Welcome to Class 1 of our Card Making 101 series! If you’re ready to start creating handmade cards, understanding everything about stamps for card making is where you want to begin. The traditional “rubber stamp” has come a long way, and with so many options available today, choosing the right stamps for your projects can feel overwhelming. Don’t worry – this guide will simplify the process and help you master the basics of stamps with confidence.
In class 1 of our Card Making 101 series, you will learn:
- The differences between cling stamps & photopolymer stamps
- How to add labels to stamps
- About using clear blocks for your stamps
- How to align a sentiment on your block to stamp a straight greeting
- Tips to fix a stamp that is too sticky or not sticky enough (for on the block)
- The differences between line image stamps, bold image stamps, and two-step stamps
- The best ways to clean your stamps
Want to learn more about the basics of card making? CLICK HERE for our full Card Making 101 series where we discuss inks, paper, and more for your card making.
Card Making 101: Class 1
In this video class, I (Jackie, an experienced card maker) teach Jesi (my daughter, a new card maker) everything she needs to know about stamps for card making. We hope that if you’re also new to making cards you can learn alongside Jesi and build your knowledge and confidence as she does.
There’s a lot more information shared in the video class than what’s written below. So make sure to give it a watch to learn everything you need to know about stamps for card making! Below is just quick information about some of the most commonly asked questions about stamps.
Differences Between Cling Stamps & Photopolymer Stamps
Cling Stamps: A cling stamp set is going to be your red rubber stamps. They’re called cling because of the label you put on them and how they “cling” to the clear block. Information and tips about cling stamps that I share in the video class include:
- Keep the piece you punch the stamps out of for easy storage. This is an easy visual to make sure you have all the stamps in the set.
- How to put on labels to align with the stamps. This is important with cling stamps because you can’t see through them like you can the photopolymer stamps.
- Don’t grab and rip the stamp off the block, it could tear the stamp.
- To make the stamps not so sticky, tap them on your clothing.
Photopolymer Stamps: A photopolymer stamp set is going to be your clear stamps, and they’re made from a material called photopolymer. These are my favorites because you can see through them and see the image you’re stamping. Information and tips about photopolymer stamps that I share in the video class include:
- Peel the stamps off the sheet that it comes in and stick them to the case to store them. There are printed images of each stamp inside the case so this is an easy visual to make sure you have them all.
- If the stamps are not sticking to the clear blocks very well, use an alcohol wipe to clean the backs and make them sticky again.
- Red and pink inks will stain your stamps. Don’t worry about it! As long as you properly clean them no ink will transfer.
How To Stamp A Straight Greeting
In the video class, I share how to align your stamps straight on your blocks for both photopolymer and cling stamps. The easy answer for both is to use grid paper! Since you can see through photopolymer, align the stamp straight on the grid paper and then align your block straight with the paper to pick up the stamp. For cling stamps, you want to align the block straight on the grid paper and then look through it to the grid to align the stamp as best you can onto the block. And then for both, test on the grid paper first before stamping on your card! Make sure to watch the video class to see how Jesi masters getting her stamps straight.
How To Clean Your Stamps
There are several ways you can clean your stamps, but I’m going to share with you here my favorite! This is the Simply Shammy. In the picture you can see the difference between a well-used one and a brand-new one. As you use the Simply Shammy your ink will stain it. To clean it, all you have to do is rinse it under water until it runs clean.
If you stamp often, I recommend keeping it in a stamp case or a zip-lock bag to keep it wet and ready for use. If you don’t stamp ofter, I recommend you let it dry out so it can’t mold. When you’re ready to stamp again, just run it under water until it softens.
Shop Stamps For Card Making
If you’re ready to get yourself a few stamps for card making, I’ve tried to make it easy for you to shop by adding the different stamp sets we talked about below. However, there are so many amazing sets available I do recommend browsing the online store to find a favorite stamp set that you want to create with. CLICK HERE for the online store where you can browse and shop all the stamps available.
Essential Products To Go With Your Stamps
During this class we did introduce some additional products than just stamps. As much as I wanted to keep this all about stamps, you do happen to need a few more things to be able to use your stamps. To help keep it easy for you, here is a list of the essentials that go along with stamps that were introduced in the video class.
Learn More About The Basics Of Card Making
Don’t miss any of the other classes in Card Making 101 that will help you learn all about card making, what you need, and how to get started!
January 2025 Happenings
Create 6 new card templates from Volume 4 of our FREE Creativity Made Simple: Card Templates video series. Create layouts to help you design quick & easy cards using any stamps, ink, & paper you have.
In addition to making your free card templates, there are even more exciting January happenings…
- Spring Mini Catalog coming Jan. 7
- Sale-A-Bration coming Jan. 7
- New Online Exclusive Products coming Jan. 7
- Creativate Retreat Jan. 17-18
Thank you so much for visiting my website today! I hope you enjoyed this quick and easy card making project. If you did, please leave us a comment below! If you have any questions, I would love to help you and answer them, just follow the link below to contact me. If you would like to place a Stampin’ Up! order, I would be thrilled if you selected me to be your demonstrator.
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