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Do any of you know of dye pads that are being sold now? I have very few dye based pads, as a quilter I used pigment inks to stamp etc. on fabric. I getting back into card making and the pigment inks still work, just take too long to dry, and can't do some of the fun techniques they can do.
Do you guys have recommendations on brand--I've been thinking Gina K. And a limited palate of colors?
Thank you!
( was told that all the ink pads are made at the same plant in the U.S. due to the Pandemic the factory was shut down)
I have a bunch of ink from different companies. I've never tried Gina K, but have heard that it is good ink. I just stopped buying ink because I had so much already. I really like Memento inks. I got a great deal on like 40 of their mini teardrop shaped ink pads. I've really liked how they ink. I recently stained my mini Misti with ink from My Favorite things, so I'm not happy with them right now. For blending, I like the Distress Oxide inks from Ranger.
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"The most valuable thing you can make is a mistake--you can't learn anything from being perfect."
I have a large variety of dye ink pads. Basically find a color palette that you like, can purchase cardstock and other item to match, if that is important to you, then begin the collecting process. I like the ink cubes, especially with a stamp positioner like the MISTI.
I love my Memento Dew Drops ink pads, but finding reinkers for them can be tricky, however, they stay juicy for quite some time. Mine are several years old and still easy to stamp with and not dry at all.
I have many Gina K Designs ink cubes and full size pads. Totally love how they stamp and the color palette. I have many Lawn Fawn full size pads. The ink formulation is the same between the two companies and many colors are a perfect match, just different names. These are felt pads.
If you like foam, Stampin Up has foam pads and I like the newer designed pads, opening like a compact. I do not own any Catherine Pooler Designs, but hear wonderful things about them and they are foam. The Stamps of Life have a full palette and are foam.
There are a lot of choices. Have fun with your search.
__________________ Lisa Featured Stamper #671 Love sending BRAK cards. Dirty Dozen Alumni.CC927 Favorite Virtual Stamp Night April 19 - 20 Come Join in the Fun Here
Do you like the felt pads over the foam, or vice versa? I do have some (very old) pigment inks where the ink is still there, but the foam pad fell apart. I like the distresss oxides too, but they are a hybrid both dye and pigment.
I have 4 little Memento Dew Drops, and they are nice. My complaint is how do you store the little buggers?
I have a few of the ink spots from Stamping Up! They came from different Paper Pumkin months. Unfortunately, they don't coordinate well with out me buying more colors. Maybe I should go that direction. I'll have to think about it!
Are the foam dye pads one where they are flush with the plastic outer edge? If so, I guess I like the felt pads. The pigment pad wvwn though foam doesn't need the "trough" to hold the ink. Maybe they don't either?
I leave my Dew Drops in the container I bought them in, kept in a basket where I stamp. You might check out the Frugal Crafter on You Tube as she uses these inks and has them stored in a container.
I have several SU ink spots. I like them, all from Paper Pumpkin. I have many older ones where I purchased the box when they sold them in color selections, like Brights, Subtles, etc. Mine are well over 10 years and most still work well and a few needed re-inking. I had the re-inkers for a few.
For most of my stamping, I use felt pads. If I pull out the SU colors, they are foam and stamps wonderfully. The stamped image is covered well and the color looks great. I see color, not the foam texture. This seems to be relevant on large solid image stamps, not outlines.
Now, I inherited the SU ink colors and have purchased a few newer ones when the old ones no longer work. I haven't invested the full spectrum of newer foam pads. I do like the color range, though.
__________________ Lisa Featured Stamper #671 Love sending BRAK cards. Dirty Dozen Alumni.CC927 Favorite Virtual Stamp Night April 19 - 20 Come Join in the Fun Here
Thank you all! Lots of food for thought. I guess my question was where I could even get the ink. SSS is out of almost everything. Gina K seems to be too. I checked Amazon and they have some, at least they let you know they only have 3 or whatever. I just want to avoid the knock off brands.
I think you have to be patient. Gina K just had a new release this week. Since inks seem to be made in very few factories, they are quite behind in filling orders. There is also the stores where the personnel has just began working more hours, so filling orders is taking a while.
Other places to shop are Scrapbook.com, Ellen Hutson, Catherine Pooler Designs, The Stamps of Life, and others. I know that Catherine Pooler has been shipping as she shares on her blog and newsletters. The Stamps of Life has inks and are shipping out of their warehouse in Utah, which sends daily. Just look around and if out of stock, use the notify me available on many websites.
__________________ Lisa Featured Stamper #671 Love sending BRAK cards. Dirty Dozen Alumni.CC927 Favorite Virtual Stamp Night April 19 - 20 Come Join in the Fun Here
Do you like the felt pads over the foam, or vice versa? I do have some (very old) pigment inks where the ink is still there, but the foam pad fell apart. I like the distresss oxides too, but they are a hybrid both dye and pigment.
I have 4 little Memento Dew Drops, and they are nice. My complaint is how do you store the little buggers?
I have a few of the ink spots from Stamping Up! They came from different Paper Pumkin months. Unfortunately, they don't coordinate well with out me buying more colors. Maybe I should go that direction. I'll have to think about it!
If your storage is limited, it's always good to buy ink pads with that in mind. I used to buy the Cats Eye and Dew Drop ink pads but they take up so much room and are hard to store. They don't stack, or fit into a square container or drawer in an efficient way. Now I only buy square cubes if I'm buying minis. In the rare case where the only way to buy a specific color is with a Dew Drop, then I just bite the bullet. Catherine Pooler inks are really nice, but the oval ink pad shape is also harder for me to store.
When I first began stamping, I bought only pigment inks. Then, about 8 years ago I switched to almost all dye inks because of they're blendability and slight transluscency. I kept my pigment inks and use them when I do heat embossing, and for specific projects. Karen
During the stay at home orders, I ventured into the layered stamps arena and the Altenew cube sets of coordinating colors. Let me say that I am super impressed and now have a whole new appreciation for the incredible detail and dimension that one can achieve. The florals are magnificent! This has opened a new plethora of card ideas for me!
I have a few of the ink spots from Stamping Up! They came from different Paper Pumkin months. Unfortunately, they don't coordinate well with out me buying more colors. Maybe I should go that direction. I'll have to think about it!
Stampin up no longer makes ink spots. The new style pads are very hard to open and also very messy. Hard to use them without getting ink on my fingers. I find they are not holding up well. They came out only a few years ago and several are discolored and just don’t work well. They are not used Heavily because I don’t have much time to stamp. I replaced them with a variety of other companies to test them out. I was disappointed with Simon Says Stamp pad so will not buy from them again
Honestly I think hybrid inks are a better than dye
Actually there are a few new ink spots in this year's catalog. They are part of the Beginner Catalog and you can search ink spots and find them. They are an easy way to get the In-Colors and not purchase the full size pad.
__________________ Lisa Featured Stamper #671 Love sending BRAK cards. Dirty Dozen Alumni.CC927 Favorite Virtual Stamp Night April 19 - 20 Come Join in the Fun Here
Regarding storing the ink cubes/dew drops, etc, candy boxes are perfect. I have a Ferrar Rochar clear plastic box and lid that I just keep mine in. I probably only have about 20 little pads, but the candy box works very well for me. My bigger pads live in a cd storage case I bought at the Good Will and made cardboard dividers for.
If you lean toward brighter colors, Taylored Expressions has a lot of their ink in stock, most of which is dye-based. They have a handful of hybrids - black, brown, gray, and watermelon. Joann's has a lot of the Distress minis in-stock, if you want to go that route.
If you're trying to decide between dye and hybrid pads, I very highly recommend you go to Tim Holtz's blog and watch the recent videos he posted about the differences between Distress and Distress Oxide. He also talks a bit about how/when he uses the Archival inkpads, and the incredible importance of what kind of paper you use.
Dye pads
