Questions about soap stamping

[Juxtapose]

So, I bought a very nice custom acrylic stamp for my soap and now I have questions.

1. When stamping your soaps, do you coat or cover the stamp with anything to make it easy to lift from the soap?
2. How soon do you stamp your soaps after cutting?
3. What do you do if your soap is too hard to stamp?
4. How do you keep your stamp clean and in good repair?

Thanks for any and all answers.

Shannon

 

[ToniO]

I'm not a stamping expert! I got a brass stamp a short while ago but you can see how-to videos on Youtube of ppl stamping their soaps. It helped me when I started. Spraying the stamp with alcohol right before you stick it into the soap will help you get a clean impression without sticking and the 'when', depends on the soap and the speed it hardens up. I would do some tests on your soap ends first. I have more success tapping my stamp with a mallet on harder soaps, pressing into them damaged my soap. My stamp unscrews from the handle, so I just tap that on 4 corners and then in the middle. I just rinse mine off and keep it dry when I'm finished with it. An acrylic stamp, I'd also probably keep out of the sun.
Good luck and happy stamping!!

 

[KiwiMoose]

I never coat or cover my stamp. The stamp usually comes away relatively clean unless the soap is too soft. It could be recipe dependent? My soap remains like a 'hard rubber' ( firm but pliable) for a few weeks into cure and can be stamped anytime from unmolding until 8 - 10 weeks into cure. The older the soap, the firmer it is and the harder to stamp, but it will still stamp OK. I use a rubber mallet to stamp my soap. If it's older soap and very hard - I just hit the stamp harder with the mallet.
I use an old toothbrush and warm water to clean the stamp, but most of the time it doesn't need cleaning.