| Store Index: pg.1: Rubber Stamps, pg.2: Acrylic Pieces to decorate pg.3: Mold Making Compound, pg.4 Face & Button Molds, pg.5: Nature Spirit Molds, pg.6: Goddess & Mythology Molds, pg.7: Fairy, Angel & Mermaid Molds Gallery & Information Index: pg.1: Customer Art Gallery, Mold Info & Instructions, pg.2: Kimberly Crick's Art Gallery, pg.3: Artist Biography & F.A.Q., pg.4: Shipping & Store Policy Rubber Stamping Tutorials: pg.1: Rubber Stamped Domino Jewelry, Pg.2: Paper Art Dolls with a Template, Pg.3: Finding Stuff to Stamp On, Pg.4: Rubber stamp positioning with die cuts using Nestabilities and Cuttlebug, Pg.5: Coloring Techniques for Rubber Stamping. I am an "Angel Company." (What's that?/Rules) You may sell handmade artwork using my molds or rubber stamps. You may not use my products to make new molds from the cast / impression or to create machine reproduced images. Comments or Questions? Check Q&A before you Email: EnchantedGallery@gmail.com |
| Welcome to Kimberly Crick's instruction page for using a variety of media to color your rubber stamped images. While there is a virtually unlimited amount of ways to color your stamped art, here are a few that I've tested out myself. Hopefully this helps you determine the "look" you'd like to go for and to explore new coloring techniques. The example pictures use my rubber stamps along with coloring supplies purchased at my local JoAnn's and Michaels craft stores. Have fun :) |
Water based markers: such as Marvy LePlume and Tombow can be used to color, ink and even as a replacement for watercolor
paints! Since they stay wet longer than alcohol based inks you have time to draw the color onto your rubber stamp and then press it
onto paper. This allows you to create multicolored stamped images in just the right places.
Faux Watercoloring with Markers: You can also use the markers to scribble onto a plastic palette (any non absorbent surface will
work) and pick up the color with a water brush. The water brush has an internal tube for holding water and a paint brush tip you can
squeeze the water out on. You can usually find the "Niji Water Brush" in both the stamping and painting aisles at Michaels. The
"Bienfang Natural Watercolor" brand brush also works for this if you can find them sold individually (usually comes in a color set,
this one being the empty clear brush.) This removes the need for messy paint tubes and clean up!
paints! Since they stay wet longer than alcohol based inks you have time to draw the color onto your rubber stamp and then press it
onto paper. This allows you to create multicolored stamped images in just the right places.
Faux Watercoloring with Markers: You can also use the markers to scribble onto a plastic palette (any non absorbent surface will
work) and pick up the color with a water brush. The water brush has an internal tube for holding water and a paint brush tip you can
squeeze the water out on. You can usually find the "Niji Water Brush" in both the stamping and painting aisles at Michaels. The
"Bienfang Natural Watercolor" brand brush also works for this if you can find them sold individually (usually comes in a color set,
this one being the empty clear brush.) This removes the need for messy paint tubes and clean up!
| Alcohol based inks: such as Adirondack inks by Tim Holtz , come in small dropper tip bottles. You squeeze a few drops onto a piece of felt attached to a wooden stamper. Depending on the colors you use and the alcohol blending solution (which lightens / dilutes) you can create faux marble / turquoise / stone effects and richly colored backgrounds. One awesome thing about alcohol inks is that they stick to tricky surfaces such as plastic / dominoes, acetate / film transparencies, glass, beads and other non porous surfaces! You can also use them with your papercrafting projects by using glossy paper. You can use these inks on regular paper, but it will not react the same beautiful way as it does with non-porous surfaces. As a variation on the watercolor painting technique, you can also fill your water brush with alcohol. Use these alcohol inks in a palette or scribble Sharpie markers onto the palette and pick up the color with your brush. This allows you to paint on tricky surfaces (transparency, plastic etc.) Like to use embossing powders and wish you had a certain color to match your project? If you have some alcohol inks, you can turn your clear or white embossing powders into any color you want! Just put some embossing powder in a small jar, squeeze a couple drops of alcohol ink into it and stir thoroughly to coat all the particles. You can also add metallic powders or glitter to your mix for your very own unique embossing powder! Learn more on my embossing powder tutorial page. ------------------------------------------------------ |
| This page is currently under construction - New stuff coming soon! |
| In order to color a stamped image with the waterbrush you need to make sure you use a waterproof ink. Watercoloring will make some dye or pigment inks bleed, so I use my StazOn solvent ink pad. I've also had good luck with VersaFine pigment ink, which is waterproof once dry (or heat set if you're in a hurry.) You'll want to use a thick paper meant for water media, such as smooth pressed watercolor papers or bristol board. If you don't mind some missed ink areas you could also test out the thicker textured watercolor paper for a more painterly look. Tip: Try to lay down your lighter colors first. Once dry add details with darker colors and even outline with the marker directly when you're done. Mistakes are easy to fix, just squeeze out more water from your water brush and go over an area again to lighten and blend the inks. ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| Click to see card made with this technique on #Spri-106 |
| Which ink pad should I start with? / Which black pad is REALLY black/ has good detail? This largely depends on what material you are stamping onto and which coloring method you're planning on. The comparison chart above uses the 3 black inks I have on pink cardstock. Versafine is by far the deepest black and gives the best detail on PAPER. You can use Versafine with water-based markers, chalk and color pencil coloring techniques. I've heard people also like a similar pad like "Archival Ink" or "Palette" pads, but I have not tried these since I was already so pleased with my VersaFine Onyx Black ink pad. StazOn, while adequate for paper, is much better for non-pourous surfaces such as glass and plastic. Specifically I use StazOn ink pads for all of my domino pendants. Colorbox pigments are best for coloring by sponging or brayering into paper for backgrounds. The petal point ColorBox pads are great for sponging the edges of your paper. They also stay wet the longest once on your paper, making them great inks for embossing powders. *Also note that PAPER QUALITY greatly effects your stamped image. Copy paper and value pack cardstock is cheaply made with fibers that spread ink or absorb it differently than higher grade crafting papers. |
| Coloring with dye or pigment ink pads coming next! |
| Distress inks are a dye based ink formulated to work like watercolors. They react with water making it easy to blend and spread color across your paper surface. To make backgrounds that look just like watercolor paintings you randomly tap the ink pad onto a non-stick craft sheet. Spritz the ink with a water bottle and press your paper down onto it. Dry your paper with a heat gun between layers to keep your colors from getting muddy. Repeatedly press your paper into the beads of ink water on your craft sheet until you achieve your desired color coverage. To see this process in action check out this video tutorial by Tim Holtz on YouTube! For the fall leaves I used die cut shapes (cuttlebug) but you could also use paper punches to cut out your shapes from thick cardstock or watercolor paper. |
| You can also use the reinkers instead of the ink pads. The reinkers have the bonus of being easily used just like paint with a brush or by adding drops of color to your acrylic paints, glues or other mediums. |
| Once you're satisfied with your colors take a dry embossing tool (metal stylus with a small ball at the tip for making indentations) and press a leaf vein pattern into the paper. I press into the back side so that the raised area is on front. It's easiest to make the impression when you work over a soft surface like foam or paper towels. Lay your leaf shape with the colored side up on a flat surface and lightly tap or swipe an ink pad across it's surface. I used "tea dye" distress ink for this step, taking care to only hit the raised surfaces. |
