Stamping Made Easy

It takes so little equipment to make such a big difference -- practically anything from kitchen scourers to clothes pegs can make a fabulous stamp! Buy one or create your own, use it on fabric or on paper, brush it with paint or ink. Start by experimenting: dip a variety of objects in ink, press it on paper, and see what image emerges. Glue string onto cardboard to form spiral stamps, or cut designs into foam block. Leaves, potatoes, spools, fruit, even your hands also work. How you load the paint affects your results, so carefully follow the tips for inking the stamp pad, embossing, and painting the stamp itself. Special hints cover preparing the work surface; working with wood, fabric, and tiles; and cleaning your stamp. Then the fun begins, as you try making Fruit Printed Bags and Paper, a Trains, Boats, and Planes Quilt; Fishy Tiles; a regal Fleur-de-Lys lampshade or cushion; plus many more, all with easy-to-transfer patterns.