Stamping Basics - Pt. 4

This by far is one of the most important posts in the series. You can't make cards without stamps! There are so many different company's that make and sell stamps it is so easy to find stamps that appeal to you and fit into your style of crafting.

There are three different types of stamps that you can buy and they are Wood-Mount Rubber stamps, Cling-Mount Rubber stamps and Photopolymer stamps.

The Wood-Mount stamps are becoming less and less popular. These stamps are permanently adhered to a durable wood block, meaning it takes more room to store them whether you have them in a drawer, clam shell cases or the wide DVD style cases. This is the first year Stampin' Up! has not offered any wood-mount stamps. I don't know of any other big companies offering them but I do know that you can go Michaels and they still have a selection of wood-mount stamps those that section is shrinking. Lots of people are actually unmounting there wood-mount stamps converting them to cling-mount stamps, Stampin' Up! offers all the supplies necessary to make this change.

Next up we have the Cling-Mount rubber stamps also referred to as Red Rubber stamps by some in the crafting world. These stamps must be used with clear acrylic blocks or a stamp positioning tool. The acrylic blocks are reusable so you really only need a few different sizes. These stamps are easy to clean and can actually be washed in soap and water if needed. They store perfectly in a standard DVD style case from Stampin' Up! making them easier to store because they don't take up as much room as a wood-mount stamp set.

Lastly we have Photopolymer stamps and I really love them because these stamps are clear! These stamps use the acrylic blocks same as the cling-mount. But because they are clear you can very easily line up your stamps before you stamp. Most 2-step stamps will come in photopolymer. These stamps sets also store in the DVD style cases from Stampin' Up!. The Photopolymer stamps are stickier than the cling-mount stamps and over time with a lot of use may loose that sticky I wrote a blog post here telling you how to make your stamps sticky again.

Which brings me to cleaning you stamps. Some people don't clean they're stamps they feel that they stamp better that way. I do not hold to this view rather I have the Stampin' Up! shammy for cleaning my stamps and love it because all it do is wet the cloth and wipe my stamps on it. For most stamps you can use some dish soap and water to clean them. But other options for cleaning your stamps include buying a scrub pad and special stamp cleaner spray. If you use Stazon ink I do recommend that you get the special Stazon cleaner because the Stazon ink will not come off with soap and water.

Happy Paper Crafting!  

*Contact me directly to place an order or search for Blaze Tully under 'Find a Demonstrator' to shop under me on the Stampin' Up Website.*