Nichol Stokes

I've always been creative since being a young girl and have up-cycled furniture made jewellery and done a photography degree but life always took over and I ended up working in the apprenticeship sector for many years and only dabbled in creativity more as a hobby.

I then lost my job before lockdown started and had 2 little ones to focus on so finding a job wasn't on the radar. 

At the beginning of lockdown, I stumbled across some artwork on Instagram which I found was done using alcohol ink. I'd never heard of it but loved the layers, movement and delicate colour blends so did a little research, watched a couple of YouTube videos and ordered my first set of inks.

As soon as I put ink to paper I was hooked. I was mesmerised by how the inks moved. It was so calming and yet super exciting as you never knew what the end result would be!

The feedback I got was amazing and I ended up with a steady stream of commissions throughout lockdown and knew this was what I was meant to be doing. 

I spent hours practising until I developed a style of my own and all the work I do is based on flowers or landscapes using techniques of manipulating the ink using a hairdryer brush. 

I live in Sheffield on the edge of the Peak District and as a family, we love being outdoors and am lucky to find lots of inspiration on our doorstep. 

Fast forward to the twins being back at school and I now have a studio at home and spend my days happily painting away and building my business as a full-time alcohol ink artist.