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So what exactly is Stampbord then?

20 November 2014  |  Admin

A couple of weeks ago I made this Christmas house shadow box (details on my blog here) and it includes Stampbord, which I realise not everyone is familiar with. So I thought I'd share how I discovered it and why I love it so much.

Several years ago, I attended a seminar at the winter CHA trade show and each spot on the table had a free product sample. I looked slightly enviously at my neighbours who seemed to have brightly coloured and interesting things, whereas I had ended up with a few lumps of brown hardboard. I put it in my bag and didn't look at it again until I was back in my hotel room. I thought I'd been shortchanged - boy how wrong I was!

When the jet lag had me wide awake at daft o' clock in the morning, I dug out the information leaflet that had come with my boring packet and realised I'd been looking at the back of my pieces of Stampbord.

The front was a creamy white colour, smooth as silk and very tactile. The leaflet explained what a wonderful surface it was to colour and as I had inks and stamps with me, I dug them out and had a go.

By the time Adrian woke up, I had used up every single piece in my sample bag and I was hooked. Stampbord has a clay coated surface with a matte finish that is a dream to stamp on. Dye inks can be applied (with brushes or sponges) to create beautiful coloured backgrounds and when you stamp onto it, the result is an extremely crisp and precise transfer of the design.

Needless to say, Stampbord were the first company I visited at the show. They showed me how you could colour and stamp it, then use a scratch knife to etch into the surface, removing colour to create highlights and pattern.

I was so impressed, I spent almost my entire budget on this one product and came home with the European distribution rights! Times have changed and Chocolate Baroque is not involved in distribution any more (apart from our own stamps of course), but I still love Stampbord, and think it's time to spread that love a little bit.

We have put together an exclusive Stampbord Starter kit which contains a selection of different sized pieces of Stampbord, two essential etching tools and a comprehensive introductory leaflet which explains everything you need to know to get started.

There are loads of new products around now that can be used with it - Brushos, Dylusions, Distress Stains just to name a few. As well as stamps, you can use it with stencils, or just colour it up and use the scratch knife to zentangle or etch your own doodles.

The finished pieces can be used on cards or used to decorate more 3D projects such as boxes, wall plaques, canvases, triptychs, etc. You can drill holes in it with a Crop-a-Dile hole punch or if you want something smaller, a hand drill or Dremel. That means you can string pieces together or add findings to make your own jewellery.

You can even glue Stampbord together to make boxes and because it is so rigid, it's great for using as a base with deep embossing powder to create beautiful texture.

I hope the images here whet your appetite and if you have a pack of Stampbord sitting idle, why not dig it out and have a play. If you haven't tried it before then I do recommend our Stampbord Starter kit and hope you fall in love with it like I did.