Stamping grounds

Rubber stamps are now considered a mainstay of the scrapbooking industry and have attracted fans from all over. Their versatility and use will be in the spotlight next weekend, as the national Rubber Stamp and Scrapbook Expo comes to Salt Lake City. The two-day event, Oct. 20 and 21 at the Salt Palace, will allow participants to see some of the latest designs and try out new techniques for rubber stamps and other scrapbooking supplies.

New ideas are always coming along, says Gardner. Over the years that she has been involved with stamps, she has seen a lot of interesting trends. "They are a lot like fashion. Popular colors come and go. Art styles come and go." In the early years, for example, line art was most popular. "Now bold images are more in demand."

Also popular are two-step stamps, where you put down a basic outline — a flower, say — with one color, and then fill it in with another.

And, who thought that the stamps that worked so well on paper would also work on walls? "They are perfect for walls, and you can do so many things with them," says Gardner. "I think the home-decorating trend grew out of the fact that buying a set of stamps is an investment. So you want to make the most of it and find as many ways to use it as you can."

At the Stampin' Up offices, a showroom displays hand-stamping home decor in living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens and more. The showroom is open to the public during regular business hours. The building is located at 12907 S. 3600 West, Riverton.

What Spencer Willis loves about stamping is that "it's a hobby that's open to anyone. You can be a beginner; you can be advanced. Either way, you can find lots to do." Willis, a demonstrator/trainer at Stampin' Up, also notes that nowadays you can find stamps to support every interest.

One trend that he's noticed is that things that have been used in other industries are becoming popular in the card-making and scrapbooking area — things from the hardware store; eyelets, twill tapes and other sewing supplies; metal tags, for example. These can all be used with stamps to create interesting effects, he says.

"Sewing and stitching is the largest craft right now. You can use stamps that look like cross-stitching or do designs that look like sewing to make perfect cards for people who like to sew. It's fun to see how all these areas overlap."

Alicia Thelin, another Stampin' Up designer, also loves the possibilities that stamps afford. "Stamping is an enabler. It's the easiest route to creating artistic designs. I love to see the light in someone's eyes when they realize how easy it is to create."

Cards are one of the most popular projects these days, she says. They are not only fun to make, she adds, but they send an extra message. "They are thoughtful. Everyone wants to be thought of, to be loved. It means so much that someone would take the time to make a special card."

Cards are a great way to get children involved. She has three grade-school-age kids at home, and "they think stamping is the bees' knees. They love to make cards for their grandparents and their friends."

Stamps can also be used to make wrapping paper for birthday presents — another fun project for kids.

They can be used on paper, on fabric, on paint, on wood — practically any surface you can think of, she says. "They're just a lot of fun."

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E-mail: carma@desnews.com