Rubber vs. Clear Acrylic Stamps

I'm a member on several rubber stamping/craft groups. Recently on 2-3 of these groups I've noticed that there have been discussions about how difficult clear stamps are to use and how much people don't care for them. It's amazing how many rubber people have never even tried clear stamps but profess to "hating" them.... Many more people tried clear stamps many years ago and had 1 bad experience. They too refuse to use them. I was extremely surprised to say the least!

SO, I want to set the record straight with my own personal experiences on clear stamps....

*One complaint I read was that clear stamps get hard, turn yellow, or loose their stick after a while.

This in part has to do do with the manufacturing process. Clear stamps USED to turn yellow. This yellowing doesn't effect the stamp or final image but people think that there is something wrong with it. Recent advancements in resins have taken care of this problem for the most part.

There is some validity to the fact that some stamps loose their tack - please read....

"There are some imported stamps being made for the clear stamp market from silicon and vinyl compounds. While these stamps look great and are very clear, they have some problems. The compounds being used are not meant to transfer ink. They lack the porous surface structure of rubber or photopolymer stamps, which provide even ink transfer. You can improve their ink transfer by conditioning the surface with a nail file or eraser to rough up the smoothness. This simulates the porous surface and helps transfer ink.

There are also complaints that the imported stamps lose their tack and stop sticking. The silicon and vinyl materials are not sticky, so washing the surface doesn’t help. Photopolymer stamps are naturally sticky and should regain their tack with normal cleaning."

(now, personally I've never filed a clear stamp in my life....I'm not sure what mfg's buy their stamps over seas but if I've got some they work just as well as the others so far.)

*Another complaint of clear stamps is that they won't pick up ink?!?!?

First, all new clear stamps have residue on them from the mfg. process. You cannot expect a stamp right out of the package to make the first impression perfectly. You have to either wash the stamp off or stamp it off on scrap paper to remove this residue. Many people don't realize and/or do this. Therefore, the first impression isn't what they had hoped it would be. Clean your stamps BEFORE using! It will save lots of headaches!!

Now, I have never had any trouble with stamps not making proper images no matter what ink I used. Yes, the Distress Inks make lighter images but they are light with the rubber stamps as well. I use (all Ranger) Archival Inks; Dye Inks, Pigment Inks, Embossing Inks, Distress Inks and even Acrylic Paint without problem. If I get a bad image it's operator error. Either I didn't ink it up enough or I pressed the stamp down unevenly (because sometimes I hurry!).

*The next complaint was that clear stamps don't last.

Well, that is another mystery....I have been buying clear stamps for several years now (almost since they came out) and still own every single set I have ever purchased. None of them have deteriorated in any way shape or form. Yes, a few of them have yellowed but those are the very first ones I bought...they still stamp just fine. I buy stamps from all sorts of clear stamp mfg. including Fancy Pants, Autumn Leaves, Wildflower Stamps, Technique Tuesday, Fontwerks, Creative Imagainations; Crafty Secrets; etc. and they are all going strong!

*Several people mentioned that they can't get "clear" images from clear stamps...they seem blurred.

Pure and simple, this is operator error, this is not the stamps fault. Most people who are used to rubber stamps smoosh those babies down like they were killin' a bug. If you apply the same pressure to a clear stamp you are going to get the stamp impression plus half the stamp wall as well. You do NOT need to press down that hard to get a great image......we're making stamp impressions, not paninis. Gentle pressure is all that is needed...we're going for the peaceful method of stamping....kiss, don't kill your stamps. (ha, that's pretty good...I just made that up - LOL!!!)

I hope this has answered some of the questions people have about using clear stamps.

Also, please don't get me wrong...I love my rubber stamps too! I love ALL of my stamps equally and seeing how I have about 50% rubber and 50% clear stamps I am an equal opportunity stamper :)

Next week I plan on sharing side by side comparisons of the various ink types I mentioned so you can see with your own eyes that clear stamps really do work just as well as rubber stamps.

Have a great day friends!!

Go Get Inky!!!