Tag Archives: fundamentals of alcohol ink e-course

Starting To Look Like Me

Sunflower. 4 x 4 Alcohol Ink on Mineral paper. © 2016 Sheila Delgado

I know what you are thinking. Sheila! Paint something different!

Still here is another flower.

In an effort to gain familiarity with Alcohol Inks, I gave myself one less thing to worry about. Trying new subject matter. My first attempt turned out to have too many harsh edges. Notice the red below.

Sunflower, before. 4 x 4 Alcohol Ink on Mineral paper. © 2016 Sheila Delgado

I went back in with the yellow to soften the red. I don’t feel entirely successful. Not what I had in mind. But it did soften those lines. Maybe if I went back in with the caramel color, the mix of red and that… hmm. Thinking, thinking.

By the way, I am still learning the Brand color names, so bear with me. I don’t have them sitting in front of me now. The “red” is actually Pinata Senorita Magenta. Which I have decided I don’t like on its own, but mixed it has promise. (It is too neon pink for me.) Pinata colors are highly saturated, intense pigments.

I finally figured out how I should set my work space up for the inks. Sandy showed us how she works. But for some reason, my fear of making a permanent mess kept me from, spreading out.

AI-setup

Working like I do with watercolor. Two containers for cleaning the brush (usually use three). These are filled with alcohol. Two paper towels for the double dip cleaning. (Dip in dirty alcohol, clean on dirty towel, repeat with clean alcohol and towel). An extra sheet of paper to use as a palette, and another to use as a mask. I used a stylus to apply clean alcohol in the flower head for controlled spots, as well as splattering ink.

I feel more in control working with a brush. Rather than pouring straight from the bottle. But a brush requires MAJOR cleaning after each color. That makes me feel like I am wasting a lot of product. I think maybe if i use a different brush for each color, I can avoid the waste. (Thank goodness for cheap brush packs!) A limited palette and one thorough cleaning at the end of a session might work. Thinking, thinking.

And yes, Sandy, this is exactly how you showed us to set up! Teacher knows best! And yes, I trust you. It’s my clumsiness I did not trust.

I was leery about scanning the inks. Would they stick to my scanner? I waited until I thought this was dry, and I even pressed a clean paper over it to check, and pull off any wet ink. Still, it stuck. And I am not too keen on having to clean my scanner after every ink scan. The final image above was scanned, and the before was a camera shot (phone). Maybe if I scan with the lid raised a bit, it won’t be a problem.

All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord stands forever.
1Peter 1:24-25

Ink Implementations

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Floral Study 1. 4 x 4 Alcohol Ink on Mineral paper. 2016 Sheila Delgado

Going through the lessons in Sandy Sandy‘s FUNdamentals of Alcohol Ink E-course. Still don’t have a decent hummingbird. Lesson worth repeating. Decided to try working the inks like I do watercolors. Hoping that familiar techniques will make the new medium feel familiar as well.

I thought these were a hot mess, but looking again this morning I see some redeeming areas. I can still go back in and rework each of these. That will be a lesson in itself.

I have a limited palette, but the background below is a mix from cleaning my brush. More lesson learning. In both pieces, the majority of the color was applied straight from the bottle. I moved the paint with a brush in the dark blue above, and the backgrounds. There is brush work in the center below as well.

Floral Study 2. 4 x 4 Alcohol Ink on Mineral paper. 2016 Sheila Delgado

I’m an introvert… I love being by myself,
love being outdoors, love taking a long walk with my dogs
and looking at the trees, flowers, the sky.
Audrey Hepburn

Happy creating to you!

Mountains Blue

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Started this by splashing white gouache on the paper. Next I sketched with indigo Inktense pencil, and added more gouache to soften the lines. I worked quickly. Just felt the need to put brush to paper before turning out the lights.

I am excited about my new phone. The camera is better than the old one. I did not want a new phone, but I had no service here at the house and had to switch carriers. A new camera makes up for having to learn the ins and outs again. Still can’t figure out how to set up my voicemail.

So my terrible, fuzzy photos will be a bit sharper. Wooo Whoo! Here is one of the mountain range as it heads south.

View from Prescott Valley, AZ.

And here is a close up of Mingus.

Mingus.

Still working with the inks, following along with Sandy Sandy‘s FUNdamentals of Alcohol Ink E-course. I haven’t had time to work on finishing a piece. But I am experimenting, learning which colors work well together.

I tried to make my own felt pad, I saw an example online using a binder clip, felt and tape. But I wasn’t really happy with it and I bought the dabber Sandy recommends for the class. I made one just by rolling some felt and using the clip to hold the felt. On another, I taped the felt to the widest part of the clip. They both worked, but had the tendency to create areas of heavy application. In the center is the purchased dabber.

Alcohol ink applicators and new backgrounds.

Here is one I really like. After I dabbed on the ink, I sprayed it with blending solution. that created some soft areas where the color moved and the hard edges were lost. later I accidentally sprayed (over spray) alcohol on it, and teeny spots formed. Terrific mix of texture!