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StampingStamping is quite often associated with embossing, that is using an embossing powder over the ink, which is then heated with a heated gun to bring out the raised shiny surface. While this is a nice effect, and one which I do like, I don’t always want to heat emboss them on my scrapbook layouts. Recently companies have been producing foam versions, and associated mediums such as paints and dyes, which has taken things to a more arty level. These foam ones produce their own unique look, quite different from that of the rubber variety. Inks On backgrounds, the type of ink pads used are as important as the stamp designs. Fluid chalk style inks are great; they will give a soft powdery image. A pigment or dye ink will give a stronger, possibly clearer image. Other mediums to experiment with are paints, liquid dyes and bleach, all of which will create a unique design. When using bleach, also try them on fabric, cardstock and patterned papers. As the effect will be different for each surface, it is recommended that you test the bleach method each time to see the results. Think about your cardstock A consideration when creating backgrounds is the texture of the cardstock used; the texture will show through the image, so experiment with the large variety of different cardstock textures available to scrapbookers. Fonts The variety of letter stamps is huge – many styles of fonts are available. The letter sizes vary also, from tiny ones up. Large titles can be added to layouts using foam alphabet prints and paints, or for a textured title, stamp letters into texture paste. Have a go They can be quite an investment, but when cared for correctly, they will last a very long time. If you haven’t used stamps on your scrapbook layouts yet, you only need a few to start experimenting. If they've have been packed away for a while, dust them off and start to see what new designs you can create.
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