Tell me about stamping soaps..

[rparrny]

So I've seen some really nice soap stamps and my curiosity is getting the best of me. Are these stamps specifically for soap or can I use a craft ink stamp?
Do you stamp right after cutting? Where do you buy them and is buying the alphabet mean I need a second mortgage?
And finally, will Seven share how she gets the gold mica glitter so perfectly within her stamped letters? Do you use a dry brush or mix in something like glycerin?

 

[IrishLass]

I use the rubber stamps that one can find at the craft store. To get the effect I got below, I stamped right after I cut my soap when it was still slightly soft, dipping my stamp in gold mica before pressing it on. Then I just gave the design a spritz of alcohol that I keep in a spray bottle (just 1 spritz is enough). If the below pic doesn't show up for you, just hit the refresh button:

When looking for rubber stamps, try to use the ones with simple designs that aren't too 'busy'.


IrishLass

 

[not_ally]

Wow, IL that looks awesome. I didn't realize you could get such a good impression w/rubber (rather than wood/something harder).

 

[rparrny]

Woot Woot! I was hoping I could use rubber stamps...
But I had NO idea that you could just dip the stamp in mica and press...
Tomorrow is my birthday...the boss gave me the day off and I got a nice little bonus to spend on some stamps...planned on soapmaking all day long...but now I think I need to make a trip to Michaels first....

 

[IrishLass]

Just as long as the designs aren't too 'busy' with lots of fancy, intricate details, the rubber stamps work great.

To dip in the mica, what I do is just dust a flat plate with a little of the mica, press the stamp onto the mica so that just the raised design picks it up (and it will, quite efficiently, without having to wet the stamp or anything like that) , and then carefully press it into the soap when it's still slightly soft, making sure not to press too hard (you may need to practice on a scrap bar first to judge how much pressure to use). What I do is I pick a bar out of the litter that I've designated as being 'mine', and I use that as my guinea pig with my stamp, before I use the stamp on the rest of the bars.


IrishLass

 

[rparrny]

Nah, nothing fancy...
Looking for some elegant scripted letters. I'm making a guy soap tomorrow in black and white and I wanted to emboss an initial in gold to make it pop and individualize it.