Today is Thursday which means
and we are so very excited to present to you
Last year, when we were at CHA we were drawn to the PSA Essentials booth for many reasons, not the least of which was the Hello Kitty stamps! But once there, we fell in love with their stamping system. Today we wanted to tell you more. PSA Essentials was kind enough to send a system to Marnie so she could try it out. We will let her take it from here.
First, let me introduce you to your new favorite stamp! I loved this. To get started, you need the stamp body, some peel and stick stamps, some ink, and I would recommend the alignment tool (more on that in a bit.).
First, is the stamp body. It holds both the ink (see the black horizontal line right above the hole? That's the ink cartridge) and the stamp (it is hiding in that white part just below the ink). When you press down on the top, the stamp inks itself, and then flips around for a perfect stamping experience. The stamp body is light, easy to use and much more neat and clean than usual stamping, for me. I also have trouble catching corners with my stamps, and tend to end up with ink from head to toe, so this system seemed much more convenient and much less messy than traditional stamping.
Now, the amazing part. The peel and stick stamps. Each packet comes with a round outline and then nine smaller stamps that can fit inside the ring, or be used all on their own. Before I show you my first project, take a minute to watch this video by Libby O, showing how easy it is to use the stamp. (I would have made my own, but well, then I would have had to shower and get dressed and get my nails done...)
Now, my projects. At first, I used just the round outline. I thought it worked great for creating journaling circles.
Then, I added the inside and stamped it as one. I really did love having the alignment tool to help place the stamps perfectly. If you don't know what I mean, then you should go back up and watch that video for a minute... heh heh heh!)
Next, I decided to be fancy and make something without the round outlines. I wasn't feeling too confident with my placements, so first I stamped onto something
and then once I felt that I had a good understanding of where the stamp would end up, I tried it right on my layout.
And finally, I was ready for the biggie. Two colors. First, I set the stamp body down and traced it with a pencil line all the way around. Then I stamped the round outline. Next, I changed the ink cartridge (which takes all of about 1.2 seconds), removed the outline stamp, placed the inner stamp on the alignment tool, and suddenly I was fancy.
Or you could always order one of the two tone inks and save yourself time...
Here is a nifty feature. PSA Essential makes personalized stamps. So you can order a fancy one for your formal occasions and cards. But when you are sending a sweet thank you to your best friend, you can switch out that hoity-toity monogram for Snoopy, Hello Kitty, your college logo, your sorority letters, or more.
A couple of other thoughts that I had using this stamping system. First, though there are many inks available, I only had three, and I needed brown so I just inked up the stamp like a normal acrylic. I found it equally easy to ink it while on the stamp body as while not.
And lastly, this is a terrific way to involve your kids in your card making. Once they learn to face the stamp body the proper direction, it really is foolproof. My girls loved taking turns stamping trees on the envelope enclosures on their Christmas Thank You's. I can't wait to get a family stamp for next year's Christmas cards. (I love when my childrens' helping reduces my todo list!!)
I hope you all give this one a try. Innovative, tidy, and space saving. A truly great find.
To help you get started PSA Essentials will be sending one lucky reader a stamp body, a personalized stamp, one Peel and Stick pack, one ink, and one alignment tool. (A giveaway valued at $75.) If you would like to be considered, please leave us a comment telling us something new you are hoping to try this year (and yes, it can be a PSA Essentials Stamp!!) And this week, if you would like a second chance to be considered, hop on over to the PSA blog, take a minute or ten to look around and see what amazing things their design team has created with their stamps, leave them a quick hello, sign up to be a follower, and then hop back here and leave a comment telling us you are now a PSA Stamp Camp follower.
Comments will remain open until 8:00 pm PST. One lucky number will be selected at random and posted tomorrow. This week, the lucky number needs to have a Canadian or American mailing address for shipping.
Lastly, if you are looking for PSA Essentials online, try Finestationery.com, Expressionery.com, Cambriacove.com. Or you may find a store listing here.
