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I know that you all feel very passionately about using wood mounted vs unmounted stamps with acrylic blocks.
I've been reading some posts to other topics, and thought I would ask everyone's advise/experience. I'm intrigued with the idea of unmounting my existing stamps and using them with an acrylic block. Good idea, bad idea, any experiences either way?
Also, I don't get it, I mean how do you do it. I know you can nuke the stamps, to peel them off the blocks, but don't you have a hard time doing this with older stamps? And then, don't you need a special backing to use with the acrylic system? How do you get the old backing off?
I have all of my stamps wood mounted, but I do have acrylic blocks. I have only tried using them once so I am in no way an expert. We did use the microwave method to get them off the wood block. We used 2 way glue to put it on the acrylic ...let it dry first so it is removable. Just my experience.
__________________ Missy
We're adults. When did that happen? And how do we make it stop? ~ Dr. Meredith Grey, Grey's Anatomy
Hi! If you want to try unmounted, my suggestion would be to pick one set that you don't use that often as a test set. You would need to buy a sheet of cling foam(can't remember the exact name). It is a sheet that has a clingy side and a side that has adhesive tape. I found that sometimes if I nuke my stamps too much the image seperates from the foam. You can buy that sheet of foam at www.sundayint.com and it is very cheat. Of course you might need quite a bit depending on how many sets you have to mount. I hope this helps you out a little.
Personally, I can't wait to finish converting my stamps to EZ Mount. Not only is it a huge space saver, I find it much easier to position an image on an acrylic handle.
There are advantages and disadvantages... but for me the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages.
And with EZ Mount, you don't permanently adhere the images to the acrylic handles. To do so would defeat the purpose of converting.
As for removing the rubber from the foam, I find it is very easy to peel it off the foam. But if you do have a problem, nuking it for about 30 seconds is supposed to be a good solution.
__________________ RT - In-house Bunny Chaser "It takes a lot of money to look this cheap."- Dolly Parton
I'm in the process of converting my stamps to use on acrylic blocks. Not only do they store easier, (I use the plastic CD holders for them) it is much easier to place the stamp on the cardstock.
I nuke them also and they peel right off.
I am also in the process of remounting my wood block stamps. For space purposes( my hubby is military and we don't have much room in government housing to live, let alone have hobbys) the acrylic mounted stamps can't be beat.I have gone from one wall being covered with wood mounted stamps to a wood CD rack with all my stamp sets on it. Cleaning the stamps isn't any different from cleaning the wood mounted ones, the same with inking. If your trying to save space so you can get in just that "one more set you can't live without" (that would be me every week!!) the acrylic system is awsome. Thats just my opinion anyways. LOL
I've unmounted all my sets also. I also used sundayint.com to buy all my EZ mount foam. I *think* if you email them and tell them you are a demo you can get a discount also.
I love having my sets stored now in CD cases. They are much smaller and I can hide more stamps in less space Also, since I can now more easily find the stamps that I am wanting I have also been stamping more.
Only downfall that I have come across so far is for some of the little stamps. I mean tiny stamps though. Like the word "thankzzz" in cute as a bug. (I don't have that set but was looking for something to compare too) It stays on the block well enough but it won't stay on the block for cleaning using the cleaning pad because there is just not enough foam to withhold the scrubbing motion. For me, no biggie. I just hold the stamp while I'm cleaning it.
I am sold on the spacesaving and am just beginning to tackle the UM process. So far the only downfall I see is the re-sale value of the SU stamps. Many folks still like WMs and would only buy WM. My personal opinion is though that as more folks UM, we can start our own BST (Buy, Sell, Trade) forum and no one will even blink an eye about it in time.
I've not had a problem re-selling stamps after un mounting. I've actually found it easier. Alot of women are switching their old sets. I just bought some from here and will unmount as soon as the arrive. If you do a bulk buy from Sunday int. it's way cheaper. That's what we do. We buy 100 sheets at a time and divy them up. Comes out to about 1/2.
In Him,
Shawna
I have a friend that sells for a company called The Angel Company that I have been buying my ez-mount foam from and its $5.00 for a 8 1/2x11 sheet. I can usually get 5-6 sets mounted on that one sheet. If you need it let me know and I can get it for you unless you find it cheeper somewhere else which I am about to look up!! LOL
In reply to the problem of the tiny unmounted stamps. Don't even try to cushion mount it. Use the tiniest acrylic block you have and appy a strip of monohesive to it. Then you can use it as a temporary mount for a tiny word stamp without any cushion. The best way to clean these is just drop them into a glass of clean water for a few minutes, then remove and dry off! I haven't converted my SU sets, and I still go for my wood mounts as I teach a lot of classes, but this is what my sis does (hi Kim - she's SCS too.) She then stores the unmounteds, uncushioned, in regular envelopes in a photo storage box.
If the word is short enough, you could even put the mono on your finger and stamp it = you could have ten words (or alphabet letters) ready at once! BTW, have you tried fingerprint stamping - Ed Emberley's books (and stickers ) about it are terrific for kids.
Unmounting stamps and using with acrylic
