If you are already using rubber stamps for creative purposes, unmounted rubber stamps are a great way to add to your collection without breaking the bank, are easy to store and inexpensive to ship.

Never heard of unmounted or UM stamps? Let me explain. A rubber stamp consists of three components; The wood mount or acrylic block, a cushion made from natural red rubber or synthetic foam, and the rubber or polymer die that is the actual image.

When you buy unmounted stamps (dies) they will either be trimmed with a cushion already attached, or will just be a plain untrimmed rubber die. Because you are only getting the dies and have to provide your own supplies and labor, most unmounted stamps run about half the price of the cost of a mounted ready to use stamp. Plus shipping is even less without a bulky wood block! For lots of fun try an unmounted rubber grab bag! Who knows what goodies you will find. Team up with your stamp buddies and trade your unwanted dies or .....here's a novel idea; sell your unwanted dies on ebay! Once you try UM stamps you will be hooked!
Don't say I didn't warn you!

Ready to learn how to mount your unmounted stamps?

Here are some of the many ways you can use your unmounted stamps.

1. TEMPORARY MOUNTING

The latest trend in unmounted stamps is temporary mounting using a special clear acrylic block with a special temporary adhesive cushion attached to the dies so you can interchange many dies with one or more blocks. The dies can be kept in a folder lined with clear plastic pockets or sheets or in cases. The acrylic blocks are see-thru so you can position your image easily. Another way to save space when you have many dies is to use velcro tape. One side of the velcro is attached to the unmounted die, the other to a wood or acrylic block.

2. PERMANENT MOUNTING

The classic and my prefered way to mount unmounted dies is by using red rubber cushion, rubber cement, and a wood block specifically shaped and sanded for rubber stamp mounting. The rubber die is first trimmed, inked to index the top of the wood block, cleaned, then adhered to the red rubber cushion, then adhered to the wood mount. Please read my tips below for proper mounting using this method. Occasionally, many um stamps will already come to you with a grey or black foam rubber (synthetic) self adhesive cushion. I personally do not prefer this type of cushion because sometimes it does not last as long as red rubber in terms of firmness, and over time the adhesive can become sticky, sometimes making the die slide off the mount. That said, I do have several stamps that were factory mounted with foam cushion and they are still holding up well. So it depends on the quality you use. I find red rubber to be very consistant, so that's why I like it.

Ready to mount some stamps the old fashioned way? Here's what you'll need:

1. A CLEAN WORKSPACE

A kitchen table with a protective barrier works great. Cover the area with a plain paper (not newspaper) or plastic. You will need quick access to a sink. You will also need to open windows because you are using rubber cement and you don't want to breathe in those fumes, now do you?

2. SUPPLIES

Very sharp micro tip scissors (fiskars or other brand) Craft Bond Rubber Cement, (always use a new or almost new bottle) Archival ink stamp pad in black, wood blocks in the proper size (about an eighth of an inch larger than image size on all sides) Natural biodegradable dishsoap (works best) paper towels and or kitchen towels.

STEP 1

TRIMMING YOUR DIES

If you have never trimmed rubber dies before, please note there is a right way and a wrong way to trim a die. If you hold the scissors at the wrong angle, you could undercut your rubber, which can affect the stamping quality. The scissors need to be perfectly straight or you will cut your die on an angle. While cutting the die around curves try to hold the scissors slightly pointed to the left, away from the die.(if you are right handed) Your goal is to make straight cuts trimming all the extra rubber around the die without cutting into or under the design. This can take some practice.

STEP 2

INDEXING THE WOOD BLOCK

There are 2 methods to index the top of the wood. The first method is to ink the die in archival black ink and stamp the top of the wood. The second (and easiest) is to stamp a piece of paper or cardstock with the image after the stamp is mounted, and tape the image to the top of the block. You can also use clear sticker paper depending on the type of ink used.
The way I do it is after I trim the die, I carefully ink it with archival ink, and depending on the size of the die, I either place the die upside down and then position my wood block over it, or the other way around. Sometimes it's easier to tape the mount using double sided photo tape (the removeable kind) onto another block , and then index my wood. Some people like to attach the cushion first, then index the wood, but it's easier to clean and dry the die without the cushion.
Be sure to let the ink dry! You can paint a clear varnish over the wood if desired, but the ink is permanent once dry.

STEP 3

CLEAN THE DIE

This archival ink is permanent and does tend to stain the rubber. If you want your stamps to stay as new looking as possible, you have to clean the die immediately after inking the wood! I use Ecover ecologically safe dishwashing liquid. I saturate the die and use a dry sponge to scrub the die. Do not add water at this point, the ink is water proof so it needs the detergent to help lift off the stain. You can use any dishsoap or liquid soap of course, but I find the conventional soaps to leave the dies with a strong chemical scent and a "sticky" residue. Keep adding more soap as you scrub, rinse and scrub again if needed. Dry off the dies with paper or kitchen towels and set aside to fully dry.

STEP 4

ATTACHING THE CUSHION

If using red rubber cushion, spread a thin, even layer of rubber cement on both the back of the die and the area of the cushion you will be using. Wait 15 seconds before joining the two materials to give the glue time to get sticky. After the cushion is attached, carefully trim around the cushion, leaving about one sixteenth of an inch around the die, again try not to undercut the cushion, keep your scissors very very straight!

STEP 5

ATTACHING THE DIE and CUSHION TO THE WOOD

You are almost done! All you need to do now is apply a thin even layer or rubber cement to the back of the cushioned die and the back of the wood, wait 15 seconds, make sure the stamp is centered and corresponds to the image on the other side of the wood (make sure it's not upside down!) then join. Presto! You've just made your first rubber stamp! Congratulations!

Happy Stamping!