How to Carve Rubber Stamps

Hand-carved rubber stamps are easy and fun!

Being able to carve your own rubber stamps is useful when you want just the right image, but cannot find it readily in stores. Great for creating stamps of your original artwork for easy reproduction, it also comes in handy for letterboxing enthusiasts who want a unique stamp for the log books. Here are steps to carving your own rubber stamps.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Clip art book or original art
• Photocopier
• Iron
• Graphite paper
• Ballpoint pen
• Rubber stamp block
• Carving tools
• Craft knife
• Adhesive
• Wooden block

1. 

   Choose and transfer your image to the rubber block.
   
   
   
   Whether you use clip art or original art, you have a couple of different transfer options. One way is to photocopy the image (also a great time to enlarge or shrink to fit) and then iron the image onto the block at medium-hot heat for just a few seconds. Another option is to trace the image with a ballpoint pen and some graphite paper, or you can draw your design directly on the stamp block. For simple designs, a freehand drawing is the quickest way to start.

2. 

   Decide between a positive or negative image.
   
   
   
   For a positive image you will carve around the image you transferred, so it will be what gets inked and printed. For a negative image you'll want to designate some sort of frame around the image to act as a boundary. Circles and squares are the easiest, but get creative depending on what your image is. My stamp that will be created from the image in the photo will be half positive and half negative for contrast.

3. 

   Use a v-shaped cutter to cut the outlines of your shape.
   
   
   
   Make the first cuts slowly with the v-shaped tool. Hold the tool like you would a pencil and push away from you, the point of the v at a gentle angle to the surface of the rubber. Try to make the outlines as few cuts as possible to keep the best edge attainable. Shallow cuts can be made to add shading lines if you are feeling daring. Start with good, clean edge cuts--any imperfections will show up on your finished image.

4. 

   Use a u-shaped or round gouge on larger sections or for very wide lines.
   
   
   
   Carve away more of the areas not to be inked to prevent accidental edges showing up. Shallow-cut stamps will tend to give blurry images when inked and stamped. Carve deeply, but do not go all the way through the block.

5. 

   Cut around your image with a craft knife.
   
   
   
   Cut close to the image to prevent any extra edges that might pick up and transfer ink later on. Remove any excess rubber from around the shape you've cut.

6. 

   Glue the stamp to a wooden block to use as a handle.
   
   
   
   Wood is the traditional choice because it tends to lend more even pressure when the image is stamped, but any even-surfaced object will work. You can even use repositionable adhesive to share one block with many stamps and save space in your storage unit. My stamp in the photo actually fits on a mini deck of playing cards!

Tips & Warnings

• The average stamp pad is 3 ½ inches wide and 2 ¼ inches tall. Keeping your image this size or smaller will make it easier to ink in a single pass.

• Remember to reverse words before transferring them to the block or they will be backwards when you stamp them.

• These blades are sharp! Always cut away from your body and watch your fingertips.

Resources

• DickBlick.com