Monday 11 June 2012

DIY Foam Stamps Tutorial


I love making foam stamps, and at the moment I can't stop making them, dreaming about them and using them....how sad is that!!! Actually I find it all quite exciting, haaaha...they're really simple to make and great for stamping on things, so far I've just used them on tags and paper bags...but I would also like to try them out on material, wood and anything else that I can find!!


So here's a list of the things you need, I say 'need ' in the loosest terms as you can so easily use other items to replace the ones below e.g. lollipop stick for foam board.

Equipment
foam board
double sided tape
foam letters
acrylic paint
foam brush


I first decide what I'm going to be stamping on and then cut out the foam board a tad bit smaller, so that it helps me to line the stamp when it comes to printing it....or you could just decide on a word/phrase/symbol and go from there.  If you don't have foam board to hand, you could use a CD disc cover instead, this works great because you can see through so you know exactly where you are stamping your chosen design.


Cover one side of your foam board in double sided tape....carpet double sided tape is brilliant for this, it's really sticky for foam, but apparently not so great for carpets!!! :)  Arrange your words etc the way you want them to look, making sure that they will fit within the foam board you have cut, and then just put the sticky side of the foam board carefully on top and push down, and that's it!!


If your really clever you'll be able to rearrange your letters backwards straight onto the foam board, personally this one is not for me...after six kids and lack of sleep my brain literally wouldn't stretch that far, so I find the first way sooo much easier :)


Now the fun bit, stamping , yay!!  Just a small amount of acrylic paint goes along way, so don't squeeze out too much.  Put a small amount on your foam design using a foam brush being careful not to get it on the sticky foam board, if you do, just wipe it away with your finger...yes, I like getting messy.


Stamp on your chosen item (hopefully not one our your kids) and then decorate however you wish.


As you can see I literally couldn't stop myself, and I still have more ideas to come...so watch this space!!