How to Use Rubber Stamps for Your Craft Projects

Follow these rubber stamping tutorials for tips and ideas on using your rubber stamps with ink, water-based markers and paint. It's easy and stamps can make beautiful embellishments on your projects.

Rubber Stamping

Materials

Rubber stamp(s)
Ink Pad, water-based markers, or paint
Surface to Stamp

Step by Step

Stamp and Ink Pad

Your ink can be dye or pigment ink. Tap the rubberstamp to the surface of the inkpad several times. Check stamp to make sure the entire image is evenly inked. Lightly tap to the inkpad because using a heavy hand will cause damage to the pad over time and over-ink your image.
You can also tap the inkpad to your rubberstamp to ink it. Try both ways and see, which you prefer.
Place paper (or other surface to stamp) on a hard even surface like a desk or countertop. Gently press inked stamp to paper. Do not rock or wiggle the stamp. Lift stamp straight up.

Stamp and Water-based Markers

Never use permanent markers. Permanent ink will damage the rubberstamp.
Set rubberstamp on your worktable or work with the rubberstamp in your hand with the image or rubber side up. Using water-based markers color directly to the rubber image. This technique allows you the greatest variety of coloring the image before it is stamped. When done coloring the stamp you will need to breath or huff on the image to make sure all the marker colors are still wet enough to stamp an image. The colors should have a light sheen signaling you that the marker ink is wet.
Place paper (or other surface to stamp) on a hard even surface like a desk or countertop. Gently press inked stamp to paper. Do not rock or wiggle the stamp. Lift stamp straight up.

Stamp and Paint

You’ll need a sponge or paper towel to stamp with paint. Sponge paint onto rubberstamp image or spread paint onto a paper towel and tap stamp onto paint.
Stamp firmly, but not too forcefully onto your surface. If you press to hard you can make the paint squeeze to the sides of the rubber image and leave a sloppy looking image.
Paint is often used for home décor pieces of canvas and wood.
You can also use paint glazes with this technique.