I will be compiling all the test results from my previous blog, Playing with INKS, and grouping it together in a way that makes sense. This is just the first of a couple of RESULTS-blogs.
Just to refresh your memory, I tested the following inks:
I tested the following inks later. I am including their results in the results blogs, but it will not appear in the downloadable results table. (Please add it in manually if you want it all together.)
Wendy Vecchi Make Art Bledable Dye Ink (Ranger)
Memento Luxe Ink (Tsukineko)
Stazon Pigment Ink (Tuskineko)
Artistry Ink (Shilpi)
In this RESULTS-blog I would like to discuss my findings with regards to the pigment/dye properties of the inks I tested:
- Is it a Pigment or a Dye ink?
- Does it give a solid image when stamped?
- Is it shiny?
- How does it show up on dark surfaces?
- Can I use it for heat embossing?
Is it a Pigment or a Dye ink?
Just to make the difference clear:
With a dye ink the colour particles are completely dissolved in a liquid (water, oil or alcohol). This means that the colour will absorb into the paper with the liquid part of the ink.
A pigment ink consists of fine colour particles (pigments) suspended in the liquid (water, oil or alcohol). The colour particles stay on top of the paper when the ink is used.
In the list of inks that I tested there were 8 pigment inks:
VersaMagic Ink, All-Purpose Ink (metallic), Brilliance Ink, VersaFine Ink, Delicata Ink, VersaFine CLAIR Ink, Gelatos, Gelatos (metallic). (Memento LUXE Ink and StazOn Pigment Ink tested later, are also pigment inks)
6 dye inks:
Distress Ink, StazOn Ink, All-Purpose Ink, Memento Ink, Archival Ink, Alcohol Ink. (Make Art Ink and Artistry Ink tested later is also a dye ink)
And 2 Pigment/Dye combo’s:
Distress Oxide Ink, Alcohol Pearl Ink
Does it give a solid image when stamped?
I was surprised that of all the inks I tested, only the Distress Ink, Artistry Ink and the Gelatos gave stamped images that were not solid, but more distressed. All the other inks gave solid stamped images. I thought that only pigment inks would give a solid image, but I was wrong, both pigment and dye inks gave solid images and the of the three inks that looked distressed, one was a pigment ink and the other two dye inks.
Stamped images that look distressed:
Solid stamped images:
Is it shiny?
This depends on the fact that there is metallic pigment added to the ink (in other words, they are all pigment inks!). The following inks had a beautiful shimmer:
How does it show up on dark surfaces?
I expected the pigment inks to show up on dark cardstock. All the pigment inks showed up perfectly on the dark cardstock except for the VersaFine CLAIR ink. I still can’t explain why I couldn’t see anything when I stamped on the dark background with this ink.
None of the dye inks showed up when stamped on the dark cardstock.
Can I use it for heat embossing?
The inks providing the best results for heat embossing were all pigment inks. This includes the pigment/dye combination of Distress Oxide ink.
VersaFine ink was the only pigment ink that could not be used for heat embossing, it dries too quickly. The pigment/dye combination of the Alcohol Pearl ink posed the same problem, it dried to quickly to be used for heat embossing.
I had some success with Distress ink, Make Art ink and Archival ink, all dye inks, but these were the only dye inks that worked to some extent.
This was all the results related to the pigment/dye properties of the tested inks.
Keep this in mind when you play with your inks!
PLEASE NOTE: All the opinions are my own. None of the products have been sponsored.