Alcohol Ink Decorated Tin


A while back I bought this tin filled with three Christmas cookie cutters (I'm sure on clearance). They weren't really a set that went together, so I took them out of the tin and threw them in with the rest of my holiday cookie cutters to save space. I was left with this cute little copper colored tin. I knew I wanted to decorate it--alcohol ink seemed like a perfect fit, but I wanted to try something different. But as we all know...the best laid plans....


So I stamped up the lid of my tin with some brighter lighter colors so that I could stamp something over the top. The process was pretty standard. I dripped several colors of alcohol ink onto my felt applicator and stamped across the lid until I got the coverage I wanted. I added a couple of colors to the felt after I filled in the lid to go back over the color and get more stippling and texture. Then it was ready for my experiment.


I used a dye based ink and stamped over my pattern. When I pulled the stamp off, you could hardly see the design--just enough to have to wipe off the lid with alcohol and start over. You might be able to make this process work if you're looking for a very faint pattern or design to layer over the color.


So on this next one, I stamped the lid in the same fashion, but this time, I mixed some dark colors of ink on the craft mat and thinned it just a bit with some rubbing alcohol and wetted a stamp. I stamped a few times on the craft mat to make sure it wouldn't just be a blob, and then tried stamping over my alcohol ink. It was just a faint outline--not really what I was looking for. It did mix with the ink a little bit which could possibly create an interesting effect with some practice.


I was growing frustrated so I decided to play around a little and drip ink onto the lid to see how it turned out. After I nearly filled the lid with color, I dripped a little alcohol over the ink to get some reaction. I didn't like the tone of the mixing colors with the copper--it was turning muddy almost immediately, so back to the drawing board.


I wiped my tin off the best I could once again and started fresh. This time I selected darker colors and stamped across the top with my felt applicator. After I was happy with the color and texture, I added some ink to the edge of my applicator and stamped the sides of the lid.


I left the tin base plain to provide contrast and that pretty copper color. I ended up liking this color combination the best, so even though I didn't get a successful stamping, the multiple tries worked out in my favor. After a quick spray of acrylic sealer, I hope to use this tin either to hold playing cards (if they fit) or as a mini sewing kit for mending and sewing on buttons.


Comments

  1. Just WhisperJanuary 14, 2017 at 8:00 PM

    Beautifully done. Your perseverance paid off. I actually love all the color combinations you came up with.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarah JaneJanuary 14, 2017 at 10:36 PM

      Thanks so much! I ended up storing playing cards in it.

      Delete
  2. BlancaDecember 19, 2020 at 10:12 AM

    I have tins, will try this technique. I've never worked with alcohol ink, can't wait!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarah JaneDecember 23, 2020 at 10:48 PM

      It very addicting! I hope yours turn out awesome!

      Delete

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