Light fast gold pen/marker?
- Thread starter Robert
- Start date
Do NOT use a Sharpie. I'm thinking a metallic gel pen might be fairly good. A coulple of folks here sell art supplies, so they may have other suggestions.
Rick
Rick
Jeff Rodier
SPFG, Supreme Picture Framing God
Slicci Metallic from Pentel have worked great for me and many artists I have introduced them to over time. Wal-Mart has a 3 pack with gold, silver & bronze for less than $5.
The metallic appearance of ink from most metallic ink pens is concocted from chemicals, not metals. Unless the metallic writing fluid in the pen contains actual metal particles (and I've never seen one that does), the metallic appearance will diminish as the chemistry changes over time, especially if exposed to light or high temperatures.
Artists' acrylic gouache in metallic colors usually does contain actual metal particles, and generally will remain metallic in appearance over time. It can be mixed with water (and maybe a bit of ox gall and/or powdered Gum Arabic) to flow through a dip-type pen. However, that probably would not be practical for non-artists unfamiliar with the fluid and tools.
Artists' acrylic gouache in metallic colors usually does contain actual metal particles, and generally will remain metallic in appearance over time. It can be mixed with water (and maybe a bit of ox gall and/or powdered Gum Arabic) to flow through a dip-type pen. However, that probably would not be practical for non-artists unfamiliar with the fluid and tools.
Terry Hart cpf
SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
You can get refillable pen bodies. Molotow is a very good brand. Fill with liquid acrylic like Golden Hi Flow.
Terry Hart cpf
SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
Liquid acrylic is probably a bad name. Usually these products are called acrylic inks. Hi Flow is Golden's acrylic ink product.
artfolio
SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
The only snag with all such products is that if there are issues you won't know about them until it is too late.
Andrew Lenz Jr.
MGF, Master Grumble Framer
I'm not aware of any gold acrylics that use true metals. All the brands that I am aware of (Golden, Liquitex, Winsor & Newton, Jacquard, etc.) use mica as the pigment. Mica is lightfast.
As far as pens, yes, the Faber-Castell Pitt markers are lightfast. We've done testing on some of their colors and they didn't appreciably fade. (At least, we couldn't tell from our exposure tests.) We didn't test gold in particular, but it's one of the more stable colors.
As suggested above, you can always fill a Molotow fine point empty marker body with Golden High Flow Acrylics. (High Flow is Golden's now-discontinued Airbrush Colors slightly reformulated and renamed.) Daler-Rowney's FW Ink or Liquitex Ink should work well also. Both are pigmented acrylic-based inks.
Gold should be lightfast in gel pens too. If you are concerned, draw some lines on a piece of matboard, cover half with a scrap piece of solid black matboard and expose it to afternoon sun for days or weeks. Some pens—Copic, for example—we've seen dramatic fading in as little as a few days. (Copic and many non-pigmented markers use aniline dye as the colorant which is incredibly fugitive.)
If it were my wedding mat, I'd likely go for the gel pens. There's less likelihood of smearing than some acrylic ink solutions. If you want a bit bigger stroke, then Faber-Castell Pitt Pens.
Yes, I grew up in, and still run, an art store. I split my time between answering the "hard art materials questions" and answering the "hard picture framing questions".
Andrew
(Once "accused" by a paint maker as possibly being a closet paint maker after asking so many technical questions!)
As far as pens, yes, the Faber-Castell Pitt markers are lightfast. We've done testing on some of their colors and they didn't appreciably fade. (At least, we couldn't tell from our exposure tests.) We didn't test gold in particular, but it's one of the more stable colors.
As suggested above, you can always fill a Molotow fine point empty marker body with Golden High Flow Acrylics. (High Flow is Golden's now-discontinued Airbrush Colors slightly reformulated and renamed.) Daler-Rowney's FW Ink or Liquitex Ink should work well also. Both are pigmented acrylic-based inks.
Gold should be lightfast in gel pens too. If you are concerned, draw some lines on a piece of matboard, cover half with a scrap piece of solid black matboard and expose it to afternoon sun for days or weeks. Some pens—Copic, for example—we've seen dramatic fading in as little as a few days. (Copic and many non-pigmented markers use aniline dye as the colorant which is incredibly fugitive.)
If it were my wedding mat, I'd likely go for the gel pens. There's less likelihood of smearing than some acrylic ink solutions. If you want a bit bigger stroke, then Faber-Castell Pitt Pens.
Yes, I grew up in, and still run, an art store. I split my time between answering the "hard art materials questions" and answering the "hard picture framing questions".
Andrew
(Once "accused" by a paint maker as possibly being a closet paint maker after asking so many technical questions!)
Hi, Robert. Perhaps you've already done this, but it's a good idea for the photographer to know this mat should eventually have spacers holding it away from the glazing.
Andrew Lenz Jr.
MGF, Master Grumble Framer
Shayla, it's a good consideration. Though the solutions I mentioned are all waterfast too as well as lightfast. There is always the concern of condensation damaging the mat itself—the customer would have to weigh permanently gluing the mat to the backing (or it will bow up due to the spacers) versus having glazing pressing down on the mat. These things are almost without fail merely a one-lifetime thing—and sometimes less! (We had a couple, married a few years, come in and have us open up their frame and throw away their signed mat. We cut a new smaller mat, cut down their frame, and they hung the result back on their wall!)
If they want spacers but not glue the mat down, they might want to think about an 8-ply or 12-ply mat.
Andrew
If they want spacers but not glue the mat down, they might want to think about an 8-ply or 12-ply mat.
Andrew
Andrew are you stocking the W&N watercolour markers they have the artist grade watercolours in them.
Terry Hart cpf
SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
People like to carp about LJ around here but it seems to me that ColArt has been less than independent friendly in recent years. Does that weight into your decision to carry new product? I carry most all that ColArt offers but I am getting to be reluctant to add more, especially if I'm not getting demand anyway. We haven't added the WN markers here.
Sorry for the frankenthread. There should be a grumble for art material vendors
artfolio
SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
On the subject of signed wedding matts: I always advise my customers to set them up somewhere where people won't be touching them with greasy/ smeary hands after they have been eating. Ideally, at a table near the entrance and encourage them to sign it on the way in.
A bit of supervision is not a bad idea either. I once had a very upset bride bring a multiple opening matt in with something offensive written right in the centre by the "and friend" of one of her besties. I bet he was kicked to the kerb shortly afterwards. Snag was, because of the position it could not be cut out so I sent them to a local engraver who used a laser to burn it out and they put a small photo in the opening. The laser left a bit of discolouration around the edges but it was an improvement over what was there before.
A bit of supervision is not a bad idea either. I once had a very upset bride bring a multiple opening matt in with something offensive written right in the centre by the "and friend" of one of her besties. I bet he was kicked to the kerb shortly afterwards. Snag was, because of the position it could not be cut out so I sent them to a local engraver who used a laser to burn it out and they put a small photo in the opening. The laser left a bit of discolouration around the edges but it was an improvement over what was there before.
Andrew Lenz Jr.
MGF, Master Grumble Framer
We finally pulled the trigger on them about a month ago. (For not art materials people: not recommended for signing mats, they stay water-soluble.)
ColArt is not making friends right now by selling directly to consumers . . . granted it's full retail and they often charge shipping, but it's like your wife's old boyfriend stopping by and taking her out to dinner for fun—it's generally not a problem but still can cause anxiety for what it could lead to!
Andrew