You've got stamps...you need ink. Its is that simple. You've got to have a medium to get that design off the rubber and on to what ever surface you've chosen. But the whole
ink thing can be very confusing to new stampers.
There are lots of different mediums available to stampers. Inks are the most commonly used and the easiest place to start. Inks can be found in both pad and marker form. Pads come in foam and felt. Foam pads are softer and require less pressure to ink the stamp. It won't take much stamping for you to be confident which type of pad you have. To insure that you get the best results for your projects, always keep a practice piece of material handy when you are stamping to allow you to stamp on before stamping on the "real" article. The pads should have information that allows you to identify the type of ink they contain. Markers should be water based, (otherwise they will stain your stamp) and most are brush tipped to allow the color to spread well on the stamp surface.
Most inks can be classified as dye-based or pig- ment inks.Has a general rule of thumb, dye-based inks are not permanent but dry quickly. Pigment inks take more time to dry but retain color much longer. A third type of ink is embossing ink, so named for its use with embossing powder. Embossing ink is usually tinged in a light blue. Once the image has been stamped the ink takes quite awhile to dry, allowing time for the stamper to sprinkle the image with a fine powder called embossing powder. When heated with an embossing gun, the powder develops a raised appearance. Embossing powder also works well with pigment ink, because of its longer drying time. Stamping with embossing powder gives the stamper a whole new range of designs.
Transfer inks are also available. Although they are usually used on fabrics, transfer inks can be used on other surfaces as well. Most require some form of heat setting.
Stamping does not require that you use ink. Acrylic, glass, stencil and tempra paints can be used with your stamps. A new paper paint developed by Delta called "Cherished Memories" drys quickly and can be used for stamping in scrapbooks.
If you are not sure of the permanency of the ink you would like to use for a project, Nancy Ward, in her book "Stamping Made Easy", recommends the following test:
There are lots of different mediums available to stampers. Inks are the most commonly used and the easiest place to start. Inks can be found in both pad and marker form. Pads come in foam and felt. Foam pads are softer and require less pressure to ink the stamp. It won't take much stamping for you to be confident which type of pad you have. To insure that you get the best results for your projects, always keep a practice piece of material handy when you are stamping to allow you to stamp on before stamping on the "real" article. The pads should have information that allows you to identify the type of ink they contain. Markers should be water based, (otherwise they will stain your stamp) and most are brush tipped to allow the color to spread well on the stamp surface.
Most inks can be classified as dye-based or pig- ment inks.Has a general rule of thumb, dye-based inks are not permanent but dry quickly. Pigment inks take more time to dry but retain color much longer. A third type of ink is embossing ink, so named for its use with embossing powder. Embossing ink is usually tinged in a light blue. Once the image has been stamped the ink takes quite awhile to dry, allowing time for the stamper to sprinkle the image with a fine powder called embossing powder. When heated with an embossing gun, the powder develops a raised appearance. Embossing powder also works well with pigment ink, because of its longer drying time. Stamping with embossing powder gives the stamper a whole new range of designs.
Transfer inks are also available. Although they are usually used on fabrics, transfer inks can be used on other surfaces as well. Most require some form of heat setting.
Stamping does not require that you use ink. Acrylic, glass, stencil and tempra paints can be used with your stamps. A new paper paint developed by Delta called "Cherished Memories" drys quickly and can be used for stamping in scrapbooks.
If you are not sure of the permanency of the ink you would like to use for a project, Nancy Ward, in her book "Stamping Made Easy", recommends the following test:
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