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Im just so excited i couldnt wait to tell you all last night i did some stamping/embossing i havent done any for ages. Eventually i will get some photos up of what i have done so you can see my cards.
I completed about 20 cards that are paper tole with a greeting the day before that was stamped and embossed.
i do have one question how do you know if you have put enough ink on the stamp? im pretty good with smaller stamps and ive only pretty much used pigment ink because ive been embossing just about everything ive stamped but ive noticed the bigger ones i tend to miss bits of the picture
i have been using a mouse pad not a stamping pad (made of rubber) and i know the u tubes ive seen some do some dont i was wondering if that would make the difference but someone suggested a mouse pad and maybe its not thick enough.
Any help appreciated! i am still really really new at it. I have managed to do the embossing without burning myself whatsoever and it is really very easy once u get the hang of it!
I read and thank everyone for all their comments because it helped me to work out a routine
what i do is i have a wooden tray that my husband made that i rest the stamping on then a heat resistant sheet then a mouse pad then the paper then stamp the picture and have a sheet of card underneath the paper im stamping on i pour the embossing powder onto the stamped image and then i pour it off onto the sheet below and i put the container of powder onto this tray so it catches the drips and it has two funnels i can push the excess powder and put it back into the container.
I have also made my own embossing buddy even simpler than the u tube video!
you know a washcloth that u use for the dishes? one brand is Chux but that may be australian anyways it is breathable so what i did was i put a couple of tablespoons of cornflour (cornstarch) on the cloth and did it up with a rubber band! you have to be careful cos it comes out really easily but i didnt have a stocking to put it in so i put it in that instead I suggest keeping it in a zip lock bag to prevent the cornstarch going everywhere.
thanks for reading! i will definitely post pictures soon. Some has worked well and some not!
Hi Erin, first thing I'd say is try without the mouse mat underneath. Some people recommend having a cushioning underneath, some work without. I always work straight onto my desktop, never had much success with a soft surface under my stamping. Then I'd say look closely at your stamp after you've inked it- is the whole stamp inked? Check for where you may have missed a patch. Also, personally I find I get better impressions by standing up to stamp, especially with larger stamps. I put the stamp onto my cardstock, then place my left hand totally over the stamp, put my right hand over my left, and press. If it is a big stamp, then I take my hands off, and using first finger and thumb of each hand, press down on the corners of the stamp. The larger your stamp, the more you have to be sure you've applied even pressure all over it, without rocking the stamp. Some people recommend laying your stamp face up, placing cardstock on top, and rolling over it with a brayer. Its a case of trial and error to see which particular method works best for you. Glad you are so happy with how the embossing is coming along, its really quite like magic to see the embossing happen, isn't it? I also made my own anti- static bag, using talc and a baby's sock, or a trainer shoe sock.
I can imagine standing would help but unfortunately im disabled not only bedridden but cant even sit fully upright so i will have to find a way of getting pressure without actually standing up
imagine: doing this in BED lying down and still have your legs with a pillow underneath them bearly being able to reach supplies also low dexterity and strength!!!
LOL!!! no wonder its a tad hard
i finally figured out if i shine a light on the stamp its glossy where it isnt it doesnt have enough ink u know i tried 6 times and i got the stamp to work twice it is a big stamp only fits on A6 just! and its also heavy cos its one of those wooden backed ones.]
another thing i tried today was i tried a different block its a stampendous one and although this makes no diff for that stamp it should for others its a thinner lighter block meaning i can "feel" more what ive done!
theres definitely techniques involved here and i swear if i was able enough id attend a class!!! but i cant :-(
anyways thats why i ask lots on here
also i think u r right i absolutely love the magic of the embossing part as long as the stamp stamps the embossing is easy!!! i will try it without the mouse pad see if its better. i guess its like everyone what works for one doesnt for another.
Today i tried out glaze sakura pens to colour in some images after id stamped and embossed them they look fabulous its only on normal cardstock but it looks fabulous
im making tons of stuff for christmas both for friends and family and also because i sell stuff for a charity and make stuff and put it on facebook!
thanks for your help
cardmaking for me started with just paper tole and sentiment stickers and now im delving into tons more stuff!!
Hi Erin, I can see your problem now! Also you are clearly discovering there is no such thing as having enough craft stuff, lol. I do agree that different blocks make a huge difference to how you can 'feel' what you are doing. This is a wonderful place for getting help and information, everyone comes along with different ideas, and as you clearly demonstrate, its different things for different people. Maybe the 'upside down stamp and paper on top with a brayer' may be more use to you. Also, there has been a thread on here, 'MISTI'- the most incredible stamp tool invented. I've linked to the thread. It might be worth having a look at, as all the people who've bought it say how wonderful it is for getting great impressions. I understand from the thread that there are some You- Tube videos, and the links are in the thread. From what I recall reading, you cannot use it with wood mounted stamps though, only unmounteds. There are 5 pages about it, and not one person who has bought it has had anything negative to say about it.
If I am going to emboss, I always put the stamp on a flat surface facing upwards and carefully pounce my ink pad on top of the stamp. I find that this way, it is easier for me to check the stamp to be certain it is evenly inked. You can turn the stamp in several ways to better see if it is "glistening" all over so you can know you will get a well inked impression.
One thing that helped me stamp after my stroke is the Fiskar's stamp press. It helped me get even pressure all over the stamp, but it is only good for cling or acrylic stamps: Fiskars 8986 Easy Stamp Press Demonstration - YouTube
I was going to order this, but shipping was $7.95 - almost as much as the blocks!
I'm sorry, I wasn't recommending that particular vendor - I just linked to that spot because they had a video demonstrating the product. I got mine - a 5 piece green set - from Joann's when they were having a sale a few years ago.
Joann's has the Crafter's Companion 4 piece pink set right now for $15.39 with free shipping at $25.:
I'm a M.I.S.T.I. user and I love it. It solves so many problems but the biggest - best - most wonderful thing is that if you don't have enough ink on your stamp, you can ink the stamp and stamp again in the exact same spot. I can't tell you how much money it has saved me in the short time I've had it.
There were stamps I rarely used, especially the large stamps, because it was difficult to get an evenly stamped image. I've been stamping for years and still had problems with them after trying all the suggestions. I even tried the mega-mount which is similar to the rock blocks and still wasn't getting a perfectly stamped image. M.I.S.T.I. is a bit pricey and it's hard to get one but it's worth the wait for what is saves in paper & frustration. Can't say how bad the shipping might be...sorry.
One thing I do on large or solid stamps to get an even coverage, I swirl the ink pad around on the stamp in a circular motion and then tap the pad it all over the stamp. It seems to get into the nooks and crannies I may have missed.
I just wanted to say thank you to all of your replies! this is the most amazing forum cos people actually answer questions!
thank you to skippet about the stamp press ive decided im going to buy one. It was hard to find in Australia or somewhere online that ships to australia but I found one for about $25 incl postage so im happy :-)
Thanks to shazsilverwolf About the MISTI link I think it looks fabulous! however the site says they have run out and sometime they will have more which i guess could be months im not sure if they send overseas either. Im guessing with a magnetic base it could be expensive to post but not sure cos of the weight of the parcel.
Anyways Im going to try the easy stamp press im not sure how long it will take to arrive but ill post back when ive given it ago.
its nice to know that im not the only one who struggles to get a clean image
the annoying part is that the embossing ive got the hang of its cumbersome in bed (which i have no choice at the moment about) but i can do it and it works and it looks fabulous but the actual stamping part is harder
ive got all three types of stamps the wooden ones only 3 of them but the rubber cling and the acrylic of got quite a lot!
I love kitty lane stamps they are SO pretty (they're on ebay) but australian made the pictures are so cute
So thanks again to all of you and I did also look at the rock a blocks as well but they are really hard to find here and i thought i dont need everything LOL i will try the fiskars stamp press first and if that works thats great i dont know if i could use the rock a blocks or not! its hard to know i never even thought about dexterity problems and the stamping and the coordination required i just saw a video and went i SO want to do that LOL now ive got the stamps that were in that exact video and the same watercolour paper and i got them a couple of days ago.
I have LOTS of cat stamps and quite a number of musical ones too.
I use ebay mostly to buy stuff because i cant get to any craft stores to look one day i will!!!
The prob is that I also love crochet and have about 5 boxes of wool and I used to do a ton load of sewing both clothing and quilting so ive got a ton load of fabric too I also did cross stitch but now i have issues holding the needle and although 33 ive got eyesight issues im 100 percent sure it will be fixed with a NEW pair of glasses but seriously i havent been able to get to the optometrist to get them. I finally found out they will come to me but the place never rang me back - thats a job for tues to ring and find out if they found someone to do it - long weekend here.
Anyways I digress!!!
I remember someone posting about Scrapbooking made simple cos i love their videos and ive bought some stuff from them during their sale and it still hasnt come i really hope it does soon i bought it in July i wont be using them again unless i really want their product it appears though that they seem to have things that other places just dont have!!
Oh the final thing i found heat embossing acetate and also craft plastic so i can emboss on acetate (amazing videos on u tube) and the craft plastic im making suncatchers out of them using sakura glaze pens I used them for some cards the other day and they work fantastic!
what does use stamp upside down and put card on top and use a brayer how do you use that? A brayer is a roller ive seen them but dont have one can you stamp upside down?
Ive got a wooden stamp quite big and i do have quite a lot of difficulty while the stamp press works for all of my other stamps the two other wooden ones are much smaller and i havent had any issues it would be great to solve the problem with this stamp as I love it if i had been more careful i could have got the same one with cling rubber instead but it was one of the first i got and didnt know any different!
So intrigued by use of brayer on top do you have a video link or a tutorial?
Hi Erin,glad you have found something that should work for you. I believe the Stamp press is a very similar idea anyway to the MISTI. I do recall some ladies saying the MISTI is being made by the lady who developed it, so production is a little slow.About using a brayer, I haven't done it myself, but according to people who have posted the idea on here, what you do is : Ink up your stamp, then lay it on your worksurface with the image facing upwards. Then take your piece of paper/cardstock, and lay it on top of the image on the stamp. Now take your brayer and roll it back and forth over the cardstock evenly. I would imagine you need to be careful NOT to go off the edge! Then peel up your cardstock and you should have an evenly stamped image.
You can also use a brayer to put the ink onto the large stamp in the first place, people say this helps to get an even coat. Again, not tried it myself.
The MISTI looks terrific but isnt for wood blocks. Unless you want to convert those to cling.
I have a lot of wood block stamps, including large. I know what you are talking about. It might not be you. There might be a mfg thing where the surface of the rubber dips a bit.
Here is what I do with big stamps. I test them first. I turn them upside down, and put the pad to them. Much better way to make sure I have inked everywhere....pads can also have uneven ink in them...like if you always hit it on the left side...so rotate the ink pad too.
Once I am happy that I am inked well...I do a practice stamp. I use like a dozen sheets of plain copy paper..some "give" but not tons. I dont like mags b/c they can slide around. If I see a place in the stamp that didnt ink well, I try again and make sure I ink that space. If it happens again then I know I have to pay a lot of attention to that area. It may be an uneven surface.
When I stamp I dont like pushing too hard-I guess it's just me, I feel like I could damage the rubber, esp with ouline images. And that's a fine like to walk. I place the stamp and hold it in place with one hand, make a fist with the other and press around the whole stamp-esp the "problem area". That generally works. Just dont rock it. This seems to allow me to get focused pressure in the trouble spots. Defintely agree with the idea to hit all four corners and along the edges.
I have been considering a stamping pad myself. I saw one at a class and it looked pretty cool.
Some people will sand a stamp to level it. That would scare me personally. You could SO easily do too much and then it never ends...and I am heavy handed.
Hope something there helps. Glad you found an activity you can do in bed that you are enjoying so much! This is a GREAT place. The people here totally rock!
PS-This might start trouble but you can buy online right from a lot of mfgs and they will ship out of the country. Or if you see something and call a local stamp store...they could ship it to you to avoid the big shipping fees. Just sayin'. Plus there are TONS of tutorials online at Youtube...I plug in whatever it is I want to know and usually get a lot of hits. Dangerous-I could spend all day looking at those! LOL The mfgs often have them too and there some here too!
embossing
