Prairie Paper & Ink

My Favorite Paper and Ink for Copics

I get lots and lots and LOTS of questions regarding what paper and ink I recommend for using when coloring with Copics and what to use when watercoloring.

SO here's what I use for coloring with Copics. After all the different papers and inks I've tried these are my tried and true favorites (these are my opinions and only the types of inks and papers I've tried! I'm happy with what I've got now and am not going to bother ordering anything else unless someone sent me something different to compare):

For INK:

I use Memento Tuxedo Black ink. This is the BESTEST ink I've ever used with Copics. And it is now ALL I use with Copics.

Another good ink is Brilliance Graphite Black ink - that one HAS to be heat set tho. It is a great black and great with clear stamps too - but the heat setting adds extra time that's why I stick with the Memento ink now. FYI it's a good idea to get a re-inker when buying this ink as it's a thicker pigment ink and you go through more of it.

Palette Hybrid Noir ink is OK with Copics - before Memento Inks came out and before I tried Brilliance inks I used my Palette Noir. It will smear sometimes though and if you can get either the Brilliance or the Memento I would go with those instead!

For CARDSTOCK:

I use the CC Designs Copic Quality White cardstock.

I compared to Papertrey Ink White, SU Whisper White, Georgia Pacific White, Bazzill Smoothies White, and Neenah Classic Crest Solar White.

The CCD White was the clear winner. The Neenah Classic Crest Solar white is almost exactly the same - just a different shade of white.

CCD White is smoother than PTI's but the same weight - so I prefer the CCD as it works better with solid image stamps.

SU!'s white is TOO smooth and too lightweight, and I can't color anything with it - even using dye inks it smears. In all honesty I never use SU white - I just get too frustrated with it! 

GP white is OK but too lightweight. I find my Copics bleed past the lines when I'm coloring with it - even when using a light touch.

Bazzill Smoothies white is good - not as heavy weight as the CCD and Neenah - but a decent white CS.

WHERE TO BUY:

I get asked this a lot too.

I've purchased most of my Copics from All That Scraps. Even if it's not in stock you can contact Christine and she can give you an ETA or order it in for you. With the larger sets usually they prefer to order them in when asked.

I have also bought Copics from Stamping Bella - they only carry the Sketch markers but I've been able to add a few colors to my collection by ordering from them.

CC Designs Copic Quality Cardstock and Bazzill White Smoothies can be bought from ATS.

Neenah Classic Crest is harder to find. I had some sent to me to compare with other types and have never ordered it online before.

PTI white can be bought from Papertrey Ink.

Georgia Pacific White can be found at WalMart usually and possibly other office supply stores.

All my inks I got from All That Scraps although several different online retailers carry them.

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So I hope that answers any questions you guys might have had on cardtsock and ink combinations for coloring with Copics. From now on when I get e-mails about it I can link to here (I don't mind the e-mails I just feel like a broken record repeating myself over and over again LOL!).

Liquid Adhesive VIDEO

K I said I'd do another video about the other adhesives I use - it will actually have to be 2 more videos as this one almost ran too long as it is (so I like to talk - hopefully y'all don't mind it!) and I have other types that I use for other things.

This one is about my three favorite liquid adhesives - I use them all the time and haven't yet found anything better (I said yet b/c you just never know. But up to know these are my "go-to" glues and I don't use anything else for liquid glue):

I put the link to the glues in my sidebar but I'll post them here as well:

Tombow Mono Multi: You can get it HERE at All That Scraps. You can also get it through your Stampin' Up! demo.

The Quickie Glue Pen and Glossy Accents I also got at ATS HERE and HERE. I'm sure if you do a search or check out your LSS (local scrapbook store) you will find them as well as the Mono Multi. They're pretty easy to find.

That yellow rubber adhesive remover I use in the video is made by Zyron. I got mine through Stampin' Up! (they still carry it) years ago. It will literally last FOREVER. When it starts getting gummed up on the edges with adhesive you just trim off the yucky parts with scissors and you're good to go.

I hope this helps! :o)

Adhesive Runner Comparisons

I have 3 different adhesive runners that I've been using for some time now - so I thought I'd do a comparison video for y'all to show the differences between the 3:

I know if you search online there are a lot of sources for the Tombow (same as the SNAIL) adhesive runner for a decent price - some places offer a bulk discount if you buy a lot at once. I never bothered in the past to really research that tho as I've had a hit and miss experience with the SNAIL. Sometimes it works great, and other times my cards fall apart after some time. And I never use it to attach bulky layers as it definitely can't hold the weight.

The ATG and Glue Glider Pro on the other hand are really great. Either one are good in my opinion - it's just up to personal preference when it comes to price (14.99 for the GGP vs 55.00+ for the ATG), the cost of refills and the amount of plastic being thrown away with the refills.

I will have another adhesive comparison video showing some of the other adhesives I use (and love!) - obviously I couldn't own just these ones could I?? *wink*

SNAIL: Stampin' Up!

Glue Glider Pro: All That Scraps

ATG: NHS Media

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You can check out my post with the video on how to refill the ATG here <-----click!

Refilling the ATG Gun

 

I got an ATG gun about 3 months ago after wanting one for forever. The biggest reason why it took me so long to get one was the price (I couldn't find one for less than $70-75 or so) and that shipping to Canada plus customs/duty whatever was going to really skyrocket the price.

So I held off for months and months till a fab gal on SCS sent me a message saying she found them at this online store for only $55 and their shipping looked really reasonable.

I checked them out and ended up ordering the ATG 714 plus a case of the gold adhesive - the shipping was only $15 and since they're located in Canada I had no customs or anything extra to pay - sweet!

I ordered and received it within a week and as soon as it got here I pulled it out (it IS bigger in real life than you'd think), put in the roll of adhesive (there's a step-by-step diagram included in the box) and was using it within a couple of minutes.

I just finished adding a video to YouTube showing how easy it is to refill (it took all day to get the video uploaded - I don't know why but I always get error messages and have to retry several times to upload):

 

Here is where I got the ATG from: NHS Media Store

I can't find the gold adhesive on there right now so I assume it's out of stock. FYI when ordering from there you can only buy the adhesive by the case - that didn't bother me as I was planning on getting a case anyway. But for some people that initial investment can be a lot (I go through a roll a month easily so a case of the adhesive was a must!).

Anywho I just thought I'd share that with y'all. When you're wanting something and it's more pricey it is nice to see it in action and see how it works (and to see how big it is!) before you go out and buy one for yourself. I definitely do NOT regret getting the ATG - I just wish I had bought one a lot sooner.

**this is all my personal opinion and I'm not getting paid to show any of this. Just so y'all know! :o)**

Scissors

I was asked a question about what scissors I use and which ones I recommend.

Since I own several pairs, and they all have different uses I just did a quick video about them rather than take pictures and type everything up - so here is all my blah blah blah about my scissors!:

A note about the KAI scissors - I mentioned that I had the SU Craft & Rubber Scissors and they went dull after a couple of years. This is true - I think about 2 years or so of use dulled them - but I cut a good couple of hundred stamp sets out with them. They are nice scissors - but I most definitely prefer the Tonic/Tim Holtz ones to the KAI/SU Craft & Rubber Scissors.

Anywho tho here is the link to the KAI's on ATS's website: 6" Rubber Stamping Shears - I didn't know ATS carried those 'till just now as I was shopping browsing this morning. ;o)

Also here is the link to the Tim Holtz Tonic scissors I have: Tonic Scissors

and the Bloom Titanium ones - they come in two different colors: Blue/Purple and Red/Orange

I can't find the Martha Stewart scissors on the MarthaStewartCrafts.com site to link to them (I can rarely find what I'm looking for on that site!) - but like I said in the video I got them at Michael's with a 40% off coupon - they come in a nice little brown box (that I stashed somewhere to alter then never did of course) and seriously are really nice scissors.

One last tidbit - I have Fiskars scissors - the orange handled ones that are the same size as the Martha Stewart ones. I prefer the MS ones - they cut nicer honestly! And they feel better in my hand than the Fiskars ones do.

However I did see some nice Fiskars ones at Costco that I THINK are titanium ones? I have wanted to try them out but they come as a set of two (or three I can't remember) and I really don't need any more scissors! But if anyone has them let me know what you think of them! I technically could get them and if I didn't like them I could return them but I rarely get to Costco anymore so buying and returning things there is more of a pain than it's worth.

Anywho I hope this helps anyone that was wondering! :o)

Peerless Watercolors and a Card

Not too long ago I won two packs of Peerless Watercolors from Stamping Bella's blog (thanks Em!!). I have heard of these before but have never seen them in real life so I was quite excited for this chance to try them out.

I received the Complete Collection (shown here) and the Terra Sahara pack. I took some pics of this whole process so y'all can see them for yourself b/c they are seriously the neatest things ever.

I copied this from the Peerless website here:

The most convenient form yet devised to keep colors clean and available for instant use. The color sheet is a heavy film of highly concentrated pure color of intense strength and absolute solubility. The color is coated on one side of a special paper fabric that readily discharges when it comes into contact with water or any soluble mixture.

So this is what the Terra Sahara collection looks like (the sides showing are the actual watercolor pigment - some of them look almost black but they're really dark browns/reddish browns etc)

And here's the other side - you can get a much better idea of the colors and the info for each color is printed right onto the paper.

FYI you obviously don't want to get these wet unintentionally or spill on them as they'll run color everywhere (thankfully I did NOT do this but I can just imagine the mess). I plan on storing each set in ziplock sandwich bags to prevent that from happening.

And another thing - if it is hot and humid where you are you need to be more careful handling these as the color comes off really easily onto your hands. There is no risk of ruining the papers or losing all the color b/c of the climate - but you could unintentionally get some on your hands and then touch your clothes or cardstock or whatever and transfer the color (now THAT I did do b/c it was SO hot here when I was using these!)

So - I stamped this image from Stamping Bella ("attitudy" cats) onto watercolor paper (Strathmore Watercolor Cold Press 140lb - got a pad of it at Michaels with a 40% off coupon months and months ago).

I originally meant to use Stazon but as you can see it didn't stamp well (and I could find my re-inker to see if that was the reason it didn't stamp well - tho it seemed to be fine) so I stamped it using Palette Hybrid Noir instead - MUCH better!

Oh and let me say that I am in NO way an expert on watercoloring - far from it in fact. I am sure what all I don't know about watercoloring can fill many books - I just thought I'd share all this b/c it's pretty cool and FUN to do!!

I began by wetting the cat I wanted to color first (I use Aquapainters from SU to do my watercoloring. I always keep some paper towel handy to dab them on when they become too wet for my liking. I hate using a dish and a regular watercolor brush as more often than not I knock over the dish (usually ON to whatever I was working on....))

Then to use the Peerless watercolors you just dab the wet brush right onto a corner of the paper. The color is VERY concentrated so it doesn't take much to get a lot of color picked up on your brush (which also means that a set of these will last you for a VERY long time).

Then all you have to do is paint away!

This didn't take me very long to color at all. And I must say using these is a GREAT way to entertain children - Veronica was sitting with me the whole time (for those that don't know she's my oldest daughter and she's 5) and was just awestruck with the whole process. To her it was like magic getting colors off these papers (and of course she thought the cat stamp was the coolest thing ever *wink*).

I am thinking that down the road I will get her a set of these for herself as they aren't expensive at all and like I said they'll last for a LONG time (even with a kid messing around with them).

Here's my finished card. I added sky and ground using two colors from the Peerless Complete Collection (all the cats were done with the Terra Sahara collection).

I used a sentiment from A Muse (punched out with a Marvy circle punch then sponged with brown ink), some patterned paper from Basic Grey, ribbon, primas, Doodlebug Crushed Velvet Brads (so fuzzy in real life!!) and the Houndstooth CuttleBug embossing folder on the brown cardstock.

Here's a more detailed shot so you can see the fuzziness of the brads and the texture on the CS.

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SO - will I use these again? Well I just finished ordering the Bella Blend and Rejuvenating collections from Stamping Bella (along with a few other goodies I couldn't resist - and for some reason totally MISSED getting the Calypso Pink, Serenity and Bonuspak collections!! I just realized that as I went to link to the other ones - ugh!! Oh well I can get them some other time...) - so how's that for an answer? I really like them - they're affordable and take up next to no space as they're small and flat (an important feature for me as I am really trying to cut down on the amount of STUFF I have in my studio right now - or at least the amount of space my STUFF takes up....), they're easy to use, keep children entertained while using them, and will last for years and years. So really what's not to love? In fact I don't have anything negative to say about them at all.

If you're interested in trying these out I recommend starting with the Complete Collection as there's a bunch if info and helpful tips in the packet - there's even tips for each color - it's very cool. Tell Em if/when you order that AmyR sent you (and says Hi! LOL).

OK I've blabbed enough about these - and FYI I am in no way getting compensated for all of this. I just thought they were really cool and knew it would help to be able to SEE what I'm talking about. I didn't think I'd go on and on about them but what can I say - I'm a talker in real life and it tends to flow over into my blog *wink*

Store More Stamps

I get a TON of questions from people regarding unmounted rubber stamps.

First off some poeple don't know what they are (this was me a couple of years ago! I just didn't understand how you could have stamps NOT attached to wood blocks??) - an unmounted stamp is either just a plain rubber stamp - or a rubber stamp that has a cling foam backing (similar to the foam on a wood mounted stamp - but instead of baing attached to a wood block the foam has a "cling" side to it that clings to acrylic blocks).

Secondly people ask how do you store them?? Well there are lots of options out there - but for me it's been an issue of finding the right one - and I think that I finally have!

**FYI this is in no way a paid advertisement - I personally use this system and love it and want you all to know about it!**

I saw an add for the "Store More Stamps" system by Little Monkeys on SCS a few months ago.

The name caught my attention so I had to check it out!

I ended up contacting the owner (Susan) to ask a few questions and ordered a Starter Set - which is this box-like thing and 6 inserts with sleeves.

Susan was awesome to deal with and my set shipped out ASAP.

When it got here I got to work filling it and needless to say it didn't take me long!

The inserts are 8x8" and have a cling side to them (best way to describe them is like heavyweight cardstock with a cling side and a plain side) that stamps mounted on EZmount cling to easily.

**You can also store all your clear stamps on these sheets**

I was able to fit ALL the Bella stamps I own (close to 70 *cough* not including all the sentiments) onto the 8 sheets!

All my Bella stamps are on BLACK EZmount - it's thinner than the gray foam and I am liking it way more (the gray EZmount works with this system too - I am just really preferring the black) - and clings like a dream - I can hold an entire sheet vertically and none of the stamps come off :o)

I still have plenty of room in the box for more sheets too so I plan on getting another set of 6 (in the new Spring Colors no less!!) for the rest of my unmounted stamps and they will all be stored in one box! LOVE IT!

For now I have a bunch of my clear stamp sets stored in the box where I can see them and grab them easily.

So all in all I give this product a big thumbs up *grin* - I HIGHLY recommend it and Little Monkeys as they have fabulous customer service too!

If you end up ordering one (or more!) for yourself tell them AmyR over at Prairie Paper and Ink sent you! 

I LOVE Costco!!

I think I've said it a million times on here how much I LOVE Costco - but I have to say it again! Wanna know why?? THIS is why:

RIBBON!!! LOTS of ribbon! 40 rolls (at 3 yards each so 120 yards total) of ribbon to be exact for $22 CAN!

That works out to only 55 CENTS a roll!

The ribbon is single-sided but a nice quality (not all stiff and cheap-feeling like some other ribbons I've bought).

I really don't need any more ribbon (some day I'll have to take a picture of all the ribbon - I've been cleaning and re-organizing my studio (New Years resolution of course) so once it's all done I'll take a bunch of pictures to share here) but I had to get it anyway.

For a lot of you this won't be anything new - a lot of the Costco's in the States got these in months ago - but this was the first time I saw it at ours so I had to get it!

I'm not really sure where I will put all this ribbon - but just having it has certainly cheered me up LOL.

Stay tuned till later today for a new card and sketch!

EDITED TO ADD:

Speaking of ribbon - Jody is doing a whole bunch of ribbon shares right now - check them all out HERE <----click! I JUST saw her post and am already drooling LOL!!

AtYou Spica Glitter Pens

Ahhhhhh glitter. Can one ever have enough??   *grin*

I recently got my hands on these new Atyou Spica glitter pens from All That Scraps. At 2.99 each I HAD to get them all.

I've played with them a fair bit (and especially over the weekend I had a lot of fun with them!) and I definitely give them 2 thumbs up!

These pens are made by Copic so they are very high quality. The glitter in them is actually micro-fine glass glitter. It is REALLY hard to capture that on camera but in real life they are really really pretty!

My FAVORITE thing about these pens is that the clear glitter pen is just that  - CLEAR. I scribbled it just like the others on the far right of this piece of cardstock and while you can't see it at all in the picture in real life ALL you can see is the glitter! And the glitter itself is clear and sparkly as well.

I've used them to color in different images (I just use a similar color glitter pen to whatever part of the image is already colored in - so the red Spica for an area colored in red etc etc) and have been really pleased with the results! I will have several samples to show using these pens in upcoming posts.

Another great thing about these pens is that they are FABULOUS for writing a quick message on the inside of your cards. You can write at the same speed you do with a normal pen - but with these your message will be glittery! I know with other glitter pens I normally have to write a lot slower for the ink/glitter to flow properly - not so with these!!

You can check out all the different colors available from All That Scraps HERE.

EDITED TO ADD: I've had people ask me what the difference is between the clear Spica pen and Sakura's Stardust Pen - I don't have a picture to show you right now - but there IS a HUGE difference! The Clear Spica is just that --- CLEAR with glitter. Sakura's pen is fairly clear as well but not AS clear and the glitter itself is pretty much a gold color. Once I get a picture of them side by side I will upload it here so you all can see what I mean.

I still like my Sakura pen tho and use it all the time - in my opinion it's much better for adding tiny dots of glitter whereas the Spica is better for coloring in small areas and can't really be used for teeny "dabs" like the Sakura pen can.

EDITED AGAIN TO ADD: Linda posted some more info on these here on the A Muse News blog - I already stored mine flat however it is good to know that yes these MUST be stored flat!

Note To Self......

Do NOT multi-task when using a Creative Hot Knife!!!

That is a pic of my leg...............wanna know what I did to get that?? I can't believe how stupid I was!!

I was on the phone with Lauren, and while chatting I was also cleaning and organizing my studio. I came across this new hot knife and glass mat that I got from All That Scraps not too long ago.

I hadn't had the chance to try it out since it arrived right before we moved, so I plugged it in and grabbed a Stampin' Up! set I had sitting here that needed to be cut and mounted.

This knife gets REALLY hot by the way - somewhere around 900 degrees I think? And I let it warm up for at LEAST 10 minutes (more like I was sidetracked with everything else I was doing at the time that I wasn't paying attention!)................

and then...........

I had the front door open to let in the breeze..................and my next door neighbors revved up their junky truck (don't even get me started on that! It is SO annoying and they do it like 5 times a day!) in order to get it going and it startled me and I tripped on the cord to the knife....................I thought I had only knocked it on the floor........that's till I saw all the blood and realized it had nicked me as it fell.

I am VERY thankful it was just a tiny cut (about 1/4" or so across and I'm not sure how deep) on the side of my leg - as it could have been a LOT worse!! There was a LOT of blood (I was wearing pj pants and it cut right through them and I didn't notice till I saw all the blood on my pants!!) and when I took this picture (NOT easy to get a clear pic of the side of my calf LOL!) it was about 10 minutes later and it soaked through the band-aid within a few minutes!!

So I learned my lesson - when using a tool like this - NO multitasking. AND I won't use it unless the girls are in bed - b/c thankfully they were in another room when this happened - and I don't want them anywhere near this thing whether it's on or off - the knife tip is sharp!

I DID get the set cut out tho - much later in the day when I could concentrate on just that!

I've heard that this knife is FABULOUS for cutting through EZ Mount (Emily of Stamping Bella carries it as well and raves that it cuts through the EZM like buttah!!) but it's been a hit and a miss when cutting through rubber - so I wanted to try it out on a SU set and see what happens........

The knife needs to be HOT for it to work on this many layers (rubber, foam and paper backing) - it needs to heat up for at least 5 minutes.

I had to hold the knife almost vertical in order for it to cut through the rubber properly, and needed to make a couple of passes for each cut - the second pass was to cut the paper backing (that's where the glass mat came in handy as I just pressed down and it cut through no problem!)

As you can see I did a pretty decent job - so it DOES work!! It's time consuming tho - it took way longer to do it this way then if I had just used my craft & rubber scissors. And it gets HOT! I stopped halfway through and turned off the knife and went and did something else. I came back later and finished off the set. So you can really only do one set at a time if you're cutting through this many layers.

Once I get more unmounted rubber stamps I am so pulling the knife out to use on the EZmount - I did a tutorial here <----------click! on how I use unmounted stamps with EZ Mount - and it will be SO much faster to use the hot knife then my craft & rubber scissors (and will make much nicer cuts around the stamp too!).

So there's my story ------ I still shake my head at what an idiot I was!! Hopefully my stupidity will prevent SOMEONE out there from doing something similar!!!

Oh and you can read Emily's (always funny and worth the read!!) review on the hot knife HERE <-----click! and Christine's (owner of ATS) review on it HERE <-------click!

In Color 08 Color Matches to Copic CIAO's

I was asked what Copic CIAO markers matched the new Stampin' Up! In Colors and here is my list of closest matches (they are NOT the same colors but more close matches - if you have the SKETCH Copics you might be able to find closer matches as there are over 300 different colors available with those as opposed to only 144 with the CIAO's)

Blue Bayou - BG09 Blue Green (closest match I could get)

Soft Sky - BG10 Cool Shadow (REALLY close match!)

Wild Wasabi - YG63 Pea Green

River Rock - YG91 Putty

Groovy Guava - R02 Flesh

Purely Pomegranate - R59 Cardinal (not the best match but the closest I could get)

Basic Gray - C-7 Cool Gray No. 7 (this was the darkest gray I have and it's not quite dark enough but it will do)

For a list of all the other CIAO matches to Stampin' Up! colors look here <-------click!

I've been getting a LOT of questions/e-mails/PMs etc etc etc on the Copics and markers in general - PLEASE give me some time as I am REALLY swamped right now with other (non-stamping related!) things but I'm not ignoring anyone and plan on answering them all on here so that they're all in one spot!!

Happy weekend everyone!

*shriek*!!!!!!!!!!!

A box arrived in the mail for me today - filled with my new 144 color set of Copic Markers!!! ACK!!!

I've wanted these for a while now but never thought I'd be able to get them (at least not till I had saved up the $$ for them!!). I was *hoping* I'd get them for a Christmas present (*wink* LOL) but Tim got them for me as a Mother's Day gift (and yes I'm still in shock over that!!).

Another reason why I thought it would be a lot longer till I got them is I'm a "Gotta Have it ALL" kind of person - I *could* have got a few markers at a time or just one of the sets - but I like having all my options in front of me!! I haven't been using my Prismacolor markers as much lately b/c I keep wanting a different color or lighter/darker shade of the ones I have and it's been driving me nuts! (I know I am totally insane LOL!!).

Basically Copics are a slightly higher quality (and much more expensive) version of the Prismacolor makers (which I have quite a few of as well). I don't know a ton about these markers, and it's going to take a lot of practice (I think!!) to get the hang of using them properly!!

More and more places are starting to sell these markers (I know that those in the States can get them at Hobby Lobby and whatnot but they're really expensive unless you're using a coupon!) - a couple online places I recommend that carry the Copics are either AllThatScraps or My Favorite Things.

You can see a lot of fabulous card samples using these markers on Jeanne's blog - I LOVE her coloring!! I hope mine will be half as good as that :o)

Jeanne also did a color comparison with these Copics and Stampin' Up!'s markers - you can see that here.

Also there is a bunch of useful info on the Copic Site -------------------> here.

Ooohhhhh I'm a little nervous to use these!! Hopefully I can set aside enough time to sit down and experiment with them and see how I like them!! I haven't decided what to do with my Prismacolor markers yet - I may keep them if I find that I'll use them along with my Copics, but if I don't then I guess I'll be selling them! We'll see what happens......................

Timber Brown Stazon

A few people have contacted me about my "issues" with this ink pad (here). Thinking it over the problem *might* be b/c it's still REALLY juicy (and I've had it for at least a year! Shows how often I've used it LOL!). And to clarify - YES it smears on smooth CS (especially SU! Whisper White - even when I tried heat setting it the one time it STILL smeared everywhere). However the couple of times I stamped it onto Watercolor paper it was fine (I rarely ever want an image stamped in anything other than black when I watercolor so I think I have used the Timber Brown once or twice for that and it DID work fine).

I will try soaking up some of the ink from the pad with a paper towel and see if that helps. It really is SO juicy that the ink will "pool' on the stamp even when I lightly tap it!! I will report back to this post what I find out (hopefully sooner rather then later but y'all know me *wink* - I'll get to it tho - eventually!! *grin*).

Craft Critique Marker Carnival

A couple of my blog posts are featured in the latest Carnival over at Craft Critique - this time it's all about markers - and not JUST Prismacolor ones - basically all markers - go check it out!!:

Craft Critique: All About Markers and Pens

Prismacolor Markers Smudging

OK a couple of you have contacted me saying that your stamped images are smudging when you use the Prismacolor markers to color them in.

Now I'm not too sure exactly WHY that is happening - but I can tell y'all what **I** use.

#1 - I almost always use Palette Hybrid Noir Ink (it's made by Stewart Superior) to stamp any images I want to color in with my Prismacolor Markers - the only time I use StazOn is when I'm watercoloring or stamping on transparencies. I've also been hearing some great things about Versafine black ink so I am planning on getting that someday to try out as well.

#2 - In MY opinion - I really DON'T like to use SU!'s Whisper White CS with my Prismacolor markers - the ultra-smoothness of the CS makes it a LOT harder (for me anyway) to get that "no-lines" look and it does have a tendency to smear - so I save my Whisper White CS for stamping solid images on as that's what it's best for in my opinion.

#3 - Basically any other CS besides the Whisper White works well for me - I recently got my hands on some of A Muse's little note cards and I really like how they take the Prismacolor markers, and I have been experimenting with Bazzil CS as well and am liking the results. I have some sheets of the new Smoothie CS by Bazzil on their way here now and plan to try out my markers on that.

Honestly the best piece of advice I can offer you is that if you are experiencing smudging with your stamped images when coloring them in with the Prismacolor markers - change the ink you're using to stamp the images. And if that doesn't work - use different card stock!! Keep fiddling until you hit upon a combination that works for YOU - and I will keep everyone updated on my little discoveries, tricks and tips as I learn them - b/c don't forget this is all new to me too!! :o)

EDITED TO ADD (Apr 9/07):

ALSO - a commen misconception about Prismacolor Markers is that they are solvent based when they are actually alcohol dye based (I used to think they were solvent based and I *think* I even referred to them as such on here in my posts - sorry!). So technically they are NOT reacting with StazOn ink (which IS a solvent based ink - so are Sharpie markers BTW - that's why you need to be careful when using THOSE together as the solvents in each "react" with each other!) but I am not sure WHY they will still smudge when using Stazon - I need to practice with them some more!!

Here is a link to Prismacolor's website: Prismacolor and here is a link to the part of the website where if you scroll down to near the bottom of the page there are some links to pop-up videos you can watch that have a TON of info in them about the markers, Prismacolor Pencils, watercolor crayons etc etc etc (the videos worked great for me but I have high speed and Flash Player and all those things that make things work that I have no clue about LOL!!)

After watching those videos tho I've realized I have TONS and TONS to learn!! I WISH I could color with my markers like that artist did - it was simply fabulous!!!!