How to Make Alcohol Ink Ornaments

Learn how to make alcohol ink ornaments. These quick and easy ornaments have a beautiful translucent watercolor-like texture.

You might also like this post on paint swirl ornaments.

close up of green and yellow alcohol ink ornament with white tinsel in background

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Tips for Making DIY Alcohol Ink Ornaments

Supplies Needed:

Clear Ornaments
Alcohol Ink
Canned Air
Rubbing alcohol (for clean up)
Paper cups (for draining excess ink)
Something to protect your work area
Gloves if desired

For more information, see the notes about supplies section below. It’s lengthy, so I moved it to the bottom of the post.

Instructions

Protect your work surface because alcohol ink stains. I used a sheet of freezer paper with the shiny side down. The glossy side keeps the ink from leaking through the paper onto my desk. (You might want gloves as well.)
Remove the metal ornament hanger.
Add a few drops of alcohol ink to the inside of the ornament and let them swirl around.
Use the canned air to make the ink dry faster.
Add a few drops of another color and swirl it around. The color will mix with the 1st color where it hits.
Apply more canned air to dry the ink.
Let the excess ink drain into a paper cup.
Let the ink dry thoroughly before replacing the ornament hanger.

Making Solid Colored Alcohol Ink Ornaments

It’s also possible to make solid-colored alcohol ink ornaments. Apply one color and swirl it around. Let the excess ink drain into a cup.

Notes about Supplies

Ornaments

Glass vs plastic. I tried both plastic and glass ornaments to see how they would work. The alcohol ink had an easier time sticking to the plastic ornaments.

The glass ornaments were harder to use. For my first batch, the ink wouldn’t stick at all, even after I cleaned them with rubbing alcohol.

alcohol ink not sticking to glass ornament

I bought another batch of glass ornaments and had no problems at all. I guess that some glass ornaments are coated with something in production.

If you’re having trouble, try plastic or another brand of glass ornaments.

You can also try using less ink or spraying it with the canned air to make it dry faster.

spraying alcohol ink in ornament with canned air

Sizing. I bought ornaments online and was shocked when I opened the box to see the crazy sizes I had accidentally ordered.

Standard ornaments are about 100 mm or 3 inches.

The smaller glass ornaments worked better than those I had bought in the store.

Ball Vs. 2-Piece Ornaments. The other mistake I made when ordering clear ornaments was not paying attention and accidentally getting 2-piece ornaments.
It’s really easy to put fun stuff inside the ornaments, but they might not be what you’re looking for. (Plus, the ones I bought are huge.)

I also had some of these tear-shaped ornaments on hand, which turned out lovely.

They are also 2-piece ornaments, and I had a lot more luck with how they turned out.

I think it’s because so much air reaches the ink, so it can dry faster.

Alcohol Inks

Alcohol inks are not created equally. I bought some from an art supply store and some in the craft range.

I liked the craft range way more! The colors were more vibrant and thicker, and they just worked better.

I bought this kit with magenta, yellow, and cyan, which was perfect for creating every color of the rainbow.

By the way, alcohol ink is different from standard calligraphy ink. Since it’s made with rubbing alcohol, it dries much faster and is also more translucent.

Don’t try to use standard ink.

Colors still mix when they are dry. Even when the ink had dried, they would reactivate and mix with the fresh color, so be careful.

Adjacent colors look best in one ornament. Remember the color wheel when working with alcohol inks.

When all three colors mix, they become brown or black. This is not a great look for a Christmas ornament.

Alcohol ink clean-up. If you mess up, you can remove the ink with rubbing alcohol.

You can also try rescuing an ornament with some gold leaf. It made this ugly ornament better looking.

The ink stains, so you might want to wear gloves. It’s a little smelly, but nothing toxic.

Sealing alcohol ink. If you use alcohol ink on the outside of the ornament, it’s a good idea to seal it with a few light coats of clear polycrylic.

Let it dry between coats.

Alcohol ink may fade if exposed to light. In my spare time, I’m an artist.

Alcohol ink markers like Copic are NOT lightfast, which means they will fade over time, especially if exposed to sunlight. I would assume the same to be true of this ink.

How to Make Alcohol Ink Ornaments