Ink spots on finished cards

[susie718]

I often get small ink spots on finished cards from ink on my fingers. :rolleyes: I know spots can be covered with an embellishment. But what else can you do if an embellishment won't work? Say, you get a dab of ink on an intended white space on your card. A friend suggested sanding with a sanding block, but mine just put a bigger spot on the card. I've tried the side of an emery board with the finer grit, and sometimes it helps, but sometimes it roughs up the paper, and I still have to redo the card. I've also tried art gum and white erasers, but the ink is usually too deep into the fibers of the paper for that to work. Just wondering if anyone has any tricks?
Thanks in advance.

[sf9erfan]

Grrr, this JUST happened to me. Fortunately the ink was A\Muse pigment and small enough that it came off with a white eraser! Sometimes I will add ribbon to hide it. I don't have any other tricks, I just usually throw away the ruined piece!

[SophieLaFontaine]

I use a white gel pen to "hide" it. It's still glaringly obvious to me but... well, that's the only trick I know. I put several layers on, not just one, because the first layer comes out a little grey. Sometimes I'll add more dots around it, and make the white paper like a white-polka-dot paper. :(

[GypsyRoseStamper]

Yeah, right! And it always happens in a spot that would be outlandish to place an camouflage embellishment!

[binkiemonstermom]

How about adding other ink smudges and making it part of your design?? It doesn't work for all errors but sometimes it does. I embrace the mess!!!!

[fairburngirl]

I've had success using a baby wipe. I just used a corner and rubbed very gently and off it came. I've also heard that a blender pen can do the trick.

[fairsinger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SophieLaFontaine

I use a white gel pen to "hide" it. It's still glaringly obvious to me but... well, that's the only trick I know. I put several layers on, not just one, because the first layer comes out a little grey. Sometimes I'll add more dots around it, and make the white paper like a white-polka-dot paper. :(

Thanks for this great tip! I had a tiny ink spot on a card, so tried this and it worked beautifully! It only took a couple of layers of the white gel ink before that spot disappeared. Awesome tip!

[susie718]

Thanks for the ideas to try!

[winnieu]

I have had some luck using my craft knife and scraping lightly (only on small spots...) Then I use an eraser on it. Most of the time I plop an embellishment on it, or if it can't be saves, I cut the front off the card (to save the paper) and take off parts of the card that are good and reuse them on another card.

[uncbballfan]

My solution? Start over!

[Cook22]

I tend to agree with the last poster. Sanding, no matter how fine, shows. And maybe it's the colour of my card but a white gel pen shows too although Sophie's idea of making white on white polka dots sounds like a runner! If I can't cover it with something that looks right, I'll start again.

[craftymomto2]

Depending on the card, you could use a splatter tool and add more spots. I did this when my ink pad fell on top of a finished card, I just took the pad and made more lines and it looks as if I had "planned" it.
Here is a picture of the card:
http://maryscraftroom.blogspot.com/2...e-welcome

[DerbyLea]

If its on extended white space I would cut around the main image (say in a rectangle) and then remount on a piece of white card. Its a slightly different look but the offending mark is now gone.

[CraftyMel2]

Well, Craftymomto2, aren't you just the superstar for doing that!!! I love it and if you had not said something, I would have not known that it was an accident! I remember way back in the day when making beaded bracelets at Girl Scout camp I made a mistake on a design I was doing and burst into tears...my counselor told me that it was perfect that I did that and to always make everything with one tiny flaw...of course, that's how people know it was hand made and not spit out by some bracelet making machine! All these years later I have told people that story any time there was a flaw in their work!

[Rachelrose]

(sigh) I usually just start again. I figure I'll make the next one better anyway, since I've already hit all the snags I'm going to. But I clean up my desk before I start over. Maybe the mess wasn't the direct cause of the mistake, but it's usually indicative of my state of mind, which can get pretty frenetic when I'm working. So: clean and serene (hopefully)

[Pat in Ohio]

If it can't be easily or quickly covered with an embellishment, I remove what I can and start over. I may be the only one to see it but I know it's there and my perfectionist side just won't let the card go out with a flaw.

[Rachelrose]

I hear you, Pat. It's kinda nuts, though. Half the people I send these cards to throw them away or lose them within a day of getting them and the other half are too impressed that I made the card to even see a small mistake. My MIL frames all the cards I give her! Now that's someone I like making cards for!

[QueenOfInkland]

Craftymomto2 - I second that you are a superstar!! Your card looks so dang artsy - GREAT camouflage job

[Rachelrose]

Aha, I missed your link, Craftymomto2. I agree. The lines look completely planned. Kudos! Great card!

[kathifromkearny]

I have had some luck using small stamps that compliment the theme of the card (floral, stars, leaves, etc) and embossing over the stain. Hope that helps. I just can't bear to throw away any card with a mistake so if the embossing does't work, I put it away and when I find it later, I can sometimes see a way to use it in a different way. Hope this helps.

[sandydittmer]

I don't think anybody mentioned this yet, but if it's pure white paper, I have great success using a Q-tip dipped in bleach (squeeze out the excess so it is not "drippy") and carefully dabbing on the ink. Within a couple seconds, the ink disappears like magic. If a Q-tip is too large, I've also used the end of a toothpick. You can use the toothpick "as is" or wrap a tiny bit of Kleenex or toilet tissue around the end and dip in bleach and touch the unwanted ink. The trick is to use a very small amount of bleach.

For colored paper, I've bleached out the ink boo-boo, and then actually bleached a larger area than necessary so it was a white space, then stamped an image in the white space. It looked like it was supposed to be that way. Wish I had photos but I don't.

Sandy

[Rachelrose]

Interesting idea. I've yet to work with bleach on cardstock but am keen to try. How much control do you have over the shape of the bleached area. or does it just wick outwards? The technique I've seen uses embossing to contain the bleached areas, which can then be colored in with Prismas. So you can get pale colors on a dark background.

[sandydittmer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rachelrose

Interesting idea. I've yet to work with bleach on cardstock but am keen to try. How much control do you have over the shape of the bleached area. or does it just wick outwards? The technique I've seen uses embossing to contain the bleached areas, which can then be colored in with Prismas. So you can get pale colors on a dark background.

Surprisingly, I've not had it wick much at all. The key, I suppose, is to just use a slightly damp Q-tip, not dripping wet. The easiest way to see what will happen with your particular cardstock is just to play with some scraps. I think you might be surprised. You can also use a heat gun to speed up the bleaching/drying.

Something kind of cool is that on really dark colors, it might take more than one application of the bleach to go all the way white. But if you want to stop somewhere in the middle, you can. For example, Night of Navy will go through a pink stage somewhere in the middle. I've gotten some pretty cards that way.

Sandy

[fairsinger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandydittmer

I don't think anybody mentioned this yet, but if it's pure white paper, I have great success using a Q-tip dipped in bleach (squeeze out the excess so it is not "drippy") and carefully dabbing on the ink. Within a couple seconds, the ink disappears like magic. If a Q-tip is too large, I've also used the end of a toothpick. You can use the toothpick "as is" or wrap a tiny bit of Kleenex or toilet tissue around the end and dip in bleach and touch the unwanted ink. The trick is to use a very small amount of bleach.

What a smart idea!! Thanks for sharing!

[susie718]

Thanks everyone! I knew the experts here would have some great ideas to try.
Susie

[amahanes]

I've also covered smudges with the splatter tool. I recently got black ink on my white card stock. I used the black marker and the splatter tool to add some splatters and liked it do much that I splattered all of them not just the smudged ones.

[Rebecca Ednie]

I also scrape with a craft knife then I add white gel pen if I can't remove it completely.

[jeanne3579]

Quote:

Originally Posted by craftymomto2

Depending on the card, you could use a splatter tool and add more spots. I did this when my ink pad fell on top of a finished card, I just took the pad and made more lines and it looks as if I had "planned" it.
Here is a picture of the card:
Mary's Craft Room: Lovely as a Tree Welcome

Nice save!!!

[vdoyle8]

Quote:

Originally Posted by craftymomto2

Depending on the card, you could use a splatter tool and add more spots. I did this when my ink pad fell on top of a finished card, I just took the pad and made more lines and it looks as if I had "planned" it.
Here is a picture of the card:
Mary's Craft Room: Lovely as a Tree Welcome

Mary -- what a great save on that card!! It totally looks like you planned a distressed background. Thanks for the inspiration. I will try that in the future!

[Clownmom]

I've used White-Out tape with some success.

[Jill with a G]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DerbyLea

If its on extended white space I would cut around the main image (say in a rectangle) and then remount on a piece of white card. Its a slightly different look but the offending mark is now gone.

This is a great idea!

[cheliebel]

@ Kathifromkearny

I hear you there! People laugh at me cause my cards have to be perfect!

[gobarb26]

Quote:

Originally Posted by craftymomto2

Depending on the card, you could use a splatter tool and add more spots. I did this when my ink pad fell on top of a finished card, I just took the pad and made more lines and it looks as if I had "planned" it.
Here is a picture of the card:
Mary's Craft Room: Lovely as a Tree Welcome

Great save! Would never have guessed that it was a mistake. that is the kind of mistakes that I do a lot. (I have slight neuropathy in my hands.) Thanks for the great idea! Hope I can make it look as good as you did! :cool: