Coloring with Sharpies

Sharpies are like the popular and costly Copics; they are permanent markers that you can use to color your images, but cheaper than the Copics.

Like the Copics, when you apply the color to a drawn or stamped image, you will be able to see the lines of the original image since the ink is translucent. This is how I use the Sharpies for a very spontaneous drawing:

1. I stamp or draw an image. In this case, I used my Zig 01 black pen to draw a fast flower. If you are going to stamp the image, use a pigment ink pad and if you are meticulous with coloring inside the lines, you can heat-emboss your image with clear embossing powder and a heat gun.
2. Choose the colors to use. In order to achieve a gradient look, you need to use two or three shades of a color or colors that coordinate with each other.
3. Start using the lighter shade of the color, applying it over all the area for that specific color (for example, to the entire area of a flower petal.)
4. Take a darker color and apply it to the edge of the image where you want to have the shadow.
5. Take the lighter shade again and go over the area where you applied the darker color and  try to blend them together.
6. If you have a third color, the darkest, apply it to the very edge and again, using the lightest color, blend them.
7. Remember that you are using markers that dry fast, so you have to work fast to make them blend more naturally. You want to work on a wet surface for better blending.
8. Repeat any coloring as necessary. The markers are not going to damage your paper since the ink evaporates faster than the water-based markers.
9. Now, I want to add a few notes:

• Sharpies and Bic markers are expanding their range of colors; however, the Copics still have almost every color that you can imagine.
• If you are an artist that will be coloring using only this medium, then experiment with the Sharpies but keep in mind that Copics and other brands of more expensive markers are refillable and you can use the same pen over and over. Copics also are easier to blend together.
• If you like to paint with different mediums, get the Sharpies and play with them. It’s fun and very easy.
• One more thing: Use a blender pen if you want to remove color from an area.

I hope this opens new windows of creativity for you. If you have any photo of your creation, send it to me and I will publish it in this blog.

Tags: copic markers and sharpies, how to color stamps with sharpies, using sharpies to color stamps