MFT Plaid BG Builder - HELP!

[ShariW]

Hi everyone - I've hit a bump in my life with MISTI. I just purchased the above stamp set and I cannot get them lined up. I've tried lining them up on the card stock and picking the stamp up with the lid and I've tried lining it up on the lid. The are always crooked or wavy. Anyone have a trick to using these. Also, is there a trick to inking these up without lines showing from the stamp pad? I've also learned a lesson AGAIN - just because I like a card with a stamp set I don't have doesn't mean I should jump right in and buy it! I want to make this set work as I love plaids. Thanks for any help! :(

[krista824]

I have this set. I use the grid paper in the base of my MISTI to get the stripes lined up straight. Then I do a test stamp on the grid paper to double check.

I'm not having any issues with inking these although I do usually stamp twice for more even coverage.

Hope this helps!

[sparkler39]

I've recently started using a quilter's gridded plastic template cut to size inside my MISTI instead of grid paper. Because it's plastic it seems to resist sticking a little bit better than the grid paper...when I have a stamp that's difficult to line up I can usually push it around easier on the plastic template. I also followed some of the video tutorials and cut strips of the plastic template and I think you could use something similar. If you cut a strip of the plastic template you could place it down on top of the plastic grid inside the MISTI and then push the stamp up against it to line it up. Then press the lid down, raise the lid, remove the strip, add your paper, and voila! ;) That should solve the problem of getting the lines straight.

As for the inks, I do as Krista said above and usually stamp more than once to get more even coverage!

[ShariW]

Thank you ladies for your help. I did make a card in the meantime using only two of the stamps from this set and I've just uploaded the front and inside to my gallery. It took me a LONG time to make this card as the paper kept moving on my MISTI and I didn't notice it - so there are falling stars all over my work area! LOL! Will be using those grids on the inside as opposed to using the grid on the lid! I have both the quilting sheets and the grid paper and I think I'm still to new in the MISTI business to do things second nature and need my teachers. Again thank you!