Must Knows of stamps!!

Hiya,

           I am back with yet another post on stamps today. Since many of you requested, following yesterdays post on Must Knows of Ink Pads,  I am writing this sequel!!.

DISCLAIMER: All the views expressed in this post are based on my personal experience and views.Readers might have a different opinion.

       Now some of you might be wondering/worrying/confused, why after buying some good stamp brands from the industry, the stamped impressions are not clear or perfect.This post will try to answer all your question. If it does nt , pls mail me. I shall try my best to answer.

        I have a collection of different brands of stamps. While using them, I found some differences in their quality.That basically depended on the material , they are made of.

 Stamps are broadly classified into 2 groups - those that are made of Acrylic/Photopolymer 

ACRYLIC/SILICON	PHOTOPOLYMER
would nt even give a close to perfect image , after lots of preparation..!!Frustrating!Arrg	crisp images, with just inking and stamping
Loses Stickiness after using a few times	Regains its stickiness, after cleaning the dust over them
Not stinky	A little stinky, when new
Less porous, so does not take ink well.Can stain too but not as readily as polymer.	Porous, so stains easily and takes up ink well
Softer material that may spread while being stamped	Firmer material that tends to give cleaner impressions
Works only with certain brand inks like colorbox, archival	Works well with most ink brands

        Which classifies photopolymer stamps to be superior over the acrylic stamps and obviously costlier.I generally find ,that the stamps made in China are made from silicon and those manufactured in USA, UK, India are made of polymer.Some of the stamp companies mention the material in the pack . But others do not. I tried to comprehend a list, based on their stamping properties

Photopolymer Stamp brands

Papertrey Ink, Lawn Fawn, Stampavie,Flourishes,Verve, Peachy Keen Stamps, 
Hero Arts,My Favourite Things, Paper Smooches, Stampendous

Acrylic stamp brands


Recollections,Studio G ,Fiskars,Martha Stewart, Prima, 7Gypsies , Inkadinkado, Kaisercraft,Pink Paislee,Making Memories,Scrappy Cat,Doodlebug Designs

        Now that you know in advance , the stamps and the material they are made of, and therefore what you will be able to expect from them, you can take informed decisions on what stamps you buy!


Storage
         Store your clear stamps in a light-free container. Even indoor light may discolor and eventually harden your clear stamps. These stamps are made of a light sensitive material because they are developed using a light process.

       Storing stamps in DVD/CD cases is the best method I have come across so far.Here is one idea from CraftyStorage to store your stamps.She has some amazing storage ideas!

Cleaning:
            Since most of the inks stain the stamps, you need to clean them,just after you use them.Staz on requires a special cleaner, you must buy from the market.Other ink stains could be cleaned easily with Kitchen Cleaners like Mr Muscle! :)

         I still could  hear some of you cribbing abt stamping. Dont worry, I understand your needs perfectly. So will be back with another post tomorrow - for tips on stamping.

      Hope this post was useful for you! Would be happy to read,what you have to say about this post.

Thanks for stopping by!
Priya