Stamping Foam

 Have you tried Simon Hurley's stamping foam?  You can take any surface and make a stamp out of it.  You just heat up the foam block, press it into a textured surface, ink it up, and then stamp away.  It's a great way to stretch your supplies - dies, embossing folders, ribbon, even household items like sweaters, baskets, upholstery, carpet ... anything with texture.a

I took some dies and laid them out to make a patterned background.  I heated up the foam blocks (I have two taped together), and pressed them firmly into my dies.  I used one of the plates from my Stamparatus to apply even pressure  

And now I have a great background stamp.  The impression will stay in the foam until I heat it put again.

I inked up the blocks with Distress Oxide ink by swiping it across the blocks and then using a blending brush to move it around.  I lined my blocks up in my Stamparatus and pressed down.  I again used one of the Stamparatus plates to help apply even pressure.

Image 1 is the first stamp I took directly to cardstock.  I like the snowy look to the background.

Image 2 is one that I lightly misted the foam with water (without re-inking) and then stamped the cardstock.  The faded background looks like seeing the snow through a pane of glass.

Image 3 I misted the cardstock and stamped again. The subtle look will make a perfect backdrop.

You can get a 4-pack of the stamping for under $10.  It's a great bargain.  Be sure to check out videos by Simon Hurley, Gina K, and Jennifer McGuire showing how they use the foam.  On a Gina & Simon video Simon said you can use all six sides!  

Thanks for stopping by, Susan