Create Personalized Stamps with our Stamp Designers

Sometimes the most heartfelt and meaningful gifts are simple and handmade. The effort that goes into creating a gift or a card just to say “I’m thinking of you” feels special. As the gift giver, store-bought cards add an element of ease. They save time. You can pick them up on the fly. But are store-bought cards really the ones you want to be sending?

Instead, take a second and let your creativity run wild. It’s time to start making handmade cards again.  

Are Handmade Cards Better Than Store-Bought Cards?

Store-bought cards have their place in our lives, but are they better than a handmade card? Our team here would say no. Handmade cards are just extra special.  

For our busy moms, they are a great craft idea to try with the kids. If you take the time, you and your little team could create quite the stache of unique cards to hand out for any occasion.

For the women looking for a creative outlet, handmade cards are the perfect addition to a girl’s night in. All you need is your favorite beverage, some vibey music to set the tone, and your craft supplies. From there, let the creativity take over and enjoy a peaceful night in with your girls.

For the work manager planning team bonding events, crafting handmade cards is a way to let your employees let loose and de-stress. Best part? This is a useful (and fun) activity. You’ve given your employees space to create something they can use later.

The more people you invite to your card making session, the less it costs. Even if you create cards by yourself, you end up saving a large amount of money the more cards you make. Supplies will last you awhile, so why buy a store-bought card when you can bring your vision to life and give cards that are perfect for every scenario.

You can easily repurpose stamps for any situation. For example, the Volkswagen bus can be coupled with a “Congratulations on Your Retirement” stamp or a “You Rock” stamp or an “Adventure Awaits” stamp. As you build up your craft collection, you will have even more flexibility.

The best place to start is with a larger stamp that has multiple uses and then numerous smaller stamps with the typical sayings. Each card can look different, too. Between different sayings, different ink colors, and different cardstock, you can cultivate quite the collection of handmade cards for every occasion.

Cost Comparison of Handmade Cards Vs. Store-Bought Cards

Not convinced? Let’s take a quick look at the cost breakdown between handmade cards and store-bought cards. As a baseline, we’ll use the typical Hallmark card, which costs around $5.99. Now, here is a list of the supplies you could use to create a handmade card.

• Cardstock
  $6.99 for a 10 pack ($0.69 per card)
• Stickers
  $1.00 for 24 stickers ($0.04 per sticker)
• Colored Pencils
  $5.99 for 36 pencils ($0.17 per pencil)
• Large VW Wagon Stamp
  $25.50
• “Congratulations on the Journey” Small Stamp
  $16.50
• 3” x 6” Stamp Pad
  $8.95

The total cost of all these supplies is $52.49. Once you’ve made ten cards using these craft supplies, you’ll have spent less on each card than you would by buying a Hallmark card. And you’ll have ten, beautiful cards to gift to your loved ones.

Inspiration for Handmade Cards

Our team had a great time coming up with different designs for handmade cards. We laughed. We got creative, and we bonded. Here’s a few of the beautiful cards that our team made:

Conclusion

Making cards at home is a great activity for anyone. Not only does it save you money but you also can bring your vision to life. What’s better than that?

When searching for the ideal stamp, having a trustworthy company to turn to is all you need. At The StampMaker, we sell dependable brands that use only the best materials. We take the time to understand the brands we support, in order to offer you the best products.

Today, we want to discuss our decision to offer XStamper stamps. XStamper is a leading company in pre-inked stamping. Their products are securely built with quick-drying inking stamps that will last.

The History of XStamper Pre-Inked Stamps

The Beginning

XStamper has a vast history in the stamp industry themselves. This history begins in 1925 when their Mannen stamp pad was developed and released, modernizing the stamp pad industry. This novelty stamp pad would continually stamp without needing to be inked each time.

This concept was leading edge at the time, yet it did not gain traction quickly. In order to popularize this new technology, government and public institutions were gifted these products. As these ink pads became more popular, the brand developed.

Big changes have occurred over the years, from re-branding to new chairmen and presidents, but the brand has taken each change in stride. Through these dynamic brand shifts, the company received many exposition opportunities.

In 1970, they attended the Osaka Expo. In 1989, they attended the World Design Exposition in Nagoya, and in 2005, they attended the World Expo in Japan. Alongside this brand expansion, their Artline marker and XStamper product lines continued to improve and were steadily released.

Where They Are Now

Currently, they have more than nine production facilities and 2,000 employees worldwide, including Australia, Denmark, China, Japan, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. Their products are now offered in most major languages and sold in over 80 countries.

They are a leading stamp manufacturer and hold high quality standards for both their products and their business. This company cares about the trust of their customers, ensuring maximum longevity with lifetime guarantee on all their products.

Through the planning, production, and distribution of their products, XStamper protects the safety of the products, customers, and environment. As a company, they seek to minimize environmental burdens and maintain a high standard of eco friendliness. Their products are efficient and use recycled materials to offer the best to both their consumers and the environment.

Why Purchase an XStamper Pre-Inked Stamp

The XStamper pre-inked stamp is a high-quality product. It makes clear, durable, and precise markings and is offered at a lower cost than competitors. Their innovative development of cellular rubber is the most durable product for pre-inked stamps.

They keep an extensive stock line of products and offer custom made XStamper pre-inked stamps. Their pre-inked stamps lead because they are clean, consistent, reinkable, dry quickly, and don’t bleed. Overall, they are trustworthy, high quality stamps that come with a lifetime guarantee.

Conclusion

We trust XStamper because they care about well-developed, effective, lasting products for their customers. Their products are sturdy, consistent, and cost effective because they focus on the entire product life cycle.

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Is there a better time to create handmade cards for your friends and family? One of our favorite things to do around The StampMaker is use rubber stamps to personalize cards and crafts. So grab your craft kit and your favorite cozy beverage and join us as we create Valentine’s cards and gift tags!

Create Your Own DIY Valentine’s Day Card

Finding the perfect card for that special someone is always hard. Big name brands often don’t have exactly what you’re looking for, so why not save yourself some time and frustration and create your own Valentine’s card this year? Creating your own Valentine’s card is a great way to bring your vision to life for that special someone. Who else will know the best inside joke to include in the card? To make your own Valentine’s card, you will need:

• Cardstock
• Valentine’s rubber stamp
• Colored pencils
• Glue

Simply fold your cardstock in half, making sure that the paper lays flat. Then, stamp your chosen design, maintaining firm pressure on the stamp to ensure a crisp, clear impression. Finally, grab your colored pencils and add your finishing touches. You’re sure to make a beautiful, meaningful Valentine’s Day card for your special someone.

If you have some artwork that you’d like to turn into a card, you can also do that! All you need to do is upload your artwork to our custom stamp designer, choose the size stamp you want, and place your order. Your artwork is easily turned into a beautiful stamp. You still can create meaningful, personalized cards, but you can do so faster and with a piece of art you love.

Make Personalized Gift Tags

You don’t need to stop at Valentine’s cards, though. You can easily create fun, unique gift tags for all your candy-gifting needs. Best part? This is a low mess craft, so grab your kids and let them join you! Crafting is always more fun when it’s filled with laughter, creativity, and loved ones. To make your own Valentine’s gift tags, you will need:

• Cardstock
• Scissors
• Hole punch
• Ribbon
• To / From stamp
• Colored pencils

To start, cut the cardstock into the shape and size you want (a heart is a classic for obvious reasons). Next, stamp your design onto the gift tag. Make sure to include the “To” and “From” stamp, so you can easily distinguish who each gift is for. Once you’ve finished stamping, start coloring the design in and write in the names for “To” and “From”. To finish it off, use the hole punch to create a hole in the gift tag and slide a ribbon through it. If you don’t have a ribbon, you can easily tape the gift tag to any candy packages or gifts that you or your kids will be handing out.

Conclusion

Take this as your sign to plan a crafty afternoon with kids, turn on your favorite music, and let the creativity flow. Valentine’s Day is a great time to put your own personal twist on gifts and let your friends, family, and special someone know how much you care.

Well, we’ve got 2023 nice and wrapped up, and that means we have some statistics to look at. So for those of you looking for rubber stamp tips for 2024: here are your favorite stamp supplies of 2023.

Your Favorite Rubber Stamps in 2023

There were two styles of stamps that were really popular: Trodat Printy and Maxlight. These styles both come with built-in ink and high-quality, custom dies, making them excellent and versatile options.

Why You Should Buy Trodat Printy Rubber Stamps

The Trodat Printy revolutionized the market when it was introduced: the first self-inking stamp. It earned the Blue Angel award, a prestigious German award for environmentally friendly products. Since then, Trodat has continued to update this design, making it a staple stamp for many uses.

These self-inking stamps use an internal mechanism to continually re-ink the die, allowing for quick, reliable impressions. You can even add ink so that they last longer. These stamps come in many different colors and sizes to best fit your custom designs.

The top selling variety of the Trodat Printy was the 4913 version. It’s a champ for completing thousands of impressions. Some notable features include a laser engraved die, a clear stamp base, and manufacturing that minimizes its carbon footprint. The impression area is 3/4" x 2 1/8".

There were several other popular variations of the Trodat Printy. The primary difference was the size of the impression area. These include:

• Trodat Printy 4915 at 7/8" x 2 5/8"
• Trodat Printy 4926 at 1 3/8" x 2 3/4"
• Trodat Printy 4911 at 1/2" x 1 1/2"
• Trodat Printy 4912 at 5/8" x 1 3/4"
• Trodat Printy 4925 at 7/8" x 3 1/8"

Why You Should Buy Maxlight Rubber Stamps

Maxlight stamps are another line developed by the stamp connoisseurs over at Trodat. In contrast to Trodat Printy, these stamps are pre-inked. This means that the die pad is saturated with ink that comes through when pressure is applied.

Like self-inking stamps, these can be reinked to increase their lifetime. Maxlight stamps come with the same high-quality build and functional design as the Trodat Printy.

The most popular Maxlight stamp was the Maxlight 325.The diameter of this circular stamp is 5/8", making it the perfect tool for many uses, including inspection stamps. The pre-inked nature of the stamp makes it ideal for quick and crisp impressions. The dust cover keeps the stamp clean and makes it extra portable.

Your Favorite Stamp Pads in 2023

Your favorite stamp pads were the staple stamp pads that we offer in a variety of sizes. These pads come in black, red, green, purple, and uninked varieties, making them great options for any number of situations.

Stamp Pad Size 0

The Stamp Pad Size 0 comes in at 2 ¼” x 3 ½”. This pad is great for small stamps or situations where you may need to carry the pad in a bag or even in a pocket.

Stamp Pad Size 2

The Stamp Pad Size 2 comes in at 3”x 6”. This pad is great for larger stamps. At this size, it covers a large variety of stamps while still remaining relatively portable.

Your Favorite Stamp Ink Refills in 2023

One ink really topped the charts this past year. The Maxlight ink provides an excellent companion to the previously mentioned Maxlight XL 325.

Maxlight Ink

This ink for pre-inked stamps comes in black, blue, red, green, and purple. While this was the crowd favorite, it’s important to note that this ink only works for pre-inked stamps and should not be used for self-inking stamps.

Conclusion

Now that 2023 is over and life has started to slow down, we have a moment to reflect on some of last year’s favorites. For good reasons, both the Trodat Printy and Maxlight stamps were bestselling stamps. Being a self-inking stamp, the Trodat Printy makes thousands of crisp impressions without needing to be re-inked. As a pre-inked stamp, the Maxlight stamp is a crowd favorite for its speed and ease-of-use.

Somehow the holidays are just around the corner again. So, it’s time to bring out your stamps and get started on some Christmas crafts. One great use for holiday craft stamps is DIY wrapping paper. It’s fairly simple and can even save you money!

Materials:

• Plain wrapping paper or Kraft paper
• Stamps + Ink
• Extra goodies: Tag, bakers twine, ribbon, etc

Selecting the Materials

Picking stamps for a project can be overwhelming, so it’s best to start with a plan in mind. You can create a cohesive design, a repeating pattern, or use a single stamp for emphasis. There are a lot of great options. In order to execute your plan, you’ll have to pick the stamp design, stamp type, ink color, and surface to be inked.

Surface

In this case, surface refers to what you intend to use as your wrapping paper. You could use something simple, like Kraft paper, or find some nice, plain wrapping paper. If you want to be fancy, you could even use fabric.

Ink

The next step is to choose your color palette. For an elegant look, you could do straight black on white paper. For a festive look, you could combine red and green. You’ll want to make sure that, whatever colors you pick, the ink is compatible with your surface and stamp types.

Stamp

If you're looking for a versatile stamp, you should choose a wood handle rubber stamp. Wood handle stamps will allow you to change colors every time you create an impression. As long as you carefully clean and store your rubber stamps, they will last you a long time.

Of course, if you’re looking to create a simple, repeating pattern, you may appreciate the ease of self-inking or pre-inked stamps.

If you want to wrap your gifts with cloth, there are also fabric stamps that you can take advantage of. Which one you choose depends on what you’re going for. You can easily upload your own design to create the stamp you want.

You can check out our seasonal craft stamps for some design inspiration. From Santa Claus to peppermint candies, you’ll find all the holiday cheer needed to decorate your wrapping paper.

The stamps used in this video were the candy cane stamp, peppermint candy stamp, and the To - From stamp. 

Stamp the Paper

At this point, you should have your materials ready to go. All you need to do now is enact your plan!

1. Start by cutting the paper to the size you need.
2. Spread the paper onto a flat surface.
   Depending on the design you go for, it may be easier to stamp at different points in the process. For example, if you want a repeating pattern to be consistent across the paper, you should stamp when the paper is laid out. If you want something to be centered on the front of the present, you should stamp after you've wrapped the gift.
3. Stamp your design onto the paper.
   For the best results, reink your stamp between each impression.

The stamps used in this video are the Christmas tree stamp, gift stamp, and elf stamp. 

Wrap the Present

This stage is where you will be establishing the presentation of the gift. You’ll want to do a good job in order to show off your epic new wrapping paper.

1. Wrap the paper around the present.
2. Add any final stamps.
3. Add extra embellishments. These can include wrapping the gift in bakers twin, adding a tag, or tying a bow. Stamps can be used on the tag as well to increase cohesiveness.
4. Step back and appreciate your work. You’re all done!

Conclusion

DIY stamped Christmas wrapping paper is a great way to add some personalization to your gifts this year. It also makes a great craft to do with kids. There are lots of options.
One of the best parts is, now that you have these stamps and designs planned out, you can use them for all sorts of holiday activities: wrapping paper, gift tags, holiday cards, and even Christmas ornaments! Now go forth and craft😊

In 1969, the United States said the national environmental goal is “to create and maintain conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations”.

Climate change is a growing issue. It is our job to take care of the earth for future generations. Businesses, both large and small, can play an essential role in this. Here at StampMaker, we are determined to do our part.

Why Should a Small Business Worry About Sustainability?

Businesses create and, therefore, consume large quantities of materials. If they choose to prioritize profits over sustainability, they can have a large negative effect. But sustainable businesses can have an equal environmental impact.

NASA says human activity causes global warming. And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states that there are billions of pounds of trash entering the ocean each year.

All this has a staggering effect on wildlife and an increasingly dangerous effect on the earth itself. It’s essential for businesses, like us, to be aware of the kind of impact we have.

Here at StampMaker, we are determined to provide quality products without sacrificing the health of the earth. We believe that everyone has a part to play in sustainability, and that includes us.

As a sustainable small business, we are in an unique position to make these important decisions and to have an impact. We also want to do right by you, our customers, so that you can feel confident in each purchase. Our goal is to be both environmentally friendly and environmentally conscious.

How the StampMaker Implements Sustainable Practices

There are several sustainable practices we have implemented here at StampMaker. Here are some details of how we Reduce-Reuse-Recycle:

• We streamlined our entire process to rely more heavily on technology to reduce paper consumption and reduce waste. For example, during stamp production, the design files go directly to the laser.
• We use every square foot of our facility efficiently, so we are using gas, water, and electricity to support minimal space. Additionally, we use programable thermostats, so we are not heating or cooling unnecessarily.
• We reuse whenever we can. This includes reusing boxes and packaging material to ship out products. We also use both sides of any paper.
• We recycle all possible items, including paper, plastic, and cardboard, using our city's curbside recycling program.

Proud Partners with Trodat Stamps

At The StampMaker, we carefully choose who we partner with. We want to offer you with the highest quality stamps, but we also want to make a difference. We are proud of the fact that our partnership with Trodat accomplishes both of these goals. Trodat has designed the original Trodat Printy stamp to be small, light, and climate neutral. Using fewer raw materials and more post-consumer plastics, Trodat is able to create a rubber stamp that makes a precise imprint, while upholding the Gold Standard Climate Protection guidelines. Every purchase of a Trodat stamp makes a move towards greater sustainability. 

Every Purchase Makes an Impact

Humanity’s existence relies on the environment, the very same environment we’re slowly destroying. And everyone’s decisions can have an effect.

Companies need to do their part to take care our earth, but consumers also play an essential role. Going green in your own home or supporting green businesses can be a great step towards helping the earth. Every little bit helps.