Friday, July 25, 2008

Stamping on a Budget - Day 2

THE SWEATER BOX STAMPER

The sweater box stamper is usually a newer stamper who wants to start acquiring the basic supplies necessary to stamp, without breaking their budget.  They would really like to try it out before they really take the plunge.  Here are a few things you'll want to be sure are in your box...

A stamp set - Choose an all purpose type stamp set with greetings that you will enjoy using for many different occasions.

Ink - Look at the stamp set you chose.  Is it a coloring book type set?  One that you will want to color inside the lines?  Or is it mostly a solid image?  If it is a coloring book image, you'll need a black ink pad.  My favorite black ink is Palette Noir.  I find that it stamps cleanly, dries quickly, doesn't smear and works with most coloring applications.  Staz-On is another good option, but I'm not fond of the smell.

If the stamps you've chosen are mostly solid images, you'll need colored ink or waterbase markers.  Markers are less expensive and work well for occasional stamping.  It's somewhat frustrating, however, to have to use a marker if you're mass producing.  If you choose colored ink you will need to choose between ink spots (1" cubes of color) or full size pads.  I have personally gotten rid of all of my full size pads, except black and brown, and purchased a number of colored ink spots from different companies.  They fit perfectly in my drawer and work well for me, as most of my stamping is the colorbook style.  I'm happy to put up with the slight inconvenience of the size in exchange for more room and lower cost, however, if you do a lot of stamping with solid stamps, this might not work for you.

Notecards with Envelopes - Many companies offer precut notecards with envelopes in different sizes.  These are a good choice if you don't have much room.  We'll look at other paper choices in later levels.

Coloring Medium - If you have chosen a color book style image, you will also need to have a coloring medium.  Here are some options...

Chalks - soft color applied with a q-tip.  Not much preciseness working with detailed images.

Watercolor Pencils - My favorites are Staedtler and Prismacolor.  These are more precise.  They are applied dry, then blended with a watercolor brush or blender pen.

Watercolor Crayons - I think you either love or hate these.  Not as precise as watercolor pencils, but usually have a richer color.  Not my favorite... :)

Reinkers - As you acquire reinkers for your colored inkpads you can watercolor with a few drops of the ink from the bottles.  This is a vibrant form of watercolor.  Very striking.

Markers - Both waterbased (Tombow or SU) or alchohol based (Copic).  Copics are better than waterbased markers for detailed images.

Colored Pencils - This is my favorite form of coloring at present.  I use artist quality colored pencils (Prismacolor) and blend the color using Odorless Mineral Spirits and blending stumps from the art section of a craft store.  This is great for open or detailed images and is very precise.

Finally, be sure to add a cleaning mat and some stamp cleaner to your box, in addition to your adhesive and scissors, of course. Keeping your stamps clean and conditioned will extend their life and maintain their stampability.

Questions so far??  If you need product suggestions or have comments or questions as we go, feel free to email me!

See you tomorrow!

2 comments:

Debbie Griffin said...

Thanks for the info! I've been trying to figure out what your "OMS" with the prismacolors meant...I'm going to have to try this!

Annie said...

good info for those starting to stamp .. .. but you forgot to warn them it becomes addictive and a shoe box will never be big enough! annie x