Teresa Collins Stampmaker Review!

I am so excited about this product that I got to try out and had to share it with you guys. It's the Stampmaker Kit by Teresa Collins and probably one of my new favourite things.

Making polymer stamps has been something I've been interested in for a long time now, and this handy little machine makes it so easy. Seriously, how many times have you wished you had a certain type of stamp but been unable to find one? I know personally this has happened to me on many occasions... while packaging up products especially! I'm relieved to know now that whenever I get that desire, I can whip one up in a matter of minutes.

The main contraption is this little light unit that's purpose is to solidify the polymer which your stamp is made of. It kind of reminds me of exposing a photograph onto paper in a dark room... only the stamp is your photograph!

The kit comes with a bunch of polymer packs, film negatives, magnetic clamp, and everything else you need to start making stamps right away. The included films are Teresa Collin's designs, but you are not limited to these ones as you can create your very own easily with a computer and a printer. I have to admit, I was a little intimidated at first because there was so much stuff and I didn't want to mess anything up! After I created my first stamp though, I was a pro! I think taking that initial plunge to try something you haven't done before is always a little nerve-wracking.

The magnetic clamp shown above is sort of like a picture frame. You place your film negative inside and the red light-sensitive polymer pack on top. After clamping the top frame to the bottom one, your polymer is squished and secure and ready to be made into a stamp!

Letting the stamp sit in the light unit for a couple of minutes hardens all of the exposed (i.e. non-black) areas. These hardened areas become your stamp! When you take it out all that you have to do is wash off the liquid polymer from around the hardened areas, and your stamp is just about ready for use. I'll go into greater detail about the entire process when I share a special project with you all!

The first custom stamp I created was of course a Wonder Forest one! I created the negative on my computer and printed it out on the special negative film that is included in the box. The stamps turn out perfect and crisp every time! (the grungy look on the stamp example above is simply because my stamp pad is drying up, oops! Too much stamping going on in this house!)

Stay tuned for a detailed project post, and if you'd like to check out the Stampmaker kit, click here!