Meet It Monday: Sanford Prismacolor Art Markers

Markers, markers, markers! Besides being all the rage in the craft industry, they are a staple in every artist’s workshop (and most households, too!)

Today I’m going to share with you Sanford Prismacolor Markers- an alcohol-based, dual-tipped marker that is arguably the most popular marker with professional artists and illustrators. But they are widely available so that that makes them a prime candidate for crafters, too!

Here’s how they are described:

Every artist can appreciate these double-ended art markers. The ink is formulated to give the richest color saturation with silky smooooooth coverage. The duality of the thick and skinny tips let you change it up whenever the mood strikes. One ink source ensures color consistency from either end. It’s an alcohol, dye-based ink that’s non toxic.

Here’s a close-up of the nibs:

Now, both caps are interchangeable, but they are color-coded.  Like most alcohol markers, they do have a mild odor- but they are labeled as non-toxic.

Since I think most crafters use alcohol-based markers for coloring stamped images, it was stamped using Memento black ink on matte cardstock:

Then I used another stamp on some glossy cardstock. You do get more “lines,” but they were able to be blended out somewhat by layering both the clear blending marker and the peach marker:

Now, to get creative! Since alcohol markers work on non-porous surfaces, you can have a lot of fun.

Here I colored a metal embellishment with a teal marker.

I spritzed some glossy cardstock with rubbing alcohol, then layered some color by scribbling with the Sanford Markers. I laid a sheet of bubble wrap on top to make the pattern. Now, won’t that make a cool background?

You can also color right on a rubber stamp (the inks will dry quickly, but don’t worry).  Spritz it with some rubbing alcohol (or blending solution) and then stamp your image. You’ll get a watercolor effect.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Sanford Markers work beautifully with Prismacolor pencils. Here is an example of a stamped image that I colored with markers…

….and then went over with pencils. I used the colorless blender to blend it all together. (I should also note that I LOVE the colorless blender. Love.)

Overall, these are really the “premier” art markers. They are not refillable, but you’d probably need to use them for hours daily to actually use them up.

Just as an aside, I called my friend who is a professional artist/illustrator. When I asked about different alcohol-based markers, he said (as an artist) that his choice was Prismacolor. Is that enough of an endorsement?

Disclosure: This article is an abridged version of a review posted on, CraftTestDummies.com. Used with permission.