Working With Alcohol Inks- Art Techniques

Below you will find a variety of projects, resources and alcohol ink techniques to enjoy. 
These projects can be done by  K-12th grade students. Be sure to Use in a well ventilated area and be sure to read the warning label.

What is Alcohol Ink?
Alcohol ink is a concentrated dye that can be used on non-porous surfaces. The ink can be pushed and moved around on your canvas of choice with rubbing alcohol or blending solution. There are endless techniques that offer hours of creativity for the artist- this is my favorite medium to use!

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​What Supplies Do I Need?​

1. Ink- I like to use Tim Holtz brand. They are bold and excellent to work with.

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2. Yupo Paper- This is the traditional paper of choice to use with alcohol inks. There are numerous surfaces that you can use (see below for a list), however, I highly recommend starting with this. It can be pricey but you can cut the sheets in half to make them last longer. A good alternative is to use glossy cardstock.






3. Blending Solution -This stuff is used to blend, lighten, and remove the alcohol inks. It is made of ethanol, glycol ethers and isopropanol. It is a must for alcohol ink art. If you place a drop of ink on the yupo paper then place a drop of this in the center it will push the ink outward creating cool effects.




4. Blending Tools- These are handy to spread the ink around or to dap the blending solution or ink in a specific area. You can purchase blending tools (see below) or for your students you may just ant to use Q-tips. My favorite blending tool to use is the small pointy one on the left.
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Different Surfaces to Use With Alcohol Inks

• yupo paper
• shrink plastic or shrink film- make key chains or zipper pulls by decorating the shrink film with alcohol inks then attaching clip or ring
• lamination sheets (and laminator)
• glass -you could create an art piece using a picture frame and decorate the glass with alcohol inks
• metal- aluminum or use metal washers to make a necklace
• tile
• ceramic
• glossy cardstock or glossy photo paper

Laminations sheets. You will also need a laminator. See below for picture of my laminated art.

This is a sheet of 12x10 inch, 36 gauge, aluminum foil roll or Thin metal crafting sheets. For hobbies, crafts and decorating. You can do metal embossing and use alcohol inks to color the foil and their embossed art.  You will also want these metal embossing tools (these tools can be used for a variety of different projects)

Shrink Film- if you want to do key chains or zipper pulls then you will want these...

Dishwasher Safe Sealer for Ceramics
If you do any ceramic projects such as using alcohol inks to decorate a white mug then you will want to seal it so it can be used and washed safely and without ruining your art work. Here is a non-toxic water-based sealer, glue and finish for all surfaces. It is safe for indoor, outdoor, and the dishwasher.

Where Do I Purchase Alcohol Ink Supplies?

I purchased mine online from Amazon.com but you could order from Ranger Ink and Innovative Craft Products. I looked at our local JoAnn craft store and couldn't find any supplies there. Here are Amazon links for the supplies I ordered. There are a wide variety of supplies available for alcohol inks but this will get you the basics.

Northern Lights (Arora Borealis) Alcohol Ink Painting

 Northern Lights  Facts
The Northern Lights are a spectacular sight to see. In the past many people didn’t know what the bright lights were from. Some speculated that the light were gleaming from the weapons of immortal soldiers and others thought they were the souls of animals. These beautiful displays of lights are caused by electrons from solar winds. Because of the magnetic fields found in the north, theses electrons gather here and mix with gases in the atmosphere which causes the gases to glow. The Northern Lights are most visible by the people living in the north. This beautiful natural light can be seen by the people living in Alaska. Another name for it is Aurora Borealis. The lights typically illuminate in shades of green, purple, pink or blue.

Art Technique 
For this project students will use alcohol inks to create a vivid scenery of the northern lights. Alcohol inks can be purchased on amazon.com. You could supplement the inks with watercolor paints, however, working with the alcohol inks is so much fun and worth the effort. I highly recommend letting your students experiment with this medium-it’s my absolute favorite to work with. Checkout my blog for more information, techniques, and ordering resources.
 
As a side note, we ran out of the yupo paper that is traditionally used with alcohol inks so, we used glossy cardstock in its place. Yupo paper is like a plastic sheet of paper so the ink moves around on the paper with very little absorption unlike the glossy cardstock which we ended up using. The cardstock absorbed more of the ink, although, it still moved around on the paper with results that we were very pleased with. You will find that the yupo paper will give very similar results to our sample here- just thought I should note that incase yours has a slight variation.

​Materials
·         Yupo paper
·         alcohol blending solution
·         alcohol inks in shades of green, purple, pink or blue
·         tray to protect your table surface (we used a lid from a storage bin)
·         black acrylic paint
·         paintbrush
·         paper towels
·         water cup to rinse the paintbrush
 
Directions
1.    Drop the alcohol inks onto the yupo paper. Tip the paper up to allow the inks to move around on the paper. Use the alcohol blending solution to push the paints around creating swaying bands of color that look like the northern lights.
 
2.    Paint a mountain silhouette and evergreen trees along the bottom of the paper with the black acrylic paint.

Real Photos of the Northern Lights in Alaska

-Top L: Garett, age 10, Top R: Me :), Bottom L: Isaac, age4, Bottom R: Deacon, age 12. Deacon's was done on yupo paper all the others were done on glossy cardstock.

This Northern Lights project is from my American History & Geography Through the 50 States Teacher manual. This is one of the hands-on projects that students can enjoy for the state of Alaska. Click here or on the picture to learn more about this curriculum set.

Laminated Alcohol Ink Art
Once upon an evening, when all the kids were in bed- and I still had some energy left- I created these beautiful laminated alcohol ink flowers. I am a little obsessed with this technique. I have a small bin now full of laminated alcohol inks that I plan to make a large art piece with for my home....some day. For now I am enjoying making all kinds of shapes and colors. I opened up the lamination sheet and created some pretty flower prints. I let them dry completely, then I closed the lamination sheet and ran it through my laminator. I experimented with this a bit and realized that I could cut out and layer and re-laminated to create beautiful art work.  At first I was making small flowers and shapes and then before I knew it I was making blossoms that filled the entire 9x12 inch lamination sheet. I am so excited to use these large flowers to make an art piece from my home. I haven't showed this technique to my kids yet but I know they will love it and I'm sure your kids will too.

Here are some other creations we have made. 

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