Sharpies do work. i tryed a black red flake with a neon tail, and the fish wernt biting. What i did was dry of my senko. Blowdry it. Then color it with a normal black sharpie. Blowdry it again, then put it in a bowl of ice cold water. Wrap it in a towl and squeez, then put it back in the ice bucket eith garlic and salt. I also put some glue from a stick on it and sprinkled some blue glitter on and washed it and squeezed it in a towel. I havnt used it on the water yet but they look great.