Carve Along #2: the Holiday Edition

The second Carve Along is here!  The video is already up on YouTube, but if you’d like to join, you can join this free group by signing up here where you will also get access to the free (past and present) CAL sheets so you can carve right along!

In this video I used the sandwich carving material so I could get some gorgeous colour for the poinsettia, but you could use any carving material you like.

Man, I'd love to see your carvings!  Feel free to comment here or message me on on Instagram (you can find me here @cutsandscrapesetsyshop).

Happy carving!

Jo

The perils of Speedy Cut

Hello again everyone!   So it’s been a busy year and I’ve been working on a number of new projects, including another Etsy shop with my sister!  Head over to LatchkeySisters.Etsy.com if you’d like to check out our snarky medieval greeting cards and horrific holiday cards!

But I’ve also been back at filming videos and you can check those out over on my YouTube channel.  However, for the first one I did want to expand a litter on here because I’ve had a lot of public and private comments sent my way supporting the concern I had.  The summary: stay away from Speedy Cut!  So many established carvers I know have sad stories about their very first carving, how their very first attempt at carving had withered and died as a result of this crumbly rubber.  

Okay, so it doesn’t have zero uses, but pretty close.  The only thing I can think of that you might want to use this for is for a young person who needs the softest of soft carving rubbers for learning to carve with a gouge.  This material is so soft, a kitten could carve it with its claws, so this is one of the few uses it has.

Anyway, if you want to see what I’m talking about, check all that out in this video here:

What would I recommend using instead?  Well, Speedy CARVE (not cut), aka "pink stuff" is a great alternative or you could try some sandwich material if you want some better variety of colour.

Happy carving!

Jo

Introducing the Stamp Makers' Carve Along!

Hi everyone,

So I finally got around to starting something that has been percolating in my mind for some time: a video carve along series.

What it is: any time a Carve Along video is posted, the members receive a pdf with a link to the video, a copy of the design from the video, tips or tricks for that carving, and information for where to find the tools & supplies.

If you'd like to join, you can sign up - for free - by adding your email to the group here.  Anyone who wants to join in the future will also have access to the Carve Along sheets and can catch up :)

The first Carve Along is now live! Happy carving!

Coming Soon: the Stamp Maker's Carve Along!

Hello again!

I'm terribly behind in my blogging, with my apologies.  I participated in the Grimsby Wayzgoose recently and definitely want to give you the low down on that, but in the meantime I have been working away at something new for this site that I wanted to share: a carve along!

What it is:

Any time I release a Carve Along, a video will be posted with a new stamp design.  The video will explain how to carve it, along with other tips and tricks.  Members of the Carve Along group will receive a free downloadable copy of the design, along with resources for where to find the supplies used.


Membership is free, and all you have to do is join.  The first Carve Along will be posted soon, so be sure to sign up!

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Carving stamps using material and tools from the dollar store!

Another day, another video about stamp carving!

In the following video which I recently posted on YouTube, I wanted to give frugal crafters a reason to pick up stamp carving as a hobby - so I headed to a dollar store to see what can be carved on a shoe string budget.  This is not as much as a "how to carve" stamp tutorial as it is showing you what I purchased - and why. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Without further ado, here it is:

So all told, it was a little over $12 CAD for these stamps.  I wasn't as off put by these erasers as I have been in the past, but there are certainly some erasers that are perfect carving materials - really only limited by their size.

If you'd be interested in a post showing different eraser types - and how they carve! - let me know :)

Happy carving!
Jo

How to carve your own stamps: light and magnification

Just to follow up on my previous post about improving your stamp carving, for your viewing pleasure, I have a video up on YouTube to help you see what I'm talking about.  Enjoy!

About the terminology I use on this website

Stamp carving is one of those niche crafts that not a lot of people are into. As a result, there doesn't seem to be a consistent set of language that is used when other people talk about stamp carving, and often made worse because there are stamp carvers around the world trying their best to translate the ideas from other languages. 

While this is super awesome, it means that I might be using different words to refer to different aspects of carving.  So without further ado, here is my list of terms (alphabetically arranged, natch) for you to see.  Please let me know if there is a word that you think should be included :)


Carving rubber: almost certainly not actual "rubber", but the material that is being used to carve on.  Many companies use a proprietary formulation - likely a mix of dino juice and chemicals - and there is a wide range of types of carving materials.

Slab: my lazy way of referring to a large block of carving rubber.

Transfer: the process of getting a design onto the carving rubber.

Two best ways to improve your stamp carving

I sometimes get questions about the level of detail in stamps I've carved.  "How'd you do that?!"  Today, I'm all about sharing my two secrets: light and magnification.  For me, these come in the form of one tool: a lit magnifier attached to my craft table.

Other then getting a good transfer of a design onto rubber, the absolute best way to improve carving is to get as much light on the design as I can and magnify it as much as possible.

Here, check this series of photos out showing the difference when you add the light and magnification (you can click the photo to enlarge it):

A carved stamp with regular light and no magnification.

A carved stamp with better light and no magnification.

A carved stamp with both magnification and better light.

I use a table-mounted lighted magnifier, but I also have a little travel one that I can take with me when I'm on the go (yes, I carve stamps on the go - highly recommended for the odd looks people give you).

Have any questions?  Let me know in the comments.  Happy carving!

Welcome

Hello and welcome! My name is Jo and I have been carving stamps for almost seven years.  I have decided to start this site as a way to share all of my stamp carving tricks and techniques and help people go beyond the stamp carving basics.

Be sure to bookmark this space as I intend to post about how to carve stamps - also, you can check out my YouTube channel.

Happy carving!