I will never trust sharpies again!  I used a red sharpie to touch up the red trim on a vintage  White Owl box.  Now the Sharpie ink rubs off on everything, including the clothing of the person holding the guitar (me)!

What is the best way to remedy this?  Ideas I am considering:

  1. Wipe away as much of the Sharpie ink as I can with paper towel, kleenex, etc, then apply some kind of sealant to the box
  2. Use Exacto-knife to score and peel away narrow strips of red trim on the outer paper (on which the Sharpie ink was applied) then apply red acrylic craft paint to replace the red trim lines.  Then probably apply a sealant in this case as well.

Has anyone dealt with this?  How can I save this vintage box without messing it up more?

Thanks in advance,

/Mark

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Mark, I don't know if this will work on a cigar box..............................but, a dry erasable marker will remove Sharpie ink from the dry erasable board. It would be worth a try, just leave it on for awhile and wipe off. Hope this helps :)

Fascinating data point even if it doesn't work in this case.  But I can test a small section on the bottom of the box.

There are a few ideas here for various surfaces
http://m.wikihow.com/Remove-Sharpie

Odd to hear that a Sharpie wipes off of anything. Normally, they are "permanent" markers. That being said, if it's, coming off, then ya need to fix it. I would suggest that you get a small flat artist's brush with relatively firm bristles and brush on some polyurethane. I would use an almost dry brush to put on several very thin coats, letting it dry between coats. If the Sharpie ink is still coming off, the poly will remove some and seal in the rest. 

Since it's a nice vintage box, I wouldn't attempt anything that might damage it.

Ya Tom, they're not as "permanent" as they claim :-(

I've never tried this. But the first thing that comes to mind are those Mr. Clean Magic erasers. I'd start with a dry one to see if that'll work before getting any kind of water on the edge of a old cigar box. 

The sharpie probably didn't cure because of the finish on the old paper. I'd get as much of it off as you can. Then use oil base paint to touch up the box. Try model plaint. 

> "The sharpie probably didn't cure because of the finish on the old paper"

I am thinking the same thing.  Kinda glossy, not real porous.

I'd use some lacquer, get a spray can and spray some in the inverted lid, then brush on.

By "spray some in the inverted lid, then brush on", do you mean it should not be applied directly by spray?

If you spray it you'll have to mask everything off to prevent overspray

NO. Please do not spray or paint any clear coat over a sharpie. You'll end up with that red stuff bleeding all over . Get it off and seal what you can't under something that wont turn to sludge. 

I've tried this and know of others who have had the same problem with clear coating over sharpies. Some colors bleed out and spread. Especially the red.

Good grief.  Sharpies are pure evil!

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