How to Choose Coloring Pens
Pick water-based pens for beginners., Switch to alcohol-based pens for advanced work., Get pigment-based ink for durability., Get gel pens for fine details.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Pick water-based pens for beginners.
Water-based pens are the most abundant pen variety.
Brand names such as Crayola offer felt-tipped marker pens which are affordable and available at any general store.
They are safe for children but can tear paper when added in layers.
They will provide your drawings with bright colors, but don’t work well for shading techniques., Alcohol-based pens, such as Copic, are useful for putting down a lot of color.
Many can be used for detail work as well.
These are professional-grade markers typically found in craft stores and can be purchased individually.
They work well on thicker paper and allow for color shading and blending, but will bleed through paper.Oil-based pens also exist and function similarly to alcohol-based pens. , Pigment-based ink pens, including acrylic pens and some India ink pens, have been improved over time to rival alcohol-based dye pens.
These pens give you clearer colors, bleed through paper less, and resist water and light better than dye pens.
However, they are generally more expensive than alcohol-based pens.Examples include the Sakura Pigma Micro pens and Montana acrylic markers. , Gel pens are water-based and come in a variety of finishes such as metallic or glitter.
These pens are ideal for making small details.
They run out of ink faster than other pens and tend to skip when not pressed hard enough against the paper.Gel pens dry slowly and are difficult to color over, so other coloring implements should be used first when you desire to fill in underlying space.Examples of gel pens include Fiskars and Sakura Gelly Roll. -
Step 2: Switch to alcohol-based pens for advanced work.
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Step 3: Get pigment-based ink for durability.
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Step 4: Get gel pens for fine details.
Detailed Guide
Water-based pens are the most abundant pen variety.
Brand names such as Crayola offer felt-tipped marker pens which are affordable and available at any general store.
They are safe for children but can tear paper when added in layers.
They will provide your drawings with bright colors, but don’t work well for shading techniques., Alcohol-based pens, such as Copic, are useful for putting down a lot of color.
Many can be used for detail work as well.
These are professional-grade markers typically found in craft stores and can be purchased individually.
They work well on thicker paper and allow for color shading and blending, but will bleed through paper.Oil-based pens also exist and function similarly to alcohol-based pens. , Pigment-based ink pens, including acrylic pens and some India ink pens, have been improved over time to rival alcohol-based dye pens.
These pens give you clearer colors, bleed through paper less, and resist water and light better than dye pens.
However, they are generally more expensive than alcohol-based pens.Examples include the Sakura Pigma Micro pens and Montana acrylic markers. , Gel pens are water-based and come in a variety of finishes such as metallic or glitter.
These pens are ideal for making small details.
They run out of ink faster than other pens and tend to skip when not pressed hard enough against the paper.Gel pens dry slowly and are difficult to color over, so other coloring implements should be used first when you desire to fill in underlying space.Examples of gel pens include Fiskars and Sakura Gelly Roll.
About the Author
Judy Alvarez
Creates helpful guides on crafts to inspire and educate readers.
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