Pen and Ink Techniques

Ink comes both in water soluble and waterproof form. Water soluble ink, when already applied on paper, is still reversible, meaning it can still be altered even after application. Waterproof ink, on the other hand, can only be reversed with alcohol, depending on the inks solvent. Because of this, it is usually more convenient to use water soluble ink such as China ink for drawing, although there is the possibility of unwanted changes when drawings that used water soluble ink are accidentally sprayed with water. Another advantage of water soluble ink is the ease of diluting it to create washes that resemble watercolor, but with a more intense color. It is also easier to clean up when used with cartridge pens or nibs to draw fine lines. These fine lines can still be wetted again to make it spread and create a different effect. The whole area of the ground can also be dampened first before applying ink to make it easier to spread the pigment over large areas. If some critical small areas are to be avoided, you can use wax/oil-based drawing materials (like crayons, oil pastel, dermatograph, etc.) to make the paper resist the ink when applied over it.