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Right now i have the judikin stamp cleaner and I'm unhappy with it, especially when i use embossing or pigment inks. i feel like some of the product stays on the stamps even after i've rubbed & scrubbed. what regular cleaner really cleans stamps? thanks!
I finally made my own using a recipe I found here at SCS. I can't locate it now to link it for you. It uses a gentle soap, glycerin, and distilled water. You can add essential oil in a fragrance of your choice.
Prior to making my own, I have used Hero Arts and Gina K Designs. They are the same color, same odor, work the same, so must be from the sale manufacturer.
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I use it in a container with an old wash cloth, that I pour the cleaner on. Scrub my stamp, then press the stamp on a microfiber cloth to make sure it is clean and dry. It works well for those hard to get out stains. Most of the time I use an Absorber, but sometimes they need more help.
__________________ Lisa Featured Stamper #671 Love sending BRAK cards. Dirty Dozen Alumni.CC927 Favorite Virtual Stamp Night April 19 - 20 Come Join in the Fun Here
I use either dawn or Suave coconut oil shampoo (recommended here long ago and works great!) with a toothbrush...that's on the stubborn craft ink/versamark ink.
As for dye ink, I try to take them to the sink right away and run them under water. That's usually all they need. If I have waited a long time or the ink is stubborn I use my other method above.
This came from Tim Holtz himself- Hand Sanitiser! I've used it and it shifts anything, even Staz-on. Just make sure to wash your stamps after, to remove any residue.
I've always used the Stampin Up scrubber along with the Stamping Mist........sometimes I wipe the stamps with a baby wipe first. I clean them as soon as I am finished with them and most of my stamps still look new. The Stamping Mist also conditions them......although I must confess they changed the scent of it a few years ago and I don't care for it much at all. I use a baby wipe and then water on my photopolymer stamps.
I stamp off as much as I can, then use a microfiber cloth (Zwipes) with UltraClean to get it pretty again...
100% ditto. Both.
BTW, Hero Arts Ultra Clean is made by Stewart. So buying the larger Stewart bottles (without the sprayer) works well as a refill if found at a good price. I last bought it on Amazon but now it’s only offered by one seller and is absurdly expensive. Several other stores no longer carry it.
And not all Zwipes are identical. I bought larger ones for the kitchen and they were thin and cheap so were returned. These are the ones I get - note the 24 pack is only $2 more than the 12:
I make my own cleaner with Suave shampoo, glycerin and water. I love it. Plus it smells so good. Right now I am using Waterfall Shampoo.
For really tough stains I do have StazOn. I used rubbing alcohol for the longest time. I know every time I write that a stamper has fainted, lol. I always washed them very well afterward and gave them a good coating of glycerin. Shaz- love the tip about hand sanitizer. I buy a lot of used stamps. Some of them have been inked to oblivion. I use StazOn mainly to clean up stamps I buy used. I have a toolbox full of cleaning tools for all my adopted things I bring home.
I also use a Shammy. I am not fancy. I just buy my Shammy's from Dollar Tree. They last forever, for me. I just usually add water to my shammy for light stamping projects. If I am doing a lot of stamping then I add some of my homemade cleaner. That combo works so good. IMO it can be better than the StazOn cleaner.
I use a stamp scrubber (just one I got at Michaels Crafts years ago) that I spray with plain water or a mix of water with a few drops of dishwashing liquid. For the unmounted stamps that I use on my Misti, I use a shammy that I keep dampened with plain water in a covered container on my crafting table. The shammy works better than I ever imagined, even with plain water. For pigment ink though, I usually need extra help to get ink out of the nooks and crannies (especially on deep etched rubber). In that case, I pull out my old toothbrush and clean at the sink with a drop of liquid soap.
I've been cleaning my stamps this way for about 15 years and they're all still just fine. The only stamps that got damaged were ones that I used with metallic pigment ink, and neglected to clean right away, argh. Those got hard and shiny, and I had to toss them.
I used diluted simple green day to day. If it is tough I move to stazon or ultra clean. But since I usually wipe off pretty fast it is fine. Stazon has often been my go to for used stamps from ebay too.
I make my own cleaner with Suave shampoo, glycerin and water. I love it. Plus it smells so good. Right now I am using Waterfall Shampoo.
For really tough stains I do have StazOn. I used rubbing alcohol for the longest time. I know every time I write that a stamper has fainted, lol. I always washed them very well afterward and gave them a good coating of glycerin. Shaz- love the tip about hand sanitizer. I buy a lot of used stamps. Some of them have been inked to oblivion. I use StazOn mainly to clean up stamps I buy used. I have a toolbox full of cleaning tools for all my adopted things I bring home.
I also use a Shammy. I am not fancy. I just buy my Shammy's from Dollar Tree. They last forever, for me. I just usually add water to my shammy for light stamping projects. If I am doing a lot of stamping then I add some of my homemade cleaner. That combo works so good. IMO it can be better than the StazOn cleaner.
I've just taken a chance on a 25 set lot that is significantly stained. Do you simply scrub them on a shammy, or use a toothbrush, too? I want to believe I can restore them some, but holding back on my enthusiasm so I won't be disappointed. Now I've got to get some StazOn cleaner, which I haven't had need of yet, even though I've wanted their ink for a while. Thanks for the inspiration!
Toothbrush: For very detailed stamps I like the cleaning pads for stamps. HOWEVER...know that it will spray the cleaner/ink on the wood. So if you want to keep your wood clean I would not use that. Not to say I dont resort to a toothbrush at times-will also spray the wood. But this works really well. There is a mini HT vid there too.
This is very similar to what I have. Mine is old. I dont know this company. You just rinse the pad out every so often.
True stazon (for stazon ink) is for oil? based inks. They do have all purpose one. If your inks are water based then lot of things will clean them.
I am about to resort to taking a super fine grit sandpaper to a stamp that is not stamping well and I cant see why so I am hoping a couple of swipes will do it. As I would have to toss the stamp otherwise I have nothing to lose.
Good luck. Let us know how it comes out with the lot!
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Online descriptions for Judikins is that it's SOLVENT based, which would only be used for Solvent inks. Probably too harsh for dye or pigment inks. ALSO hand sanitizer is mostly alcohol, so I wouldn't try that. I have been using Michael's Recollections cleaner if water won't clean well enough. After seeing it here, I bought some Simple Green for less than $2.00. I will be trying that after current cleaner is gone. I like the Stampin Up Big scrubber pad which broke at the hinges, but is now much easier to use since I took the pad out of the plastic case. The little fibers get into the crevices of stamps, and if still stubborn I use a toothbrush marked for cleaning purposes...not teeth!
I use Simple Green diluted down generally because it is cheap and readily available. If that doesn't work then I try full strength SG, if the ink is still there then I'll use Judkins regular stamp cleaner ( they have 2 formulas btw). The Judikins is awesome and has cleaned many a stamp I thought would stay stained, even India and solvent inks a few times. If at this point the stamp is still stained then I don't worry about it. I figure that ink isn't going anywhere and is not going to affect my project.
Yes even the regular Judikins smells like it has alcohol or other harsher cleaners in it but I've been using it for over 20 years without issue. They claim to also have ingredients that condition rubber and my 20 - 30+ year old stamps still stamp fine.
The one thing I always do no matter what I clean with, is rinse well with plain water before setting my stamps out to dry.
I've just taken a chance on a 25 set lot that is significantly stained. Do you simply scrub them on a shammy, or use a toothbrush, too? I want to believe I can restore them some, but holding back on my enthusiasm so I won't be disappointed. Now I've got to get some StazOn cleaner, which I haven't had need of yet, even though I've wanted their ink for a while. Thanks for the inspiration!
I use a shammy & a toothbrush. Heavily stained stamps I leave my StazOn cleaner on for a couple of minutes so it will really set in. Then I give the stamp a good wash with cheap shampoo & coat it with glycerin when I am done.
I got the cheap shampoo trick from one of the ladies here who I swear she got the tip from Tim Holtz if I remember correctly. It's been a few years.
Any of the commercial stamp cleaners on the market should do the job if you have trouble finding StazOn. I use StazOn because it was readily available & I could use a coupon. I have heard excellent reviews about Judikins. I heard that Stampin Up cleaner is excellent too. I don't think they make it anymore.
Hope that helps. Congrats on your big lot of stamps.
stamp cleaner that cleans
