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Rubber stamping can be a lot of fun. It’s a pretty versatile craft/technique, since you can use it to create standalone art; to decorate cards, scrapbooks, gift wrap, fabric, etc. But it can also get expensive in a hurry if you’re buying a lot of stamps and ink. So I’ve tried to put together the ultimate list of inexpensive and DIY stamping options. If you have other ideas I’ve overlooked, please leave them in the comments!
Stuff You Can Stamp With Pretty Much As-Is
(You might need to attach these to something, but you shouldn’t have to do anything fancy with them. Obviously the food-based options are temporary!)
background stamped with flip-flop soles
background “stamped” with a threaded rod from the hardware store
Buttons – especially decorative ones
Foam (or felt) stickers (If you stack up a few of the same design, you’ll have less issues with “edges” sneaking into your imprints.)
Onion slices
Apple or pear halves (try cutting the apple both directions – either so you have the apple shape or so you have the star in the middle)
Base of a celery stalk (It makes a rose shape.)
(Please don’t eat these veggies after stamping with them!)
Yarn (wrapped around something)
Rubber bands (wrapped around something)
Bubble wrap (bubble side out)
Pencil erasers
polka dots stamped with a pencil eraser
The inside of corrugated cardboard (This makes a good texture stamp – Use it with or without cutting it into a shape first.)
Wooden cutout shapes (These didn’t work well for us with ink. They’re probably better for stamping with paint.)
Children’s blocks
Heavy textured fabric (Obviously this will need to be adhered to something. You could use a staple gun to keep it wrapped around a piece of wood, for instance.)
Pieces of old bicycle tire
Rubberized shelf paper (I’ve seen this at the dollar store. Sometimes – ‘though usually not at the dollar store – a lacy type is available; like this.)
Miscellaneous household objects (I’ve seen toothpaste tubes, ends of toilet paper rolls, LEGO bricks, ends of thread spools, nuts, bolts, washers, etc.)
Making Your Own Stamps
When making stamps, remember to reverse anything directional!
Also remember you can make use of either the positive or negative space. (That is, you can create the design to be inked, or you can create the design to be the only part not inked.)
If you’re nervous, start with basic shapes/patterns. You might be surprised at how great they can look!
banner stamped with pencil eraser stamp
Stuff to Use for Carving or Forming Stamps
Potatoes – Carve them freehand or use cookie cutters to outline your design before cutting away the excess.
Candy (!) (The ends of Twizzlers might be interesting, too.)
Rubber erasers (Even tiny pencil erasers!)
hand-carved apple stamp from an eraser – Here I “cheated” and used a printed eraser. I just “traced” the lines, and cut it out with an X-acto knife.
stars stamped with a pencil eraser stamp
tiny designs stamped with a pencil eraser stamp
Craft foam – Cut it with an X-acto knife and/or scissors, die-cut it, “emboss” it, or punch it.
Corks (They have the handles built right in!)
Plasticine (This is non-hardening modeling clay. It will make temporary, “soft” impressions.)
Styrofoam (These may be somewhat temporary, as they’ll “mush.” Try egg cartons, meat trays, deli boxes, etc.) One blogger got these to work with her craft punches!
egg carton tops, ready to be turned into stamps
Sugru (you can form it into the shape OR create a block, then carve after it hardens.)
Hot glue (You don’t carve it. You squeeze our your design, like decorating a cake.)
Dimensional fabric paint in a tube (“)
Silicone caulk (“)
Pieces of old tire
Old yoga mats
Old tennis shoe soles
Flip flop soles
Silicone pot holder
Bottle nipples that have developed holes
Rubber “baseboard” from the plumbing department at the hardware store
miscellanous DIY stamps we made
Some of these things you’ll squeeze, some you’ll cut, and some you’ll carve. Use your judgment based on the texture, density, and thickness of the item/substance. Some items are pretty cool just for their texture.
Stuff to Use for Handles
miscellaneous junk to use for stamp handles/rollers
Chunky slices of dowel
Thread spools
Children’s blocks
Corks
Bottle caps or deodorant lids
Small empty pill bottles
Empty lip balm or glue stick tubes
Small blocks of scrap wood
Pieces of thick plexiglass
Purchased acrylic blocks
Wooden cubes (from the craft store)
Blocks of dense foam (Cut pieces of stiff home insulation may serve.)
MDF (medium density fiberboard – from the hardware store)
Game pieces (pawns)
Scrap pieces of click-together laminate flooring
Of course, some of these are suitable for different types of stamps. Very large stamps won’t work well on bottle caps or glue sticks. And very thin, flexible things probably won’t work well with the holey end of a thread spool. But you should be able to find something here that will work.
Sometimes you might want a border-type stamp, or an all-over “print” stamp. In that case, you’ll want to be able to mount your images to a rolling surface.
Rolling Surfaces for Pattern Stamps
Rolling pins
Lint rollers (You can often find these at the dollar store.)
Large-diameter dowels
PVC pipe
Empty supplement bottles
Tape or ribbon spools (especially packing tape spools, which are nice and large)
Mailing tubes (or slices of mailing tube)
Empty cans (the sturdy kind, like soup cans, not soda cans)
Miscellaneous Tips, Tricks, & DIY
Find inexpensive stamps & ink pads from Dollar Tree, or the dollar spot at Target or Michael’s.
You can carve your own simple stamps with an X-acto knife. You’ll need a real carving tool, though, for more complex designs.
Use a rubber band to hold several smaller stamps together as a unit (like small letter stamps used to form a word) (There’s a clever use of pencils + this trick, here.)
DIY ink (This requires “real” art supplies, so it’s not super-cheap by itself. But if you’re already an artist and just need a different color, it can save you from having to go out and buy something.)
Stamp with paint.
Make your own stamp cleaner.
DIY carving gouge (for eraser and other soft materials)
Or make a carving tool with a (metal) mechanical pencil.
Or use a cuticle trimmer.
This site has a crazy amount of information about carving tools for real stamp carving.
Try glycerine + water or rubbing alcohol for embossing/watermark ink.
Types of ink pads & how to use them
Cosmetics sponges make good daubers.
Make a stamp pad w/ baby wipes. (This is a one-time use thing.)
Alternative Uses for Rubber Stamps
Stamp polymer clay.
Impress sealing wax (Careful! Some types of stamp will be too porous or not stand up to the heat. Think about what stamp you have before you try this one.)
Stamp salt dough
…or faux porcelain
Form toilet paper imprints
Amazon.com Widgets
Rubber Stamping on the Cheap is a post from: Titus 2 Homemaker
Related posts:
Do-it-Yourself “Shrinkydinks”
ProMarkers
CardMaker Kit-of-the-Month Club