STAMP DRAW WINNER:   I am pleased to announce our latest stamp draw winner is Cara Weterall of Edmonton, Alberta.   Congratulations to Cara!  The new stamp draw is ready to go.  The prize is three of Emily's new stamps.  To enter the Draw, click on [Home] above, and then on Stamp Draw on the Home page.  Check it out and Good Luck!

'THE FINE PRINT':  Please note, now that it is three months between draws, make sure you only enter once during that time.  We had a lot more duplicates this time, and I cannot pick someone who has entered twice or three times...it is not fair to everyone else.  Also we still have a lot of people putting their e-mail address as their first name, and I disqualify those too.
 

UNMOUNTED STAMPING TIP:  You my have discovered this already, but if not, here are a couple of interesting things you can do with unmounted stamps (UM's).  First of all, you can contour text and border stamps by bending them to give them a curved shape as you stick them on the acrylic block.  Here is a text sample, but you can also do long narrow border stamps.  (Note: this works great with EZ-Mount, but is not as well with the old cling vinyl system)

Another neat thing you can do with UM's is gang stamps up on a larger block, so that you only stamp once for multiple images.  I use this sometimes to make my 'famous' brown paper embossed bags at the Saturday Market and Christmas shows.  It can work great when you are stamping a whole bunch of the same combination of stamps.  Like thank you notes, cards or invitations, etc.  Not clear?  Say you are making Christmas cards and you are using Emily's new Snowman 696-D and you are going to curve the new Happy Holiday's stamp (coming soon) just under the hill that she has the snowman sitting on.  You take a large acrylic block and stick the snowman on it.  Then you curve the Happy Holidays under it and stick it on.  Now, you ink them both and stamp them both at the same time...you are now a virtual card making assembly line!  Done in April!  Who would have ever thought you could get this organized?!?  With a technique like this in your hands, the possibilities are almost frightening!!

Sorry, sometimes I get a little carried away.  So, you say you want to do two different colours, though.  No problem.  Ink them separately and stamp once.  Ah, but you want to stamp the snowman in white ink and emboss with Crystal embossing powder, and emboss the happy holidays in silver.  So, you think you have stumped me now, ah?...Wrong.  You can still do it.*  Granted you are going to slow down the assembly line, but the results sound like they will be worth it.  So, you ink up both stamps with white ink, and stamp your card.  Then you use a teaspoon to pour Crystal embossing powder over the snow man, and knock the powder off over the top of the card.  Then you use another teaspoon to pour Silver embossing powder over the Happy Holidays.  You knock it off over the bottom of the card.  Then you emboss both.  Now, if I were as organized and talented as Margaret or Emily I would have a sample card for you...enough said.  Try it...You'll like it!  

*(Please note that the author spends long periods of time working in his studio in the woods by himself.  The dialogue he is having with you in this section is sadly taking place in his head)

THE WEBSITE:  I have added some new stamps to the Latest Images page.  Once again they are all Emily Hull designs.  There are three more Christmas images.  One of them is called the Botanical Tree (Not a great name, but sometimes our working name for a drawing just carries on to the end, if we do not come up with something more creative).  Anyway, I have had a chance to use it at the Saturday Market, and it is great!  It is a nice clean crisp image, and it stamps like a dream.  I am not boasting; I am just reporting the facts here.  People who make things will tell you, 'sometimes it all just comes together'.  As it did with this stamp.  OK, OK...enough already with the promotion.  There are also a couple of new bookplates.  We now have a really good kid's bookplate.  I hope you agree.  Finally, there is a very very fancy heart.  A pictures worth a thousand words, so have a look!  I almost forgot that we have also completed another unmounted text sheet.  This one has a Happy Birthday theme.  We are also working on a second Christmas text sheet, which will be release before the Fall.

The feedback from the Drawing Board was very plentiful with sometimes quite detailed suggestions.  The image was the little 'global village' scene (See below).  Ever wonder what other people had to say about it?  Well, wonder no longer.  I have copied everyone's reactions to the last Drawing Board right here>>>>CLICK.


The new image on the Drawing Board is an image I bought the rights to over a year ago.  It  is a drawing by Ramona Reigel.  I have always liked the image myself, and from the perspective of a stamp-maker's point of view it is technically perfect.  However, it is expensive for us to develop stamps, and I am concerned whether it would sell very well.  So, there are certainly no obligations, but I am interested in whether it is a stamp you would see yourself buying?


Happy Spring!    - Steve Mueller