There are a variety of types of inks available for use in scrapbooking. Each has its own distinct characteristics, and is appropriate for different applications.
Dye ink is what is most commonly used for basic stamping. It dries quickly and is non-toxic, but may fade over time. Most of the ink I use is dye ink. It is great for stamping embellishments or making custom backgrounds and titles. Dye ink soaks into the paper on which it is stamped.
Pigment ink is thicker than dye ink, and the colors are generally more vivid and richer. Paper does not absorb pigment ink; instead, it dries on the paper's surface. For that reason, pigment ink takes much longer to dry than dye ink. You can hasten the drying process with a heat tool, but pigment ink is not a good option for glossy paper or vellum.
Versamark ink is a special kind of pigment ink. It is clear, and creates a watermark effect on cardstock. Among the special techniques you can do with Versamark is "pop-chalking" - a technique by which you stamp an image, then rub a cotton ball or cotton swab covered in chalk across it, making the image "pop" from the page.
Chalk ink is fast-drying like dye ink, but produces crisper images and brighter colors, like pigment ink.
Embossing ink is very slow-drying and "juicy", making it perfect for heat-embossing. You can buy embossing ink and markers in a variety of colors, but clear is the one most often used.
Permanent ink is used for stamping on tile, glass, and other non-porous materials that will not readily take other types of ink. StazOn is probably the best-known brand of this type.
One technique that can be really fun with stamps is heat embossing. This gives a stamped image a slightly raised, glossy texture. It's really pretty simple, and requires only a heat tool (you can use a hairdryer if you don't have a heat tool), embossing ink, and embossing powder.
Probably the most versatile stamps you will find are alphabet stamps. These come in sets of at least one stamp for each letter of the alphabet. Some sets have uppercase and lowercase. Some also have numbers or symbols included. The best unmounted sets have duplicates of the most-used letters so that you can spell words with, for example, two E's all at one time, before you stamp it.
The list goes on and on! Here are some ways I've used alphabet stamps on my own layouts (besides the Buds layout, above).
These layouts are the work of Kathy Clapp, who regularly uses stamps in her own scrapbooking.
Make two layouts: one using heat embossing, and another using alphabet stamps.
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