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I just bought some "Avery Elle" pigment ink pads, I stamped a background last night, but this morning it still feel a little "sticky". I am afraid it will still smudge if you rub on it. Will heat setting help it dry?
Hi, yes indeed heat setting will dry the ink. Almost all pigment inks will need heat setting, as they are really intended to use with embossing powders, then heat set to produce a raised, shiny finish. If not embossed, they will pretty much never dry on most surfaces.
I think it might depend on your weather (humidity, dryness etc.) because I've never had a problem getting pigment ink to dry. I also look for "quick drying" pigment inks and I make sure not to work on them right after stamping. I usually use ordinary card stock, not coated papers, too.
I've never had to heat set any of my pigment inks and for many years pigment ink was all I ever used. I too use regular cardstock but a friend used Versafine on my recommendation and it kept smearing; but she used a coated cardstock.
I never heat set my pigment inks either, if I use uncoated cardstock. If you use coated or glossy cardstock, you will have to do that, unless you emboss (which, of course, also requires heat).
I'm in a very dry state but the only pigment inks I have ever had to heat set are ColorBox. I think Memento Luxe pads are slightly slower drying than Avery Elle and their sister ink pads Mama Elephant and Fresh Ink. Using coated cardstock as mentioned is going to make a big difference though.
It helps if the pads are quite juicy then hit it with a heat gun immediately after stamping. Pigment inks work by soaking into the paper, not by air drying on the surface of the paper like dye inks.
Mary Beth
Actually, pigment ink dries on top of the paper, and dye-based inks soak into the paper. I know it can be very confusing.
(From another professional stamping/scrapbooking site.)
Definition of Pigment Ink~ vibrant in intensity and appear the same color they stamp out. They are slower drying as it sits on top of the paper than dye-based inks that absorb into the paper. Pigment ink is the kind of pad you want to use if you are to emboss something. If you use a pigment ink on a glossy paper without embossing it- it will NOT dry. Pigment ink are often more light fast than dye based inks and may resist fading even in direct sunlight.
(And another.)
Dye-based ink
It’s permanent and has a consistency similar to water, so the dries quickly. Most are not waterproof, which means you can’t color stamped images with paint, pens or other water-based mediums as the ink will run together. Many dye-based inks are acid-free, but do fade with time and especially sunlight.
Pigment ink
Pigment ink is thicker and richer than dye-based ink. The colors are bright and vibrant and the ink pads are spongy. They’re fade-resistant. Pigment ink doesn’t soak into paper like a dye-based ink; instead, it dries on top. That means the ink takes a little longer to dry on regular paper—but the color will be more vivid. It also means that pigment ink will not dry on glossy paper. If you want to stamp pigment ink on glossy paper, you must heat-set it with an embossing gun for it to dry. Because pigment ink stays wet for so long, it’s perfect for Heat Embossing!
If you have some ink pads and you don't know whether the ink is dye or pigment, is there an easy way to tell?
That's a great question! You could try embossing with it, or stamp it on plain paper and see how long it takes to dry. You could also stamp it on some glossy paper and see IF it dries.
I am in the group of never had to heat set. I also only found a red Colour Box to be slow to dry( I purchased another brand of red) and do not want to spend time heat setting one colour. Funny having said that,I have to say I love their White Frost when it is embossed.
Pigment Ink Pads
