Last week we featured some really beautiful and creative uses for alcohol ink in our
Pinterest Inspiration post. Today I want to share with you some simple ways you can use alcohol inks to add color to embellishments you probably already have in your crafty stash. Alcohol inks are a great choice for adding color to metal and acrylic embellishments.
Acrylic embellishments like Mirrored Stars and Gumdrops by Tim Holtz Idea-ology are fabulous straight out of the package. They couldn't be any more simple to add color to though with alcohol ink. Simply drip a drop or two onto the surface...
and allow the piece to air dry. Because alcohol inks dry quickly the colorized piece is ready to use on your project in just a few minutes! (Color shown: Cranberry.)
Metal embellishments are just as easy to color. Drip color on to the piece directly and blot away any excess with a felt applicator tool. You can also apply the ink to the felt applicator tool and tap it onto the surface of the embellishment. (Color shown: Sail Boat Blue.)
Would you like to take it to a whole other level? Add more color to your felt and tap it onto the surface over the first color. You will get rich layers of color. Add one of the metallic mixatives and add some real wow to your piece! (Colors shown: Sail Boat Blue, Lettuce, and Silver Mixative.)
Don't be afraid to mix and match and try more than just colors. The opaque Snow Cap Mixative on a Gumdrop is so gorgeous! It adds an opaque base around the raised points on the Gumdrop allowing the raised points on the Gumdrop to really sparkle and shine!
Using a felt applicator tool for embellishments with lots of detailed shapes creates an amazing look. The tool will help you to apply the color to just the raised areas so that the deeper base color of the metal remains in the recesses. (Frames: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Ornate Plates.)
Adding one of the metallic mixatives randomly over the color lets you bring back the metal look. This piece now looks as if it was aged silver. (Colors used: Lettuce and Silver Mixative.)
Using Snow Cap Mixative will add an opaque finish to the metal piece similar to a painted look but with less drying time. You can use the white layer alone or use it as a base layer to apply additional colors over. The white base will make the colors on top more vibrant.
A single coat of Silver Mixative (frame on left) can add a stunning effect. Sand lightly with a Tim Holtz Sanding Grip to expose some of the metal under the original finish.
The simple and quick addition of just three different alcohol inks create quite a range of looks turning a great base embellishment into some really spectacular!
Can you believe how fast and simple it is to add so much wow to your embellishments? I'll be sharing more alcohol ink ideas with you through out the month. You won't believe what all you can do with these versatile inks!
