Ellen larrine@msn.com
Just a note about Arte Colors. They work on polymer clay. I diluted them with alcohol and with water. I also mixed them in translucent liquid Sculpey. In either instance I got a nice color wash effect

ashleyshea paperartstudio@charter.net
Here's a little explanation of what I did with these new dyes and the images I uploaded to our photo album. One of the things I had the most fun with is using an Easter Egg dying technique. I had dropped one drop of dye on a plastic palette. That drop went a LONG way. I barely touched it with a paint brush and then touched the paint brush to the surface of clean water. It was fun to see the dye spread out on the surface. I then dropped Sheer Heaven (textured side down) or handmade paper on to the surface of the water. I was surprised I didn't have to leave the Sheer Heaven there for a while for it to soak up the ink. It soaked it up immediately.
What is fun about these dyes is that you can easily overlap them to create different colors. The photo titled "Overlapping" shows full strength dye on Sheer Heaven. I put down a drop of red, spread it out, and let it dry. Then I put down a drop of blue next to it and when I spread it out I overlapped part of the red. I let the blue dry and did the same with yellow.
To use the dyes at a diluted strength, I put one drop of each color on the textured side of Sheer Heaven and let it dry. Then I could use it almost like a set of watercolors. This made the colors really light, but I could keep adding layers of colors to make them darker.
What I'm told is that this dye is thinner so that it flows through paper easier. The handmade paper that I dyed is colored on both sides, not just one. Even the one that I used the Easter Egg technique with dyed all the way through. I thought I would be able to tell which side was dropped directly on to the ink, but I couldn't. Both sides were brightly colored. Now that may have been due to the type of paper I used. I'm not sure. The other thing I notice as a difference from other papers I have seen that have been marbled is that I don't feel the color. Most marbled papers I've seen feel like the paper has been painted. The original texture of the handmade paper has been lost. Because these dyes are lighter, I don't feel them on the paper. The paper looks like this is the way it came. Again, this may be the paper I used or my limited experience with dying paper, but, from what I've heard about this product, I believe this will always be the case.

Jessica gallerydsf@aol.com
The Arte Colores are actually a hybrid of a couple of types of silk and fabric dyes. They are made to flow through fabric and soak in. In fact, when they are used on fabric, it is necessary to create resists and "dams" to stop the flow and keep it where you want it. This is also necessary on absorbant papers if you want to contain it. One of the things that we found *so* exciting about Sheer Heaven is that you could "paint" on it with these dyes without creating dams. The etched surface of Sheer Heaven has enough "grab" that the dyes stay put instead of flowing all over the place. it's exciting to be able to use something with color this vibrant and brilliant as a paint on a non-fabric surface.
It is going into the paper and not sitting on it like oil-based marbling paints or acrylics would do. That's why you can't "feel" it like it was painted on. These dyes are no relation to the alcohol dyes like Trias and Pinata. This is a whole different animal. Works and feels more like a liquid watercolor.

ashleyshea paperartstudio@charter.net
I agree. I was only able to "paint" on Sheer Heaven. It would be like painting with water on other papers. But some of the scans I uploaded were on handmade paper. I like the idea of being able to dye my own paper to match my current need rather than having to go on a search to find the color of paper I'm needing. Arte Colores dyes makes this possible.

Jessica gallerydsf@aol.com
I am in love!! You know I am a color nut and this is like color to the umpteenth power - and brilliant, "lit from inside" color. These little bottles will last for a very long time because you can extend them with water and, in fact, you must extend some of them. The yellow is so intense that I recommend you add drops of Color to the water rather than the other way around. I use those little plastic medicine cups, and three drops of golden yellow in a half medicine cup of water gave me a bright sunshine yellow. Straight out of the bottle it is actually orange. So what is different from Silk Colors? More color intensity and more control. Silk Colors are brilliant but they start out more diluted. With Arte Colors, you get to control that dilution so you have a wider range of color. Silk Colors have too much flow to use in contained areas on paper (except for SH of course). Arte Colors are better behaved on porous surfaces, but still flowable enough to dye a wet paper surface (and blend).
What did I try? Well, I painted on Sheer Heaven - beautiful - like stained glass as Shari said. Then, I painted on Wausau Bright White Card Stock and was really pleased that it stayed pretty much where I put it. So, then I tried the ultimate porous surface - my bisque tiles. It still stayed where I put it! Wow! And blending one color into another on the tile was really interesting. Not as brilliant on the tile but that is because it soaks way in and doesn't have light reflected from behind it. This is true of all transparent paints on bisque tile. Then I got a very fine brush and a calligraphy pen and made very fine lines on the cover stock. No bleeding! That means these dyes would be great for calligraphy projects too. I tried the fine line with the brush on the tile and that didn't bleed either.
So then I got nuts and pulled out some of those foam stamps for wall decor (small ones - stars). I poured the Arte Color on a styro plate, dipped the foam stamp and stamped on cover stock. The first impression was too wet, the second was perfect. So offloading some color on a scrap is a good thing. Worked the same on the tile. I had some of that flat sponge stuff that you cut a shape and then wet it and have a stamp? I cut out a star, expanded it, squeezed the water out, and then let it soak up the color on the plate. It made wonderful impressions on everything as long as I didn't apply enough pressure to squeeze the paint out of the sponge. I just touched it lightly on the card and tile surface and really liked the results.
SO. . . this product gets my highest recommendation and I will probably use Arte Colors even more than I use my Silk Colors. By the way, they are available wholesale only through Bobbi. They are privately labelled for Enviropapers. I bought mine retail from Shari at Paper Art Studio and got great service!!
There are nine basic colors because that encourages mixing. There is no white because you use dilution with water and the white surface of the paper to lighten. They are archival and lightfast (which is such a good thing with dye). They should be heat set on fabric. Clean up is just as easy as watercolors.
They are permanent after heat setting (steam ironing). The ingredients of Arte Colores started life as silk and fabric dyes. I don't know the Dr. Martins Canvas Transparent Paints, but the difference between these and Lumieres/Neopaques is pretty vast. The other two are both acrylics which essentially sit on top of the fabric and even though they leave the fabric as soft and pliable (soft "hand" that is called) as an acrylic paint can, they still affect the surface feel. Arte Colores will sink right in and the surface of the fabric will have no change at all - except for being a different color, of course. The other difference is that these dyes are going to "flow" on fabric, so they wouldn't be good for very tight-edged, detailed painting. But if you've ever seen a beautifully painted silk scarf or tie, you know that a looser style can be a knock out.