For things like black cloth or boots I would start from a mid-grey to charcoal grey base, wash with black to shade it then highlight with anything from blue to brown. You really have to experiment anyway to see what looks best for you - exactly what you do depends very much on the scale you are working in.
The Army Painter dips don't attract me at all, mainly because a lot of the results I've seen look very obviously dipped. There's no subtlety to the shading like you can achieve with inks. I have no doubt that some very nice results can be had if you know what you're doing, but I'd rather stick to what I know best.
and @clive 'Black, it's all black!' haha thanks for reminding me of that
@Cubster - That's a beautiful Big Wullie you have there.


