Ranger Archival ink is an ink developed mainly for stamping. I used the Watering Can colour Archival Ink to conduct my tests.
(Please note that this ink was included in the original test documents from the Playing with Inks range, and the results documented in the downloadable table)
Let’s see what we can find out about the properties of Archival ink:
The label states that this is a waterproof, permanent dye ink. According to Ranger, the ink will give a crisp image that won’t bleed when used over water-based inks and markers, acrylic paint and watercolours. Ideal for stamping over alcohol inks. This ink is an oil-based, solvent ink.
Archival ink is available as a standard ink pad and a mini pad. Re-inkers are also available. It is available in 30 vibrant colours.
Stamping with Archival Ink:
The stamped image is perfectly clear and solid. This is a matt ink, so the image is not shiny.
The dried stamped image reacts when alcohol is painted over it. This confirms that Archival ink is an oil-based, solvent ink (Isopropyl alcohol, or rubbing alcohol, can dissolve oil). There is no reaction with the water. This is expected from a waterproof, oil-based ink (water and oil does not mix).
Archival ink is a dye ink and therefor does not show up when stamped on a dark background at all.
The ink gave a perfect, clear image on glossy photo paper.
Other uses for Archival Ink:
Archival ink, being waterproof and oil-based, means it cannot be mixed with water, so no splats and no watercolour-type painting with this ink.
It coloured the gesso well, but the gel medium ended up coloured with pieces of pigment in it. This made me think that gesso might not be completely water-based, but that is a test for another blog!
Archival ink “moves” with some difficulty over paper. I got it blending onto the paper, but it made lots of lines (not smooth). It can be used to chalk the edges of paper if you don’t have ink that is more suitable. The stenciling did not turn out too bad.
The heat embossing test was a bit of a puzzle to me. I tried it with the Watering Can ink, but with no luck, the ink dried too fast. I have read that some people use it for heat embossing and decided to try with a different ink pad. I used my Archival ink Coffee ink pad and was able to heat emboss with that. This means my test on heat embossing is inconclusive.
I suggest that you try this out with all your Archival Inks and see if it works.
My Conclusion about Archival Ink:
I use Archival ink purely for stamping on my scrapbook pages and crafting products.
I hope you will play with your Archival ink and see if you can find any other ways to use it!
PLEASE NOTE: All the opinions are my own. None of the products have been sponsored.