That's One Giant Stamp

You know how I said I would NEVER unmount another Magenta stamp? Well... this is absolutely the last one! I have an excuse too. This stamp was 7 1/2 inches by 9 1/2 inches!!! I kid you not. This monstrosity retailed for $45.00 when I got it for cost the Stamp Store I demoed for. I thought the image was soooo elegantly beautiful that I just HAD to have it. Want to hazard a guess as to how many times I used it? Yep, once. And I can't even tell  you what I did with that image either! I had thoughts of framing it... Yesterday the practical Scotch half of me, decided that I needed to actually use this thing and get my money's worth. It's really not like me at all to have things and not use them. The playful, fun-loving Irish half of me simply will not allow it. As I studied this gorgeous image I saw three distinct images within it. I really needed to unmount it and cut it into three images. I tossed it in the microwave and prepared to do battle with the ultimate stickiness of the foam. Then, I got an idea. What if I pulled just the rubber off, separating it from the foam and wood instead of pulling the foam and rubber off the wood? I did, and it was MUCH easier!  I wonder if allll the others would have posed less of a problem if I'd used this method? NO, I am absolutely NOT going to try another one to see if this is the case.

Here is the stamp before, remember it is 7.5 by 9.5.

This is how I cut them apart. One piece would not fit in a CD case so I used a photo mailer.

I found these photo mailers at the Dollar store. They come two to a package and are nice and stiff. Sturdy and cheap for unmounted rubber.

Out in the woods yesterday, my husband and I rescued this baby bunny from a trap. It was unhurt, and soooo adorable. It liked me better too, I could tell because it was much calmer when I held it:) I tried to take another picture as we released it, but it scampered off much too quickly.

War With Mounted Stamps

As God is my witness I will never unmount another Magenta stamp again! The foam on those things is some indestructible stuff!! It's really quite a testament to Canadian craftsmanship. I felt as though it was an all out war... and I was General Patton. 'The enemy was quite the formidable foe. I was outflanked and outmaneuvered. There were many casualties: my hands, my fingernails, my back, my sanity, and the Tack n' Peel on my acrylic block.

How did unmounting stamps mess up my Tack n' Peel you ask? That foam would not come off!! I was desperate. I decided to leave it on, but it was soooooo sticky! So I put baby powder on the foam backing to get rid of the stickiness. I rubbed and rubbed to get all the residue off.

Big mistake, the baby powder caused my Tack n' Peel to lose its stickiness. Even water did not resuscitate my TAP. I played taps, gave it a burial in the trash can. I had lost the war and was exhausted. What was I to do? Well, I'm General Patton so when the going gets tough..... I took a nap!

Note to self... when the label on a chemical (uh that would be Goo Gone) says to observe caution when getting in contact with skin... heed the warning!!!

Pictures from our brave war correspondent:

After using the powerful microwave weapon

Time to bring out the heavy artillery

casualties

under heavy attack, reinforcements called in

The enemy refuses to be subdued, even after heavy sanding

I did not surrender, but I will not go to war against this foe again. The worst casualty, the hands bore witness to photographs that are too graphic to publish.

Unmounting Stamps, and shopping in the city again:)

I drove into the city again yesterday! My car drove right to the mall, and I didn't do anything silly! lol:) I met a friend, and we used coupons for Joann, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby! I've decided that Joann is my new favorite craft/art store! I love the huge selection they have, and the fact that they accept competitor's coupons! Plus, they had Tack N' Peel, which I am now in love with!! Hobby Lobby had all their cardstock on sale for half off. At 22 cents a sheet, that's a good buy. I like to able to buy just the colors that I want/need. I had a list, so I selected the plain colors that had a bit of texture. Oh, and you know girlfriends are such enablers right?  We found this gorgeous fabric in Joann that would look perfect in my kitchen and dinning room. Of course my girlfriend (who can REALLY sew) told me that I can make curtains. You see, I kind of play at sewing. I can make curtains, but clothes.... not so much. Unless of course you actually LIKE the waistband in  your skirt sewed on upside down, or the collar in your shirt backwards. I've also been know to sew pant legs shut (don't ask) and put zippers in upside down and wrong side out. Then there was the blouse with one sleeve longer than  the other. You get the picture right?  Curtains I can handle, they are rectangles:)  Hmmm if I make new curtains, that wallpaper will have to go, and then the walls will need to be painted... What a great day with a friend. We both scrapbook, she sews, crochets and decorates cakes, I rubber stamp and paint. We both have great husbands and we all have fun together.

I finally figured out how to deal with all this unmounted stamp business. My clear acrylic blocks already have some clingy stuff on them. My newer stamps from Impression Obsession and Flourishes stick to that just fine. However, when unmounting my older stamps, this Tack N' Peel is the stuff! I just put it on the other side of my acrylic blocks, so I can use either type of cling. The Tack N' Peel is cushiony so I can take my wood mounted stamps down to bare rubber. This makes storage a breeze as most of you know. I think I'm the last person on the planet to unmount her stamps! I'm going to continue to store them in my Iris Carts by theme. I've been doing that for 20 years, and if I change now, I'll probably forget and get all discombobulated ya know? Every time I move something in the house to what I think is a better storage place, I forget where I put it! I am sooo my mother!! So now, I've begun putting sticky notes in the old location telling myself where I moved it to. My husband asked me why there are all these sticky notes in the drawers and closets. When I explained, he simply said, "I'm with ya." Don't you love a man who "gets you?"

Now all I have to do is figure out whether I need to store the bare rubber stamps in CD cases, or just stack them in the Iris cart drawers????

Some of my Iris Carts, I have lots more on the other side of the room.

I just finished this Easter card yesterday. I think it was waiting for this gorgeous ribbon I found yesterday in Hobby Lobby. The stamp is from Peddlers' Pack and it was done in Prismacolor pencils.