ScrawlrTips
Magic Colour Acrylic inks
Featured In / July '22 ScrawlrBox
We realise you may have never seen or used products like this before so we have put together a few hints, tips and techniques to test out and get the best from these supplies.
These expressive and versatile acrylic inks are a fantastic medium to get your creative juices flowing. This inks are water-based and are intermixable so you can create a wide variety of hues with the colours you have. The ink will dry quickly once applied to paper, but whilst it is still wet you can create a range of different blends and effects. These pigments will dry waterproof and permanent, providing a high degree of lightfastness so they are fantastic for layering in your artwork. The finely ground pigments in these inks will not risk clogging any of your tools or brushes which also means that they are compatible for use with airbrushes and technical pens. These inks provide excellent adhesion to most surfaces and can be used for multimedia projects, achieving a vast array of effects and techniques for all of your artistic nee
Things To Try...
~ Get things started: Give your ink bottles a good shake! The pigments inside your acrylic inks can settle to the bottom of the pots if they are stored for a long period of time, so be sure to shake them thoroughly before use to ensure they are vibrant and ready for your creative needs.
~ If you are looking for full saturation and vibrancy you can apply your acrylic inks directly to your paper. Once way to do this is by using the eye-dropper that comes with the bottle. This can create some wonderfully expressive marks and textures. Or you can use your paintbrush, which is great for more fine detailed and controlled work.
~ Dropping and splattering effects are great ways of creating expressive marking in your artwork. Try using your eye-dropper at different heights and angles to get an array of different patterns. When the ink is still wet on your page you can also lift and tilt your page to get interesting runs of colour across your page as the pigment shifts. This can be a messy technique, so be sure to protect any surface or item of clothing that you don’t want ink-ified.
~ Experiment by using wet on wet techniques. Start by wetting your page (not too much, you just want a slight sheen to your page) then you can try the following:
~ Dry dropping your ink onto your wet page with a brush. This will create some bleeds and blooms of colour.
~ Dot on bleach over the wet ink to disperse the pigment.
~ You can also add salt to your wet ink on the page for a mottled effect.
~ Create some visual interest by using both ends of the paint brush! The opposite end of the paint brush can be dipped into the ink and used as a drawing tool. You can also try using some supplies that can be found at home to create some fun unique textures. Supplies like sponges, elastic bands, cotton wool balls, cotton buds, kitchen roll and anything else you can find around your house that you don’t mind getting messy. Simply drop some pigment onto a palette or directly onto your item and press onto your paper to create interesting patterns with your inks
~ Cut-outs and masking tape can be used to block out areas where you do not want a particular colour to be. You can use some scrap paper or material to create any shape or figure you would like. Then roll a small strip of tape and apply it to the back of your shape before placing it on your paper – this will prevent it from moving whilst you apply colour to your page. Once you are happy with the colour application, make sure it is completely dry and you can then remove your cut-outs to reveal the finished result.
~ Switch it up! The Marabu markers all have a different sized nibs so you can switch up your line weight and experiment with different mark making techniques.
