Friday, September 13, 2013

A Parade of Elephants - my Stamp It Up Swap pouch finish!!



A few weeks ago I signed up for Nicky's Stamp It Up swap. I was, to be honest, pretty apprehensive about my stamp-carving abilities and how it was all going to work out, but willing to give it a try. In the back of my mind, my plan was if the stamp carving all went terribly wrong was to buy a stamp, rather than disappoint my partner.

I ordered my supplies, raided the local pound shop for rubbers (at 27c each, they were not a huge investment of money!) The supplies duly arrived and I looked at them fearfully for a few days until I finally worked up the courage to give it a shot.



Luckily though, the stamp carving turned out to be a LOT more fun that I imagined it would be. I had a look at some of the tutorials recommended and gave it a whirl. I played around with lots of different ideas - some turned out terribly, some worked ok and could be developed a bit more. It became pretty addictive actually. (Despite stabbing my finger pretty badly with the scalpel in the process.)

My creation

But I was still looking for an idea, and rummaging around in my fabric stash I came across an elephant print and decided to try it.  I managed to replicate the shape reasonably well on the rubber. My first effort was too small, and didn't have the sort of clarity I wanted.

Parade of elephants

So I tried out a bigger carving, which I was much happier with. And then I realised my big and small elephants could work as a parade of mum and baby elephants for real cuteness factor.


Elephant parade 2nd version!


I was pretty sure my partner would be happy with that, but I tried another idea, just in case. The elephants won out in the end though. I was really happy with these leaves though and think I might try and work them into a design of some type when I only have myself to please.

Leaf stamp


The process of carving stamps is definitely fun and worth a shot. Fabric stamping is something I'm new to but I will be continuing and I think I'll buy a little set of letters as they would be so useful to have.


Once I had my idea in place, I stamped it on some Essex linen, and used some of my new Koi fabric to set off the purple and pinks. I back it with fusible fleece and added some hand quilting and beading for the eyes. Then all I needed to do was add the lining and zip and sew it up into a zip pouch.



And its all ready to send off to my partner, in perfect time for the mailing window. I hope she likes it because I certainly had fun making it!





Linking up to Finish it Up Friday over at Crazy Mom Quilts.





19 comments:

Isisjem said...

I LOVE the elephants and the final pouch is fab. I need to get some rubbers and start practicing. But I'm kind of scared of scalpels and don't want to lose any fingers!

Lucy | Charm About You said...

Really cute elephant parade! I love the leaves too, the mustard colour is gorgeous!

cheeky monkey said...

So cute! The fabrics and the ink work so well together. Your partner will be very happy!

Yvonne Campbell said...

I know your partner will be happy with it. It's so cute! I really love the leaves too.

Di said...

That is great stamping. your partner will be delighted. Di x

Mrs Flying Blind... said...

Wunderbar! My artistic talents would have stated and ended at rectangle stamps!

Katy Cameron said...

Aww, so cute! You totally need a finger guard, I had the same problem slicing my fingers open when I tried carving stamps last year

Nicky said...

I'm sure your partner is frightened of elephants so you'd better send it to me Sarah!

Oh well worth a try! It is gorgeous - it will be loved.

Glad you had fun - apart for the self impalement.

Kirsten said...

Love your little parade of elephants!

Anonymous said...

Oh my... those elephants are too cute!! I love them!!!!

Maria - A Playful Stitch said...

Love it - perfect!
Maria x

Indianna said...

Your elephants are oh so cute. I love fabric stamping...just not brave enough to make my own design!

Unknown said...

Kudos on choosing the perfect stamps! I love that little pouch. Have a great weekend.

Emma said...

Well done on the stamp carving! Your finished bag is lovely. I'm a stamper myself, but on cards rather than fabric. I must try it one of these days.

Catrin Lewis said...

Seeing how I love elephants and Koi is one of my favourite lines at the moment I hope I'm your partner! Oh wait, I didn't sign up for the swap :-( boy do I regret that now. Beautiful x

Krista Schneider said...

i love the idea of stamping fabric. i recently bought some linen to try it on, eventually! love your pouch, its darling. someone's going to be very happy to receive that!

Adrianne @ On the Windy Side said...

This is really gorgeous - well done!

Unknown said...

Your zipper pouch is awesome! I love your little elephants, you did a great job.

Janine @ Rainbow Hare said...

This is so beautiful! Your partner is very lucky :)