Try a new medium -- alcohol inks.

So many mediums, so little time!  Watercolors, acrylics, pastels, colored pencils -- I have them all and love to create, but tend to concentrate on what I know and am familiar with.  But I recently became intrigued with the relatively new medium of alcohol inks.  Even though they've been around for at least 10 years or so, I hadn't really noticed them until I saw a sampler pack on the discount rack at Aaron Bros and decided I must try them. 

Although there may be others, it seems the two main brands of alcohol inks are Jacquard Pinata Inks and Ranger Adirondack Inks.  Doing a little research for helpful hints on technique and materials needed, I found that they work best on non-porous surfaces (such as YUPO, ceramic tiles etc) and are permanent when dry.  Rubbing alcohol is used to thin the ink, added to the substrate to create different effects, and also cleans up the ink.  The containers themselves are squeeze bottles, so the ink can be applied directly to the work surface.  Straws are useful to blow the ink around, and brushes, Q-tips or other tools can be employed in painting with these inks.  The colors are vivid, and metallics add to the finished look.

There are numerous YouTube videos, tutorials on Pinterest and pieces for sale on Etsy using these alcohol inks.  Check them out and become inspired to create your own masterpieces while having fun with alcohol inks!