Copic reinker background

Refilling by the drip method just might mean drips. And I don't want to waste those drips! So when I refilled my Y17 I did it over glossy paper. I honestly didn't drip... so I had to drip on purpose to make this paper. I dripped in some peachy ink too, and then blobbed it all over with a cotton ball. Didn't blob quite fast enough and you can see the dark yellow drops behind the central image and on the lower right corner.

Next I put some metallic acrylic paint on a scrap, pounced my cotton ball into it and pounced here and there. All the thready marks that look brown and dull on this blog are really shiny gold metallic and look awesome.  Hey I gotta tell you, if I can tell you when I made mistakes, I can also brag when things turn out and this card is fantastic in real life.

How to refill a copic marker

Here's what my copic class looked like ---I am the one in the blue shirt getting coffee during the break when she took the photos. I was sooooo delighted, this morning somebody from Gingerwood emailed me and asked for advice on filling her marker without a needle.

I KNEW The answer! But I went and copied the directions from the copic site so that I would get it right .... in case you ever wondered, here is the deal ...

Here are the directions from the Copic website ... the easiest one for me I put stars in front of.  Just don't wear any clothes you love since if you are like me, there might be a drop that doesn't fit in the marker when you try to get just one more drop in. At the workshop she said to add 10 to 12 drops for a really dry marker. Her point was it is better to refill often than to overfill. You do need to pull out the tip - so if you don't have the tool, that can get messy and you might want to stick to the dripping on the tip thing but that takes F O R E V E R .....  one thing it doesn't mention is just letting the marker sit for 5 minutes so the ink can wick to both ends.   Apparently there is some wick thing through the center.

Refilling Copic Markers   (Cut and pasted from the copic website:)

Download the pdf instructions here.

Sketch, Copic and Ciao - Drip and Dab

This is the most direct method of refilling. Using the dropper built into the various ink bottle simply drip/dab drops of ink onto the chisel nib of your marker. Touch the very tip of the ink bottle to the tip of the marker. To refill a marker it takes about 20-30 drops of ink. Let each drop get sucked in before you add the next drop.

**********Remove Nib and Fill

This method is much faster than Drip and Dab. With your tweezers pull the chisel tip out from your marker. Take the cap off the other side of the marker (this helps to avoid getting air bubbles and allows the ink to seep in better). Carefully pour in the ink. Don’t squeeze too quickly since it’s easy to mis-judge how much ink you’re adding. When you’re done, put the nib back in and put both caps back on. Let your marker sit for a moment so the ink evenly distributes within the marker.

Refilling with the Booster Needle

Refilling markers with the Copic Booster needle is the most accurate and quick. Attach the Booster over the built-in dropper on a bottle of various ink. Then insert this into your marker, squeeze gently until you’ve added the correct amount of ink.

Zippety Doo Dah! Blog Hop Time

Sunshine really is as important to me as breathing ... on a sunny day I can really accomplish a lot. So this is a great song for me to choose.

The font I used is called CK Odd Ball. I found the song online, printed it out on cardstock, cut that to 4 x 5 1/4 and added my sunshine, bluebirds and scene, all muted by stamping once on scrap and then onto my cardstock.

I punched a circle from a post-it to mask out my sun while I lightly colored the sky with a brayer.  Then I colored it yellow with a cotton ball rubbing in circles.  My blue clouds are formed by rubbing light blue ink off the edge of punched scallop shapes onto the cardstock.

I love these bluebirds --- and added some copic coloring to make them stand out. ( C1 and B000)

Seems like a great song for a car ride across this beautiful country of ours in summer.  This month the ladies at Firecracker are singing on the road. I can see driving down route 66 in a nice shiny convertible and belting out this song. Something about sunshine makes for a wonderful day, at least in my book.

The bluebird stamps are available over at Firecracker Designs along with a lot of other fun stuff.  This month there are also some cards and  links to Paper Temptress papers that are to die for. I just wasn't johnny-on-the-spot enough to get the papers and use them on my hop card.

The official start time of this Hop is Friday, at 8:00 AM (EST). If you arrived early, please be patient as all the links may not be live yet.

This is a “circular blog hop” where the beginning is wherever you start!! You will know you are at the end of your blog hop when you’ve come back to the blog you’ve started. We'll all be showing a different interpretation of singing on the road this month. Your comment at each blog will give you another chance to win a special treat. If you win, you will be contacted by Pamela via e-mail (so be sure to leave it with your comment.) and you can also find out on Pamela’s blog after the blog hop ends on Mon, at 8:00 PM (EST).

If you want to hop right now, Ursula is next on the list. HOp on to her blog here

Teapot Tuesday

Today it is Zindorf brayering meets Copic Coloring meets punch art --- this card is a real conglomeration. I was quite tickled with the end result till I noticed ... now go look closely ... that the place where I labeled the paper on the back oozed through at the horizon line, and the blender pen on Lady Liberty's book ran into my sky. I KNEW I should have clear embossed that lady first.

This is on Stampin Up Whisper White --- I know that cuz I labeled it ... duhhh ... and even though some people say it is a bad choice for copics, I was absolutely thrilled at the aged greenish patina on the statue.  And lookie lookie at my waves! White pen!

Live and Learn.   Play often ... and giggle when you have to admit your mistakes. That is my new set of mantras.

My " First " Copic card

I went to a Copic Certification class this weekend in Grand Rapids. Debbie Olson is delightful and really shared her enthusiasm for playing with markers. My first card had to be a thank you card to Debbie for all her time and effort.

I get to add this gizmo to my blog now ... guess I better do some awesome coloring to go with it.