Acrylic paints as "ink"

[Mangrove]

In theory could you use ordinary acrylic paint diluted with water with dip pen? India ink, acrylics and gouaches are all pigments with just different binders. The drying time would be (much?) longer than with inks but could it be possible?

 

Martti

[Titivillus]

I've got a bottle of acrylic ink, it's much thinner than standard paint but can be used in a dip pen.

 

 

Kurt

[Gran]

I was wondering about those. There are several acrylic "inks" on sale at Hobby Lobby. Haven't seen any posts here at FPN about them.

[jbb]

In theory could you use ordinary acrylic paint diluted with water with dip pen? India ink, acrylics and gouaches are all pigments with just different binders. The drying time would be (much?) longer than with inks but could it be possible?

 

Martti

Some of the metallic inks I've tried for dip pens are thinned down acrylics -- so yes. I didn't like writing with them very much... they were fussy to work with.

 

 

[Noh]

Technically it should be doable, although you may have to thin it down so much that you may not like how the colors turn out. It certainly shouldn't hurt the nib of a dip pen to try, even if it doesn't work.

 

If you try it, you may want to use paints labeled "artist quality" as they will have a greater amount of pigment per volume than those labeled "student quality." Also, acrylics that come in jars tend to need less thinning than those that come in tubes. You'll probably also have to keep adding water periodically as you're using it, since acrylics tend to dry out very quickly.

 

Hope it's helpful.

 

 

[encephalartos]

Dip pens only, please. Acrylic dries (or the polymers do what they do), and

does not move. You can use acrylic paint like watercolor, but once on the

paper and dried, it does not lift off, like some watercolor pigments. For

dip pens, you are probably better off getting the acrylic ink products, instead

of trying to thin out tube acrylic into an inky consistency with water.

 

 

[Slush99]

Oh, definitely NOT in fountain pens. But with dip pens... acrylics seem to have a lot of pigments. So go with the thinning.

[Zoe]

There are many different acrylics, and some are ink.

 

You might also check out the Golden Paint site, a treasure trove of info on acrylics and see what is in each of their products, and what they recommend as applications.

 

All acrylics can be thinned, but I do not recommend the use of tube or jar acrylic. It is best to restrict yourself to acrylics whose preparation is for writing.

 

NB - I do not recommend using acrylics in any fountain pen...

Edited January 12, 2009 by Zoe

[QM2]

I use acrylics for painting and therefore have a ton of them, so I was really hoping I could thin them down to use in dip pens. However, this did not work out so well. Their consistency just does not cooperate. Acrylic inks do work in dip pens, but not the paint.

 

If I am wrong, and somebody has been able to figure out a way to thin down acrylic paint for dip pens, please do share the formula!

 

[BillTheEditor]

Acrylics work well in dip pens, as do gouache watercolors. When I was doing a lot of calligraphic work, I found many uses for these, particularly the gouache, in borders, initial caps, and illumination. Use "box pens" or Coit lettering pens if the size of your work permits.

[DanF]

There is a limit to which you can thin down acrylic paints with just water, and have them perform adequately. Acrylic paint is a combination of pigments, binder (acrylic), and vehicle (water). If the binder is diluted too much, the pigments will no longer stick (with the same tenacity) to the surface to which they are applied. When artists thin paints beyond a certain point, they use something called a medium. This is a liquid binder solution that will dilute the paint, but also provide more of the binder so that the pigment will still be bound to the substrate. Not sure how they would behave as ink, if diluted from artist grade tube consistency with just water. My guess is that acrylic inks, they use a form of very thin medium, rather than just watering down paint. I have some tube paints, so I'll conduct an experiment and see how it works out.

 

Dan

[jbb]

I use powdered metallic/mica pigments with Gum Arabic and water with my dip pens and that works better than the jars of liquid acrylic metallics I've tried. Gum Arabic makes the pigment adhere to your paper. These mica/metallics are gorgeous, by the way.... absolutely spectacular colors. Some are irredescent and change color depending on how you hold them in the light. Oh, and to make matters better, they're cheap and readily available at craft stores.

[DanF]

I use powdered metallic/mica pigments with Gum Arabic and water with my dip pens and that works better than the jars of liquid acrylic metallics I've tried. Gum Arabic makes the pigment adhere to your paper. These mica/metallics are gorgeous, by the way.... absolutely spectacular colors. Some are irredescent and change color depending on how you hold them in the light. Oh, and to make matters better, they're cheap and readily available at craft stores.

 

Do you use colored papers (dark) with these, or white? How much do you mix at a time, and how much gum arabic do you use?

 

Dan

 

[jbb]

I use powdered metallic/mica pigments with Gum Arabic and water with my dip pens and that works better than the jars of liquid acrylic metallics I've tried. Gum Arabic makes the pigment adhere to your paper. These mica/metallics are gorgeous, by the way.... absolutely spectacular colors. Some are irredescent and change color depending on how you hold them in the light. Oh, and to make matters better, they're cheap and readily available at craft stores.

Do you use colored papers (dark) with these, or white? How much do you mix at a time, and how much gum arabic do you use?

Dan

I've tried some on black paper with mixed results mostly I'm using them on white paper. The ratio of pigment powder to powdered gum arabic is about 4:1.... but I'm really not measuring. If, when the ink dries, you can smudge it you need more gum arabic. I'm mixing up a ¼ or ½ teaspoon at a time.

 

Here's one of the manufacturers of the pigments I'm using: http://www.luminarteinc.com/

 

Here's some writing in gold ink on black paper that I just did this morning. It looks better in person than in the scan:

Edited January 14, 2009 by jbb

[QM2]

There is a limit to which you can thin down acrylic paints with just water, and have them perform adequately. Acrylic paint is a combination of pigments, binder (acrylic), and vehicle (water). If the binder is diluted too much, the pigments will no longer stick (with the same tenacity) to the surface to which they are applied. When artists thin paints beyond a certain point, they use something called a medium. This is a liquid binder solution that will dilute the paint, but also provide more of the binder so that the pigment will still be bound to the substrate. Not sure how they would behave as ink, if diluted from artist grade tube consistency with just water. My guess is that acrylic inks, they use a form of very thin medium, rather than just watering down paint. I have some tube paints, so I'll conduct an experiment and see how it works out.

 

I have tried thinning down my acrylic paints with both acrylic medium and water, in different combinations. Nothing has worked in dip pens so far.

 

As for mixing your own ink out of powdered pigments: I urge anybody who is not an experienced artist to be very careful with that. Please use good ventilation and wear a mask. Powdered pigments are extremely dangerous if inhaled; they have been linked to a number of fatal illnesses among painters.

[jbb]

I have tried thinning down my acrylic paints with both acrylic medium and water, in different combinations. Nothing has worked in dip pens so far.

 

As for mixing your own ink out of powdered pigments: I urge anybody who is not an experienced artist to be very careful with that. Please use good ventilation and wear a mask. Powdered pigments are extremely dangerous if inhaled; they have been linked to a number of fatal illnesses among painters.

Yes!! These are fine powders you don't want to inhale. I mix up teeny amounts at time and wet down the power with water immediately.

 

[DanF]

Thanks for both response and warnings. I have a good respirator for my woodworking, so should be ok on that front.

 

Dan

[singer]

I wonder if there is such a thing as pigment in liquid form? May be more stable and easier to work with that way. Not so much a consistency like water, but rather maybe like acrylic.. There's less risk of 'splashing'

 

Some people who make paint, they create a paste with the pigment and water. It is not considered a paint yet until the binder and other ingredients are added. I wonder if this paste could be sold... I heard they last indefinitely.

[amyx231]

i paint, but my paints are the cheap kind. when i thin them down for washes, the pigments are very diluted. they need many coats to give translucent colors. think about it, usually they go on really thick, a pen tip only leaves a tiny bit. even full strength it'd be light.

[amyx231]

I wonder if there is such a thing as pigment in liquid form? May be more stable and easier to work with that way. Not so much a consistency like water, but rather maybe like acrylic.. There's less risk of 'splashing'

 

food coloring