Hello you wonderful lot 😉 Thought you might fancy a lovely DIY tutorial this afternoon.
This delightful little tutorial provides couples a creative, easy and inexpensive way to personalise their wedding by creating a signature "stamp" to decorate a huge variety of items, and comes to you courtesy of Sarah Beth Smith of Deeds and Petunia, who specialise in DIY birdcage veils, patterns, kits and bridal accessories.
How about a cute little personalised initials stamp, that you could apply to all your wedding stationery? Or what about stamping some doilies to make for pretty kitsch style table decor, or some pretty handkerchiefs to give away as favours? In fact you could stamp a huge variety of items to add a sweet personal touch to your wedding day – there are some hints and tips on how you can use your personalised stamp towards the end of this feature.
Let's get started…
Love My Dress Wedding Blog – Photography Copyright (c) 2012, Deeds and Petunia
What you'll need…
♥ A small carving block at least 1/2" inch thick
♥ Carving tools (such as Speedball linoleum cutters) in sizes 1 and 2
♥ Pencil and paper
♥ Scissors
♥ Xacto knife
♥ Stamp ink pad
Step 1. Sketch out the design you'd like to use with your pencil. I chose a simple heart design with a nice thick line that's easy to carve around…
Step 2. Next, cut out a square of the carving block large enough to fit the design with your Xacto knife. Turn the design over on top of the square, making sure it's centered, and carefully color over the back of the paper with the pencil to transfer the design to your carving square. Press firmly with the pencil while coloring and be sure not to wiggle the design at all while coloring the entire image. If you need to start over, just turn the block over and try again. You will see a mirror image of the design on the block when finished.
Step 3. Now comes the fun part! Use the carving tool to cut away the block around your design. Use the smaller size tip and/or the Xacto knife to get into nooks and crannies. Go slow and careful – the tips will cut through the block like butter! Be sure to cut deep enough that when you ink your stamp, only your design will show.
Step 4. Once you've finished, ink up and test your design on a piece of scrap paper by pressing straight down. Be sure to press firm, without rocking the stamp too much…
Step 5. Lift straight up and voila! An adorable signature stamp!
Ideas and Tips…
♥ If you find little corners of excess ink showing up on your stamped paper, cut away some more of the block in that area.
♥ Stamp a huge variety of items like programs, matchbook covers, favors, paper goods, coasters, napkins, for a personalised touch.
♥ Stamp fabric, ribbons, and hankies using fabric ink.
♥ Use a thinner carving block and glue your stamp to a wood or acrylic backing using heavy duty adhesive for ease in stamping.
♥ To be extra fancy, create a signature design or print out a graphic, trace/color in with pencil, and transfer to your stamp.
Oh how delightful is this? Thank you so much Sarah!
Please take a moment to visit Sarah's wonderful 'Deeds and Petunia' store on Etsy. You can see more DIY tutorials and handmade wedding inspiration from Sarah via the Deeds and Petunia website. Deeds and Petunia can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.
You can see a whole lot more DIY tutorials on Love My Dress right here.
Anyone fancy having a go at creating their own little personalised stamp? I'd love to hear how you get on – send some photos too please! 😉
Lots of love as aaaaaalways 😉
Annabel
♥
Annabel View all Annabel's articles
Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.
