Ei-Kan Productions

A professional portfolio of my multifaceted talents in the many fields I do freelance work-for-hire. I use many writing styles on a variety of subjects written for clients (or publish links to them); videos created for practice & for clients; audio samples of my natural human voice (never machine-generated!); links to websites created; logos, machinema, & other graphics. I would love to do your project! Contact me for details. Ei-Kan Productions stands for QUALITY...I can, so you can.

Wednesday, May 27, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories and the Problems They Solve - Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 3

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 2
Next Question to be Answered: Diamond Painting Canvas Issues Part 1

How do I find the special shapes styles?
This is a question that I wish I had a better answer to. As common as a lot of them seem to be, they are darn hard to find, especially in the necessary color. One of the methods I have used is to take a picture of the odd shaped drill that I’m looking for and let Google Lens find it for me. Sometimes they can be found at specialty bead shops, often in the nail art section but usually in collections with other shapes that don’t tend to be used in diamond art. I have even found some of the more unusual special shapes on Temu before they sold out. In fact, whenever I run across similar special shapes in the diamond art size range, I acquire every color I can. That way, if I can’t find the exact color, I just may have a similar color or shape that I can substitute instead. Here are some suppliers of various drill styles, shapes and colors:
--- Diamond Painting Pro https://diamondpaintingpro.com?sca_ref=10996985.UefHaQBtHx
--- Diamond Painting Drills https://diamondpaintingdrills.com
--- Diamond Drills USA https://diamonddrillsusa.com individual colors in many styles
--- DP with Sparklers https://dpwithsparklers.com A lot of metallic pearls also in larger sizes
--- Shimmering Canvases https://shimmeringcanvases.com
--- Munimade https://munimade.com

Is there such a thing as special shapes for square drill projects?
Yes! There are bars, bricks, and blocks made from cut glass crystal to add depth, dimension and texture with even more shine and sparkle, and they work in both round and square projects. Bars cover a line 1x4 spaces long in a square project or 3.5 spaces long in a round one. You can stretch that out to 4 spaces by centering the bar over the round circles. Blocks cover a 2x2 square. Bricks cover a 3×2 rectangle. At this writing there are 30 colors of bars (mostly metallics plus 4 opaques); 45 colors of blocks, including AB; and 9 AB bricks. They do not follow the DMC coding system. https://diamondpaintingdrills.com/product-category/bars-blocks-and-bricks/

There are also flame drills that are specifically sized for square drill projects. Since these drills are made from cut glass they can ONLY be made in a round shape. https://diamondpaintingdrills.com/product/flame-crystal-drills-set-of-4-rd-sq/

Do they make black light drills?
Yes! A black light merely provides the energy to create photoluminescence, or fluorescence on objects that have colors that naturally react to UV light wave frequencies, such as some fish, insects, mammals and paint colors and fabrics. Some drills will naturally show up brighter under a black light, but they may not glow in the dark. And there are some drills that are specifically sold as UV drills as noted above.

I don’t want to buy 447 different colors when I only need one to finish the project. How can I find the right color and style of the missing drill?
You can buy specific individual colors by searching for the DMC color number, type of drill, and shape. For example: ”910 Crystal round drills”. This book would get unwieldy if I even attempted to add those who sell individual drills, and not all sellers sell all colors. Most don’t keep an inventory of all 447 colors, so for some of the less common colors, you just may have to bite the bullet and buy a bulk collection. Diamond Art Club has even more colors, but they also formulate their drills from the Pantone color charts https://www.pantone-colours.com) as well as the DMC (https://www.thread-bare.com/tools/closest-dmc-thread-color-lookup) and have several proprietary drill styles. If you would like to add some of their specialty drills to your collection, you will need to contact them directly at http://diamondartclub.com
Of course, with all these colors and styles of drills, you’re going to need a lot of labels for all of the storage bins you’re going to be filling up. They are also useful for marking your zipper bags, and for when you are “kitting up” (getting drills organized to start a new project) and need to slap a new number or symbol over your in-progress working organizer. https://amzn.to/4vcN1Oj
Or you can go all out and grab a variety of stickers in all shapes and sizes that are specifically related to diamond painting – a book of 8000 stickers to be exact! https://amzn.to/4tsXUdI

Ok, we bought all these backup sets, now how do we keep track of all these colors so we can easily find the shade we need?
This is where a full-color DMC color chart inventory logbook comes in handy. You can use double-sided glue tape to glue sample drills on each color bar so that you know exactly what number is assigned to that color. This is extremely important when you have drills from Michael’s Make Market, Hobby Lobby or Diamond Dotz kits, because they all use their own color codes. No official DMC conversion chart exists for Michael’s or Hobby Lobby. For AB drills only, Diamond Art Club uses a proprietary 101-149 numbering system, which requires specialized conversion charts when sourcing drills from aftermarket suppliers. And many of the lower cost manufacture-less canvases have no color code at all, other than the one used to match the symbols on the canvas, so you are forced to guess if you have any more of that color, or if it is a new one. This non-standard coding makes having a DMC color chart very important, so that you can find replacement drills from other sites and benefit from their sales and discounts. Plus, using a single coding system reduces the need for additional storage containers over time and lowers the chance of confusion when assigning similar numbers to containers from different companies. By sticking with one coding method, you avoid mix-ups and simplify your numbering tasks. The DMC book is also extremely handy when you run across drills you have spilled somewhere, or found while sweeping the floor, and can’t remember what kit they came from.
https://amzn.to/3PWetzL
If you use Diamond Dotz kits and can’t find a logbook that has the conversion chart, there is one on the company’s website that you are free to use: https://eu.diamonddotz.com/diamond-dotz-to-dmc-conversion-chart

If we run out of a particular color, how do we know if we have that same color somewhere in our stash or storage?
Again, the above full-color DMC inventory books are a great resource to have, especially if you can glue in a known sample drill for reference. The reason for gluing in a drill is because the printed ink colors won’t match the drills exactly, (it’s an ink vs plastic color thing) so it is best to have a known drill by the correct color number as a reference. One way to make sure you have the correct drills for each code number is to purchase a set of extra beads that already have the DMC codes on them. And then use those to match up with your book. As stated above, not all projects provide DMC codes for their diamonds, so you’re on your own to match what you have. One caveat! Sometimes the colors that you buy do NOT match the DMC chart, and it’s not a batch issue, it’s just so far off as to be obvious, like receiving a green instead of a yellow with the same number. So, always use the printed DMC chart as your authoritative guide, and change the labels on your storage containers if you must. You can also use one of the various online DMC search tools such as https://www.thread-bare.com/tools/closest-dmc-thread-color-lookup but that link first requires that you know the number of the color you are looking up.

I am totally stumped trying to figure out this drill color code! What do you suggest I do?
If you absolutely must know what the exact color is and nothing else will do, you can always purchase a handheld color identification device known as a spectrophotometer. But that might be a bit of overkill in this hobby. My suggestion would be to use the closest color you CAN find, even if it means removing a few that don’t quite match or try a different color in that area altogether. But if you insist on exact matching, here is an option for you, but it does not specify the minimum object size that it can detect a color on. You may need to put several drills in a large patch for proper detection.
https://amzn.to/4cJ3e6I
This one can detect colors on an item as small as 2mm but it’s going to be pricey: https://amzn.to/48Gj27U

Previous Question Answered: Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 2
Next Question to be Answered: Diamond Painting Canvas Issues Part 1

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Saturday, May 23, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories and the Problems They Solve - Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 2

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories and the Problems They Solve - Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 1

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.
Next Question to be Answered: Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 2

Drills are what the flat bottomed, half round or square beads, gems, rhinestones or diamonds are officially called, and without them, there would be nothing to “paint” with! There are several theories as to why they are called “drills”, but none are definitive. The most endearing one is that of a translation issue from Chinese manufacturers, who labeled the tiny little plastic bits as something that translated into English as "plastic drill bits" or something similar. The standard diamond art size for round drills is 2.8 mm with 26 facets and for square drills, it’s 2.5 mm with 9 facets. Special shapes also exist as stars, ovals, pointed ovals, tear drops, etc., but those are not easy to find outside of the project kit in which you first found them. And to add to the dilemma, there’s usually no leftover special shaped drills when you are finished. So, hoard those for emergency replacements!

Is there some easier way to work with these drill packets that are connected in the kits? They slip and slide before you can cut them apart, and you can’t stack them in any useful order.
Rather than fight with that long strip of connected diamond packets, cut all the packets off at once, and place them in a caddy such as this one below, in numerical order, or whatever order you wish. It’s much easier this way to grab a packet, cut it open, and pour it into your tray if you are one of those who would prefer to work out of the packet without kitting up into another container. It’s great for keeping the slippery little devils corralled while you put them in more permanent containers or while kitting up. Each compartment can hold up to three full packets of the same color or use it to hold your little clay squares and other small diamond art accessories.
https://amzn.to/4btANrm

Why do some drills stick to the inside of the bag, or the lid and sides of my storage containers, or even to each other in the tray? How can we stop this from happening?
Static electricity is the cause of this phenomenon. It’s often caused by dry conditions or friction during packaging, and during pouring them out, and it most often affects the acrylic opaque drills more than the crystal rhinestones, though all drill styles may be affected occasionally. Eliminate the static, and you eliminate the problem. Easier said than done, right? Well, it can be fixed by introducing moisture or using laundry dryer sheets. There’s a reason why most “anti-static” wipes are also damp.
https://amzn.to/4m9Dovw

Various remedies exist for this rather common situation, and a few are listed below.

---- Cut up a used anti-static dryer sheet into small squares, about a half inch in size. Place a piece of this in the container with the drills, or in the kit packet before pouring, or your storage container, and shake well. In fact, keep that little square in your storage containers with the drills. You can also rub the outside of plastic bags or storage containers with a used dryer sheet before opening them. There’s nothing wrong with using a new dryer sheet, other than the rather overwhelming scent that may affect some people in adverse ways. Used sheets have less of this scent.
https://amzn.to/4c3A1Sh

--- If static is making the drills stick to the tools or fall or fly out of the tray, just treat the tray or the tools by wiping them with a dryer sheet or add a tiny amount of moisture as mentioned below. Ways to add moisture consist of the following methods.

--- You can put the bags of drills into the freezer for about 15-30 minutes. I am not sure why this works, other than perhaps to introduce moisture via condensation as they thaw out, but it is useful if you don’t have time to fiddle with the dryer sheets and aren’t planning on starting your project immediately. So, as soon as your kit arrives, toss the drills bags into the freezer and retrieve them when you’re ready to start, to save time.

---- Another way you can add moisture is by lightly blowing warm air into the bag, using a technique that I call “hawing”. You can also wipe the inside of the bag with a slightly damp cotton swab that has been dipped in water and distilled vinegar that has been mixed with 1-2 drops of vinegar to 1 oz of water. You can put this mix into a small spray bottle and mist the drills lightly. No need to make them wet, just a light mist is fine. Here are some handy spray bottles that you can use for all sorts of things:
https://amzn.to/4ttzCj3

---- If you’d like to prevent this static electricity situation from happening, you can use a humidifier in your crafting room to help reduce the dryness that causes the static electricity in the first place. https://amzn.to/48fcTPC

---- If you don’t want to use any of the solutions above, then just cut a small corner of the bag to make it easier to transfer the drills without creating more static from the friction of them flowing too fast out of the bag.

What can we do when we come across greasy looking or sticky drills or ones that defy all the static removal methods?
This situation more often affects crystal drills because they are created by gluing colored foil to the flat back of the gem. But ALL the drill styles can benefit from the following method. Put a drop of dish detergent into a small bowl of water. Using a tea strainer, place it into the water, and pour the drills into the strainer. Lightly stir the gems around or just shake the strainer in the water. Remove the strainer from the water and rinse under the faucet in the sink. Pour the drills onto a paper towel, dab the water out with another paper towel and when they are completely dry, put them into your storage container. This not only cleans the machine grease and other manufacturing gunk off your drills but also eliminates static by introducing moisture….and they tend to sparkle even MORE, because there isn’t any residue of any kind on them. It’s great to use with drills you may have dropped on the floor as well, because they could have picked up body oils from the carpet. This is my favorite dish detergent for absolutely everything including flea control on pets that I also keep in an aforementioned sprayer bottle:
https://amzn.to/48BvjKz
Here is a set of three super fine mesh strainers
https://amzn.to/4txfRqX

I washed my drills like you suggested, but some are still stuck together. What do I do now?
Sometimes drills are stuck together for a reason other than static electricity – manufacturing issues. Yes, sometimes drills are stuck together because they didn’t get separated properly at the factory. In the same package of stuck drills, you may also find misshapen drills, or drills with tiny bits sticking from them. Those should all be thrown out. But if they are just stuck together, there is an easy way to separate large groups of them, a Drill Grinder or Drill Separator, but you should examine them after separation to see if any of them are worth keeping or not. If possible, purchase better quality kits from companies that offer better quality drills. But a drill grinder is easy to use for either round or square drills. Just place the drills in the bottom part of the grinder, put the top on, and lightly twist from side to side until they're all separated. If you see a lot of stuck drills in a bag, just pour the whole bag in, those that need separating will come apart.
https://amzn.to/4mF2keR

I bought a cheap, low-quality kit and there are a lot of trash drills. How can I collect them and ditch them as I am working?
You can pop them into any small jar or container to throw out later (or use as colored “sand” to plant dried flowers in. Here is a cute cover minder that doubles as a trash can. There are a lot of different styles as well.
https://amzn.to/4tcdB7U

What do we do when the kit doesn’t have enough of a particular color drill to finish the project?
Fortunately, this situation doesn’t happen very often with high quality kits by well-known manufacturers, but when it does happen, you can contact the manufacturer and let them know which color(s) is missing and for which kit. You will need the kit number and the color number in most cases, and probably your sales receipt. However, many diamond painting projects don’t have a manufacturer listed, so in those cases, you will need to contact the seller, and if that fails, you may need to purchase your own replacement drills. This requires that you know the color code of the drill you are missing, and to complicate matters, the color codes are not standardized, and neither are the color names. The main color codes used are from the DMC (Dollfus-Mieg & Compagnie) thread colors, and they are a guideline for the hobby, but several diamond art manufacturers use their own codes, and in some cases, conversion charts to DMC exist, but not for all. Additionally, dye lots can differ with every manufacturer, and even between batches from the same manufacturer. There is no control over shades, so they may not perfectly match drills you have from other sources or even drills you may have purchased from the same supplier in the same order! Photos are often inaccurate due to the differences between the colors of light and the colors of ink vs the actual product. It can be a complex mess! But more on this as we move through this, and other sections, as necessary.

You can either order specific colors when you need them and wait for a slow boat from you-know-where to arrive before you can finish, or you can be proactive and order a full set of drills in every color imaginable as a backup for the eventuality that at some point in the future you’re going to need more of at least one of those 447 colors. Having a backup set, however, is great for when you don’t like a color in the kit and would prefer to swap it out with a different color that makes more sense to you. See the links below for bulk backup sets of different styles. Be sure to take note of whether you are ordering square or round drills.

Previous Question Answered: Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.
Next Question to be Answered: Drills - the Heart of the Art Part 2

+%-=+%-=+%-=++%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=
I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Thursday, May 7, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Drill Picker Pens and Styluses
Next Question to be Answered: Drills – the Heart of the Art - Part 1

Every kit comes with a little pink or blue square pad of something tacky that goes by the various names of clay, putty, mud, or wax that is used for picking up drills and placing them on the canvas. But, for some people, this little pad is not ideal, so questions have emerged and alternatives sought. Note that the stickiness of the picker pen must be strong enough to pick up the drills, but not so strong that the drills aren’t pulled off easily by the adhesive on the canvas. It’s a delicate balance.

How do you get the putty from the pad into the pen?

The idea is that you peel the plastic off one side of the little pad (it doesn’t matter which side) and then you poke your stick pen into the pad, all the way through, to fill the tip with the tacky substance. This allows you to pick up the drills out of the tray. You may be able to place several drills before needing to poke your pen into the putty pad again. The little pad ends up looking like Swiss cheese over the life of the project, and some clay pads appear to stay tackier longer than others. They do dry out, but even though it can take a long time to do so, it is wise to store unused pads in a sealed container or a zipper bag. There are lots of zipper bag sizes to consider. You may even want to use them for sorting drills or packaging individual small projects, like keyrings, magnets or earrings, for sale or storage. https://amzn.to/4bZQgB6

Help! I’ve run out of sticky pad before I’ve finished my project!! What did I do wrong?

You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s possible that the pad you received just wasn’t all that sticky and you had to poke it more often than would have otherwise been necessary. But, not to worry! There are solutions. Sometimes, the manufacturer gives you extra squares for a large project, and if you save them, along with what’s left of your current piece of Swiss cheese, you can retrieve another pad from your stash bag and continue the project. You can also purchase more squares of standard pink clay. Some are in cute little plastic containers to help keep them from drying out, such as round, square, heart-shaped and clover. There are also many colors of these clay pads, blue and white being almost as common as pink, but I have also seen yellow, orange, green and purple. I haven’t been able to determine whether the putty color makes a difference in the stickiness or the freshness longevity, though. If it does, the difference appears to be minor. Here are a few options for more putty clay pads: https://amzn.to/4lDqjKU

Is there some other tacky medium we can use besides constantly poking this little pink pad of “sticky stuff”?

Yes! Nail art wax pencils, silicone cone tips, Blu Tack, museum putty, beeswax-coconut oil mixes and using automatic pens, all work as longer-lasting clay alternatives. You can pick up a lot more drills with these mediums before having to reload your pen.

If you don’t like constantly poking that pad after every few drills, you can always roll it up and twist it instead. Yes, you heard that right…roll that little pad up, even if it’s round, twist it into a thin tube and poke it inside the barrel of a special automatic pen that will let you get every last drop of that sticky stuff without the constant refilling of the pen. All you do is twist the top of the pen to extrude just a hair more of the clay. There are a lot of these automatic pens out there. Here’s one of them. https://amzn.to/3PlNn4I

One thing to note: Some of the poorer quality clays have been known to leave a slight residue on the rhinestones that needs to be wiped off, and a lot of people would prefer another method entirely because of this. So, enter the rhinestone picking wax pencils that nail salon artists use. They require a pencil sharpener, and I have found that the black paper-wrapped pencils are of much better quality than the white wax in the white wooden pencils. Because this is a real wax, it may not be sticky in cold environments. But you can “haw” (breathe warm air by saying the word “haw”) onto the wax tip to soften it and make it sticky again. You can also roll the tip between your forefinger and thumb to warm it up or to put the point back before needing to resort to the sharpener again. Currently, this is my preferred method, because the wax is strong enough to lift some of the larger, and heavier, special shape drills that the putty in the pad can’t seem to hold onto. Here are some choices for the wax pencils: https://amzn.to/4bwKyFf

Other tacky mediums that you can poke your pen into and that work well with diamond art painting drills are:

Museum Putty, which has other uses as well, most notably in earthquake prone areas, and even near military training bases when the heavy artillery rattles the windows. https://amzn.to/4dMHB6z

BluTack is a putty that is also used for holding things on the wall. https://amzn.to/4maW9yU

Glue Dots are double-sided and great for office use and other paper crafts. They come in 3 sizes, 2 of which, micro and mini, are used in diamond painting depending on which tool you want to stuff the dot into, a single pen tip or a multi-placer. You MIGHT be able to roll the larger sized ones up and put them into an automatic pen, but I haven’t tried this, so if you do, please let me know how it works at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com Here are a couple of YouTube videos that explain how to put these sticky glue dots in your pens and multi-placers. There are other videos as well. A lot of people swear by this method, because of the satisfying, and somewhat soothing “snap” that you get when you place a drill with a pen filled with a glue dot. And isn’t this hobby all about relaxation? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=h3rz6I9SYqo&ra=m

And https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YOQ1-EtrcNI&ra=m

Micro Glue Dots are very small and may be hard to work but seem to be better overall. https://amzn.to/4tufhKF

Mini Glue Dots are larger than the micro version and work best in the multi-placers. https://amzn.to/3POpiDY

Zots Micro Dots are the same thing if Glue Dot Micros are not available in your area. https://amzn.to/4sKSCd0

Here is a unique idea: a silicone tip pen that theoretically lasts forever. No wax, no clay, no glue needed but refers to it as “self-adhesive wax” But it’s not wax, so there is no residue, it’s a self-adhesive sticky material that you can wipe clean if you need to restore its stickiness, sort of like the sticky pads above that you can put your tray on, but not THAT sticky. I suppose you could rig up a tiny piece of that sticky pad to do the same thing as these cones, but they might be TOO sticky: https://amzn.to/3Op30Iw

There are some people who think that everything mentioned above (except for the forever pen) leaves a slight microscopic residue on the drills that needs to be wiped off with a baby wipe before sealing, so now there are numerous “vacuum pens” that can suck the drill onto the pen tip so that you can place it down on the canvas. This totally avoids any potential residue from clay or wax or glue dots interfering with the sparkle (which I have never seen with the wax pencils, but I admit it’s probably there). They may not work as well with the heavier special shape gems as the suction can be weak in some models. It can also be too strong to leave the drill on the canvas if the canvas isn’t very tacky. Read the reviews carefully to see if either situation is an issue, or if there is a way to adjust the suction accordingly for different adherence situations. https://amzn.to/4bDIc7T

Previous Question Answered: Drill Picker Pens and Styluses
Next Question to be Answered: Drills – the Heart of the Art - Part 1

+%-=+%-=+%-=++%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=
I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - Drill Picker Pens and Styluses

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Drill Trays or Boats
Next Question to be Answered: Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.

Drill Picker Pens

All kits come with a pink or clear plastic stick pen, or stylus, for grabbing the drills and poking them onto the canvas grid. It is very simple in design, but, oh, so useful! For some people, this pen is hard to handle due to its small size and thin straight shape and alternatives are often sought.

This pink pen looks very simplistic, like it’s made from a plastic straw.

Likely it's not. But it’s straw-like look does have a purpose. That hollow end is designed as an additional tool receptacle that allows specialized placers, rollers and straighteners to snap in and out as needed. But you will eventually have so many pink pens that you’ll have a tool at the end of every one of them and never will have to swap them out of a single pen again. See the Multi-Placers and How to Use Them section for more information about these tools.

Is there something more comfortable than this ubiquitous pink pen?

Ergonomic pens exist in many different shapes to fit any size or shaped hand. Here are a few beautiful ones to choose from, many of which contain additional accessories and multi-placer tools that you may be interested in. See the Multi-Placers and How to Use Them section for more information. https://amzn.to/4sQTD2N

Or you can just slip one of these little foam cushions over your pink pens, too. https://amzn.to/4biTmQr

Another option would be to wrap your stylus in either bake-able polymer clay or in air-dry clay in the color pattern of your choice and allow your hand to mold it into a comfortable shape that is unique to your own hand. I strongly suggest that you use a clay sealant over air dry clay because moisture from your hand can reactivate the clay. https://amzn.to/3POZB6k

And here are some choices for clay sealant, which is different from diamond art sealant. It comes in gloss, matte, or satin in most cases. https://amzn.to/3OugByd

Previous Question Answered: Drill Trays or Boats
Next Question to be Answered: Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.

+%-=+%-=+%-=++%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=+%-=
I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - Drill Trays or Boats

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: How to Choose a Diamond Painting Kit
Next Question to be Answered: Drill Picker Pens and Styluses

Drill Trays or Boats
All diamond art painting kits come with a little plastic tray, which is sometimes called a “boat” because it looks somewhat like it has a bow and a stern. Although it may be any color, green is the most common and there are numerous questions surrounding it. One of the main ones is how to deal with the drills in the tray.

How do we get the drills to lay flat in the tray?
First, pour just a few, no more than a half teaspoonful, of a single drill color into your tray. Not too many, or there won’t be enough room for them to move around without spilling over the edge. Then gently shake the tray from side to side until most of the drills have aligned themselves into neat rows along the grid lines from the vibration. When you are first getting started, leave the tray on the table when you shake it. Later, when you have more confidence and control of the process, you can shake the tray anywhere in the air. Here are a couple of videos that show how to “rock the boat”: https://www.tiktok.com/@diamondartwithave/video/7522897469013839117 and this one: https://m.youtube.com/shorts/OB84G7_qnDw?ra=m

What is that single line for that is perpendicular to all the other grid lines in the boat?
In some trays you may notice a perpendicular line near the bow of the boat. This acts as a “stop” to prevent flipped drills from sliding into the end of the tray when you tilt it, especially if you've poured too many into it. Some people put a strip of decorative washi tape at that end, to act as the stop in trays that don’t have one, like the standard green trays. The stop is also useful when filling certain multi-placers. See Multi-Placers and How to use them for more information.

Can’t I just use cellophane tape, painter’s tape or duct tape as the STOP line in my tray?
You could, but drills may stick to the adhesive that is on the edge of the cellophane tape, even more so with duct tape, which is just too strong and can damage the canvas. Painter’s tape can work as a stop line and is also an option for sealing around the edges of a canvas when painting the edges to hide the wording, because it won’t pull the drills off the canvas, but it only comes in solid colors. Washi tape is preferable for all diamond art purposes due to its versatility. Washi tape is a decorative Japanese masking tape made from natural fibers like bamboo or hemp. It has a lower tackiness than painter’s tape, and like painter’s tape, it is repositionable, and easily torn by hand. It comes in lovely patterns and in many widths. It is sometimes used to section off working areas of a large canvas, or as a decorative mat when framing diamond art paintings. https://amzn.to/4mBIOQr

Is there a trick to not spilling the drills when we empty the tray into our storage container?
Using a funnel is an option, and you can make one by making a cone out of printer paper, or you can purchase one of these 3D printed items depending on the size and shape of your storage containers. I have one of each style of diamond art funnel because I have so many different types and sizes of containers. https://amzn.to/48BkisH

We’ve noticed that the little green tray slides around too easily on a table. Is there a way to keep from spilling it or knocking it off the table accidentally?
Yes! There are little silicone sticky mats that are ideal for keeping your trays, whatever style you choose to use, from being knocked off the table by yourself or a rambunctious cat or kid. It will even keep your drill pen from rolling away. They are great for all sorts of craft, office, kitchen items, or workshop items that you don’t want to slide or roll. If they get dirty, just wash them off with plain water, and maybe a drop of soap, and they’re sticky again. They do not interfere with the shaking process, but rather they force you to shake more gently. They can also be cut into different sizes if you feel the full-sized one is too sticky or holds your tray too tightly when you’re ready to pull it off and pour your drills back into their storage container. https://amzn.to/3PkVQFi

Is there something better than the little green tray that is either larger, or has higher sides, or that doesn’t get spilled so easily when we shake it?
Trays with higher sides, such as this No Cats Allowed set, makes shaking the tray less worrisome, as well as easier to pour the leftover drills back into your storage container without spilling the lot of them, thanks to the little guard section. They also stack nicely, which allows you to use one on top of the other as a safety lid, to further keep spillage to a minimum as you get used to the shaking process. .https://amzn.to/4sXBsZy

Trays with clear lids are a good option as well. Those with opaque lids, such as the tray set above, don’t let you see the results of your shaking, although over time you will know if the majority are upright or not even if you can’t see them. Sometimes, the movement from taking a snap-style lid off a tray may cause some drills to flip back over. Here is a set with clear sliding lids in 2 sizes that solves both situations. https://amzn.to/4lGzCtx

Now, these little drawers/boxes below are my new favorites! The drawers are large enough to hold multiple packets of drills, (I often do more than one of the same kits) and the removable tray keeps the lot of them out of your way while you work until you need to refill it. The perpendicular line allows you to pour excess drills back into the bottom storage area without disturbing those that have flipped. You can close the attached lid (without snapping it closed), to tilt the drills onto the upper tray; then shake them along the grid; open the lid and get to work. They easily double as storage for the leftovers, and the containers travel well. The drawers do tend to slip out of the white shelf, so be careful with accidentally tipping it forward. https://amzn.to/4cWbCQK

There is a variety of clear box/drawer sets to choose from, but while they are large and can store more of your drills, you can’t fill them too full if you want to use the built-in grid on the floor of these, because too many gems will be in the way. That’s why I love the removable tray in the previous set, because it solves this problem.

I have heard that there are trays created specifically for square drills and they line up better than they do in the standard round drill trays. Is that true? Yes, due to the fact that square drills are smaller than round drills, and the majority of diamond painting trays available are designed to fit round drills, this means that in most trays, square drills will not line up as perfectly as one would like. So, there are now specialized trays that have single grids where each individual square drill can fall into and be perfectly aligned with all the others. This makes them easier to pick up and place because you’re not having to twist your hand around.. There are also multi-grid trays for those who like to use multi-tools with square drills. There are different spouts on them, and they come with covers, too. They are 3-D printed and may be found from various sellers on Etsy, but they are hard to search for, even on the site where I accidentally stumbled across them on. I found my set at I found my set at https://www.bellaartdenicole.com/products/dots-of-kindness-3d-printed-diamond-painting-drill-trays?variant=47230581997817

What can we do with the 1001 little green trays we’ve been collecting with our kits over the years?
Well, if you happen to like using the little green trays, or simply can’t bring yourself to throwing anything away, you can get a few of these shelves: https://amzn.to/40FZRXh

Or this style: https://amzn.to/4bROmST

Or maybe not… :)

Help! We are being overrun by little green trays! How can I use them rather than purchase the item in the solution above?

Someone has given this some thought as well. One method is to use all those green trays you’re collecting and put them in racks such as these. However, the first two do include trays, which can only compound the problem, but it shows what is possible if you want to make your own. https://amzn.to/4bpugPW

This is the same concept but in a different orientation: https://amzn.to/4sXmQsX

Or you can stack them in a tower. This one does not appear to come with trays so you can use your little green ones in it. Yay! https://amzn.to/40KDNLk

Or you can teach freestyle diamond art classes using little 5 x 7 mini diamond art cards that don’t come with any drills at all and give everybody their own little pack of 3 tools from your monstrous stash. They are a great use of excess drills, too. See the last page of this book for advice. https://amzn.to/4vBGxZl

I use square drills and they don’t always line up well in the trays I have. Is there any tray that is specifically designed for square drills?

I recently came across this unique set of cool square drill trays that offer multiple options for getting your square drills sorted quickly. They have higher walls for drill shaking, thicker internal lines for flipping drills, and drill-catching grooves for smooth multi-drill pickup, along with a drill reservoir to keep the extra ones out of the way, Some have single compartments and others have combinations of 1, 2, 3 and 5 drill compartments for those who like to use multi-placers. They also have sliding lids, stack well and come in multiple sizes. https://www.bellaartdenicole.com/products/dots-of-kindness-3d-printed-diamond-painting-drill-trays?variant=47230581899513

Previous Question Answered: How to Choose a Diamond Art Painting Kit
Next Question to be Answered: Drill Picker Pens and Styluses

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - How to Choose a Diamond Art Kit

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Diamond Painting Lingo
Next Question to be Answered: Drill Trays or Boats

Choosing a Diamond Art Painting Kit This is the first question everyone should ask themselves. There are a lot of misleading ads out there for diamond art kits that show it framed over a couch, and when you receive it, it’s only large enough to fit comfortably on the corner of your desk. They come from abroad, and are usually measured in centimeters, not inches, so do not mistake 30 cm for 30 inches! Additionally, the images shown may have a lot of details that will not show up well, if at all, on the size of canvas they are offering. My very first canvas of an intricate fractal shown only as a JPG image in the advertisement was extremely disappointing as a 30 cm x 30 cm canvas. It looked very pretty when finished, but it did not look at all like I expected the fractal JPG to look.

How do I choose a canvas that will look like the image they are selling?

When purchasing a canvas, look for a picture that shows it with the drills attached. Many do not show you the completed version, so check the drill chart carefully if one is provided (which, again, they often are not) and see if the drill placement in the detailed areas is to your liking, or if there are any drills in the detailed areas at all. Often there is no chart presented or finished image to view, so you will have to learn by experience how to choose what size canvas a particular image might look best on.

Rule of thumb when you have no chart or final view: Simple images with very little detail, or those with large blocks of color, such as a cartoon, abstract, mandala, minimalistic or boho style, can look good on small 20 cm x 20 cm canvases, coasters and keychains. But when you start getting more details, or there are words in the design, start looking for the 30 cm canvas size, and when they get truly complex, or with long phrases, even a 50 cm canvas may not be large enough to satisfy your desire for the details. Eventually you will gain an eye for the good stuff and be pleased with every canvas you choose. But ideally, you should view a chart or finished version before purchase.

Here is a tip when looking at the charts: Notice that there is no such thing as a two-toned drill so do not be fooled by charts that appear to show two or more colors within the same charted square or circle. (This is most often more noticeable in square drill charts). This means you will need to choose which color may look best in that spot, and it may not be the manufacturer’s chosen color in the symbol key, or legend, along the edge.

The larger the canvas, the more colors there will likely be in the image, and this is a good thing because they help with gradient shading to make the final project look good from a distance. It may feel more tedious to kit up a large number of colors, but it will be well worth it in the end.

Before I get started, and lock myself into something, which drill shape is best? Square or Round?

The choice really depends on your own visual preference as well as the availability of a desired image, which may only be available in either round or square. I don’t consider myself to be “locked into” any one style, but most of the projects that appeal to me have only been available in round drills. I do have some projects in square drill, as well as a complete set of the square drill colors in case of color shortage.

Round Drills are 2.8 mm in diameter and have 26 facets which allows them to catch the light from more angles so that they twinkle with more sparkling. They are ideal for beginners because they are quicker and easier to place, due to not needing to be oriented in any particular direction before placement, and they can create smoother curves due to their roundness, but they leave visible gaps that show more of the painted image underneath, which may or may not be a good thing. The finished paintings look better from a distance. If a round drill is not placed correctly on the chart, the grid circle may be visible and this can give a less than professional appearance, especially if the other drills are not lined up properly. See Alignment Techniques. Please note that the Diamond Dotz line of Mini Dotz diamond painting kits use a smaller, 2 mm mini drill size, so be sure to store them separately. There are also some 2.5 mm rounds out there being sold as 2.8 mm for diamond art, so read reviews carefully. You can also use these smaller ones as embellishments on a square canvas if you accidentally end up with some.

Square Drills are 2.5 mm and have only 9 facets to catch the light. Because they fit together perfectly this gives them a cleaner, more brilliant and refined shine or glossy look. They are a little trickier to place because not only are they a tad smaller to grab, but they need to be oriented “squarely” onto the canvas. This does require precision and can be frustrating for beginners. You know you have placed a square drill correctly within a group of them when you hear a satisfying “crunch”. This sound also appears when you are rolling over the drills to tighten them to the canvas before moving on or sealing the project. There are tools available to help with lining them up if needed. See Alignment Techniques. Curves on small canvases may look jagged, so larger canvases are best when using square drills in a project that has a lot of curved lines. But they do provide enhanced sharpness and high-resolution imagery by covering the entire canvas so that the image below is no longer seen. This makes them particularly suitable for projects requiring intricate detail or more complex designs. But again, detailed and complex images should be done on large canvases anyway, whether square or round. Because the square drills are smaller, 2.5 mm rather than 2.8 mm, the same image may be a full centimeter, or more, smaller than the round drill version of the same project, but at the same time, the smaller size provides a higher resolution image. Think in terms of “pixels” per square inch and you’ll get the connection.

There are many YouTube videos regarding the differences between the round and square drills, but here are a couple to get you started. This one is a comparison of the drills and processes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmaJhzrIyvc&t=155s

This one compares the same project in both square drill and round drill so you can see the end results of both styles within the same image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKoZRsM0jNA&t=230s

What is the difference between 3D and 5D drills?

These designations refer to the number of facets, or faces, on one side of a diamond drill. The D stands for “dimensions”. When diamond art first came on the scene, they were of the 3D variety. Now, 3D is rarely seen, other than in beginner kits, lower priced kits, or kits for kids. 3D drills have a total of 9 facets, 3 faces on each side. They appear rounder with not as much sparkle. 5D drills have 5 faces on a side, or a total of 15 facets. Because there are more facets, 5D drills have more light refraction from different directions and that results in more sparkle, deeper color, and depth. You can see a comparison picture of round drills here: https://fabercastell.com/blogs/creativity-for-life/5d-diamond-painting-vs-3d-diamond-painting?srsltid=AfmBOorYfGv6qp_4oPBjwnSB5wF_poezN100Dh3Zql9LLmm3sFeYxEHE

There is no difference in the difficulty level between the two “dimensions”, they simply provide a different visual effect. If you have been doing diamond painting for many years, or buy lower priced kits, or get your kits from various suppliers and haven’t been paying attention to the D number, you might want to make sure you don’t mix the two types of drills in the same jar. It could have an interestingly uneven effect if both are used on the same canvas, unless you are intending to create a special shapes effect.

You may also run across a 7D designation as well. These are typically flat-bottomed gems in special shapes and so far are not used in standard square or round drills. You can see 7D gems here along with a square vs round comparison, and a canvas size guide: https://tonysourcing.com/diamond-painting/

Previous Question Answered: Diamond Painting Lingo
Next Question to be Answered: Drill Trays or Boats

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle (visible link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GZKGSVKS) and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - Diamond Painting Lingo

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Introduction to Diamond Painting
Next Question to be Answered: Choosing a Diamond Art Painting Kit

Diamond Painting Lingo
Every hobby seems to have its own vernacular, or language, and diamond painting is one of them. Here is a video where each common term or phrase is defined for you. I will also try to define terms as I use them in this book. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DsY1VMwhqc&t=524ss

3D/5D – this refers to the number of facets or “dimensions” on one side of a diamond drill. 3D drills have 9 facets, 3 on each side. 5D drills have 15 facets, 5 on each side. Don’t mix them up.

AB - stands for “aurora borealis” and is a type of drill style that can twinkle in multiple colors

Boat – another term for the boat-shaped tray that the drills are poured into for use.

Canvas – the medium that the kit uses as the template for the project. It can be fabric, acrylic, or any material that has a tacky glue spread on it to hold the drills.

Canvas Size vs Frame Size - The canvas size refers to the size of the image. The frame size is how large the frame needs to be to display the entire canvas, including its border.

Charting – the act of determining which colors go where when creating a diamond painting.

Checkerboarding - a placement technique that resembles a checkboard for large one-color areas by applying diamonds in every other space and then going back and filling in the missing spaces.

Clay/Mud – a term for the little sticky pad that comes in every diamond art kit.

Color Key/Legend– this is the little table/grid printed on the edge of a fabric canvas that shows which symbols match which colors. May or may not include the DMC code of the colors used.

Confetti - an area that has multiple colors and looks like random confetti when viewed up close.

Cover Minders – cute magnets paired with a 2nd magnet placed on the other side of the canvas to keep the film or parchment paper out of the way of the section you’re working on.

DMC – refers to the Dollfus-Mieg & Compagnie list of thread color codes devised in 1898. and is the closest thing we have for a standard guideline for the industry. Not all manufacturers use it, but there are conversion lists available.

Drill – what the “diamonds”, beads or gems used in diamond painting are called.
Full Drill/Partial Drill - defines how much of the template is covered by drills. A full drill is completely covered, while a partial drill uses drills only to highlight portions of the image.

Kitting Up/Down – this is the act of organizing your drills and tools in whatever manner you normally use in your workflow to make the project go smoothly. Kitting down is when you are sorting, cleaning up, and putting everything back into storage when the project is completed.

Picker – the handheld device, or stylus, that looks like a writing pen, but with a slight stickiness on the end and used to pick up drills out of the boat.

Poking – the act of picking up a drill and then placing it onto the canvas.

Stash – can refer to all the extra drills in storage and available for use, or all the diamond kits you have that you are looking forward to completing.

If you need even more than what I have defined throughout this book, here is a huge list: https://www.diamondartclub.com/blogs/diamond-painting/diamond-painting-terms

Previous Question Answered: Introduction to Diamond Painting
Next Question to be Answered: Choosing a Diamond Art Painting Kit

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a fewearn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all. Thank you for using my links.

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories & the Problems they Solve - Introduction

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Diamond Painting Basics Table of Contents
Next Question to be Answered: Diamond Painting Lingo

Diamond Painting, also known as Diamond Art, Gem Painting or Pearl Painting, is basically a mosaic art form based on the color-by-number concept using beads, known as drills, as the “paint”. These drills are usually round or square; resin or acrylic; solid and opaque colors or shimmering and metallic. Some resemble rhinestones, while others resemble pearls or tiny tiles. The drills may completely cover the underlying image that is printed on a fabric or acrylic “canvas” grid; known as a “full drill” project or they may only cover parts of the printed image as an embellishment. The latter often use what are called “special shapes” in varying sizes to enhance the design along with the standard size round or square drills. The most common size for round drills is 2.8 mm in diameter while square drills are 2.5 mm square. The special shapes can be any size, usually no more than 8 mm, but can be as small as 1 mm, particularly in the case of pearls and sometimes rhinestones.

You can purchase diamond art paintings as either a finished item, or in kits of various sizes or styles, where the outer dimensions of the canvas are measured in centimeters, while the actual printed image size is often not stated, and neither of which fit standard photo or canvas frames, though the market appears to be changing. Depending on the size of the canvas and the amount of detail in the image, the finished product may look more pixelated on a small canvas than it will on a much larger one. Think “Minecraft” versus a high-resolution computer monitor. If you are a fan of detail, then choose the largest canvas size that is available for the project you are interested in.

All you really need to make a diamond painting comes in the kit that you purchase, and every kit includes only what you need. And it always contains the same 3 things. There will be packets of rhinestones (officially called “drills”); a green tray to pour them into, that you shake lightly from side to side so that the motion flips the drills upright where you can grab them with the pink plastic pen that you have previously poked into the little square of pink “clay” that will allow you to pick up the drills and place them on a piece of fabric or plastic or wood item that has been covered with a tacky glue, and protected by a piece of plastic film that you will peel off to reveal this sticky surface. There may be other items such as chain hangers, tiny zipper bags, magnets, even small wind chime tubes, depending on the project. But the above three items are in every kit.

And that’s all there is to it… Or is it?

Those who have become obsessed with creating diamond art paintings, me also being one of these addicts, have decided that this basic process needs not only to be improved upon, but made more complex so that others will take our art form seriously and understand that it’s not as simple as it appears. Therefore, lots of people have created quite a few accessories, often with 3D printers, that solve problems we didn’t even know existed. And suddenly we can’t do without them! These products make diamond art painting easier, more professional looking, and more comfortable to work on for hours at a time.

Are any of these accessories required? Nope. But you ARE going to want them all once you know how they can improve your own rhinestone life.

DISCLOSURE
While this Amazon Kindle book is packed with information you can use right now, you will quickly notice that there are a lot of links for commercial products because I have found that sponsored links are the best way to augment the information that I have. There are a lot of cool products available for diamond painters, along with even more information on the product pages about how to use them, as well as reviews that sometimes share even more ideas. It’s easy to find yourself going down the rabbit hole, which is a lot of how this book came about. It’s been several months in the making.

Personally, I like to have a paper copy of a book to grab and flip through when I’m having issues, which is why this has been provided in a printed format. In the KINDLE version of this book, I have included two links for each entry, a short one and a long one, because in a print book, typing the short link will be a lot easier. The long link verifies where the link will take you and has been included in the Kindle version for those who are wary of short, blind, live links to. Plus, the long link serves an additional purpose: if a specific item later becomes unavailable, you can probably find the name of the item, or the search that was used, within the long link so that you may search for a similar product replacement. Additionally, I will be updating the Kindle version more often as new questions arise, and the print version will only be updated if there are significant changes or additions involved. So, you may want to own both versions.

You can find links to all the products mentioned here in my blog series, starting with the introduction. You can contact me through this blog at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this book, or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. There are also some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of this book, and, yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

And now, on to the most common, and uncommon, questions!

Previous Question Answered: Diamond Painting Basics Table of Contents
Next Question to be Answered: Diamond Painting Lingo

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Diamond Painting Basics, Accessories and the Problems They Solve - Table of Contents

Every question you ever wanted to ask and some you haven’t even thought of yet
The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)

Previous Question Answered: Diamond Painting Basics - Table of Contents
Next Question to be Answered: Diamond Painting Basics Introduction

Introduction
Disclosure
Diamond Painting Lingo
Choosing a Diamond Art Painting Kit
 How do I choose a canvas that will look like the image they are selling?
 Before I get started, and lock myself into something, which drill shape is best? Square or Round?
 What is the difference between 3D drills and 5D drills?

Drill Trays or Boats
 How do we get the drills to lay flat in the tray?
 What is that single line for that is perpendicular to all the other grid lines in the boat?
 Can’t I just use cellophane tape, painter’s tape or duct tape as the STOP line in my tray?
 Is there a trick to not spilling the drills when we empty the tray into our storage container?
 We’ve noticed that the little green tray slides around too easily on a table. Is there a way to keep from spilling it or knocking it off the table accidentally?
 Is there something better than the little green tray that is either larger, or has higher sides, or that doesn’t get spilled so easily when we shake it?
 I have heard that there are trays created specifically for square drills and they line up better than they do in the standard round drill trays. Is that true?
 What can we do with the 1001 little green trays we’ve been collecting with our kits over the years?
 Help! We are being overrun by little green trays! How can I use them rather than purchase the item in the solution above?
 I use square drills and they don’t always line up well in the trays I have. Is there any tray that is specifically designed for square drills?

Drill Picker Pens and Styluses
 This pink pen looks very simplistic, like it’s made from a plastic straw
 Is there something more comfortable than this ubiquitous pink pen?

Pink Clay, Wax, Putty, Mud, etc.
 How do you get the putty from the pad into the pen?
 Help! I’ve run out of sticky pad before I’ve finished my project!! What did I do wrong?
 Is there some other tacky medium we can use besides constantly poking this little pink pad of “sticky stuff”?

Drills – the Heart of the Art – Part 1
 Is there some easier way to work with these drill packets that are connected in the kits? They slip and slide before you can cut them apart, and you can’t stack them in any useful order.
 Why do some drills stick to the inside of the bag, or the lid and sides of my storage containers, or even to each other in the tray? How can we stop this from happening?
 What can we do when we come across greasy looking or sticky drills or ones that defy all the static removal methods?
 I washed my drills like you suggested, but some are still stuck together. What do I do now?
 What do we do when the kit doesn’t have enough of a particular color drill to finish the project?

Drills – the Heart of the Art – Part 2
 How many styles of drills are there and where can I find bulk collections of them?

Drills – the Heart of the Art – Part 3
 How do I find the special shapes styles?
 Is there such a thing as special shapes for square drill projects?
 Do they make black light drills?
 I don’t want to buy 447 different colors when I only need one to finish the project. How can I find the right color and style of the missing drill?
 If we run out of a particular color, how do we know if we have that same color somewhere in our stash or storage?
 I am totally stumped trying to figure out this drill color code! What do you suggest I do?

Canvas Issues – Part 1
 Did you know that it is possible to take the plastic film OFF the canvas incorrectly?
 Did you know that it is possible to put the plastic film back ON the canvas incorrectly?
 How do we section off the canvas so that we can work in those smaller areas?
 How do we get the creases out of a canvas that was folded in transit?
 How do we flatten a canvas that came tightly rolled and refuses to unroll?

Canvas Issues – Part 2
 How can I keep a canvas from losing its stickiness?
 What can we do if the project is missing the stickiness in random areas or even on the whole canvas?
 My canvas arrived with no glue! Should I return it?
 What of my drills keep falling off even after fixing the stickiness?
 How do we keep our hand from sticking to the canvas when we accidentally rest it on the project we are working on? It’s both hard to remember and tiring to keep our hand in the air.

Work Area Organization
 All my tools are cluttering my workspace. What do you suggest for organizing the mess?
 How can we work on a large canvas if we have a small area that’s not big enough for the canvas?
 Is there a way to tilt the tray in a more ergonomic position rather than constantly bending over it flat on a table?
 Is there a more ergonomic way of working on a canvas than bending our backs and necks over a table?

Workflow for Efficiency
 I work out of the slippery packets and do not save any leftovers. How can I sort the open packets in case I miss a spot of the color I was working on and thought I was finished?
 What if we have a project with a large number of colors and want to be able to simply grab a tray that already has our diamonds in it rather than constantly pouring them out into the little green tray and back into storage?
 Are there any other accessories that can help us with our workflow?

Visual Aids for Diamond Painters
 How do those of us with poor eyesight work on a project if our glasses keep falling off?
 What if we like to work on our diamond art in the bedroom, but our partner doesn’t like us having the light on?
 What if the pattern on the canvas is so dark that you can’t see the symbol for the color you need?
 I am so obsessed with working on my diamond art that power outages drive me crazy! How can I work on my project when it’s dark and there’s no electricity?

Alignment Techniques
 Why do we have to be so precise to put a drill in exactly the right spot? Why can’t we just slap it on and move it over the correct spot later?
 How can we make sure that we have put a rhinestone exactly on the coded spot? This is especially important if our hand tends to shake while holding it in the air, if we’re not using a release paper covering.
 How can we make sure that our gems are aligned perfectly, both horizontally and vertically, once manually placed?
 I seem to have trouble with putting the wrong color in the wrong spot. HELP!

Multi-Placer Tools and How to Use Them
 Are we limited to tediously poking only one drill at a time onto our canvas? Working on solid backgrounds feels like a nightmare.
 I’m sorry, but 8 is NOT enough! I want to place more, More, MORE drills at once!
 Why is my multi-placer not filling up straight?
 I am good at getting the drills straight on my multi-placers, but for some reason, I STILL can’t get them to line up on the grid correctly on some projects.

Drill Storage After Kitting Down
 How can we store our leftover drills?
 I’m not interested in sorting my leftover drills, but I don’t want to throw them in the trash either. Any ideas?

How to Use Extra Drills
 How can we use up the extra drills if we really don’t want to continue buying kits anymore? Can we use them for something else?

Traveling with your Diamond Art
 I have three locations where I work on projects. Is there an easy way to carry my tools back-and-forth to each one?
 I’d like to be able to move my canvas to another part of the house when the mood strikes without too much of a hassle. Any ideas?
 How can we carry our projects with us to do when we travel or at work or somewhere other than home?

Finishing Your Diamond Artwork
 Is there some way we can keep the gems from falling off the project long after we’ve completed it?

Sealants for Diamond Paintings
 Is the ink on the commercial canvases water soluble?
 What can we use to seal a diamond art painting that won’t harm the sparkle?
 I do NOT like the idea of sealing rhinestones, but I'm working on my first acrylic suncatcher, and the drills are sliding around much more freely than they ever did on a fabric canvas, so I guess I have to bite the bullet and seal this one. How can I put the sealant on AND wipe it off the top without the drills moving out of position during the process?

Framing Your Diamond Artwork
 How do we frame our finished projects? They don’t appear to be standard frame sizes.
 What kind of glue should be used to mount a diamond art canvas to a stretched canvas frame?
 That was a lot of information to absorb! Can you please shorten that a little bit?
 What about mounting on MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard)?
 What about mounting on Foam Core board?
 Can I put a piece of glass, plastic or acrylic over the framed diamond painting to keep dust off it?
 I would like to pre-frame a canvas before I give it to my daughter to compete. Are there any caveats?
 Should there be a backing of some sort so that the pre-framed canvas doesn’t stretch when the drills are pressed on?
 Can I also put the mounted canvas into its final frame before I work on it?
 Would it be better to mount a diamond art painting after the work has been done?
 What if we have too many diamond art projects already finished, but we don’t want to hang them all over the house. Is there a way to store them and keep them clean and safe?

Cleaning Up the … What Mess?
 I am not getting the hang of shaking the tray yet, is there an easy way to pick up frequently spilled drills?
 I found out that the cat had been sleeping on my project while I was gone. How do I get rid of all the cat hair?

Creating Custom Diamond Art from Photos
 Can you create new canvases of your own design? Turn a photo into a diamond art picture?
 Is there any way to create your own designs that give you a color grid to work with?
 How do the professionals do it?
 Can you purchase unglued diamond painting canvas?
 Are there any apps for iOS that can create a diamond art painting grid?
 Are there any apps for Android that can create a diamond art painting grid?
 I have seen blank diamond art canvas; how do you put the image on it?
 Are there any businesses that can put a photo on a canvas for me that is larger than what I can print at home?

Fashion Statements
 Do any T-shirts exist that promote the hobby of diamond art painting?
 What about diamond painting mugs, tumblers and water bottles?
 I’ve heard that you can make wearable jewelry with diamond art, is that true?

Miscellaneous Leftovers
 How does pearl painting differ from “standard” diamond painting?
 I’ve seen canvases where the image looks like it was made from a pile of stones. What is that kind of painting called?
 If I decide to sell my finished diamond paintings, how much should I charge?
 People are always asking where I bought my projects, or what I paid, or how long it took to complete, but I can never remember all that. Is there a way to keep track of such things?
 I have so many kits I don’t know which one to start next. Any ideas for choosing my next project?
 I am looking for a more complex project, something that will challenge me more than a door-sized canvas. Any suggestions?
 Where are the existing diamond art painting kits assembled?
 Are we limited to just canvases, coasters and magnets?

Diamond Painting Resources, Websites and Discount Codes
 Are there any other sources for diamond art kits besides Amazon?
 Acrylics, sun catchers, tabletops, and other non-canvas projects, these sites have a lot of variety
 Canvases only, but some have accessories as well as replacement beads
 Suppliers of various drill styles, shapes and colors
 Specializing in miniature diamond art painting kits
 Not dedicated diamond painting sites, but have an extremely large selection of canvases and are worth checking out

Final Words<
 I would like to teach a diamond art painting class, but I don’t know how to go about it. Any advice?

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I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.