Diluting Water-resistant black inks

[Carrau]

6 hours ago, LizEF said:

For our international friends, in the US, you often see companies using things like "sweepstakes" or "mail in rebates" (where you send in the receipt and UPC symbol off the package of what you bought, and then send you back some amount of money - yes, this is now done digitally rather than via snail mail, if it's done at all), or some other sales gimmick.  Almost without fail, in the fine print detailing the rules of the "game", you will find, "Offer not valid in New Jersey".  I don't know what laws they have in New Jersey (a US State on the east coast, well known for having lots of casinos, but not as many as Nevada), but obviously, they have outlawed offers.  So if you come to America and visit New Jersey, be very careful not to make any offers in New Jersey!   (I'm not sure why you'd go to New Jersey anyway, but you might need to drive through it. Bring a car - we drive in America. )

I believe the only offers made in NJ are the ones that “can’t “ be refused.

[LizEF]

12 minutes ago, Carrau said:

I believe the only offers made in NJ are the ones that “can’t “ be refused.

[inkstainedruth]

4 hours ago, Carrau said:

I believe the only offers made in NJ are the ones that “can’t “ be refused.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: Well, in New Jersey's defense, it's generally a lot cheaper to get your gas tank filled up -- especially since they don't (or at least didn't use to) allow "self-serve" gas pumps and were STILL cheaper.  

There was one time a number of years ago when we went to visit my dad, and were stopping to get the gas tank on the car filled up before heading home.  And were amazed at how much lower the price per gallon was; and the guy who was working there THEN told us that the guy before us was *complaining* about the price and I said, "That guy better NOT be heading for Connecticut then...."

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Spinningchester]

9 hours ago, Carrau said:

Make distilled water at home-skip to about 2:02 on the video.

 

 

Thanks!  This is very helpful!  It's a keeper...

[Spinningchester]

10 hours ago, yazeh said:

@Spinningchester I can aspire at being an artist but I'm no pro

I learned a lot from ink work from Marc Kompaneyets. Here is his video on Lexington Gray. 

 

 

He also has a video on how to use other inks. 

 

I have one water brush 1:1 (hard)tap water and Lexington Gray. I'm still learning. Controlling some inks on paper is very difficult, especially when I don't use the appropriate paper.  

Yeah - I have a folder full of test sheets of paper and everything labeled and dated because I have been having problems with paper for inks, too.  Wet-media is more about the paper than the wet-media itself.  Recent shocker - I brushed Speedball Superblack onto a sheet of Fabriano Studio (100% cellulose) Hot Press Paper, let it dry, and it wasn't water-resistant!  So even some heavily pigmented inks aren't water-resistant on some papers. Fabriano Studio Hot Press is definitely out of the running for my fountain pen work.  I just got a ream of 110 lb. acid-free cardstock that alcohol-marker artists swear by, and I am looking forward to testing that paper with my inks.  I think some of the problem I have been having with watercolor papers is their heavy use of water-soluble sizing both on the paper surface and internally.  Fabriano uses potato starch, Arches uses gelatin - but in the end, the inks are binding with any sizing around the cellulose fibers and not with the cellulose fibers themselves. Cardstock doesn't have sizing - so hopefully a heavy-weight cardstock will take light washes and the ink will be able to bind more with the cellulose fibers and hence be more permanent.  When the tests are done and dried on that paper, I will let you know how it went.

 

Art does seem to be more about chemistry some days - hard water elements are binding with the ink molecules causing problems with dilutions, ink molecules are binding with water-soluble sizing and not with the cellulose so they won't stay in place while I'm working, fountain pens need dye solutions and not pigments so the pens won't clog... and I'm coming from a watercolor background, so I have already learned my pigments and particle sizes in watercolors because the same pigment crushed to a different particle size will appear a different color and behave in a different way.  It's all "know your materials so you can get the chemical reactions for the look you want'.

 

Marc Kompanyetes' videos are very informative! His Lexington Grey video is the reason I have Lexington Grey in a pen right now.  Thanks for reminding me of the video - I will give it another look. Tonight I have been working on a study of a Van Gogh drawing with my Duke 600 Fude Nib, Lexington Grey, and my Fabriano 1264 Mixed Media sketchbook - pretty much all because of watching Marc Kompanyetes' videos. oh- the Fabriano 1264 Mixed Media Sketchbook paper takes inks very well, and right now Blick has a BOGO 50% sale on the Sketchbook.  I don't recommend this paper for dry media (graphite, conte, or colored pencil) because a strange wavy texture gets revealed, but it takes all kinds of inks like a champ.  Black Sharpies don't bleed through - just a little ghosting when it's held up to light.  Some really wet lines of Lexington Grey have feathered a little when I made a broad stroke with great pressure from an FPR EF ultraflex nib, but none of my fude nib strokes bleed.  Noodler's Bad Blue Heron released some blue wash after 2 days of drying on this paper.  This paper is not archival - I wouldn't use it for a finished piece.  But for my practice, it's great.

Thank you for your thoughts and advice!

[Spinningchester]

11 hours ago, LizEF said:

No. @Arkanabar is saying that automotive places will sell distilled water for the purpose of diluting antifreeze.  In other words - listing some of the other places where you can find distilled water, should you not wish to go to a MalWart or not have one nearby.

 

(WalMart, MalWart, what's the difference?)

Lol.  WalMart, MalWart.... 

Thanks for the clarification!  More options are always appreciated!

[BrassRatt]

Re:  RO

 

Reverse osmosis does remove dissolved minerals about as well as distillation.  It is used to provide ultra-pure water to critical industrial applications such as integrated circuit manufacture.  

 

Bottled "purified" water sold for drinking water has had minerals added (!) "for taste" after the purification step.  So don't use it instead of distilled water, but don't blame RO for the minerals in it. 

 

[LizEF]

6 hours ago, BrassRatt said:

Re:  RO

 

Reverse osmosis does remove dissolved minerals about as well as distillation.  It is used to provide ultra-pure water to critical industrial applications such as integrated circuit manufacture.  

 

Bottled "purified" water sold for drinking water has had minerals added (!) "for taste" after the purification step.  So don't use it instead of distilled water, but don't blame RO for the minerals in it. 

 

[inkstainedruth]

20 hours ago, LizEF said:

(WalMart, MalWart, what's the difference?)

My husband won't go in a Walmart without a native local guide.  He does have to shop at Sam's Club for the sideline business, but ended up screwing up their ordering and "in stock" process because he is mostly ONLY shopping at locations down south once a year for the sideline business, and almost NEVER goes in the local one (if he's cooking for an event around here, he'll shop at Restaurant Depot or BJ's instead).  I don't shop at the local Sam's much because the bank that issued their store brand credit card is SOOOO horrible to deal with -- and the few times I DO go in the local location (for the few things I CAN'T get at the local BJ's) I ONLY use that card to walk in the door and then to start the transaction when I'm at the checkout line (and mostly at the self serve lines at that).  THEN I put the bill on the Discover card (which originally was the ONLY credit card Sam's accepted) and will not give that credit card carrier a DIME more than I absolutely have to.  
The final straw was the one-off event outside of Indianaopolis a few years ago.  My husband went out a couple of days early to do set up, and I was doing some last minute shopping in the local Sam's before driving out two days later and giving some people a ride in the process who were going to be working for him.  And I get a call from him because the [expletive deleted] Sam's credit card was DECLINED!  I get home to find a message on the answering machine from the card issuer and when I called them back got told, "Oh we can't talk to YOU -- YOU'RE not the primary on the account!"  And then gave me some song and dance about how they couldn't make "outgoing calls" from that call center (!) [Yeah, I noticed the stupid too....]  And I said, "Well you have TWO OPTIONS.  You can FIND someone who CAN make an outgoing call to the "primary" on the account because you people were TOLD about this event THREE MONTHS AGO, when he called you about the event in March -- after you screwed us over LAST year by NOT telling us about the cards being in the mail, and we spent a week having to use OTHER credit cards and then frantically calling THEM to say, 'Yes!  This is a legit transaction!  Not some scammer using our account!'  Or you can deal with ME -- the person signing the checks PAYING the bills every month (on a JOINT checking account with BOTH our names printed on the checks)....  YOUR CHOICE!!!!!"

😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth 

 

edited for formatting

[Spinningchester]

1 hour ago, inkstainedruth said:

My husband won't go in a Walmart without a native local guide.  He does have to shop at Sam's Club for the sideline business, but ended up screwing up their ordering and "in stock" process because he is mostly ONLY shopping at locations down south once a year for the sideline business, and almost NEVER goes in the local one (if he's cooking for an event around here, he'll shop at Restaurant Depot or BJ's instead).  I don't shop at the local Sam's much because the bank that issued their store brand credit card is SOOOO horrible to deal with -- and the few times I DO go in the local location (for the few things I CAN'T get at the local BJ's) I ONLY use that card to walk in the door and then to start the transaction when I'm at the checkout line (and mostly at the self serve lines at that).  THEN I put the bill on the Discover card (which originally was the ONLY credit card Sam's accepted) and will not give that credit card carrier a DIME more than I absolutely have to.  
The final straw was the one-off event outside of Indianaopolis a few years ago.  My husband went out a couple of days early to do set up, and I was doing some last minute shopping in the local Sam's before driving out two days later and giving some people a ride in the process who were going to be working for him.  And I get a call from him because the [expletive deleted] Sam's credit card was DECLINED!  I get home to find a message on the answering machine from the card issuer and when I called them back got told, "Oh we can't talk to YOU -- YOU'RE not the primary on the account!"  And then gave me some song and dance about how they couldn't make "outgoing calls" from that call center (!) [Yeah, I noticed the stupid too....]  And I said, "Well you have TWO OPTIONS.  You can FIND someone who CAN make an outgoing call to the "primary" on the account because you people were TOLD about this event THREE MONTHS AGO, when he called you about the event in March -- after you screwed us over LAST year by NOT telling us about the cards being in the mail, and we spent a week having to use OTHER credit cards and then frantically calling THEM to say, 'Yes!  This is a legit transaction!  Not some scammer using our account!'  Or you can deal with ME -- the person signing the checks PAYING the bills every month (on a JOINT checking account with BOTH our names printed on the checks)....  YOUR CHOICE!!!!!"

😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth 

 

edited for formatting

OMGoodness!  I feel it with you. Here's my credit card jam of the week- I recieved text saying there was a potential fraud alert at 3 am this week.  That was backed up by an automated service calling me on every phone and device I have.  There was nobody open to deal with the alert, but the automated system wouldn't stop beeping and ringing me until offices opened at 8 am. To reassure you, there weren't any fraudulent charges- just a major corporation with permission to charge an annual fee every January that had changed their credit tag line to something so ridiculously simple that it looked like a scammer.  sigh. How many millions of people lost a night of sleep because of that new tagline? And when I did try to call in and deal with the alert, the phone tree was complicated and I had to drop my call a couple of times to back out before I could try to negotiate the automated tree again.  My day was pretty much blown by the time I got it sorted at 9 am.  I was sleep-deprived, frustrated and breathing flames at the poor reps.   What a wonderful, impersonal, distrustful, automated world we have created for ourselves!  Good thing we have paper, ink, and pens (and perhaps even dip pens for when the fountain pens clog) to keep us grounded and communicating!

[Spinningchester]

3 hours ago, LizEF said:

Thanks for the tip!  Got it!

[Spinningchester]

10 hours ago, BrassRatt said:

Re:  RO

 

Reverse osmosis does remove dissolved minerals about as well as distillation.  It is used to provide ultra-pure water to critical industrial applications such as integrated circuit manufacture.  

 

Bottled "purified" water sold for drinking water has had minerals added (!) "for taste" after the purification step.  So don't use it instead of distilled water, but don't blame RO for the minerals in it. 

 

Thanks for the tip!  I am learning so much chemistry by getting into fountain pens.... who'd a thunkit?  Dip pens are slow and clunky, so I decided to go faster, but now I have to know my types of water as well as inks and pens and paper.  Better writing through chemistry!

[yazeh]

@Spinningchester THanks for sharing your experience. Sometimes, when testing inks, I use any paper, lying around, not the best idea. Hence when I use De Atramentis Document Cyan In brush pen, it stick to the paper, if it's not wet. The same with Noodler's Baltimore blue.  

For now, I've just been experimenting exclusively with ink, for my ink reviews.  I've done negligible work with watercolour. But I know some document/bulletproof inks don't bind 100 percent to paper. For ex. Noodler's Polar Black, one of the blackest inks, is waterproof but because of it's vicious/ wet nature a lot if ink. SO when you apply a wet brush a bit of black is removed. Ironically Polar Brown is the complete opposite and binds immediately though one can only use it with a Ef. 

Kala inks (Pigment inks) are pricier and more difficult to find. They need longer dry times but because of the subtle dyes inside them, they make for very nice washes. 

Octopus Write and Draw have a lot of colours but if you know them and you know how to mix then you're better off with basic pigment inks. 

 

I got my bottle of Lexington grey thanks to his videos. It's the ink I have most used. I have it diluted 1:1 with water in ink brush too. 

As with paper, I learn a lot from mistakes. Sometimes when using "wrong" paper (like Fabriano sketchbook) I get interesting textures from the paper.  Anyway, enjoy the process and post some your art, here or in the gallery, when you can

[inkstainedruth]

On 1/4/2025 at 2:51 PM, Spinningchester said:

OMGoodness!  I feel it with you. Here's my credit card jam of the week- I recieved text saying there was a potential fraud alert at 3 am this week.  That was backed up by an automated service calling me on every phone and device I have.  There was nobody open to deal with the alert, but the automated system wouldn't stop beeping and ringing me until offices opened at 8 am. To reassure you, there weren't any fraudulent charges- just a major corporation with permission to charge an annual fee every January that had changed their credit tag line to something so ridiculously simple that it looked like a scammer.  sigh. How many millions of people lost a night of sleep because of that new tagline? And when I did try to call in and deal with the alert, the phone tree was complicated and I had to drop my call a couple of times to back out before I could try to negotiate the automated tree again.  My day was pretty much blown by the time I got it sorted at 9 am.  I was sleep-deprived, frustrated and breathing flames at the poor reps.   What a wonderful, impersonal, distrustful, automated world we have created for ourselves!  Good thing we have paper, ink, and pens (and perhaps even dip pens for when the fountain pens clog) to keep us grounded and communicating!

I was trying to get tracking info on my order from Pen Boutique (I THINK it's being sent via FedEx but not sure).  FedEx's website has NO information (no matter what I plug in as far as the shipping #/ order #/whatever #).  And because of the weather Pen Boutique is apparently *closed* today (I didn't know that winter storms now get "names" the way hurricanes do... ).

And of course the order includes 2 bottles of ink so I could get to the "free shipping" threshold (they were the ONLY place that I've had dealings with in the past that had everything else I wanted -- mostly a bunch of converters for various brands -- in stock at the moment).  I had hoped to get a couple of the Parker twist converters when I was in NYC the day after Christmas, but Fountain Pen Hospital was out (and the guy working there that day expressed amazement that the "deluxe" converters fit in Parker Vectors... ).

And then today I got YET ANOTHER™ spam email about my "purchase" of Bitcoin (no) on my "Venmo" account (which doesn't EXIST).  Got one yesterday and had to jump through hoops to find the correct address to forward the spam to as the fraud it is.... And of course I KNOW it's bogus, because: (1) Do NOT buy Bitcoin; (2) Do NOT have a Venmo account; (3) even if #s 1 & 2 were REMOTELY valid (which they AREN'T), I would NOT be using one particular email address for such purchases -- that account is ONLY for the other hobby, and ONLY because the email stuff for that hobby runs (or at least USED to run) through servers at Carnegie-Mellon University, and a number of years ago I kept getting dropped off them because "Oh, AoL and Yahoo are full of spam!"  And every time I had to contact the admin guy (who is a personal friend, BTW) and say to him "It happened AGAIN!!!!! FIX THIS!!!!!"  And he would -- but  didn't really take it seriously until one of the regional officers had it happen to HER....   At the time, a lot of people were going, "Oh, get a gmail account!  Google is SOOOO much safer!" -- except then, a month later, Google got HACKED  and I was pretty smug about it, and was going, "Of COURSE they did -- they couldn't shut up about how much SAFER they were, making themselves the hackers' equivalent of Mt. Everest!"

And I just saw a blurb on the noon news warning people that QR codes on signs *could* take you to fraudulent sites.... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth