Printing your digital stamps on alternative surfaces
Most crafters who use digital stamps print their images on plain white paper to work with. Your image can only be printed on what goes through a printer, but there are many other alternatives to plain paper. Let me share some ideas that will help you get the most out of your digital stamp collection.
A note about printing digital stamps: It’s always best to use a standard laser printer or photocopier. This is because the ink is thermally set on the paper in the printing process. In contrast, inkjet printers spray ink onto the paper, and the method can sometimes cause the image to smear when colored or exposed to water. If you only have an inkjet printer, try heating your image with a heat tool before working with it. Now, about the alternative surfaces to print…
colored or patterned paper
The most common use of digital stamps is printing for coloring. However, you may want to splice paper instead. Print your images on colored or patterned paper, then cut out all of the image pieces to fit together in different patterns. This is a great technique that adds a lot of texture to your work.
watercolor paper
For those who love a soft watercolor look, try loading your printer with watercolor paper. It often helps to feed each individual sheet into the printer and check the settings to accommodate the thickness of the paper. You will be able to paint your digital image with traditional watercolor paints and create beautiful works of art.
canvas paper
Did you know that there is canvas paper specifically for your home printers? When looking for printer paper, check out the specialized section for other types of paper that are made specifically for use in home printers. You should easily find canvas paper that will give your images a fine art texture. This will allow you to paint your digital images if you choose or use other traditional coloring materials.
Transparencies, vellum, or adhesive paper
As you browse the specialty paper section, you might even find materials like transparencies, vellum, and adhesive paper to use. These are great alternative surface types to try with your digital images. Imagine the possibilities when you can create image stickers or transparent versions for a special design.
Fabric
Although you can also buy special printable fabric that can run through a printer, a homemade idea is to glue fabric onto sheets of paper. This way, you will be able to run it through your printer. You’ll need to test the settings to find the right balance of ink for the specific fabric used, but it’s a great project to try, bringing your stamping to sewing projects.
printing for transfers
An alternative solution to placing your digital image on a non-flat item is to print the image for transfer. This means you print your image onto store-bought transfer paper, iron-on transfer paper, or plain paper to transfer it to the final surface using art transfer techniques. There are many different techniques to experiment with so it all depends on your preference, but it is possible. You could, for example, print your images on thin paper to transfer onto candles for home decor. A little experimentation will open up a whole new world for your stamping and digital crafts.
As printing technology evolves and more materials become accessible, the world of digital printing will only get more exciting and versatile. Try some of these alternative surfaces for yourself and see what you can do with them. You will soon find many new ways to make use of your digital stamps.