SU New Ink Pad Question
 

I got out of stamping about 4-5 years ago as my life had taken a hard left turn. Fast forward to now and I'm trying to get going with stamping again. The other day I received my first new inkpad. Its not linen anymore its like a jelly foam. I had ink everywhere all over my blocks the table hands. It was awful like trying to ink with jello. I was using polymer stamps. I have never had anything like this happen before in all my stamping years. I was so delicate in how I inked but that awful sponge just molded to everything. Are there any tricks to these new horrible ink pads? I dont mind foam pads but make them hard foam for petes sake lol.

I have the same issues with the foam pads. And heaven forbid you should try using them for a card making class.

I was so excited to see the uninked felt spots in the new SU catalog. I ordered a pile of them this morning along with reinkers for all the new colors.

Now that I use the MISTI for most of my stamping, I prefer the small pads.

Ha! I've had them for so long I haven't thought about it. But I did have to teach my customers to stop SMASHING the stamp into the ink pad.

I love them because the coverage is MUCH better - like 1000x better - on photopolymer and solid images - but I tell everyone to please pat like a bunny, don't smash it like there's a spider under it! :D

We were all so used to whacking those linen pads, it's a hard habit to break but you'll be REALLY happy when you break it.

I'm with you Lynn on the size - SU came out with uninked spots today and my MISTI wept with joy :)

Mine, too, Lydia! I have been counting down the days until I could place my order this morning!

And, of course, triple stamping with the MISTI pretty much takes care of any coverage issue.

I was patting them so delicately I thought I wouldnt get any ink on them but no ink was everywhere. I hate these new ink pads im gonna get me the spots instead since they work better with the misti and i plan on getting one. Personally I think the old pads work better with my polymer stamps. I'm gonna do some serious shopping at the catty open house i am going to on sunday!

I love this line:

On a more serious note, I seem to have better luck taking the pad to the stamp versus the stamp to the ink pad. I find it is easier to be more delicate that way. I think that came with using the Misti a lot though as you can't move the stamp to the pad using it, it has to be pad to the stamp. It did take me a month or two to get used to them after having to "smash it like there's a spider under it" with my other felt/fabric inkpads LOL!

totally agree pad to stamp works best for me too:D

I definitely like the foam better than the old linen pads. Yes, it does take practice but coverage is so much better it's worth it. I really notice the difference when I use some of my older linen pads and get the linen imprint on my image.

When teaching classes I can't tell you how many "squashed spiders" we had. LOL

Sometimes a new ink pad simply has a little too much ink. Depending on how much excess ink there is, you can often massage it deeper into the ink pad by gently rubbing a plastic spoon all over the pad, or you may actually need to absorb a little ink off the pad with a paper towel. Both can make a big difference in your end result.

I think I'm the only person who still likes the linen pads! Mine seem to stamp just fine! I have been to SU classes where the foam pads are stating to get holes.

I suppose that's because everyone smashes too hard on the pads!

They seem to take so much more re-inking too.

When the foam first came out I knew there were strict rules to gently tap. I went to some classes and some pads were juicy and some needed the stamp pressed fairly hard so it seemed Confusing and a hassle.

I know that some pads can be extra juicy when you get them and others seem to have average ink amounts. Haven't some people advised to take the back of a spoon and spread the ink around or something like that?

Yours does seem really wet! They are all not that way! In fact I've never gotten one that was really messy but the Blackberry Bliss.

I think you'll find many of the pads are not so soupy and are easy to work with.

I got an email back from SU and they are sending me a new pad they said based on my description sounds like a mfg issue. They said in the meantime to take a towel and dab it and then use the butter spread method.

Hello!! Hope you don't mind a newbie jumping in with more questions! I started buying SU 3 years ago, I love the colours, and I love having stuff that matches. I have about 15 SU ink pads, but I just can't seem to get a good impression with them, especially with the photopolymer stamps. The ink beads up on the stamp, and my image is always patchy. I use their cardstock. I use the light tapping method, now I use a small piece of sponge to spread the ink more evenly, but it's a lot of work! All my pads are really juicy, so I now store them upside down, but that doesn't seem to make a difference! Is it worth buying a brayer? I am almost ready to give up! Does anyone have any more tips on how to get a non-patchy image first time? Thanks! x

Edit : P.S. What's the butter spread method? Tried googling it, but got a lot of links to how to make frosting LOL :) :)

MISTI?
 

What is MISTI?:confused:

Kate, if you have a Versamark ink pad, try tapping your stamp on that and then ink it up with your SU pad. I've found that especially for solid images, the Versamark gives the ink something to stick to so it doesn't head up as much. But I confess, I don't use my SU pads very much anymore because even after years they still seem too messy and the colors way darker than the paper swatch or label.

Craftyteaspoon, the MISTI is a stamp positioner tool. You can read all about it and seem some great videos in the My Sweet Petunia forum. I use mine almost every time I stamp.

Thanks, I haven't tried that before x. I don't know why they don't do pigment ink! They are nice for watercoluring, tho :)

here is a video that will explain.
Saundra

:shock::shock::shock::shock:

Wow. I watched the video above, and then watched another one titled "10 Ways to Use the MISTI".
It was fast, but amazing!!!!!!

Do the new spots come with a little lid to close the pad when not in use? I used to get them from the gourd farm, but it would be more convenient if I could just order them from SU. thanks in advance for the reply.

Yes - they are just like our regular ink spots, just without a label. :)

Thank you!
(PS- I followed your blog for so long, then I fell away from crafting, and now I'm back and it's such a nice coincidence that you responded to my post).

One thing I noticed a few days ago with the foam pads is they can be so wet fine details don't show up.

I was using a Baked Brown Sugar pad that has only been used a few times. It was not soupy but nicely wet.

No matter how lightly I touched the pad, when I stamped the fine detail in the image didn't show up. These were photopolymer stamps. I then used a linen pad and the image was finely detailed.

Some people recommend you rub a new photopolymer stamp with your finger before you stamp to get better coverage. Stephanie from MFT recommends it all the time on her videos.
Here is something else I found'on the web:
Is it a new stamp that you are using? Sometimes the stamps need to be seasoned by lightly rubbing with an eraser. However, there is something I do before stamping an image and it may sound a little strange. I was given this tip by a fellow stamper. Once your stamp is mounted to your block, rub the stamp on the top of your hand or the inside of your wrist/arm. The oils from your skin get transferred to your stamp and give the ink a great base to adhere to. It actually works really well.

Is the SU foam in the foam pads the same as the foam they used in the old Craft pads?

I had all of the SU pads (Classic and Craft from back when they had Craft in all of their colors) and then decided to just use the spots, so I had NO idea they had switched to foam pads years ago! The spots are always felt pads, so they didn't give me a clue, either.


Is there any reason why the spots aren't foam pads?


Now I'm dying to try the foam pads, but don't really want to buy a full-sized pad just to explore. I thought about getting Basic Black, but it's apparently still a felt pad (because it's archival ink?).