Saturday, August 17, 2013

Creating Neat Stamps

By Heidi Arrowood


If stamp making is something you are interested in, and you would like to try out your artistic side, creating stamps may be right for you. Creating your own stamp is very enjoyable, and allows you to make something you can use over and over again. Below i will list some easy steps to help you get started designing and creating your own personal stamp.

Creating the stamp

To get started, you need to get your creative juices flowing. Start thinking about what kind of image or theme that you might want to go with. You can draw your ideals out on paper, and make changes where necessary. If this is your first creation, try starting out simple. You can get more complex as time goes by. Some good examples for easily created stamps might be trees, skylines with the sun in view, and so on.

Tracing out your image

After you have found a theme and you have drawn some images that you like, it's time to trace your image onto a piece of rubber. If you want to go for an alternative, then you should moisten your rubber. Then consider transferring the pencil drawing by pressing the rubber onto the drawing. However, keep in mind that this will also reverse the image for you. This means that you'll have to ensure the letters are in reverse.

Cutting your stamp

If this is your very first attempt, cut out the large pieces of the stamp first. Then you can begin cutting the very small and detailed pieces of the stamp. If you are attempting to cut a circle or curve, keep you blade still. Just move the rubber piece. While cutting large white areas, make sure to leave some of the rubber in place. This breaks up large white areas and will give you a wood cut look. Making a much more interesting look overall.

Trying out your stamp

Before you start testing your stamp, remove any left over rubber pieces from the cutting process. You don't want to leave any rubber pieces in your inked image. Next up, place your stamp onto the ink pad. Make sure you get an even coat of ink onto your stamp. With this being your first impression, you might have some areas void of ink. If this happens to you, just coat your stamp again.

If your ready to try out your stamp, grab a clean piece of white paper. Take your stamp and press it firmly against the paper. Make sure you don't press too firmly though. This can cause your image to be smudged or blurred. Also, lift your stamp slowly off the paper, this will leave the cleanest possible image.

The final result

You have now created your stamp, and for some your very first stamp. Just make sure the edges are all even. If you wish to make changes to the image on the stamp, encircle that part of the image on paper. Then carefully figure out where on the stamp you want to make changes. Be careful not to ruin your stamp when making changes. Have fun and good luck with all your future stamps.




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