Monoprinting with Alcohol Inks

Today I have a fun background technique for you to try. It's so easy to do, and creates stunning background effects! The technique is called Monoprinting, and it can also be done with re-inkers, or Inkabilities inks, but the effects that the Alcohol Inks create with this technique are truly spectacular!

So the first thing you need to do is gather your supplies together. You'll need non-stick work surface to work on. I'm using a silicone craft mat, but if you don't have one of these handy tools you can also use a glass cutting mat, or even a disposable aluminum baking tray. Please don't use anything that food will come in contact with after you've tried this technique. For example, that Pyrex backing dish might look like a perfect surface, but you won't want to eat the brownies you make in it afterwards!

You'll also need some glossy paper, Blending Solution, and Alcohol Inks. I recommend purchasing them in every color available, advice which I've followed closely as you can see above! You might also want to pick out the stamp that you'll be using to finish off your creation. I chose the Sailboat Collage stamp, which influenced my ink color selection.

Pick out one to three ink colors to use for your background. For this sample I wanted to create a look that was reminiscent of the ocean, so I chose Stonewashed, Meadow, and Slate. You don't have to use three colors, and in fact, if this is the first time you're trying this technique I'd recommend starting with only one. I'll show you how to make just a few drops of ink last forever and create some beautiful backgrounds in just a bit!

The first thing you're going to do is take one of your bottles of Alcohol Ink and scribble the color across your craft mat. Put the tip directly on the mat, and squirt out a stream of ink. Do the same with a second color, but don't overlap the colors or they will blend too much and get muddy, place them next to each other instead. If using a third accent color, just place a few drops randomly in between the ink lines like I've done in the picture above with the Slate ink.

Now the fun starts! Randomly drip Blender Fluid across your lines of ink. Take a piece of glossy paper, and lay it down on top of the ink (glossy side down). Press and smoosh (technical term) the paper a bit to blend the ink and spread it to the edges.

Carefully peel your paper up and take a look at the background you've created!

Now if you're satisfied with your background, you can stop here and skip this next step. I like to add a little additional texture though, and this is a fun way to do it!

Take your bottle of blender fluid, and shake it all over your background while it's still wet. The object is to get drops of fluid on your paper. The blender fluid will separate the inks and push them around on the paper, creating drip marks.

Let dry, then finish off your Masterpiece, and you're done!

Ok, so I showed you the more advanced project first, which is a little backwards, but look how cool it is! Now I'm going to show you the simplified version, but with a little twist!

When you use multiple colors you can only get one or two good prints from the inks you scribble on your craft mat, any more than that and the colors blend too much and don't look so pretty. When you use just one color, you can get multiple prints just by adding more blending fluid!

So go ahead and blob a line or a scribble of your favorite color Alcohol Ink on your craft sheet (I used Wild Plum in this sample)and add some blender fluid.

Smoosh (there's that technical term again) your paper into the ink and peel it up. This will be your darkest print. Add some blending fluid to the ink left on your craft sheet, and press another piece of paper into the ink. Peel up and repeat until you no longer like your results.

If desired you can shake some dots of blender fluid onto your backgrounds while they're still wet to add some drippy looking texture. Let dry and use on a card!


I have one more background to show you using this technique. In the card shown below I did a two step process to create the two separate tones of color. First I laid down a line of Lettuce Alcohol ink and pressed my paper into it. I peeled it up, and cleaned the ink off my craft sheet. Then I put down a line of Stonewashed ink, and pressed the other side of my paper into it. Added a few drips of blender fluid, and let dry.

Have fun with this technique, experiment, and if you make something cool, upload it to A Shade of Blue, and share the link!

Enjoy,
Anne