FAQ - Using Fabric Inks |
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| When you color with the white crayon, are you coloring on the same side that you traced the design with pencil? (I have seen some others who have colored on the side opposite from the pencil lines) | I color over the pencil lines so it is all done on the right side of the fabric not on the back of it. | |
| -when you iron the crayon, are you ironing on the actual wax side or from the wrong side? And it did not look like you put anything between the iron or the ironing board and your crayon---doesn't this get wax all over your iron or board? | I iron right over the crayon and, no, it doesn't get all over my iron or board. The heat of the iron melts the wax. If any does look like it is on my iron I just iron over a piece of muslin after "setting" the crayon into the fabric. My iron is a steel sole plate so it is not likely to pick up residue from the wax. If you are using something else, like teflon, or a surface that is sort of grainy you may find it picking up some of the wax but I don't think so. Try it and see. It will NOT hurt your iron so if you try it and it leaves a residue just put a little square of muslin on the end of your board to run the iron over once in a while. | |
| -When you begin coloring are you always using the brush tip side of marker? | Yes. If you start with the bullet tip you will find it leaves a hard edge on both sides of the line you are drawing. That makes it look like zebra stripes and once it looks like that it is almost impossible to blend it out to a softer edge. | |
| -When you add the darker color--say burgundy and then you quickly blend with the fantastix: are you using the bullet end of the fantastix? | Yes, I always use the bullet tip Fantastix to blend with. | |
| -when you blend, are you using the same white fantastix that you used above? | I do. In most of the work I do, I use one Fantastix to blend and just dip it into the cap (where there are a few beads of white) when the tip dries out or I have used up the white in the Fantastix. This way I only get a small amount in the bullet tip blender at a time. If you dip into the bottle it is easy to get way too much and then you end up with a globby mess! The only time I run into a problem using one Fantastix to do all of the blending is when I want to blend yellow. If the Fantastix is contaminated with another color, because yellow is so light and changes with other colors so easily, you can end up with something that is muddy looking. If I am really concerned about keeping the colors "pure" I tend to use one Fantastix for the yellow, one for red and orange, one for green blue and purple. | |
| If so when you blend the pinks/burgundy/whites the tip becomes colored...so do you not add anymore white? | I add white as I need it. But then when you go to the next flower--still pink, you have to add more white only if the tip is dried out--- you just dip the pinkish tinged blender in to the white ink? | |
| ---or do you pour some of the white paint into another container so the main bottle doesn't get "tainted" by pink? | The ink in the Fantastix will not release back into the bottle so it won't color what is in your bottle. Not to worry. Even if a bit did come off of the Fantastix into the ink it would not really make a difference as the color would be such a tiny amount it wouldn't really show. But I have never had a problem with it doing what you are concerned about. | |
| Sorry, I just could not figure out how you were doing that from the video. | I welcome questions. I want you to be successful with this so any questions you ask are great! Never apologize for wanting to learn how to do this well. | |
| -do you set aside a "blender" for greens, pinks, reds, blues etc that you reuse each time? | If I use blenders for sets of colors. I do keep them for use later. I take a damp paper towel and gently wipe off the end before I store them in a zip lock baggie. The white ink has a tremendous amount of pigment in it so, unlike the other colors of ink (except Tangerine, which has white in it) it will harden your Fantastix a bit when it dries. To avoid that I hold a damp paper towel in one hand and sort of roll the tip of the Fantastix in it. Be gentle. You don't want to smash the tip or scrub it. Just get the excess off. | |
| - do you always use the midnight blue for the dark highlights? | Most of the time I do use the midnight blue for dark accents because I love the way it makes the images pop. But there are time when I find it better to use another color for that accented shade. You need to play with your colors to see what works best for you. If I am doing a softer, grayed image I might use a different color. It depends on how wide a value range I am willing to work in. But even in a pastel type of work I find I can use very tiny amounts of the midnight blue and it does not change the ethereal look I am going for. A lot of this has to do with learning that using very small amounts can go a long way in your work. Make sure you step away from what you are working on occasionally. It is easy to work on something at the normal 14" from your design and when you are done, and look at it from 6 feet, be shocked at what it looks like.In fact, I press when I like what I have done so it is permanent AFTER I have looked at it from 6 ft or so. Then I do another "layer" of color... stop and look at it from 6' and then press... repeating until the design is complete. | |
| You also mentioned that you were using a high thread count muslin for this project but that you usually use batiks...what kinds of batiks---just light colored, single color and no distinctive patterns? | I don't limit myself to only batiks. There
are a lot of gorgeous fabrics that will work with this. Having
said that, though, I will say that the better the quality of your
fabric, the better quality of your art. Batik fabric uses a
longer length thread to create the fabric so you don't have a lot
of fuzz. It also means the threads are thinner so your fabric
is not as difficult to blend on. Flatter, closer weave, is
the best for creating blended, realistic artwork on fabric using
the method on the DVD. The fabric I use is from Hoffman of
California and is the fabric they use to create their batiks. Of course, you get different looks with different techniques and there are many other ways to use the inks on fabric... some of which I talk about in the QuiltArt books (using with water, or salt, shaving cream or thread work...). I'll probably get around to writing more about using the inks again soon as I am back into the mixed media arena again . I like to use batik that does not have strong value contrast and does not have a lot of different colors in it. The reason is simple. Ink is transparent. If you are using a very busy print it will show through and your artwork will disappear into the pattern of the fabric. If you use a blotchy, brushed or tone on tone fabric, your artwork becomes the focal point, which is what you want! You don't want to go to all of the work of painting a gorgeous image and then not be able to see it! The high thread count muslin I use is actually the same fabric that is used to make batiks. I sell it by the yard during workshops I teach and just have not put it on the website, however if you want to order it from me, simply send me an email or call me. It runs $5.00 a yard. If you want yardage that is more than 1 yard, just let me know so I cut it to your length (instead of sending them in 1 yd increments). You will have to pay postage but we send as cheaply as possible. Let me know if you want some. email me here. |
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| Do you use the Fantastix with the metallic inks? How do you apply it? | I do not use the Fantastix with the metallics. It wastes the ink, doesn't really let you have the control I like and you have to use a new Fantastix every time you start again because it hardens when it dries. I use a flat watercolor shader brush. A #4, #5 or #6 are good sizes to use. You can also use an outline type of brush for detail work. I wet the brush first and blot the water on paper towels. Then shake the metallic ink like crazy. Open it and use small amounts of the metallic and paint it over your fabric. Occasionally close the ink and shake it again so the metallic flakes stay suspended in the medium. I absolutely love the Champagne Mist and the Vegas Gold because they can be painted on, then you can add some water to your brush and dilute it on the fabric so you get a soft shimmer. It is beautiful to use as dragonfly wings, angel wings, fairy dust, reflections. Also, the silver (Platinum) looks great if you use it to look like moonlight reflecting on water at night. Tsukineko has about 6-8 different metallics out now but these are my favorites. | |
| Where can I get the Tsukineko inks? | I recommend Soft Expressions |
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