Idea of the Month

Rolling Technique

This is a great technique that's easy to do, yet it makes you look like quite a pro!  This technique looks especially beautiful using fruit, flower and leaf stamps, but can be done with virtually any solid image.   

Step 1

Begin by choosing 2 colors of ink.  Again, I've chosen our Exclusive Inks TM  in Buttercup and Garden Green.  Ink up the entire stamp as usual, using the lightest of the 2 colors (in this case, Buttercup).  Then, hold your stamp at an angle and roll the edges of the rubber only onto the darker ink pad.  You can "roll" all the way around the image, but it often looks best to roll only 1 or 2 sides (or a side and a bottom...) to create a "shadow" effect on the image.  Do not worry about ruining your ink pad: if you always ink up with the light pad first, this lighter ink will not harm the darker ink pad when you roll into it.   If you are worried about getting ink on the wood of your stamp (some people don't like getting their stamps dirty), you can seal the wood first with a polyurethane finish and let it dry; the ink will wipe right off.  With My Acrylix TM stamps, the ink wipes right off the block!

Step 2

Stamp the image immediately onto paper or cardstock, and you are done!  I suggest that you stamp onto scrap paper a few times.  You will need to practice how best to hold the stamp to get the effect you want to achieve and the amount of ink you want to apply.  

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