Alcohol Markers

The best thing about alcohol markers is that they blend seamlessly. For this to happen they work best on paper, so they are not really appropriate for canvas work. That being said, they are very versatile when it comes to TYPE of artwork. By that, I mean that they are a great base for portrait work and give a really professional look to drawings of objects. Alcohol markers can also be used for landscape drawings as well as their more popular use serving as tools to bring anime characters and cartoons to life.

Alcohol markers are made especially for artists. This means you don’t have streaks across your drawings like you would if you were colouring with water-based pens. Alcohol markers dry quicker and are better for blending because the isopropyl doesn’t soak into the paper and damage it like water based pens do. On top of that, alcohol markers are more eco friendly because they have replaceable nibs and they are refillable so you don’t have to keep buying more pens.

Obviously this question is subjective and really depends on your preferred style. For those of you who like watercolour, then the aqua markers might be ideal. Those who prefer pencils might find, as I did, that alcohol markers provide a great base. My favourite medium used to be acrylic, however, I have found that alcohol markers make a lot less mess and don’t require additional tools such as paintbrushes.

I mainly draw objects, but recently I have experimented with using them for portraits and have been really impressed with the results. I personally use ‘Spectrum Noir’ markers but there are other brands available. What I love about Spectrum Noir is their different collections of pens. I have pens from 5 different collections including their Tri-colour pens, watercolour markers and glitter pens.