Hello,
Recently I started to use egg tempera (yolk+water and carbon black pigment) instead of pigmented indian ink to draw on paper. I draw in closed room now in winter and would like to avoid hydrocarbons in indian ink. The problem is that steel nib dip pen asks for frequent diping in egg tempera, so I think I will try to use fountain pen instead. On market there are ones with converter i.e, refilling option.
Is it possible to use fountain nib pen filled with egg tempera instead indian ink to draw on paper?
Anyone have experience, Koo?
Kind regards,
DamirP.
Hi again,
Thank you to all these coments.
Now I know that alcohol is not hydrocarbon and if I try fountain pen in future I will wash it imediatelly after use.
Ruling pen would be nice to try too.
I just learned that Kremer is using shellac soap too. I also red that to do shellac soap in one part of process it require use of alcohol (ethanol). Does this ethanol used in making shellac soap evaporates from final ink binder?
This reminds me on making beeswax soap as is natural resin too.
Damir P.
Hi Damir,
I’ve tried egg tempera in a ruling pen, and if you get the consistency correct (neither too thick nor too thin) it works beautifully. I’ve never tried ET in a fountain pen. My guess is that, once the paint is properly tempered (correct ratio of egg to pigment) you could thin it substantially with water and use it in a pen. The trick would be to thoroughly wash out the pen immediately after use, as any ET left in the chamber would putrefy, and ET left in the nib would polymerize and clog it. Not sure what carbon black you are using, but my preference is Channel Black, which has an extremely small particle size. Guerra Paint in NYC sells it as a dispersion.
I am not an ink expert by any means, but my understanding is that India inks are not hydrocarbon-based. Traditionally I believe they have a binder of shellac (alcohol soluble); some “modern” versions use a synthetic polymer binder (water soluble). Perhaps one of those binders/dilutants would suit your purposes?
Koo
The binder in inks vary from manufacturer and lines. Waterproof vs non-waterproof would also be a factor. The old Higgens waterproof ink was and probably still is a shellac soap made water soluble by adding an alkali. It becomes water insoluble after drying. In addition to the binder, make sure that the ink is pigmented and not dye based. Not only could the resultant lines be fugitive to light, but they may also bleed through superimposed paint layers.
I have not seen alcohol included in recipes for shellac soap. If it was included, yes it would completely evaporate from the ink.
