactured to meet the users needs and therefore do not fall into the above described category, so reading the manufacturers specifications is always necessary.

Dye Inks Dye ink pads are available in many brands, colours and sizes. Generally they are quick drying, acid free, non toxic, water based, felt pads, clean up in water, are non archival some may tend to fade unless they state otherwise. This means they are ideal on glossy or non absorbent card or paper, gift wrap, backgrounds or for sponging techniques as the ink dries quickly, however they may tend to bleed on highly absorbent card or paper leaving a blurred image. Due to these qualities they are not recommended for stamping of images that are to be coloured in with water based products, as the image will bleed. As the felt pads are raised above the base of the ink case they are ideal to use with any size stamp. They are available in rainbow pads however they tend to mix together, some are available that separate during storage to deter this happening. Storing the pad in the refrigerator may also slow down this mixing process. Dye ink is also available in pens where the ink can be coloured directly onto the stamp or the image may be coloured in. Reinkers are available for most ink pads and this is absorbed quite quickly into the pad so a nice even application ensures quality stamping in the future. It is to be noted that more advanced ink pads are being manufactured to meet the users needs and therefore do not fall into the above described category, so reading the manufacturers specifications is always necessary.

Ink Pad Care The condition of your ink pads significantly affects the image result after you stamp. Ensure that lids are always replaced after use or between uses if your technique is lengthy to ensure they do not dry out. Using the entire pad and not just one section such as the middle will ensure that your images always receive the same amount of ink. If the ink pad is starting to dry out storing it upside down will bring the ink from the bottom of the pad to the surface once again. Once this is not helpful you may reink your stamp pad, reinkers are available for most ink pads.

Perfect Medium Refresher Perfect Ink Refresher was developed to help extend the life of water-base markers (Tombow, Marvy, etc..), and stamp ink pads. Many times, even when stamp pads are re-inked, the pad does not spring back to life. It was discovered that often the pads needed moisture and not more pigment. To Hydrate Water-Base Markers: With sturdy tweezers or small pliers pull the nib and the back plug from the holder. Use an eyedropper to deposit 5-10 drops (depending on how dry your pen is) in both ends. Re-insert the nib and put the plug back in. Let rest an hour so the felt has time to absorb the fluids. Sometimes it takes only minutes if the core is not completely dry and other times longer. You’ll be amazed at the return of vibrant color! To Hydrate Stamp Ink Pads: Don’t be thinking more is better! If you pad is really dry, hold the bottle 8-10 inches away and spritz 2-3 times, that’s all you need usually. Then re-ink. If your pad is not totally dry, just spritz on PIR. Turn the pad upside down about 10 minutes to pull pigment back to the surface. This is a great treatment for rainbow pads. PIR goes a long way! Ranger Industries Inc. has supplied these tips.

Pigment Inks Pigment ink pads are available in many brands, colours and sizes. Generally they are slow drying to allow embossing powder to stick to them, the ink is thick and sticky and remains on the surface of the card or paper. This means if they are used on glossy or non absorbent card or paper they must be embossed as the ink will not dry. They are best used on porous materials, like handmade papers, as they don't bleed. Due to these qualities it means that ink in rainbow pads tend not to mix together. They are usually acid free, non toxic, water based, on foam ink pads, will clean in water, are available in bright vibrant fade resistant colours which are better for darker card or paper work. These range from metallics right through to pastels. As the foam ink pad is raised above the base of the ink case they are ideal to use with any size stamp. Pigment ink is also available in pens where the ink can be coloured directly onto the stamp or the image may be coloured in and embossed. Reinkers are available for most ink pads however due to the sticky nature of the ink it will not soak into the pad easily and needs to be worked in with the nozzle of the reinker or something smooth and firm. It is to be noted that more advanced ink pads are being manufactured to meet the users needs and therefore do not fall into the above described category. An example is the Brilliance pigment ink pad made to dry on all surfaces including glossy and non porous without the need for embossing. So reading the manufacturers specifications is always necessary.

Pigment Vs Dye Inks Pigment inks have been used for thousands of years to create long lasting, imagery found in caves, monasteries, museums and other protective environments. Their colouring agents are relatively subtle, insoluble and non reactive with other materials, sitting on the stamping surface. pH balanced pigment inks are recommended for archival applications. Dye inks are a more reactive invention. Their colouring agents are soluble, they penetrate the stamping surface to stain it. These properties are potentially unstable and reactive with other materials. Dye inks are very useful for stamping on glossy papers and everyday stamping where archival quality is not a great concern. Clearsnap Inc. has supplied these tips.