LOVE YOUR STAMPS

Hi friends

Stamps are one of the most favourite item for any crafter and one cannot have enough of them. The greed for stamps never ends and the market is flooded such amazing brands and designs that one just goes crazy yearning for them. Be it rubber stamp or clear stamp, these are most prized item for any crafter and for me at least each of my stamp is very dear to me.

Since we all love stamps and stamping so much; have you ever wondered what little effort can we do increase the life of our stamps. Since they are inked over and over again, how should one look after or take care of the stamps so that they remain free from damage and continue to give good images for years together.

I have been crafting since last ten years and have taken lot of care of my stamps and so even mu first stamp bought many years ago is still as good as new.
Over the years, I have gathered many tips and advice from expert crafters and friends and teachers all over the world. There are many posts on stamp care all over the net so what I am sharing is nothing new. Its just my own experience that I am putting down here and the effort that has helped me and now you can benefit for this post too.

As you all know stamps come in few varieties--Clear or Photopolymer and Rubber stamps. Rubber stamps can be again cling mounted or wood mounted.

                                                                         clear stamps

wood mounted rubber stamp

                                               foam cling stamp
So how does one take care of stamps.

First--LOVE YOUR STAMPS--YES!!!!!!  Its very important to love your stamps for each one of them has been bought with lot of thoughtfulness, love and of course your money!!

Second-- Keep a good supply of stamp cleaners, a good rag free from fibers preferably a lintt free cloth so that fibres are not stuck in the grooves of stamps while cleaning. Baby wipes that are alcohol and aloe free --although many crafters swear by it, but I avoid using them on stamps as they leave a wet residue on my stamp amd then I have to pat them dry really well, but for removing your ink quickly, this is good. 
It is also very important to wash your stamp with warm soapy water once in a while as this will add life to your stamp and also help in re gaining the stickiness which diminishes with frequent use.
You can use Aleenes tacky glue over and over again to get the stickiness back. Just clean the back of your stamp and apply a thin film of tack over and over again glue and let it dry and you get your sticky stamp back.

These are various stamp cleaners and their usage depends on the type of inks used on stamps. So lets discuss inks .

Stazon 

T 

This is a very strong ink for stamps and often leaves a residue of ink behind, hence your stamps look stained even after you thouroughly clean it. So I highly recommend the use of Stazon Cleaner to clean your stamps if you use this ink for stamping. 

First stamp on a scrap piece of paper till all the ink comes off the stamp then clean with a soft rag with this cleaner. Pat dry and store. 

Other inks that are frequently used are Archival, Memento, Hero arts etc . These inks may leave your stamps a little stained and it might look as if there is lot of ink on the stamp, but that is fine. After cleaning if the stamp looks stained , you need not worry.

Another stamp cleaner that I really use again and again is the Hero Arts Ultra Clean...So far the best stamp cleaner I have used and I will tell you why. See both the images below . The first picture shows the stamp that is stained with ink with repeated use and the second picture shows the cleaned stamp. So you can make out the difference and understand why I swear by Ultra Clean,. Its a must have for all stamp lovers. 

So my stamp is cleaned off all the old ink stains.

There are many stamp cleaners in the market and also are many stamp cleaner scrub pads where in you can clean your stamps and you can choose according to your need. 

Before you begin stamping, it is needed that you rub the surface with a normal eraser. This will prepare the stamp for crisp clear image . Rubbing with eraser removes the film of oil on the surface of the stamp that prevents from getting a clear image. /but once done, it gives clear image.

Next what we need to clean is an important stamping accessory and that is ACRYLIC BLOCKS.

Cleaning of your acrylic blocks is very important because this is the base onto which you adhere your stamps. So if they are dirty or stained , the stamp might not stick to the block and then keep falling off it. For cleaning them, you can use soapy water or any good stamp cleaner. It is very much advisable to clean your block after every usage.

Now we need good storing space for our lovely stamps. 

For this always and I repeat----ALWAYS keep your stamp back once you have cleaned it and into its original acrylic backing sheet . Sometimes some rubber stamps have a waxy paper as backing. Never throw it . Place it back on the stamp after using it as it prevents the stamp from getting damaged and lose its stickiness.

Always keep another sheet of OHP sheet on top and slip it into a poly plastic zip lock bag or into its original package. It is also advisable to store stamps in standing postion like books and not stack one top of each other as sometimes the delicate design on stamp gets damaged.

Keep your stamp in closed boxes or baskets upright to store them.

this is how I store my stamps in clear plastic lock sleeves

Nowadays various types of plastic sleeves of many sizes are available and one can store stamps in  them according to your stamp size.

So the basic rules are to stamp, clean and keep 

I hope I have missed out anything. Please do not hesitate to share your own tip with us to help us to be better. Now beautiful designs and stamp cleaners are available at

www.crafterstale.com

Aleenes tack it over again glue

Hero arts Ultra Clean

Stazon stamp cleaner

So do check this store and I hope I have been of some help to all stamp lovers. Last but not the least the best care for stamps is LOVE YOUR STAMPS AS YOU LOVE YOUR DEAR ONES.

Keep smiling and keep crafting.