Ink Testing 5 Brands
I decided to try some Ink Testing of 5 Brands so I could expand the shade of inks I owned. I don’t use blending brushes with stencils, so getting depth of color and shades of a pink, I wanted to have several different ink pads. But, the question became, “Who offers a variety of pinks? And a variety of yellows? And a variety of my very favorite color, orange?”
Wow! There are so many different companies offering inks!
Catherine Pooler, for instance, carries 113 full sized ink pads, 113 colors. It was a great place to start so I ordered Bellini.
Then there is the surface of the ink pad. Foam, Firm Foam, Felt, …..?
Well, I use highly etched stamps that stamp much better with a non-flooded pad surface. Firm foam isn’t very firm and is usually flooded with ink. Felt pads had the firm surface that has an added bonus in that it won’t be inking up the edges of the rubber or in between the etchings. Drying time of the ink affected the possibility of smearing, as well as buckling the surface of the paper like happens during watercoloring.
I already had learned from Angelica Conrad that ink from Pink Fresh is on a firm felt surface that worked best for distINKtive stamp sets, so my first comparison was between that one and Stampin’ Up! They both had the best amount of ink, but the other three were just too boggy. BONUS: Pink Fresh carries 72 ink colors.
With a close tie between the two companies, and easy rejection of the other three, it came down to price and variety of color. Stampin’ Up! retired the Mango Melody that I used here, and then I discovered this disaster:
A couple of years ago I warned all my customers to avoid buying re-inkers because the formula between one year and the next meant the pads and bottles won’t mix years down the road. Unfortunately, the pads don’t last because they turn rancid within months sometimes.
So who was the winner? Next year I will have the answer for you shown in A2 card projects that I’m cutting and assembling after getting all my Christmas cards into the mail.
