stamp making

Continuing with my stamp making obsession, I made some mini greeting cards, which are roughly half the size of business cards. These are just stamped sentiments on little slips of card stock. This time I documented the stamp carving process. 

Step 1. Write/draw the image you want on the stamp. Trace over the image with a pencil until darkened, then flip over and transfer onto the stamp. This gets you the reverse image so when you stamp it looks normal.

Step 2. Begin carving. I first trace the letters with a finer blade.

Step 3. Continue carving until you have the image you want. I used a bigger blade to cut away the larger pieces of the rubber. Then back to the smaller blade to cut through some of the narrower parts.

Step 5. Clean and stamp.

It is actually pretty simple, it just takes a while to carve the stamp. It’s hard for me to not just zoom through the carving. I’ve done that a couple of times and I end up cutting into parts I don’t want to be cutting into and completely messing up the stamp. It just takes a lot of patience and careful small cutting strokes. I think it’s all worth it. I’m really satisfied with the end results. 

One of my favorite stamp sites (and overall crafting sites) is Papertrey Ink, they have amazing ideas and materials. Their prices are very reasonable and it is really difficult for someone like me who has no self-control when it comes to craft supplies. They have amazing card stock, ink, stamps, and anything else you can think of when it comes to making cards. They also come out with new products every month, which is something I always look forward to.