STAMPS

I have seen so many pics posted of people's scrappy places and noticed so many people have hoards of stamps. Personally, I don't get it. They are so expensive. I can see a few that one might use again and again, but really how often does one really use that bowling stamp? Lol. My question is how many stamps do you own and how often do you really use them?

I do make a lot of cards and have many stamps that I use often. Every year, I go through and get rid of the ones I am tired of and donate them. This usually happens in April as there is an annual stamp show in May and I buy a few new ones. I have around 30 wood backed stamps and maybe 75 acrylic ones currently. I don't use the acrylic ones too much and may get rid of most of them this time around.

I own hundreds of stamps and i use them all the time. I make a lot of cards and everyone has stamping of some sort. I make cards to send to people. I make card sets as gifts and i even sell my cards.
I think it is like any medium it really depends what you make. I see people with a lot of punches, washi tape , ect. I dont use those items much so spending money on them is a waste to me. For people who use them every time they craft it is a great investment. To me my stamps are a great investment because I use them all the time. Like any craft item i have old sets I do not use as much but every once in awhile I still do. I will also purge and give away ones i know i wont use any more. I also have a huge die collection to go with those stamps and it is money well spent to me.
I can say I dont have a bowling set lol.

I went crazy when I started paper crafting and then I realized how much I never used all those "cute" stamps. I had a huge garage sale and got rid of most of all of them. I have ...hmm ... 20 sets? Most are sentiment type stamps. I really don't care for stamping and coloring, it looks so (my opinion) fakey. I can color fairly well (after years of coloring in coloring books) but it looks so flat to me.

I own 4 stamps. 1 flower, 1 baby chick, 2 easter eggs. All came in a little set together. Rarely have they been used. In fact, they have been used so infrequently that the ink pad for them dried up. I resorted to using water colors I do want to get some more stamps but I want to get alphas, sentiments, dolls....things that are much more usable than the current Easter ones I have.

Some stamps are expensive but you can find them discounted at certain stores or maybe they get them on Ebay. I have probably 30 or so stamp sets that I rotate through. I love them

I'm like Andrea, I have hundreds of stamps. But I do very little scrapbooking these days, I make thousands of cards each year and do a lot of mixed medium projects so barely a craft day goes by that I don't use a mix of several stamps. If all I did was scrapbook I'd have no real use for stamps.

I have about 40 stamps, and I notice myself becoming compulsive about buying more. I bought a Halloween stamp this year that is so awesome looking, I couldn't live without it. Not sure how I will use it, but I will. I'm very interested in vintage and steam punk stamps now. God help me!!

I guess I didn't answer the original question. I do use my stamps on scrapbook pages and cards. Using a stamp effectively on a page is a challenge; I like the challenge. Wooden stamps remind of something very essential like playdoh or crayons.

Andrea, I thought of you with this question, LOL! If I had your talent, I would own lots of stamps, too!

I have a lot of stamps because I usually buy them in sets. I find that the ones that get the most use at the moment are text and background stamps.

I agree: Andrea, you are amazing!!

I used to think the way you do... and essentially I still do, but there is a "Use Your Stamps" challenge on here that I joined and it forced me to use my stamps, and even though I'm still not all "gung-ho" for stamps, I can see their use. I almost threw out all my stamps but decided to hold on to them and have ::ahem:: bought a few more since joining that challenge. I'm hoping I can find ways to use them...

With that being said, I will never own hundreds of them because they really aren't "my thing".

Jen and Donna you guys are so sweet. Thank you for making me feel so good.

I have hundreds of stamps and never make cards. i use a stamp or two on just about every layout. Most of mine are fairly generic or common themes like birthdays and holidays. Sure I have some I only use once in awhile but it's nice to have a selection to choose from. I rarely buy embellies so i do feel that I get my money's worth out of them. In fact, I recently bought a Las Vegas set just for pics from our one trip. It's was about $10. I would have spent that in embellishments so it was worth it. I may never use it again.

My stamp sets (all different types) number in the hundreds, so I'm assuming they have cost me thousands over the years. If you don't "get" stamps, good for you, it's an addiction you can do without.

What's there to get! Your not a stamp person so why do you care?
I have over 1000 stamps and have given a ton away and sold some. I like to stamp and I like to color. I've made cards for the soldiers, sick kids, for gifts and my own personal use. I've used some of my stamps until they are worn out and some that I've only used a few times. I will continue to buy stamps because I like them. If I had the bowing stamp I would use it a lot. Now I've got to have one. Keep a look out for all the cards I make with it.

Happy Birthday Donna. I hope you had a wonderful day.

Happy Birthday Donna!!!

Happy birthday Donna and you are so right if you like something and it makes you happy then that is all that matters. In fact i got several more sets in the mail today and am waiting on another order i placed. I dont know that i will ever have enough stamps. If i find a bowling set i will let you know.

Let's face it! Creative people are obsessive people. We love all of our beautiful supplies. Life is short!! Do your thing!!

• bonprof Said:

Couldn't Agree more!!!!!

Thanks for he birthday wishes!

• bonprof Said:

lol this is the truth. I cant even tell you how many craft items i have become obsessed by in the last 15 years.

I go through phases, Andrea. Right now I'm obsessed with buttons. Went to the store here, and ordered a big box of them. I put them in canning jars: I'm happy, for now lol. Next month it will be something else....:)

I think there is good reasoning behind having a decent stash...I hate it when I'm in the middle of creating something and then I discover that I don't have what I need! It's horrible, right?!? So now I have 399 buttons and I have what I need. Lol

I went though a button stage!! I was obsessed...put them on every layout (just about).
Then I got burned out.
I still have quite a few and have debated throwing them away... but didn't.
I figured there wasn't really THAT many and I may need them some day.
Them my son gave me 2 small bags of them and I was like... "NO" I need to get rid of what I have as it is... LOL!
So now I have what I almost threw away plus 2 new bags.
I need to not be collecting more stuff!

BTW - my latest obsession? Anything office supply or craft related from the Target Dollar Spot! I hardly ever leave that "spot" w/ out spending more than "$1"... Darn you, Target!

I have a huge jar of buttons too. You only have to look around my craft room to see all my obsessions.
I could craft the rest of my life and never buy anything. Of course i will continue to get new stuff. Its part of the fun for me. One rule I always follow is to never join a no buy group. I know I would fail every time.

Oh gosh, crafting obsessions...don't even get me started!

I went through a phase where my obsession was stickers, then it went to rub ons, then tags....

I have gobs of buttons, snaps and beads, none of which I have specifically purchased for crafting. They have come from old clothes and broken jewelry.

My current obsessions are paint, stamps, stencils and punches. Those are what I want and those are what I plan on collecting

I got into stamping out out of necessity. I was putting on a teacher appreciation luncheon at the kids school. I had fun doing it so I bought another stamp set of trains and cars for my son's birthday invitations. It snowballed from there.

Then I started stamping on layouts but I wasn't getting a good clean image. Out of frustration, I set them aside until recently. I happen to catch an offhand comment about having surfaces that had "give" to get a clean stamp. I guess I had unknowingly done that with my invitations as I had stacked them. However with my layout I made a point to make a hard surface.

I now know I had huge misconceptions with stamping. I thought it was just a matter of inking the stamp and stamping. Which is why, I quickly became discouraged when my stamped images were not crisp or missing parts. I recently had my eyes opened after taking a class and watching "you tube" videos. Holy Cow! There are so many little details that I never knew but make a huge difference.

Long story short, there is a learning curve. If you have invested in stamps and ink take a class or check out videos on here or you tube. I too, thought it wasn't for me, but now I am loving it especially when there is a matching die set.

• jaxxan Said:

Thanks for the tips! I too have issues w/ clear, crisp images!

Speaking of obsessions... I could really use a Starbucks right now... darn that avatar photo of mine!

Have ya'll seen this? Talk about a stamping obsession... http://www.estatesales.net/CA/San-Diego/92115/1074849?utm_source=roadrunner.com&utm_medium=email&utm_term=16509&utm_content=Erie-PA&utm_campaign=2016-01-20-1DaysBefore

Oh that is kinda sad it looks a business went under,

I have a ton of stamps. Why? Because I like them. And you're forgetting that a lot of times stamps come in sets. There may be two or three stamps in a set that you will use all the time, but one or two that you will never use at all.

• Doreena Said:

same

stamps stencils, inks sprays pretty much anything ranger/timholtz. I just can't quit him. funny back when I was scrapping 8 or so years ago tim Holtz was my hall pass. he apparently just gets better with age!

Ladies... all this talk about stamps has me thinking...
Part of the reasons I think I don't like stamps is I have no really good way to store them.
I have them all thrown into clear shoe box type containers.
I need something that is easily accessible that will allow me to see them all without too much effort.
I have a few wood mounted stamps but most of them are clear stamps.
Any ideas?

I have my cling mounted ones in binders. I just used regular size page protectors. Now whenever I need them I just grap a binder. I have them organized by large fonts, small fonts, technique tuesday, background stamps, etc. For all my other stamps I have 12 X 12 plastic drawers. I also have those layered by theme. the are right under my desk so I am more likely to use them.

• mjmone Said:

That's a lot of stamps. Been looking at them for over an hour and still no where near the end.

Another question... What's the best ink to use? Something doesn't get all over the place but also that you don't have to press too hard on in order to get the in to cling without getting those ugly splotches around your stamp?

I have always like Memento inks for use with clear stamps.

Doreena,
That is one of the things I learned is its good to have a variety of ink types on hand.
different looks, different applications etc.

One tip for getting a clean stamped image is to first stamp with versa mark. On clear stamps this really helps. the versa mark seals any imperfections and coats the stamp. I stamp my new clear stamps in it and stamp on a scrap paper. I then apply my colored ink and stamp my project. I was doubtful when i first heard this but it really works.

As far as ink goes almost every company makes ink now so it really is a matter of preference.
I always have a tuxedo black memento ink pad. I use this for sentiments and for copic coloring. I have a ranger archival ink pad for water coloring. I also have a stazon jet black. I can stamp on acetate with it.
I have several brands of colored ink. One thing that is true is you get what you pay for. The $2.00 discount inks do not work. like sharon memento is one of my favorites.

I store my stamps by the set in stamp pockets. I have shoe box size bins that they go in. I can quickly flip through and grab a set. I tried the binder and it just did not work for me.

• andrea m Said:

What a great tip with the versamark! I have some clear stamps that always bead up. I am definitely going to try that!

Michaels is having a sale today so I'm going to stop by.
I'm going to check out their inks...

On my list:
Versa inks
stamp storage
stamps(?)

With your tips, you ladies may make me into a stamper after all... LOL

Andrea, thanks for the tips!

Doreena, yes......now I want Starbucks!

Thanks Andrea. The tip on the versa mark is so helpful.

Michaels was a bust... No stamp storage, no versamark...
I did by a black memento ink pad cuz my current "cheapy" black one is dried out.
I didn't buy any new stamps either cuz after not finding the other stuff I wanted I just wasn't in the mood...

Doreena sorry m's was a bust. I usually have to get everything online.