Home » Projects » 5 Tips for Your First Foray into Silhouette Stamping & Special Promotion

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Silhouette Stamping & Special Promotion

G’day, mates!  I hope your Friday is off to a fantastic start.

Since I don’t want to enrage the northerners, I won’t mention what gorgeous weather we’ve been having down here in Orlando.  Won’t do it!  Nope.  I won’t even share an Instagram photo of my cousin, husband, and I on a scenic boat cruise this past Wednesday.  Where we didn’t need to wear jackets.  And even got a little sun-kissed.  Because that would be cruel and unusual punishment.  And I refuse to put anyone through that.  {She said with a tricksy smile.}

Cousin Time!

Instead, I’ll share some sweeeeet news about Silhouette America’s latest promotion!  Cool?  Cool.

This one runs from now through February 28th and has a little something for everyone including 20% off almost all their supplies and FREE shipping on all orders $25 and up.  Now, that is news to shout from the rooftops.  Let’s jump into the bullet points, shall we?

If you visit the Silhouette shop, you can use my affiliate code CLOSET at checkout to take advantage of the following deals:

  • 1 CAMEO, 1 stamping starter kit, 1 light hold cutting mat, 1 teal CAMEO dust cover for $351.96 $269.99
  • 1 Portrait, 1 stamping starter kit, 1 light hold cutting mat, 1 grey Portrait dust cover for $229.96 $129.99
  • Stamping starter kits for 25% off at $29.99 $22.50
  • Almost everything at silhouetteamerica.com is 20% off! (Excludes Silhouette CAMEO®, Silhouette Portrait®, downloads, download cards, subscriptions, and gift cards.)
  • FREE Shipping on all orders over $25.00 for the lower 48 states, including machine bundles.

Special SALE on Silhouette Machine Bundles & Stamping Starter Kits. 20% OFF most items & FREE Shipping on orders $25 and up!  Use code CLOSET at checkout.  via thinkingcloset.com

So, what are you waiting for?  Hop on over to Silhouette America and stock up some supplies!  Especially considering practically everything is on sale right now, plus you have the oh-so-rare opportunity for FREE shipping!

Remember this special promotion runs from now through Friday, February 28th.  And thanks in advance to anyone who has or will use my promo code, CLOSET.  You help support this site!

Now, Let’s Talk Stamping!

Since this promotion features the Stamping Starter Kit, which is still a relatively new product, I thought I would share some of my tips and tricks for working with the stamping material.  While I wouldn’t recommend venturing into stamping as your very first Silhouette project, it really is not as intimidating as it seems.  At least, not if you learn from my mistakes!

Silhouette Stamping Starter Kit

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

Tip #1.  Remove the protective white cover on your cutting mat.

This was a lesson I learned the hard way (after destroying an entire sheet of the stamping material).  The kicker is that I could have avoided all of that had I just slowed down long enough to carefully read the directions in my idea book.  But no.  I was an eager beaver and just dove in, head first.

And I completely missed the fact that there is a protective white cover sheet on top of the special stamping mat.  You need to peel it away to reveal a tacky surface.  Otherwise, the stamping material will dance all over the mat while the blade chops it into tiny bits.  This I can attest to first-hand.

I’m hoping that my foolish mistake can help save some of you from a similar fate.  Be sure to remove that white sheet prior to making any cuts of your stamping material!

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

Tip #2.  Start simple.  Don’t try to cut out too intricate a shape, especially not at first.

And it’s not so much that your machine won’t be capable of cutting an intricate design, but it can be challenging to perfectly lay your stamp shape on the acrylic block if it has too many things going on at once.  So, if you’re doing letters like I did with my handmade gift tags, weld them together, so they’re one solid piece.  It will definitely save you some time when aligning everything on the block.

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

Tip #3.  Press the ink pad onto the stamp instead of the stamp onto the ink pad.

I found that it’s a little bit easier to maneuver the inking process that way.

Ink Application

Tip #4.  As you align your stamp, use the grid on the acrylic block for guide-lines.

This will help you line everything up properly when it comes time to apply your stamp!

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

Tip #5.  Roughen up your stamping material a bit to achieve a more opaque look.

How do you do that?  You, can use some fine grit sandpaper or a pink eraser, even, to gently rub it across the surface of your stamp.  This will hurry up the stamp’s “seasoning” process and give you a much richer stamp as a result!  (This recommendation came from the ladies in my Silhouette Challenge Facebook group.  Thanks, Meredith and Teri!)

Also, Silhouette recommends using pigment inks over dye inks for this medium.  They tend to do better!

5 Tips for Your First Foray into Stamping with your Silhouette!  {So you can learn from my mistakes.}  via thinkingcloset.com

Stamping Tutorials for Beginners

Here are the two project I created last year using my Silhouette Stamping Starter Kit.  Be sure to check these out for even more tips and tricks!

Handmade Gift Tags using Silhouette Stamping Material via The Thinking Closet
Handmade Gift Tags using Silhouette Stamping Material
Stamped Wrapping Paper Tutorial by The Thinking Closet
Stamped Wrapping Paper Tutorial

Enjoy your weekend, everyone, and happy shopping!

{Linking up here.}

Full Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post; however, this post contains affiliate links, meaning that if you make a purchase using my code, I receive a small commission.  Please rest assured that as always, I only recommend products that I use and love like my Silhouette Cameo!

signature

| | | |

11 Comments

  1. Your gift tags are so much fun! I especially love the ones where you added ribbons and ric rack. I’ve been wanting to try the stamping material for a while. Thank you for the helpful tips!

  2. oh send a lot of that rain to southern Calif. Still praying for same.
    Silhouette machines look so tempting. if I ever get one I have a feeling my hsb will either take it over or have a long list of projects for me.

    1. Hope the rains fall soon, Brenda!

      Ha ha, and I love that you anticipate your husband wanting to use your Silhouette as much as you will. They really are wonder-machines!

  3. Oh Lauren!! I am so jealous! Over here in England its pretty wet, very windy and mostly battling floods (okay We had a half sunny day today – but it was BITTER cold!) I have total envy now 🙂
    Anyhoo, I am a little ashamed to say that since my comment on your last silhouette post…I still havent taken my Silhouette stamp set out of the box *slaps hand* I felt very ashamed until I thought of the best excuse! I was merely waiting for these fabulous tips over here in the Thinking Closet from your wonderful self to help me along the way, maybe hold my hand a little and not make me ruin my whole set of stamping material sheets ’cause lets be honest I would have done the same thing in excitement that you did. So there you go – must have been fate 🙂 Am I excused? (oh come on…it was a pretty damn good excuse…made up totally, but imaginative?) hehe!
    I am totally bookmarking this for when I finally get around to trying it out. Thank you heapsicles for the super helpful post Lauren (you are so good to us!)

    1. Oh no! I’m so sorry my teasing led to weather envy. 😉 I really do hope that things start to warm up over there across the pond! I know how dreadful those winter months can be (after having shivered up north for 29 years of my life!).

      Ha ha, and I’m glad to know that this post is the final thing you were waiting for in order to dive into that stamping kit. Girl, you’ve got this! And it really does help redeem my ruined stamping material to know that I might have saved you from a similar mishap! (Tee hee, loved your imaginative excuse!)

      Also, “heapsicles” might be my new favorite word now. THANK YOU for that! 😉

    1. We get CRAZY rains in the springtime…though I probably can’t complain to someone from Seattle! 😉 Oh yes, stamping is a blast. You and your artistic self would have a field day, I’m sure!

    1. Well, I hope the enraged northerner will forgive me…and remember that I’ll be the enraged southerner come June when we’re rocking a humid heat wave. 😉

      You’d really enjoy the stamping kit, Meredith. I have no doubt you’d blow us away with your stamp-tastic creations!

Your comments make my day!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *