Don´t be afraid of big stamps

Hello everyone,

today I would like to focus on big stamps. This tutorial was created for Paperoamo. There are many companies producing them, many shops selling them and so many beautiful patterns to try. They are really gorgeous and I encourage you to try them. 

Drahí slovenskí a českí priatelia,

dnešný tutoriál sa bude zaoberať témou veľkých pečiatok a bol vytvorený pre Paperoamo.

 Dúfam, že sa dozviete zopár trikov, ktoré vám pomôžu. Ďakujem za všetky lajky a milé komenty. 

Celý manuál v slovenčine si môžete prečítať na tomto odkaze.

Let´s start with the basics. Big stamps can be:

* rubber stamp / cling stamp - we use it with acrylic block

* wood stamp - the rubber stamp is attached to the wood block so we don´t need the acrylic block

* foam stamp - the rubber stamp is attached to the foam back so again that´s all you need :-)

  

 

For your better imagination - this is comparison with the standard card size. 

The only disadvantage of the rubber and wood stamps is their insufficient length.  As you can see, the width is OK in both cases but the length is shorter than the standard card size. It´s nothing terrible :) You just trim the postcard or you try to centre it. Some of the producers have already solved this problem. There are big stamps which measure 5.5 or even 6 inch so you can use them either vertically or horizontally and they do cover the whole card :) 

As you can see, the stamps are really big and use them in classic way is really unpractical.  

What are we going to need ?

big stamp, paper, ink, extra paper ( scratch paper )

We work with the big stamps backwards :) Stamp lies on the table, apply the ink on the whole surface, put the paper on the stamp and cover it with your scratch paper.

Do it carefully and don´t move with the paper. We use the scratch paper to protect your hands and fingers from getting dirty :-) 

Either push with the fingers - gradually push the whole surface to get the perfect imprint from the stamp... 

... or we use special tool called brayer. We roll with the brayer on the whole surface. It´s really handy. You don´t need such professional one, any kind of roller we´ll help you. I´m sure you can find something in your kitchen. 

And here is the result. Beautiful :-) 

I prefer to work with extra paper and later glue it on the card but it´s not necessary.

Now I am going to show you how to stamp directly on your card base. 

First of all, glue your card with removable glue not with the permanent one :-)

As you can see, I need to write it down for myself to be sure I use the right one :-)

 

Then apply ink on the stamp. Can you see the postcard? It´s glued so it´s perfectly flat and prepared for stamping. 

Use the same procedure and look at the result :-)

Finally, open the postcard carefully and remove the glue rubbing off with your finger.  It´s very easy and it doesn´t damage your paper.

Maybe you ask yourself : how can I use it ?

Well, I love the most big stamp called Find the magic by Hero Arts. I think it´s perfect. I played with it and I´d like to share the results to inspire you: 

I use the craft cardstock as the base and combine it with brown and white pigment inks.

 

Grey is good, too :-)) 

Black & white is the ultimate combination in both ways - black on white as well as white on black :) I tried also the black on the grey cardstock.

Don´t forget the blue :-) First on the right is even coloured with the watercolours.

And then I needed some colours :) As base I use the watercolour paper, waterproof ink pad and coloured the letters with aquarelle colours. I love this combination the most. It´s like the blackboard as school :) 

Then I combined different colours. I used Memento Dye Inks and the result is pretty amazing :-) Of course, choose your favourite colours :-)

The last possibility is to heat emboss the watercolour paper - I think you know the procedure :-) Then it´s really easy to paint the letters or play with Distress Inks.

Let me tell you - using big stamps is really fun.

I hope you give it a try. Having so many different cards is not bad, isn´t it ? :-)

I would like to know your experience with big background stamps. Do you like them ? Will you try it ? :-)