How to make spray inks....not paint....inks

While reclining in bed for a few days and having lots of fun watching youtube vids and reading blogs, I am amazed at the helpy selfy information that is completely redundant and I thought that I would share how to make those terribly expensive spray inks.  Spray paints are good, but I have become addicted to the tiny bottles of spray inks.  I only found one other gal using powders and she was on the right track but she was using bad spray bottles and reverted to applying the inks with foam brushes.  Not what I was looking for. Inwant sprays, I want great strong colors.

And yes, I am grumpy.  Fighting sinus mess.  That is what I call the sinus problems in Texas that come from one day hot, next day cold front blues.  So, I took a few days to just veg.

Not saying that it isn't fun to pile up in the bed with the dogs, a pile of dvds, my ipad to watch youtube and check out some blogs, but so much of what I saw was the same basic stuff.  Nothing wrong with buying the inexpensive little bottles of acrylics and adding some water and mod podge, but I wanted inks.  Actually I wanted gorgeous, strong color.......cheap.  Cheap cause I wanted lots and lots of colors.

The first thing I experimented with was liquid watercolors.  The kind that come in 8 oz bottles in crayon colors.  I knew the 12 colors would not be enough, but thought I would start there.  Just add more water to smaller bottles. Works fine.  Came in white and also metallics also.  Not waterproof, of course.  But neither are the expensive ones.  I think the 8 oz bottles were 4.00 or so.  But the shipping was outrageous.  I later found kid's watercolors in liquid form at Dick Blick so if I ever need more, I will buy there from now on.

Where to go from here.  Eureka.  I remembered that my daughter got really really excited about screenprinting using cold water Procion dyes and sodium algenate.  Hard as  I did try, that just never caught on with me.  Those dyes were around here somewhere.

The dyes are powdered in little jars.  Lots of product. And, like all powdered pigments, you need to use caution.  But once they are mixed in water, they are perfectly safe.  And beautiful.   And Dick Blick has them.  But, if you want ten thousand colors, Dharma Trading has even more.  Not cheap, but get together with your friends and share.  It takes 1/2 teaspoon to 1 oz of water.  The only other expense is plastic spray bottles.   I am now in spray ink heaven.  I am trying to decide if you added soda ash, a tiny bit, if they would be absolutely bleedproof.  But that is for another day.  I will seal my products with Krylon Preserve It matte till I figure that out.  Which is another product I am in love with.

Coming soon.....more tips and money savers.
G