# Using Blacklights - Highlighter Markers vs. Blacklight Paint



## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

I don't know if anyone has ever done anything on that scale with highlighters. It'll be interesting to see the responses.

Either way, to make the color 'pop' it's always better to start with a white base. If you're using black paper, that may mean painting the sections you are going to color with white paint first. Those that skip this step are usually sorry.


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## kmb123 (Oct 6, 2009)

Good point Screaming Demons. 

I've heard that liquid Tide works well under UV light, although I was really hoping to use a variety of colors and would be concerned about drips where I don't want them. I've now turned into a googling machine these past 30 minutes looking for recipies for homemade blacklight paint.

I forsee a few mad scientist nights in my garage in my future!  I'm sure my hubby will love that, he already thinks I'm nuts for thinking about Halloween this early.


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## annamarykahn (Oct 4, 2009)

i just use cheap fluorescent paints as well as cheap glow in the dark paints

for example ...



















some more in my album http://www.halloweenforum.com/members/annamarykahn-albums-2010.html

you don't need expensive paints

never used highlighters though

amk


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## annamarykahn (Oct 4, 2009)

strange, my images aren't posting for some reason

maybe just check out my album?

amk


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## Xane (Oct 13, 2010)

Yeah, it doesn't have to be specifically blacklight paint as long as it's fluorescent. I do wonder how long highlighter ink lasts. Remember, the fluorescent part of the ink breaks down whenever it glows - it really is _literally_ glowing, not just "looks brighter" so the fluorescent component breaks down under use. And most highlighters I've used have quickly faded from nice bright fluorescent yellow to a dull brownish yellow, sometimes within days. So I don't think there's actually all that much fluorescent pigment in a highlighter, while fluorescent paint and blacklight paint has a higher percentage in it. Even products like fluorescent vinyl for emergency vehicles is usually only guaranteed for 6 months of sun exposure (there are some more expensive kinds out there that might have a 1-2 year rating), there's just no way to make it last forever.


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## DorkQuixote (Aug 31, 2009)

I think glow in the dark paint would probably be your best option but again I've never used highlighters for glow in the dark...


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## Pumpkinprincess (Aug 8, 2007)

I did a 3d garage haunt for the first time last year. I did a lot of experimenting with markers and paints. I've found the best results with Wildfire Paint. The look is amazing. Nothing works as well. It isn't cheap, but you could probably pick a couple of colors and have fantastic results.

Look in the tutorial section. Terra has a couple of how tos...painting haunt images and chormadepth techniques. It's a good starting point. Also check out her profile for some fantastic pictures!


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## kmb123 (Oct 6, 2009)

annamarykahn said:


> strange, my images aren't posting for some reason
> 
> maybe just check out my album?
> 
> amk


Awesome pics amk. Love the tombstones!

I was just trying to stay away from having to buy the florescent paints as I will need a lot of it to do what I'm trying to do. Sounds like I may just have to cough up the cash and do it the right way, although spending money on a prop that can be stored and used year after year is much easier than on spending it on something that will be thrown in the trash after the party.


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## Xane (Oct 13, 2010)

Hmm, but you can probably find deals on fluorescent paint in Walmart and Home Depot/Lowes as well as using coupons at Michaels and Joann. Don't necessarily have to order specific blacklight paint.


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## B Scary (Sep 8, 2007)

I have had several black light parties and I use florescent spray paints and florescent poster paints. Highlighters will not work on black paper. You can use the spray paint for large coverage areas and use the poster paints for the details. 

Tide does glow under black light but it glows light blue and it will run on paper.


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## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

While the Sargent brand paint doesn't glow as well as the more expensive brands, you can get it for about $6 a pint: http://www.allartsupplies.com/item.php?articleId=2324


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## Winklesun (Nov 1, 2008)

Paint that is marked as "neon" will also glow under blacklight. 
Tempura paints will work but need more coats than better quality paints. 
Rit whitener glows blue but it is runny.


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## kmb123 (Oct 6, 2009)

Thanks for all the tips! 

I'm thinkin' I'll use this or something similar. The price is much lower than what I've seen at some craft stores in my area. 

http://cgi.ebay.com/UV-ReActive-NEO...ain_0&var=&hash=item61cc2542da#ht_2656wt_1013


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## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

kmb123 said:


> Thanks for all the tips!
> 
> I'm thinkin' I'll use this or something similar. The price is much lower than what I've seen at some craft stores in my area.
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com/UV-ReActive-NEO...ain_0&var=&hash=item61cc2542da#ht_2656wt_1013


$6 for two ounces!!! That's definitely not the way to go!

I picked up a couple of two ounce bottle the last time I was in Walmart just because they were the last ones on the shelf. I haven't tried them out yet but they were only a dollar-something each.


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## kmb123 (Oct 6, 2009)

Screaming Demons said:


> $6 for two ounces!!! That's definitely not the way to go!


Yea, I posted that before looking at the listing more carefully. 

I may try running by WalMart tomorrow and see what they have. There is also a Michael's and a Hobby Lobby right there so I'll probably pop in there as well. I'll let ya know what I find.


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## Kustomnut (Jul 20, 2011)

I have been painting and airbrushing Black light murals for many years and the truefire paint seams to work the best for me. You will get better results and your paint will go alot further if you paint over a white sealed surface. the paintings in my album are more than 8 years old and still look amazing under Black light. 
http://www.halloweenforum.com/members/kustomnut-albums.html


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## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

That's some very nice work on all your props, Kustomnut. What did you paint those on, and how do you store them duiring the rest of the year?

kmb123, I'll paint a few swatches with the Walmart paint right now and will take a look at it early in the morning to see how it looks under blacklight after it's dried. I'll post then and let you know how it looks.


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## trentsketch (Aug 4, 2009)

Highlighter pens work when dissolved in a container of water. They just might not be as strong as the good blacklight paints for a large project. It's cheap enough to experiment with. I say try it.


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## kmb123 (Oct 6, 2009)

Screaming Demons said:


> That's some very nice work on all your props, Kustomnut. What did you paint those on, and how do you store them duiring the rest of the year?


Holy cow...no kidding...very impressive.



> kmb123, I'll paint a few swatches with the Walmart paint right now and will take a look at it early in the morning to see how it looks under blacklight after it's dried. I'll post then and let you know how it looks.


Wow, thanks! I plan on hitting a couple of stores tomorrow and trying out a few different products to see what works best. I may hold off now since you have so nicely volunteered to be my very own personal blacklight paint guinea pig!  Looking forward to seeing what you find out. Thanks for all the help, it is much appreciated!


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

If you decided to get the more expensive paint _(I like WildFire too)_ here's a tip to save you money. Get the three primary colors: red, yellow and blue. You can mix them to come up with the other colors of the rainbow. Also consider getting the white if that's a color you'd need or need to lighten any of them. You can add simple black paint to darken them. Agree about first painting the background white. You could skip that step for the darker colors if you want.

Airbrushing also allows you to stretch the paint. You get nice even coverage and you thin the paint down with water_ (60% paint/40% water)_ so you get almost twice as much. Note: I like a 55% paint to 45% water ratio for airbrushing.


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Oh, and get the Deep Yellow yellow. It's a truer yellow than the Bright Yellow.


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## Screaming Demons (Sep 15, 2008)

Screaming Demons said:


> kmb123, I'll paint a few swatches with the Walmart paint right now and will take a look at it early in the morning to see how it looks under blacklight after it's dried. I'll post then and let you know how it looks.


Interesting results. First, while mixing these containers I realized that they are neon and not fluorescent so I wasn't expecting much out of them. But after they dried the pink looked OK under blacklight, while the orange was barely visible and looked brown. I would say the Walmart pink was about equal in brightness to a Sargent fluorescent swatch. Those were the only two colors Walmart had the day I was there.

The Walmart paint is called FolkArt Neon Plaid and it was in the arts and crafts aisle. The only reason I bought it was some quick math in my head showed that the price would work out to about $100 a gallon but I would only have to buy a small quantity. I honestly wouldn't buy any more of it.

Another fluorescent swatch I did at the same time was a brand called VanAken Jaz, another tempera paint. I have a few bottles of this but I'm not sure when/where I bought it. This popped better than the Sargent. But none of them equalled Wildfire, which also picks up blacklight from a greater distance. That is something else to consider - if you get cheap paint you may have to buy more blacklights to make them glow, negating any savings. Or position them much closer than you would like.

A final note, which ties in with Terra's last comments: this type of painting is difficult to do with a brush. Any streaks/uneven coverage in a layer are very noticeable under blacklight. If you do use a brush, at least make sure you go in a direction that won't distract from the effect. If you have a long, narrow paint strip, make your brush strokes in the long direction and not cross-ways.


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## Xane (Oct 13, 2010)

Hmm, I was thinking more about safety fluorescent paint from the hardware section, either can or spray.


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## JBfromBS (Oct 11, 2008)

Yes, the fluorescent spray paint you can get from Lowes or Home Depot definitely works, but the colors are limited. Last year we used some from Blick Art supplies, and they worked really well. We had the walls covered with black plastic and just put a thick coat of the student acrylic on, and it popped really well. It's about $12 per half gallon, whicg I thought was very reasonable.

http://www.dickblick.com/products/blickrylic-student-acrylics/


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## Pumpkinprincess (Aug 8, 2007)

I used a brush and foam brushes to paint my haunt walls last year. I did an IT theme, with clowns and spiders. I found that passing a foam brush muted my paint strokes. I was pleased with the appearance because I wanted it to look like the clowns had decorated to entice the TOTs to enter.

I wish I had pictures of my walls. I do have a video, but it's in HD and I can't find the right format to upload it on my computer. I've asked my husband to do it on his newer/better computer, but it hasn't been on the top of his priority list. Can't complain...he is building me a mausoleum entrance to my haunt right now.

I've started to paint this year's walls. I"m doing a Haunted Mansion theme this year. I've only done the busts and several portraits. Again, using a brush. The paint strokes add to the look, but I"m practicing on an air brush right now to do the bigger scenery.

Blacklight.com sells blacklight balloons. They were perfect for my theme last year. I had several hanging from the ceiling on fishing line. They were fantastic and very affordable. 

I've found the floor effects got the greatest response from TOT. Don't forget about the floors!


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## Xane (Oct 13, 2010)

Other ideas that occur to me are fluorescent paper, fluorescent poster board, and fluorescent duck tape.


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## Pumpkinprincess (Aug 8, 2007)

Thought it might help to show an example. I used Wildfire Optical white on one of those stryofoam tombstones for a project that will remain nameless.  I took less than a teaspoon of the paint, added water and dry brushed the tombstone. 

I took this picture about noon, so not in a dark environment. This will absolutely GLOW at night!


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Pumpkinprincess said:


> Thought it might help to show an example. I used Wildfire Optical white on one of those stryofoam tombstones for a project that will remain nameless.  I took less than a teaspoon of the paint, added water and dry brushed the tombstone.
> 
> I took this picture about noon, so not in a dark environment. This will absolutely GLOW at night!


OH MY!!! Is that your Secret Reapee gift and is it for me??????? 

Looks amazing.


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## Pumpkinprincess (Aug 8, 2007)

Terra said:


> OH MY!!! Is that your Secret Reapee gift and is it for me???????
> 
> Looks amazing.


lol Thanks. It's part of my gift.


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