April's Review	Andrea's Review	Renee's Review	Tammy's Review	Stephanie's Review

Review by April

When you spend a lot of time scrapbooking or crafting, chances are you also spend a good amount of money buying fabulous new supplies as well. I have been scrapping now for over 8 years and I have found that I am much more willing to spend money on a scrapbook product if I know I can use it several times...not on just one project. For me, stamps are a perfect example of a craft product I would invest money in because I know they will serve several purposes. When I found out Tinkering Ink had started carrying clear stamps, I was thrilled because they are a very reputable company and I knew their stamps would be made with the finest materials as are there other products!

For this review I received Tinkering Ink's Holiday Whimsey Stamp Set. These beautiful stamps are manufactured in the USA and are made of clear photopolymer, which provides a more durable, longer lasting stamp die. The fact that these stamps are easy to remove from their clear backing, they have deeply etched designs, and they stick well on acrylic blocks are all indications of high quality photopolymer. They also have a hardness equal to rubber and therefore handle ink just like rubber stamps resulting in crisp, clean images. The Holiday Whimsey stamp sheet is approximately 6x8 inches in size, and the stamps are protected with a soft plastic cover until taken out of the package. There are 9 unique stamp images, and they are the perfect size for card making! The stamp images represent a nice variety of whimsical holiday designs like snowflakes, Christmas lights, snowmen, and trees, and also include charming holiday expressions such as Joy and Peace, Wish, Let it Snow, and Holiday Cheer.

I wanted to create a layout where I used a mixture of the stamps to make a border around the page. I used a variety of metallic ink pads and opaque staz on ink with the stamps and both worked beautifully. To add a little dimension, I stamped the snowflake images on black cardstock and then trimmed around the inner circle and placed them on pop dots. I really liked how a few of the stamps were designed to leave the outline of the image, which leaves the inside open to coloring, painting, or in this case, glittering! I lined the inside of the letters "j" and "y" with glitter glue and I loved the finished product.

Title: Holiday Joy
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink Clear Holiday Whimsey Stamps)
Ink Pads (Tsukineko, & Staz On)
Glitter Glue (Ranger Stickles)
Foil & Foil Glue (Creative Imaginations)
Brads (7gypsies)
Pen (Sanford)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner, Pop Dots)

I love creating new magnets and I thought these stamps would be great to use on this year's holiday magnets! I started by covering an old set of Star Trek drink coasters with a 2 layers of gesso. After they dried, I rubbed black staz on ink on each one, let it dry, and then applied clear embossing ink on top of the black ink. I sprinkled holographic embossing powder on them and then used a heat gun until the powder was set. It's a little hard to see in the picture, but every area with black ink is covered in a sparkly holographic sheen. Next, I applied the Holiday Whimsey stamps on each coaster, again using black staz on ink, and then re-stamped the images in clear embossing ink and embossed each image twice with the holographic embossing powder. To create the red trees and snowman, I used a red embossing powder so they would show up a little better on the black background. The stamps seemed to work great on thickly textured gesso surface. I completed the coaster magnets by embellishing them with glitter glue, alcohol inks, rhinestones and jewels, stickers, and more. After they were finished I simply glued on strong magnets to the backs of the coasters.

Title: Holiday Magnets
Products used:
Stamps (Tinkering Ink Clear Holiday Whimsey Stamps)
Tiles (Star Trek Coasters)
Ink Pads (Staz On)
Embossing Pad (Stampabilities)
Embossing Powders (Ranger)
Glitter Glue (Ranger Stickles)
Gesso (Golden)
Alcohol Ink (Ranger)
Rhinestones & Crystals (Heidi Swapp)
Stickers (Making Memories, EK Success)
Metal Clip & Fabric Sticker (7gypsies)
Die Cut (Jenni Bowlin)
Ric Rac (Prima)
Felt Bird (Maya Road)
Flower (Prima)
Metal Snowflake (Making Memories)

The Holiday Whimsey stamps also have a very noteworthy surprise I wanted to mention, which is a fun card making twist. Almost all of the stamps are the perfect size for using together on an A-2 size card. You can potentially mix and match 4 different stamps together on one card and this allows the designer to create an assortment of card options. Below is an example of a mixture of 4 of the stamps on an A-2 sized card (4 1/4 x 5 1/2).

Title: A-2 Christmas Card
Products used:
Stamps (Tinkering Ink Clear Holiday Whimsey Stamps)
Pens (Sakura)
Ink Pads (Ranger, Colorbox)

If you are looking for a very durable high quality stamp set to do all your holiday creating with then I would recommend Tinkering Ink's Holiday Whimsey Stamps. This adorable stamp set retails for $24.95 which a very reasonable price for a craft supply that will last a very long time and can be used over and over again. This whimsical stamp collection is sure to put a smile on your face this holiday season!

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Review by Andrea

Stamps are so hot in the scrapbooking world today - great for accents, embellishments and even creating your own background paper! Tinkering Ink debuted their own line of clear photopolymer stamps this year at CHA summer to be part of this great trend. There are 2 available set sizes that offer coordinating patterns to existing paper lines or more general shapes and sayings that match the theme of a paper set. For this review, I received the Holiday Whimsey Stamp set, perfect for holiday projects.

The stamp set has 9 images from bold to open. Words perfect for the season (Joy, Wish and Let It Snow) plus whimsical snowmen, snowflakes and trees, what a great combination! The open images allow coloring to be added to the designer's like. The bold images take on the color of the ink being used, making a solid and deliberate impression. These images can be mixed and matched in one project and can even be used together to cover the front of one standard sized card. There are 3 border style designs that are about 5 1/2" long, making it possible to cover the side of a scrapbook page in just 2 impressions. Being clear, the ends are easy to match up to simulate one continuous design.

Border stamps are great for borders, but also great for making corners! Using white opaque ink, the snowflake border was stamped twice on the top right of the picture and down the right side. Offering detail and whimsey in one image, the ink gives the accent an appropriate "cool" touch!

Title: Christmas
Products used: Patterned Paper and Cardstock Stickers (Creative Imaginations)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Tsukineko, StazOn)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I just loved this large, bold snowflake image. The pearlescent blue ink has a lovely frost look to it which fits perfectly to the paper color and frosty snowflake. Because the image is bold, heat embossing sets off the center snowflake by adding shimmer and texture. The simple word border stamped once completes the card.

Title: Let It Snow Card
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Inks (Tsukineko VersaMagic and Ranger Embossing Pad)
Embossing Powder (P K Glitz, Sparkling Sapphire)
Ribbon (Offray)
Bling (RhinestoneNY)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

The open border Christmas Light image plus a little patterned paper made a plain box turn into a wonderful holiday gift box. The lights were heat embossed in red and green, then an embossing pen was used to "color in" the lights so that white sparkle powder could be added. A simple and fun way to turn a plain box into something special!

Title: Christmas Gift Box
Products used: Patterned Paper and Cardstock Stickers (Flair Designs)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Ranger Embossing Pad and Clearsnap Fluid Chalk)
Embossing Powder (P K Glitz: Sparkling Green Pine, Sparkling Red Rose, Sparkling White)
Ribbon (multiple)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I'm really a sucker for holiday image stamps, so Tinkering Ink's Holiday Whimsey stamp set has become my new favorite! Lots of options to use together or independently, these stamps fit it all. Needing a holiday saying? It's here. Need a wintery image? That's here too. Covering both the holidays and the winter season, this set balances both. Offering the crafter the option for coloring by hand or by ink, each design has it's place. You can't go wrong with this set from Tinkering Ink, nice job!

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Review by Renee

Do you love stamps? I will let you in on a little secret. I adore stamps. I have tons of stamps in my stamp binder. Alphas, shapes, I have them all. But I never stamp. My problem has always been that the stamps I purchase have been too difficult to convert into projects. They are cute, but really hard to use. Then I saw the Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsy stamps. These are truly different.

Tinkering Ink is known for its bold, innovative products. Just as with their paper lines, the clear acrylic stamps made by Tinkering Ink are fun and fresh, with bold interesting designs. Made from a tough, clear acrylic, these stamps were made to withstand many stamping sessions.

The Holiday Whimsy set of acrylic stamps includes nine different stamps with a whimsical Christmas theme. There are holiday lights, work phrases, snowmen and snowflakes. The set is designed to have something for everyone within the set. For the contemporary lover, there is a Peace and Joy word set, with a very contemporary feel. For the traditionalist, try the Let it Snow word stamp. Like a little, whimsy? Well take your pick from snowmen, to a forest of trees to a strand of multicolored bulbs.

For my first project, I decided to think out of the box and come up with a different way to use stamps. I also thought about the family newsletter I need to write to enclose in my Christmas cards. With both of these thoughts in mind, I came up with a set of Christmas stationary. I combined the “Holiday Cheer” word stamp, with the whimsical light strand to create the cutest sheet of stationary. My newsletters will look festive indeed using both of these stamps.

Title: Christmas Stationary
Products used: Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Ranger)
Pens (Bic Mark It’s)
Paper (Hammerhill copy paper)

For my second project, I went a little more traditional in my project. I used two of the snow related stamps to create a winter card. I used the snowflake strip, coupled with the “Let It Snow” word stamp to make a cute, multipurpose winter card. I really like the clear, crisp stamped images obtained from the intricately designed snowflake stamps.

Title: Let It Snow Card
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Patterned Paper (Flair Designs)
Brads (Making Memories)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Ranger)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

For my last project, I used my very favorite stamp from the set to make a Christmas tag. I love the design on this Peace and Joy stamp. It has a very chic, sophisticated look to it and can be used in a number of ways. Here, I stamped it onto a 4 inch circle, and colored the letters in with markers. Such a simple touch for a holiday card.

Title: Peace and Joy card
Products used: Patterned Paper (Flair Designs)
Stamp (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Ranger)
Markers (Bic Mark It’s)
Felt Flowers (American Crafts)
Brad (Making Memories)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

So, are you ready to try out some holiday stamps. This set of Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsy is just the ticket. Versatile enough to use for any project.

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Review by Tammy

Tinkering Ink - known for their bold patterns and designs - has now introduced Clear Stamps! The Holiday Whimsey Clear stamps are sure to add holiday cheer to any of your scrapbook pages, cards, and more.

This 6 x 8 inch, 9 piece clear stamp set comes on a white carrier sheet. Since the images are not printed onto the carrier sheet it a little difficult to see the images at first. This did not pose a real problem since all I had to do was create my own index sheet for future reference. This also gave me the chance to test the quality of the stamps.

Working with the clear stamps it was very easy to place the images exactly where I wanted them and I was also able to make sure that the image was completely inked prior to stamping the image. Once the image was completely inked I was extremely pleased with the quality and detail of the images. It was time to start working on my first project.

I had purchased this wooden snowman family to alter as a Christmas gift. I stamped the long string of snowflakes directly onto the edge of my project. Since the stamps were crystal clear I knew exactly where to place my stamp to continue the string of snowflakes. Then I stamped the little snowmen onto some black cardstock and embossed each of them. The snowmen stamp is a set of three different images but it was simple to cut out each one separately for the buttons on the snow people. Next I added some depth to the project by stamping the trees onto vellum and embossing them. After stamping the trees, I colored them in with markers, cut them out, and placed them on my project. I added the pictures and a few embellishments and while the piece definitely makes me laugh, I was very pleased with the final results.

Title: Snow Family
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsy Clear Stamps)
Ink (Whispers & Ranger)
Embossing Powder (Stampendous)
Vellum (Paper Studio)
Pens (Bic Mark it)
Ribbon (Ribbon Trends)
Poinsettia Button (Dress It Up)
Glitter (PK Glitz)
Quickie Glue Pen
Wood Snowmen (Hobby Lobby)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

During the holidays I love to have pretty candles sitting around. I wanted to make something simple so I chose a quick and easy votive candle. This project was simple to create using vellum, and just two of the Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsey stamps. The snowflake stamp made the perfect border along the bottom of the votive and the "Holiday Cheer" verse was just what I needed for the focal point.

 
Title: Holiday Cheer Votive
Products used: Stamps (Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsy Clear Stamps)
Ink (Encore & Ranger)
Embossing Powder (Stampendous)
Vellum (Paper Studio)

Homemade goodies are also a tradition for gift giving at our home. The "Joy" stamp was just the right size for the window in this box and the "String of Lights" around the top and bottom of the box complimented the "Joy" image on the window of the gift box.

Title: Joy Gift Box
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink Holiday Whimsy)
Ink (Staz-on & Whispers)
Pens (Bic Mark Its)
Transparency
Ribbon
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I am a big fan of clear stamps because of their versatility and the ease of perfect placement of the image on your card or project. While I did not use any of these images on a card, they are the perfect size for an A2 size card. The Holiday Whimsey stamp set is just one of six complete clear stamp sets that are currently manufactured by Tinkering Ink.

If you are looking for stamps that are sure to add a bit of "Whimsey" to your holiday season, then check out Tinkering Ink's Holiday Whimsey Clear Stamp set!

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Review by Stephanie

When I think of awesome paper combinations in a variety of colors and styles, I think of Tinkering Ink. When I think of self adhesive felt pieces that accent anything you create, I think of Tinkering Ink. But stamps????? I had no idea that Tinkering Ink also makes acrylic stamps!

Being an avid stamper, I was thrilled to receive a set of Tinkering Ink’s acrylic stamps. 9 stamps were included in my Winter set. Each stamp was attached to a clear plastic backing which holds the stamps in place when not in use. Selling for about $24.99, this set included 3 border stamps (snowflakes, leaves, and a let it snow phrase), each approximately 5 ½ inches in length; 3 sentiment stamps (joy, holiday cheer, and wishes), each approximately 2 inches in length; and 3 designs (trees, snowmen, and a large snowflake), each approximately 2 ½ inches in length. Each stamp is very detailed, can be inked, embossed or colored, depending on your needs. With the holidays coming up, this was a perfect time to use these stamps and create some awesome holiday cards and layouts.

For my first card, I used Flair’s Merry Christmas line since the snowflake pattern paper worked perfectly with the large snowflake included in this stamp set. I stamped the snowflake in dark blue, then added white embossing powder to create a light blue shimmery effect. After I embossed the snowflake, I stamped WISH and embossed that in black to make it stand out. A metal snowflake brad finished off the card.

Title: Wish Card
Products used: Pattern Paper (Flair, Merry Little Christmas)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Staz On)
Embossing Powder (Stampendous)
Brad (Hobby Lobby)
Punch (Marvy Uchida, Stampin Up)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

For my next card, I used the “let it snow” stamp and created a border for my card. I then stamped the sentiment in the same color ink, using silver embossing powder for a little added shimmer.

Title: Holiday Cheer card
Products used: Cardstock (Prism, Twilight Dark)
Pattern Paper (DCWV)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Staz On)
Embossing Powder (Whispers)
Punch (Marvy Uchida)
Ribbon (Michaels)
Other (machine stitching)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

My next project is a layout of a snow day from 2003. I thought these stamps would be the perfect addition to my layout. I used the “let it snow” phrase stamp across the edge of my layout. The snowflake border stamp looks wonderful surrounding my photos. I stamped this strip of snowflakes approximately 7 times around the photos, masking areas as necessary so as not to overlap. The large snowflake looks great as the “o” in snow and as the large embellishment on my page. A few metal snowflakes finished off this page in no time.

Title: Snow
Products used: Cardstock (Core’dination, Black Magic)
Pattern paper (My Mind’s Eye)
Stamps (Tinkering Ink)
Ink (Stampin’ Up)
Embossing Powder (Stampendous)
Font (Cricut, Plantin Schoolbook)
Brads (Hobby Lobby)
Punch (Marvy Uchida)
Transparency (office supply)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I love stamps and my weakness is definitely acrylic stamps. This is a great collection from Tinkering Ink and I really enjoyed working with them this month. I love the details and the great variety of included stamps. Thank you Tinkering Ink.

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