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Am I the only one OCD about clean stamps? After I ink a stamp, I pull out the cleaner and wipes to get all of the ink off. I do know that if ink is left on the stamp that the image is still OK. But, I think my stamps need to look brand new each time I use them. I am driving myself nuts! Losing a lot of valuable time here....
From reading posts in this forum for several years, I would say you are not the only one, for sure. Lots of people feel like you do, and want their stamps to look pristine.
Then there is me. I care absolutely nothing about how they look - only how they stamp. A few years ago I read a blog by someone who had been stamping for years, and showed beautiful examples of her work on her blog.
She said she NEVER cleaned her stamps. Just stamped off on a sheet of scrap paper. That's what I started doing, too.
So there, I've admitted it. I don't clean my stamps. And believe it or not, they seem to stamp just fine in spite of being discolored.
Now, if someone is planning to sell their stamp sets on ebay or something like that, I can see the point in wanting them to look as "unused" as possible.
I keep a clean house, and personal cleanliness is important to me. But my stamps? Nah.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I've been stamping for over 25 years and most of the time I just use water on a scrubber pad to clean my stamps; they look good and stamp just fine. Now if you want to talk about organizing ... that's a different story!
When I first started stamping the ink I used was stazon, need I say more....needless to say I used to scrub and scrub and scrub and spend sooooo much money on cleaner.
Now I use Simple Green and water in a spray bottle. That $4 bottle of Simple green will out last me. Never have to buy stamp cleaner again! AND yes I get lazy and just stamp off on paper to clean my stamps too! Yep, that works just fine IMO!
Oh, I am an equal opportunity stamp cleaner, I clean both my rubber and clear stamps the same why.
__________________ The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable. Practice safe eating always use condiments
I pretty much stamp with the same color (black) so I don't really clean my stamps all that often. My only regret is that i might put my arm on a stamp or put paper on top of an inked stamp.
sometimes I clean & sometimes I don't. I find that some of my stamps actually stamp better when dirty.
I've taken several classes with Tim Holtz and I like what he says - they are tools, they are meant to be used. When he's through with a stamp, he just tosses it into his bag, no cleaning.
I give mine a quick rub on the scrubber and nothing more. Many of my clear ones are stained but that is fine for me...makes it easier to see where they are positioned if I am using a light colored ink. I don't mind staining when I am buying used stamps either...they are used, that's kind of what happens to a stamp when you use it, it gets ink on it
__________________ "For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack" ~Rudyard Kipling my gallery
I stamp off on a scrap piece of paper, then on a natural care baby wipe. I use clear & cling stamps a lot & the wipes work great for the acrylic blocks too. Quick & easy.
__________________ Marcy Wolf Creek Crafting
I just love the smell of Stazon in the morning!
yes and no, it depends on my mood. I will stamp it off so that I don't covered in ink but I find my clear ones stamp better if they have the 'more loved' look about them
I give mine a quick wipe with a baby wipe, then dry them off on an old towel, if I've used a dye ink. If I used a pigment ink, then I spritz it with a stamp cleaner, scrub it on a paint pad I keep for the purpose, or give it a scrub with a toothbrush( both poundstore items), then dry on a towel. I used to obsessively clean every stamp, till I watched Tim Holtz. figured if it was good enough for him.....
Ok, I don't mind stained. But I did buy a stamp that somehow had paint dried on it. Took me a long time to get the paint off of it so I could stamp with it.
Clean Stamps
