Just remember to let each layer dry before applying the next. If you’re unsure how much color to add to your miniature, you can always thin your inks more and apply subsequent layers. For many inks, you’ll want to thin them to avoid oversaturating your painted model. The best inks for glazing miniatures dilute well and easily in water. Inks are great at glazing because they are so color intense. It’s like a colored filter that you place directly over your painted surfaces. Glazing with inksĪ glaze is any color art medium that you apply over surface to change the overall color. ( Note: As per manufacturer instructions, you should work only from a diluted stock of “1 part flow aid in 10 part water” before use in a DIY wash).

You could just use water if you want a “thicker” mixture. Winsor Newton flow improver (2 parts) – Flow improver helps the wash mixture “flow” across surfaces and into deeper recesses.Scale 75 inktensity (3-4 parts) – You can use any ink, this is just an example.Acrylic medium(8 parts) – This is a binding medium that helps your mixture stick to your miniature.

Mix about 8 parts acrylic medium (any brand, or use what’s below), 3-4 parts highly-pigmented ink, and 2 parts flow improver. Here’s a quick place to start experimenting with using DIY washes with inks. RELATED: CAN YOU MAKE YOUR OWN CONTRAST PAINTS? This is because inks have more intense color that doesn’t diminish with heavier thinning. Inks make it a lot easier to create your own washes. A wash is simply colored-pigment thinned sufficiently to flow into recesses. The best inks for making washes have high pigment color intensity. Painted with a mix of Daler Rowney inks and Vallejo model color. Reaper Paint has specific liners that that are designed to flow well off your brush and darken edges quickly. Use liners like a reversed coloring-book: darken the colored elements of your miniature to make each part stand out. These inks are named for their intended purpose, which is to “line” the edges and elements of your model. Liners are highly-pigmented dark-colored inks. RELATED: USE WATERCOLO R PAINT AS A WASH Liners You add other art mediums to your DIY washes, or buy pre-made washes that will skip the tedium of figuring out the correct mixture ratios. Of course, a good wash will go where you want it to go, and dry evenly without cracking or creating “rings”. You can make your own washes simply by adding extra water to thin your regular acrylic paints. Using a wash will bring out details in a model by darkening the deeper textures in a model’s surface. Army Painter Quickshade is a great example of a wash that rapidly adds contrast to a model. Usually, washes are a darker color that helps you add contrast to a miniature. Washes are a thinned version of paint designed to flow into the recesses of a surface. If you’re airbrushing your model, inks are a quick and easy way to glaze over a zenithal highlight base coat. Because inks are thinner and have high color intensity, they are also a useful alternative for thinning other model acrylic paints (here’s a great example of using inks for thinning other paints). Inks are great for freehanding because they flow more easily off your brush bristles and have excellent coverage. Inks made with pigment coloring require a “binder”, such as acrylic or resin polymer, that cures/dries on the applied surface. This makes dyes different from pigments, which do not chemically bind to the material they color. pigments: A dye is a colored chemical substance that directly bonds to a surface. For miniature painting, this means that you can often dilute an ink to a much greater extent without losing color intensity or depth.ĭyes vs. Inks also have a high-level of color saturation (or color pigment density) thant regular paint. Most inks use liquid dyes instead of finely ground pigments for color. This Infinity TAG was painted with a combination of inks and washes (with other paint blending techniques) InksĪrtist inks are a liquid paint medium and usually much less viscous (e.g., thinner) than any regular paint. washes” you need to know that the line is blurry. What’s the difference between “inks” and “washes”? Here are the best 15 inks for painting miniatures and models:Ĭontinue reading for more details about inks and miniature painting and the review of the top 15 inks! Games Workshop/Citadel Shade (Easy to use).Golden Transparent Highflow Acrylic (Versatile/Airbrush ready).Daler Rowney FW Acrylic Artist Ink (Most popular).In a hurry? Take a look at the top 3 editor’s picks! 🥇 I also review the top 15 recommended inks for painting miniatures and models. In this article, I highlight some of the key features and uses of colored inks that are important for painting minis and models.

White india ink on wood