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Metal Stamping Tutorial and ImpressArt Giveaway!

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Thanks to ImpressArt for sponsoring today’s tutorial and giveaway!

Friends, you know that although  I love making all different types of craft projects, there’s a special place in my heart for jewelry making.  Maybe it’s because I love fashion and actually wearing jewelry so much that the making of it is just extra-fun.  Whatever the reason, as soon as my good friend Jess {who was my travel buddy in NYC} taught me the basics of beading two years ago, I was instantly hooked.  So, for her birthday, I thought it was only fitting to make her a special piece since she started this whole obsession in the first place!  This week for Fashion Friday, I decided to show you how I made it!

Metal Stamped Jewelry Tutorial with ImpressArt

The necklace I made is a combination of beading and metal stamping, and for today’s post, I wanted to give you a basic tutorial for how to get started with stamping if you’ve never tried it before.  It’s one of my favorite techniques because you can completely personalize a necklace, bracelet, keychain, or whatever else you have in mind by adding names, dates, phrases, images, or pretty much anything you want.

First, let’s talk about what you need.  My materials were provided by ImpressArt, and they’re going to give one of you lucky duckies the same things they sent me, so keep on reading!

 

Metal Stamping

You’ll need:
– a steel stamping block
– a hammer
– metal stamps {an alphabet set is great to start with, then you can also get image stamps to add to your collection}
– stamping blanks
– tape

The first step is to place your steel stamping block on a solid surface.  You can use a non carpeted floor, a countertop, or a very solid table.  The rubber feet on the bottom of the block will protect the surface underneath from any damage caused by the force you’re using as you stamp.

ImpressArt

Once you’ve picked a good spot, select your stamping blank and tape it to your block.  This will prevent the blank from moving while you’re trying to stamp.  For this necklace, I chose a long, thin rectangular blank, but they’re also available in circles, squares, hearts, and other shapes.  My new absolute-favorite kind of blank to use is ImpressArt’s Soft Strike line.  This one is made of pewter, and it’s amazing how easy it is to get a clear, deep impression with just one tap of the hammer.  They’re the easiest blanks to stamp on that I’ve ever tried {and believe me, I’ve tried a LOT of different shapes, brands, and materials}.  These are going to be my go-to blanks from now on because of the quality and how easy they are to use.

Metal Stamped Jewelry

Next, you need to decide what word{s} you want to use and pull the necessary alphabet stamps out.  I like to arrange mine in the order I’m going to use them.  One thing I really like about these stamps is that you can see on the side of them what letter each stamp is, which is much easier than trying to figure it out by looking at the tiny backwards image on the top.  I chose to write “Be Still,” as in, He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”  Psalm 46:10, which I hope will serve as a reminder for Jess just to trust when she’s tempted to worry.

Metal stamped jewelry

Now for the fun part!  You’ll grip the stamp in your non-dominant hand with the letter and brand name facing you {a good way to instantly know you’ve got your letter right side up}.  Then, you use the hammer in your dominant hand to give one firm tap with a good bit of force.  If it’s your first time stamping, you may want to practice on a less expensive aluminum blank first just to play around and get a feel for how hard you need to hit to get the kind of impression you want.

Metal Stamping

It’s always a good idea to count out how many letters and spaces you’re going to use, then begin with the center letter and work outward to each side.  That ensures that your phrase will be where you want it.  Also, if you have a larger blank, it’s great to use a piece of tape as a straight edge for lining up your stamps so that they’re all even.  Unfortunately, that didn’t work with this particular size of blank, so a few of my letters aren’t perfectly aligned…but the truth is, I always feel like slight imperfections add to the handmade feel of a piece; it reminds people that you created it yourself instead of it being stamped by a machine somewhere.  When my words were finished, I added an anchor to the bottom of the blank.

metal stamped jewelry

The design stamps are slightly trickier to use because the metal isn’t raised up quite as much as it is on the alphabet stamps, but with the Soft Strike stamping blanks, a few taps with decent force made a nice clear picture.  I had WAY more success with this than I’ve had with any design stamps I’ve tried to use in the past.  Usually, it’s a disaster when I attempt to add a design, but this worked really well.

To make the piece easy to read from a distance, I like to give it an oxidized look in a really simple way.  All I do is use a black permanent marker and color over the whole design, making a special effort to get the ink down in the crevices.

metal stamping tutorial

Then, I wipe the surface with a cotton ball lightly dipped in rubbing alcohol.  All the excess marker comes right off, but what’s down in the crevices remains!  Easy peasy!  Here, you can see that while I had my supplies out, I made a little something for myself too…I loooove that little sign language, “I love you” hand; how sweet is that?!

metal stamped jewelry

That’s all there is to it, friends!  Tape, stamp, color, clean, and you’re done!  To jazz up the necklace a little for my bead-loving friend, I put a pretty blue crystal bead {gifted by Wholeport.com} and a pearl on head pins, wire wrapped them, and added them to a jump ring.  I put a separate jump ring on the stamped tag, then slid both onto a ball chain.  Ta-da!

Metal Stamped Jewelry with ImpressArt Tutorial

What do you think?  Will she like her birthday gift?  And more importantly, would you love to give metal stamping a try?  It’s really easier than you think, and I can’t tell you how fabulous it is to be able to whip a personalized gift in no time!  Moms, grandmas, friends…everyone loves this stuff!  I’ve even made keychains for men.  Rings, bracelets, necklaces…the sky’s the limit!

ImpressArt is offering one lucky US reader a kit with everything you needed to get started with this fun new hobby.  It will contain:
a selection of Soft Strike pewter blanks, a mini hammer, mini bench block, stamp straight tape and an alphabet stamp set!

Rafflecopter will walk you through the entry process; good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hugs & Glitter,

siggy

Comments

  5. Tracy says

    I’m torn! I love them all! But while I feel like I should pick Newsprint for its versatility, I think Jeanie is awfully fun. I’m in a fun mood, so Jeanie it is.

    Reply

  7. Timber says

    I am torn between Newsprint and Scarlett’s Signature. I think I would have to go with Scarlett’s Signature though if I was going to get one. They are all so cute though!

    Reply

    • dancers4life says

      Me too!!! I totally didn’t realize it was actually Hebrew letters when I first saw it on their site and now I’m kicking myself for not choosing that one!

      Reply

  20. Randi Sowders says

    I think I like the newsprint the best but really, how can I pick? I want them all!

    PS I have ALWAYS wanted to learn to do this. I mean I am like itching to win this contest like a crazy person!!!!! I HOPE I HOPE I HOPE I HOPE!

    Reply

  24. Sonya Neal says

    I love the sets in “Bridgette” and “Scarlett’s Signature”! They are so whimsy and pretty! How fun! Thank you for the chance to win this! I have been wanting to try metal stamping for so long! 🙂

    Reply

  55. Ruth Thornhill says

    I’ve been collecting smashed pennies since 1995. My husband “got me into it”! We had visited Monterey, California in 1995 with our son Jason and found a smashed penny machine in an arcade there! I chose one with cute little otters on it! Since then I have added to my collection and have been thinking of making bracelets out of them! Also, my Mother in Law gave us her sliver service/silverware… We have discontinued using it because some pieces were wearing thin… I really dislike that they set in their box… forgotten. I would just jump up and down about winning this giveaway! I can see stamping the silverware, making a bracelet, drawer pulls with “Cups” stamped on it…. This is an awesome giveaway… and one can only hope… XOXO!

    Reply

  72. Loranne says

    My favorite set of alphabet stamps is the Jeanie….so whimsical. Thank you for the giveaway and the tutorial. Anxious to order and try ou the stamping blanks. Always great to find a new, better product.

    Reply

  77. Stephanie says

    I really love the Bridgette font, followed by the Scarlett’s Signature. This project looks easy enough for me to do! Thank you for sharing! I’ve bookmarked it for future reference.

    Reply

  83. Lynn D says

    I have wanted to try this technique for ages! I’m loving the Ballroom Boogie set. I also love all of the nautical stamps! This could get out of control quickly! lol

    Reply

  87. Lisa M says

    What great projects you stamped! I really love the Scarlett’s Signature stamp set. I love that it looks like handwriting! Thanks for the chance to win all this fun stuff!

    Reply

  91. Lisa D says

    I tried stamping on metal washers last year for Christmas gifts. Epic FAIL! Wish I would have had this tutorial last year 🙂 It would have saved me many hours of frustration. I love the Bridgette font. So pretty.

    Reply

  100. Laura S says

    I love the pretty flourishes they have at Impress arts! My fave alphabet is Bridgette. You have inspired me to try a new hobby! Now to save up the money to start. 🙂

    Reply

  118. Debbie says

    Amy, I just had to find this post again because I read it away on vacation. I LOVED this project and that psalm is one of my favorites. I just pinned it to keep. I also love your nails in your photos!! So pretty…and how being artsy you keep them so pretty I’ll never know:)

    Debbie

    Reply

  119. Jess says

    Guess what? She liked it! And she wears it frequently (the she being me can tell you that 🙂 ). Being still is one of the more difficult things for me to do in this life and yet so important. Thank you, you artsy mama!!

    Reply

  121. Lorrie says

    I’d like to do a stamping project to make the word “abide” as in the Vine, for our next year’s women’s retreat. I don’t have any of the supplies, I’m wondering if you could give me a ballpark figure as to how much you think it might cost me. We have about 300 women come to our retreat, and I’ll be on my own as far as the cost goes. I need to know if it’s feasible for me to do. I’d like to get the heart shaped metal for it, or round, I would probably add a few beads and a cute clasp to make it a key chain. Thanks for your help! I love your jewelry!!!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  6. […] What's the difference between and head pin and an eye pin? Is 12-gauge wire thicker or thinner than 20-gauge wire? And what are "findings" anyway? You're going to need to know! Before you purchase anything, make sure you know what it is that you need. It'll save you the time, expense and frustration of having to return and exchange the wrong items. There are lots of great resources to help you, like this beginner's guide to working with wire or this basic intro to metal stamping. […]

    Reply

  7. […] What’s the difference between and head pin and an eye pin? Is 12-gauge wire thicker or thinner than 20-gauge wire? And what are “findings” anyway? You’re going to need to know! Before you purchase anything, make sure you know what it is that you need. It’ll save you the time, expense and frustration of having to return and exchange the wrong items. There are lots of great resources to help you, like this beginner’s guide to working with wire or this basic intro to metal stamping. […]

    Reply

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