Author Topic: Hilarious Ink Spill Question  (Read 4195 times)

Offline K-2

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Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« on: July 27, 2019, 12:44:53 AM »
I just wanted to share about my terrible no good very bad ink spill, which I feel this forum can empathize with.

Today I managed to spill most of a bottle of Iroshizuku take-sumi ink on my relatively new clothes and onto a relatively new wool area rug, simultaneously ruining three not cheap things.  The ink stain on the rug is several orders of magnitude more horrifying, of course, but my spouse has offered me no recriminations at all.  And thanks to this forum, I had some guidance to removing the worst of it.

"Yes, yes," you're saying, "K, we have all spilled a bunch of ink on ourselves and ruined things! It's not so bad!  You can replace ink & clean the clothes & rug."  And I agree that it is not the end of the world... (although it is probably why I can't have nice things, and I definitely can't afford to buy another rug)

BUT the hilarious part is that while scrambling to clean things up, I managed to stab myself with an ink-covered G-nib that I had been using to fine tune some work, so now I have a TINY TATTOO.  I have bathed, and scrubbed, and gotten all the other ink off of my legs, feet, arms, hands, etc (not the clothes or the rug, alas).  But the dot seems to be permanently and clearly dotted under my skin.

So Serious Question: Has anyone else ever accidentally stabbed themselves with a pointed nib and inadvertently given themselves a tiny tattoo?  Truly, I have been doing calligraphy for a long time, and spilled a lot of ink, but I have never tattooed myself before.  Is this common, and I've just been lucky until now?  And follow up question: Has anyone gotten rid of a self-inflicted accidental tattoo?  Any advice on this?

I guess I should be glad that it was black ink and not some other color, so it only looks like a tiny, very precise mole, and not like I changed my mind about body art at an awkward juncture.  And at least the project I was working on came through unscathed, so maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

--thank you for any tattoo removal advice, K



Offline jeanwilson

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #1 on: July 27, 2019, 06:58:24 AM »
If you want to spend some time working on the ink stain on the wool rug - try Clorox II.
It will take time - and depending on the dye used in the rug - it could take out some of the color --
but if you are patient - you can probably get all the ink out of the rug.
Let me know if you would like more detailed instructions.

Offline K-2

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #2 on: July 27, 2019, 09:21:09 AM »
Thanks, Jean!  Because of an earlier post you had written about using Clorox II to get ink out of clothes, I was able to get most of the ink out -- I scrubbed at it, blotted, massaged the carpet fibers and kind of messed up the pile of the carpet in that spot.  I have two kids; it's not the first time I've clean an unspeakable stain out of a rug (just not the nice new one).  But thanks to you, it doesn't look like a horrible ink spill anymore - you can tell something happened there; it just has a sort of blotchiness.  I think it did take out some of the color of the rug, while not getting quite all the ink out.  I worked at it for several hours before I had to leave for an event.  Do you think there are any other measures I could take?

The Clorox II worked better on my clothes - some of which were white, however, and those still show a shadow where the ink was, but I guess that's what I get for wearing white.

Frankly I'm more disturbed by my new tattoo than the other ink.

Thanks again for the Clorox II tip! I really appreciated being able to find it on the forum when I most needed it!
--yours, K

Offline KacyBG

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #3 on: July 27, 2019, 11:12:05 PM »
Being a seven-month newbie to these ink-and-nib battles, I have no useful advice. Only gratitude that your wound was small and mole-like, whereas mine would undoubtedly be a large, jagged creepily mysterious crescent. May your tattoo fade soon, and without a scar.

Jean, thank you so much! I am adding Clorox II to my shopping list immediately!

Offline jeanwilson

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #4 on: July 28, 2019, 08:52:07 AM »
I'll go back and review/edit the old posts.
There is still hope to get the shadows out of the clothing - soaking longer - and with diluted Clorox II will often take out the shadow.
Full strength Clorox II will eat holes in the fabric if it sits for too long.

Same with the rug situation. Soaking it in the morning with a diluted solution - let it sit all day - then use towels to absorb the solution at the end of the day to see how it is doing.
If it needs more time - resoak and let sit overnight - then check in the morning.
Avoid any scrubbing. Let the Clorox II do the work.
Cover the soaking area with an upside down bowl to keep it from drying.

I need to come up with a product for artsy people to use to disguise rug disasters.
There was a time when I could fix any rug problem with my Design markers - because I had one of every color.
I always thought it would be fun to just figure out a new pattern and make the disaster into a design.
There are endless ideas on Pinterest for creating patterns on fabric if you want to disguise a mishap on clothing.

About the tattoo - I didn't say anything because I did not want to be discouraging - but I have known a couple people who had accidently stabbed themselves and the dots seemed to be permanent.
Because I once Googled DIY brain surgery and found some options, I figured Google would have DIY tattoo removal.
This was just the first one that popped up.
There are more - so you might read through and see if any look like something you would want to try.

<<The best way to remove a tattoo is to see a dermatologist and ask about laser surgery removal. However, if you want to attempt to remove your tattoo at home, try rubbing the area with moist gauze and table salt for 30-40 minutes. Once you're done, apply antibiotic ointment and cover the area for 3 days.>>

Speaking of salt - if you ever have a blood stain - salt works very well. It will also take out some of the natural color too, if you are not careful.


Offline K-2

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #5 on: July 28, 2019, 06:58:32 PM »
Oh, thank you so much for the encouragement, Jean!  I'm going to try re-treating the rug (and maybe the clothes).  I shouldn't have scrubbed, I guess, since it messes up the nap.

Alas, my spouse just tried to slap & pick my tiny new tattoo off of me, thinking it might be a deer tick.  :o  I don't think it's going to come off with salt water.  oh well.


Offline Erica McPhee

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #6 on: August 06, 2019, 10:06:16 AM »
Oh my word! I promise I am not laughing at your misfortune!  ;D I suppose that is how "regular" tattoos are made - ink trapped under the skin with a needle. So, sorry but I think you may be stuck with it (see what I did there?).  ;D
Warm Regards,
Erica
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Offline gracefulgiftedhands

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #7 on: October 21, 2019, 04:04:56 PM »
I just wanted to share about my terrible no good very bad ink spill, which I feel this forum can empathize with.

Today I managed to spill most of a bottle of Iroshizuku take-sumi ink on my relatively new clothes and onto a relatively new wool area rug, simultaneously ruining three not cheap things.  The ink stain on the rug is several orders of magnitude more horrifying, of course, but my spouse has offered me no recriminations at all.  And thanks to this forum, I had some guidance to removing the worst of it.

"Yes, yes," you're saying, "K, we have all spilled a bunch of ink on ourselves and ruined things! It's not so bad!  You can replace ink & clean the clothes & rug."  And I agree that it is not the end of the world... (although it is probably why I can't have nice things, and I definitely can't afford to buy another rug)

BUT the hilarious part is that while scrambling to clean things up, I managed to stab myself with an ink-covered G-nib that I had been using to fine tune some work, so now I have a TINY TATTOO.  I have bathed, and scrubbed, and gotten all the other ink off of my legs, feet, arms, hands, etc (not the clothes or the rug, alas).  But the dot seems to be permanently and clearly dotted under my skin.

So Serious Question: Has anyone else ever accidentally stabbed themselves with a pointed nib and inadvertently given themselves a tiny tattoo?  Truly, I have been doing calligraphy for a long time, and spilled a lot of ink, but I have never tattooed myself before.  Is this common, and I've just been lucky until now?  And follow up question: Has anyone gotten rid of a self-inflicted accidental tattoo?  Any advice on this?

I guess I should be glad that it was black ink and not some other color, so it only looks like a tiny, very precise mole, and not like I changed my mind about body art at an awkward juncture.  And at least the project I was working on came through unscathed, so maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

--thank you for any tattoo removal advice, K

Totally unrelated to your ink spill.. BUT... DID YOU WRITE THIS BEAUTIFUL PIECE IN GERMAN?! Ahhhhh. I love it! By any chance, do you have a picture of the finished copy? :)

Cheers,
Rachel

Offline Katie Leavens

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #8 on: November 01, 2019, 08:11:42 PM »
I feel your pain, literally! After doing calligraphy for about 5 years, I just gave myself my first accidental tattoo last month. That will teach me to be distracted while my nib is inked!

Offline K-2

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #9 on: November 02, 2019, 07:42:12 PM »
@Katie Leavens - I hope your tattoo didn't hurt very much.

...But now I want to know - how common is this, that calligraphers accidentally tattoo themselves?

Perhaps it's ironic that I have sometimes designed tattoos for others.

Offline waterconfidence

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #10 on: November 02, 2019, 10:41:51 PM »
I don’t have the delight of an accidental ink tattoo; mine is a small broken off piece of pencil lead in my in the palm of my hand from dropping a supremely sharp pencil and trying to catch it. It’s been there for decades.   Sigh.   I guess I’ll ask my dermatologist the next time I see her how often does she see pen & ink mishaps.  You could always have it removed like a mole; with a quick shot and an excision.  Good luck!

Offline TeresaS

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Re: Hilarious Ink Spill Question
« Reply #11 on: November 03, 2019, 10:09:55 AM »
I don’t have the delight of an accidental ink tattoo; mine is a small broken off piece of pencil lead in my in the palm of my hand from dropping a supremely sharp pencil and trying to catch it. It’s been there for decades.   Sigh.   I guess I’ll ask my dermatologist the next time I see her how often does she see pen & ink mishaps.  You could always have it removed like a mole; with a quick shot and an excision.  Good luck!
That happened to me too... way back in high school or college.  It was there for years, but is gone now.  I had forgotten all about it!
Teresa