Carving Eraser Stamps
69Some of my handcarved stamps are in this banner.
A new passion is born
Carving Eraser Stamps
Sometime in the early 1980's I got frustrated with the limited designs in the commercial rubber stamping industry. They were too cutesy...you could find all the bunnies and teddies you could ever want but try finding a feminist stamp or one that showed nudity or goddess images, and you were out of luck. Somewhere in that time zone, I started carving my own stamps out of eraser stock. Eventually the eraser companies caught on and started making large sheets just for us eraser carvers. Of course now-a-days you can find stamps on any subject, but nothing provides the same instant gratification that comes with thinking up a stamp design, grabbing a piece of eraser, and less than an hour later holding in your hands the very design you wanted! Recently at the Laguna Beach Sawdust Festival, I got to sit down and make a lithograph print. That reminded me of how much I missed making my own stamps. Then today I realized that since my main stamp carving days were before the internet crashed into me, that I'd never documented the hundreds of images I've carved.Step One
Step one
Assemble all your supplies and decide what art you want on your stamp.I like to freehand draw my art on an eraser with a sharpie marker. Most people aren't that brave. You can also transfer your design with graphite paper or carbon paper. Keep in mind that the final print will be reversed. On my design it didn't matter, but it will matter if you are carving letters or numbers, or need the art to face left or right.
Once you have the design drawn onto the eraser, you are ready to begin carving.
The tools I use are called Linozips. I got mine at an art supply store, but NASCO also carries them. I am getting ready to carve this Tiki image on a Mars Staedler Eraser. The ink label was removed with acetone (nail polish remover). Remember words and designs will be backwords when printed.
Step 2
Step 3
Tips and Tricks
Tips and tricks
Say you just carved a left facing dog, and you need a right facing dog. Take a blank eraser, ink up your left facing dog, stamp it carefully on your blank stamp, and carve it. Viola! Now you have a dog facing the other way.Keep carving and doing test prints until it looks the way you want it to. The small holes under the eyes were done with the point of a toothpick. Normally I would trim off the border, but in this case I think it added to the effect. Some artists like to remove all excess carving ridges, while others feel that adds to the hand carved look. Remember, once you carve it away you can't put it back. If all else fails you can still clean it and use it as an eraser. Don't be afraid to start over...right now you are just learning anyway.
I carved the entire stamp using the tip you see here. That is not typical though. Sometimes a piece of eraser will lay back down in its groove and fake you out. So I like to lay the stamp face down on scrap paper and rub it gently from side to side. That will grab the crumbs and clean them out of your stamp. If it gets really bad, run water over it and dry with a paper towel.
Final Print on Tissue Paper
Final Print
Carve anything you like.
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The tiki image is a Mars Staedler eraser.
The round stamp is Nasco carving block.
Thansk for answering... That is news to me. I have not been able to get them as big. Can you tell me where do you find them so big???? I see you are all aound with rubber stamps. That is Great.
Thanks!
Yari
You question lead me to surf the Internet. After not finding the larger size listed at any of my favorite sites, I'm wondering if mars-staedtler has discontinued it's larger size. I think it's better to order the Nasco Safety cut by the sheet anyway. But I will keep my eyes peeled when I shop around to see if I run across the large size again.
And if any artists are reading this and know where to order the large size, please give us a link.
Yes, I will keep an eye on the site in case anyone finds them. They are so easy to cut! Thanks again for answering
I found them! http://www.enasco.com/top/415/Block+Printing/Carvi
thanks for this great idea! I have been trying to make stamps out of Sculpey with varying results, but I never thought of this simple solution :)
thanks for this great idea!
Nice work, I've been making 'inkan'(Japanese seals) with white vinyl erasers for a while now-it's cool to see others out there doing the same with some really good results.
Stamp Lovers Only
- Stamp Lovers Only
To see more of my carved stamps visit my blog.
New Stamps
- Halloween Stamp Ideas
I'd like to carve some Halloween stamps. I'm thinking a bat like a tattoo I saw on a woman at Joann's yesterday. She had a bat on each collar bone. I could stamp a temporary tattoo on myself. That would be fun. And vampires of course are all the rage because of the Twilight movies. So maybe a fang stamp or something. I should make some Halloween (Samhain) cards for my pagan friends. I know I have some skull pirate stamps I've carved in the past. So where are they? I'm not the most organized person in the world. Out of sight out of mind. Which is why I don't like to put anything away. It may be years before I happen upon it again.
- In Answer to Your Questions Chimerastone
Thanks for your tips. Sometimes I draw directly on the eraser. Most often I trace around the eraser on my sketch pad, and work out a design first. When I find one I like I'll draw it directly onto the eraser. Sometimes you can remove the printed on labels with some nail polish remover on a rag. You can make tranfers using graphite paper or there is an oil method where you print out a design on the type of printer that leaves ink on the paper, then place it ink side touching the stamp and rub a rag with mineral oil on it (I think it's mineral oil but it might be turpentine). It's been a long time since I did any that way but it gives a high level of accuracy if you are doing portrait stamps). And of course you can always take a carved stamp, stamp it on a blank stamp, and carve it all over again. Each one will come out a little different but facing the opposite way. I use all sizes of erasers, even the eraser tops of pencils for mini stamps. I've never noticed them being grainy. I get most of my erasers at the dollar stores or right before school starts there are a lot in Target, Walmart, and other department stores that have school supplies or office supplies. Then I stock up. If you want to carve big stamps it's better to just order carving blocks by the sheet from Nasco or Speedball or another supplier.
- Archery, Grumpy Fairy and Handmade
I made three stamps today out of eraser stock.
YARI says:
3 years ago
VERY NICE, ILIKE THE DESIG; BUT THAT IS NOT AN ERASER, LOOKS MORE AS MASTERCARVE, ISN'T IT?