The most wanted inks

For a long time you've been asking for them, and it’s not very surprising since this brand is iconic. There are no doubts, it’s one of the best ink brands and its specialty is calligraphy ink. We’re talking about Dr. Ph. Martin’s inks. These quarantine days at home due to coronavirus leaves us with extra time to spend doing our favourite activities, and, why not? Catching up on those activities that we have always wanted to try but due to lack of time, we never did. Painting can be one of those pending activities. Perhaps you have felt a little overwhelmed by the large number of options on the market. Celebrating the arrival of Dr. Ph. Martin’s to our website, we’ve prepared a post where we explain in-depth this brand and its differences with other watercolours.

How to use them?

They are very easy to use, and that is, in fact, one of the main reasons everybody loves this brand. All you need to do is take a little bit of pigment with the help of the dropper with which all Dr. Ph. Martin’s bottles come, on the paper where you go to work. Bring the brush closer to the paper and without any effort, you’ll see how it’ll be quickly impregnated with colour. The best thing is that you won’t have to re-impregnate the brush in colour for a while since these inks are so intense and long-lasting that it will take you ages to finish a bottle of these inks.

Which ink should I use?

There are so many brands and different types of inks that it may be a little difficult to choose which one is the best for us.

Liquid or solid ink?

• Layers

Waterproof inks, as in the case of Dr. Ph. Martin's, are a little more difficult to repaint over something that it’s already dried. However, making layers with solid watercolours is easier since the dry paint becomes soluble once we wet it again.

• Evenly

If we want to work with the same colour at different times, it’s better to use liquid inks, since we’ll always achieve the same colour intensity. However, this is something more difficult to achieve with watercolours since the intensity of the colour will depend on the amount of water that we put on the brush.

• Surface

Liquid inks can be easily applied on very thin paper as they work just by dyeing the paper. But with watercolours use water to transform pigment across the surface of the sheet, therefore, we’ll need a paper with a weight of 300 to ensure the paper won’t wrinkle due to excess water in its composition.

¿Dr. Ph. Martin’s or Fw Ink Daler-Rowney?

Fw Daler-Rownley is a popular brand and it’s the favourite to many illustrators and artists because its colours are easy to mix and you can create softer colours effortlessly just by adding a little bit of water. Besides, it’s very versatile since it can be worked with overlapping layers, mixed with other colours and other acrylics. As with Dr. Ph. Martin's inks, their colours are pigment-based and their high quality means they can last for several years without any colour variation. Within the Daler-Rowney we can find, in addition to the primary colours, a range of neon or pearl effect colours that we don’t find in Dr. Ph. Martin's range of colours, although its colour range is very wide. In the following image, we see these two inks in action, on the left the FW Ink Daler-Rowney and on the right the Dr. Ph. Martin's, specifically, the Bombay Ink range.

¿Dr. Ph. Martin’s or Finetec?

Finetec inks are especially famous for its metallic colours. However, for many, Dr. Ph. Martin's metallic colours have nothing to envy. Finetec inks are specially designed to be used in calligraphy but you can use them as normal watercolours and on a wide variety of materials ranging from watercolour papers to wood or stone. Dr. Ph.Martin's make them tough competition, since they also adhere perfectly to multiple surfaces. Although their durability has not been proven in stone, it has been in wood, metal and different plastics. You can compare colours from both brands and their coverage in the following photograph, using the gold colour as a reference. First, we have Finetec golden colour, Winsor & Newton's, Dr. Ph. Martin's, Speed ​​Ball's and Daniel Smith's.

PearFleur

¿Dr. Ph. Martin’s or Ecoline?

Ecoline is another very famous brand when talking about liquid inks. Again, it all depends on the effect we want to give to our projects. If we use Dr. Ph Martin's inks we will obtain a more opaque finish than if we use Ecoline inks. As you may already know, Dr. Ph. Martin's are lightfast, no matter how long in the sunlight they will not be discoloured. This is quite a rare thing to achieve in watercolours or inks and Ecoline does not pass the test. Also, they aren’t waterproof, when Dr. Ph. Martin’s are. However, Ecoline inks are light faster than Dr. Ph. Martin’s. Ecoline inks are based on dyes and not pigments, like Dr. Ph. Martin's, so you will never find granulation in your Ecoline’s bottles as if it could happen with Dr. Ph. Martin’s. But that’s totally normal and it’s due to their formulation, based on pigment and not on dyes. To avoid this, make sure to shake the bottle now and then. Otherwise, there are no great differences between them. Both inks have a uniform drying and have similar applications, although we must highlight the versatility of surfaces on which Dr. Ph Martin's can be applied without any problem.

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Which Dr. Ph. Martin’s should I choose?

Currently, we have at your disposal six different ink formulas. Although they are different formulas, all of them are free of acids and toxins (except Pen-White) and all of them will surprise you with their high quality. They are also fast-drying and long-lasting. No matter how many years pass after finishing your project, the colour will continue to look exactly like the first day!

Color Iridescent Calligraphy

These inks were specially designed for its use in calligraphy and are perfect for accentuating colour in watercolour works or in any project where you need to add a touch of shine, the one that only iridescent pigments can achieve. These vibrant colours highly reflect light and clarity. Also, the Iridescent Calligraphy Colors are permanent, waterproof and archival grade. Plus, they dry evenly and leave no marks when depositing pigment or finishing a stroke. They are perfect for use on different surfaces such as paper, wood, blackboard and many plastics and are ideal for use with pens (calligraphy or dip pens), brushes and airbrushes. They are very creamy and soft. With minimal effort, you'll get an incredible colour.

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Bombay India Ink

Presented in the iconic dropper bottle so you can be very precise with the amount of pigment you want to deposit. All colours are bright and transparent, except white and black, which are opaque and have very good coverage. You can use Bombay India Ink as you would work any traditional ink, diluting them in water and using brushes, dip pens or airbrushes. Besides, you will be happy to know that with these inks are non-clogging.

Hydrus Fine Art

These watercolours come in a plastic bottle, but without giving up the comfort of the dropper, since they also include them. They are quick-drying and translucent, very easy to work with and can be mixed with other colours and blend effortlessly. Hydrus Fina Art are perfect for use in technical aspects such as calligraphy, with fountain pens and airbrushes.

Black Star Matte India Ink

Its characteristics are very similar to the formulas of other brand’s inks except that this ink does not reflect the light. The applications of the Black Star Matte Ink are very similar to those of the rest and it will be just as easy to work with. It’s waterproof, it has high quality, archival grade and non-spreading, so you won’t be disappointed.

Black Star Hi-Carb India Ink

This formula comes in a single colour, black and has a shiny finish. It’s permanent and waterproof once it dries. It has a great carbon content and it’s extremely opaque, it will effortlessly cover any surface. You can easily apply it on any surface. The following image is a comparison between the three blacks inks that the brand has, so you can get a closer idea of ​​how covering they are. The first colour corresponds to the Bombay Ink line, the next colour corresponds to Black Star Matte ink and the last colour corresponds to Black Star Hi-Carb.

Teo Yi Chie

Pen White

Maybe you’ve spent hours and hours looking for a white ink or watercolour that is covering and you have not found it. Look no further, Pen-White ink is what you were looking for. Its white colour is incredibly opaque and can cover any ink or marker. It’s very versatile and easy to use, and you can even use it on plastic surfaces like acetate. It is so easy to use because it was specially made to be used with technical pens and airbrushes.

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Bleedproof White

This is possibly the most covering white on the market. Due to its versatility, you can use it in any of your projects, even for calligraphy. It is capable of covering any material and any other tint and you can add water to its composition to achieve the consistency you are looking for. Bleedproof White is opaque white but, this one is not waterproof. If you work with watercolours you already know how difficult is to find a pure white that covers perfectly any surface and allow us to create details and hightlights on our works. Bleedproof white is one if the best options we have nowadays. Just add a little bit of water util you get a liquid consistency and work with it just as it was watercolour. It covers even dark colours, so is the ideal material to make a watercolour galaxy. Do you already have any of these inks in your kit? If so, tell us what you think and if you plan to re-buy any of them again :) If you are among the indecisive ones and you have not yet decided, do not hesitate to tell us who has been the chosen one after reading this post and why, we’ll read you :)