Ink Advice

[FrancescaWhetnall]

Has anyone got a recommendation on water based printing inks? I've only used oil based inks before but want to try some water based inks.
Some inks seem to say they don't work for overprinting which sounds a bit rubbish, and I've seen a review of Speedball saying they dry too fast.
Does anyone have a favourite? Thanks :-)

[minouette]

I use Speedball water-based inks. They certainly dry faster than oil based ink, but you can buy retarder or block printing medium and add it to your mix. It depends on humidity in the air and temperature too. They are the most widely available water-based inks here in Canada - you may have a wider selection where you are.

[Former_Member]

Cecca - posted on facebook as well :
Akua Kolor waterbased inks by Rostow&Jung, non-toxic and easy clean-up with soap and water, can be used with dry paper -
check out their website:
www.waterbasedinks.com

I've been working almost exclusively with them for years, just recently began using oil based as I was experimenting with paper litho and etching.
Deeper, richer color with oil, but much more labor intensive and chemical involved, of course.
But, as you can see with some of my monoprints, you can achieve many layers and intense colors with water based as well.

Hope that helps

[WilliamLeeHolt]

I've been using Daniel Smith water based inks for years now, and am quite happy with them, except the limited color range they offer. They stay open a long time, and clean up nicely. As for Akua... I have a love/hate relationship with the inks. Maybe I should give them another try.

[88editions]

I use Akua for my monoprints

and many of my print making buddies use Akua for everything!

[FrewinPrint]

I've used Caligo safe wash inks for the past 5 years for intaglio work. (http://www.caligoinks.com). They take a bit of getting used to and you have to be careful damping the paper. I've never managed chine colle successfully with them either. Printmaking Today Vol 20 No 3 reviewed Charbonnel Aqua Wash etching inks and advised the pigments were 'much better than Caligo and Akua'. I plan to try these in the future!

[Former_Member]

I agree with Karen, the Akua water-based inks are the best that I've used. I am a bigger fan of oil-based, so I dont use them unless I am going for a very specific effect. They are wonderful for gradients though, and as mentioned previously, very easy to clean up.
And, no offense to anyone who like them, but I really hate the Speedball inks (whether oil or water based). The consistency is never quite right, and I can never get the colors to mix effectively.

[FrancescaWhetnall]

Wow, that's brilliant! Thank you so much everyone!!
I should have said that I mainly want to use them for relief prints to start with. From all your comments it sounds like Akua is the way to go, thank you so much! :-)