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Alcohol Ink: Stunning Jewelry Dishes to Make and Gift

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Alcohol ink jewelry dishes are easy to create, and make beautiful handmade gifts. Caution: you may become obsessed with this creative art.

Alcohol ink jewelry dishes are easy to create, and make beautiful handmade gifts.I’m a big proponent of making gifts for the holidays. I enjoy making them and I think most people enjoy receiving them. Little dishes are always useful in the home. I love using them for my earrings at the end of the day. Originally I thought about using sharpies with alcohol to make pretty dishes but then I ran across alcohol ink.

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Handmade gifts blog hop banner 2017

Today’s tutorial is part of the 7th Annual Handmade Holidays blog hop hosted by Smart Fun DIY, formerly Hydrangea Hippo, by Jennifer Priest!! The goal is to inspire readers to create something from the heart this holiday season.

Today is Gift Ideas Day, followed by Home Decor tomorrow, and Recipe/Food Gifts on Thursday. I’m only participating in today’s hop, but if you are interested in home decor or food ideas you can visit Smart Fun DIY tomorrow or Thursday.

Following today’s tutorial you will find 25 more handmade gift ideas and a special prize pack raffle.

 

Alcohol Ink Jewelry Dishes

Supplies

Ceramic dishes
Alcohol Inks
Canned Air
Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol 91%
Cotton Swabs
Protective Spray Gloss

 

Alcohol ink jewelry dish flower center

f you haven’t tried alcohol inks yet, you are in for a treat. I love the transparent look they have, somewhat like very intense watercolors. I played around the many techniques and patterns you can easily create with these beautiful paints, but my favorite (no surprise) is making flowers. 

 

Alcohol ink flower petals with compressed air.

 

The Process:

  • First clean your dishes with rubbing alcohol. 
  • Then place one drop of ink in the center and watch it bloom.
  • Place a second drop on top. I used the gold for the second drop but you can experiment with different colors.
  • Next choose a color for the petals.
  • Place a drop just outside the center of the flower and use the canned air to shoot the ink up and out making a petal.
  • Continue around with this color creating petals or add another color, in between, over top, the fun never ends.
  • Note: Don’t like what you see? Use a paper towel and the rubbing alcohol to remove it and start over. 
  • When you are all done wait a day and give it a couple of coats of varnish to protect your masterpiece.

 

Completed jewelry dish with alcohol inks.

I ended up using a whole can of air to make twelve dishes, including experimenting and starting over a couple of times.

 

Floral jewelry dish made with alcohol inks.

This may be my favorite, but that’s probably because I’m partial to blue.

 

12 flower alcohol ink jewelry dishes

There were so many combinations to create with the kit I purchased but if you have a specific color combo in mind you can easily find it. For example, this set did not have a red, and maybe you want to make a Christmas themed flower or dish. 

 

Black and gold floral alcohol ink dish

I even made one with the ever popular black and gold Steeler colors. We may have a fight over this one.

 

Ceramic dishes decorated with alcohol inks.

These will be just one of the fun gifts I’ll give out at the holidays to my friends and family. Now I’m thinking about what else I can make with these fabulous inks.

 

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More fabulous handmade gift ideas:

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Comments

  11. Each dish is like a little work of art! I’ve never used alcohol inks before, but this just might be the inspiration I need to get started. Great gift idea!

    Reply

    • Hi Victoria,

      I’m so glad you like the jewelry dishes. The black and gold always reminds me of The Steelers being a Pittsburgher, however, I can also see it as a classy piece for jewelry in a more modern setting.

      Reply

  16. I want to try this! You mentioned a kit, do they come in kits? Do you sell the kits? Thank you!! Terry

    Reply

    • Hi Teresa,
      The kit I mentioned was just the variety pack of inks. Everything I bought has a link to where I bought them. They are affiliate links which means I receive a very small commission. The price is the same for you whether you link through this site or not. However, I believe you can also find most of these items at craft stores. The little ceramic dishes are used for individual sauces which you may find in the kitchen section of your local department store. Have fun the alcohol inks. I can’t wait to come up with another project using them.

      Reply

    • Hi Camille,

      These were designed to be used as trinket or jewelry dishes so they are perfectly fine to use. I did coat them with a spray finish to protect the ink. I’m not sure about washing them. I’m sure that they could be lightly handed washed if needed or wiped if they got very dusty. If you are considering using them for sauces I’d do my research first to see if the ink is food safe. Hope that helps.

      Reply

    • Hi Kathy,

      The blue one is my favorite too.

      I bought the dishes on Amazon. There’s a link directly to them in the materials link.

      The great thing about this project is that you can easily wipe the slate (dish) clean if you mess up.

      I did go through an entire can of air but ended up with 12 dishes.

      Enjoy!

      Reply

  19. Patti, what size dish did you use? They have several sizes on Amazon! These will make a fun Birthday project for the girls to make all together!

    Reply

    • Hi Star,

      There’s a link to the exact dishes I bought on the post. They were small like 3 inches I believe.

      I gave them as Christmas gifts and everyone loved them. I think your idea of a birthday project would be great. A little messy so make sure you project the surface and clothes. The ink came off my hands with rubbing alcohol but you could wear gloves too. Have Fun!

      Reply

  20. These are amazing! I was curious, do you think a preschooler could help make these? I teach preschool and these would be an amazing Mother’s day gift. If I did it with them, do you think these would work?

    Reply

    • Hi Laura,

      I really not sure. I have never worked with preschoolers. You may want to try it first yourself. They are pretty messy and I used a lot of rubbing alcohol while making them. I would be worried about suggesting the use of these with small children. You May want to contact the manufacturer about their safety. I found this link which may be helpful from one of the manufacturers where you can ask. http://rangerink.com/contact-ranger/

      Reply

  21. Loved your dishes so wanted to make my own! Tried your method but had difficulty getting similar results so I improvised!!! By using either a paintbrush or a small felt square, you have better control over placement! Keep up the great work 😊

    Reply

  22. Has your Alcohol ink chipped or faded? I was just wondering how well the ink held up since using them to hold jewelry. Thank you! They are beautiful!

    Reply

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