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Yesterday I bought all the stuff to do this technique. The only change is I used baby oil instead of OMS since the store was out of a small jar. A few questions I have but could not find answers to:
1. How do you take care of the points on the blending stumps? I bought the stumps made in Taiwan but they got a bit mushy and the point rounded out.
2. Also what do you do when you want to change color? Last night I only used 2 colors so I just used both ends.
Thanks for the help.
BTW - this is such a fun technique. Why did I wait so long????
__________________ Pia "I am not old and haggard. I am Shabby Chic."
This is probably the best technique around!! I could not live without it!
To maintain your paper stumps, get a sturdy emery board. After each use and before switching colors, file down the part of the stump that has been used into a point. That way, you will have a good tip and a clean stump that won't transfer colors.
I bought a bunch of different sizes of paper stumps and now I feel like a "wealthy" woman because I have so many! They are pretty inexpensive. Check art supply stores.
Also, I have not used baby oil. I use the Gamsol from www.inkyantics.com I never have any problems with it.
I use the baby oil and stumps(taiwan ones) and it works perfectly. I'm very sensitive to the fumes of the oms (and yes, just because it's odorless doesn't mean it doesn't give off odorless fumes)
An acrylic nail emery board works beautiful and just roll it as you rub it on the file and that will bring it to a point again
THanks everyone for your responses. I will have to buy some emery boards. THe padded files I have are very fine grit. Drives me crazy to drag a rough one across my nails - like fingernails on a chalkboard.
Shivani - Yes I bought the Johnson&Johnson Baby Oil for this technique and it works beautifully. I thought it would leave a big oily ring on my paper but it does not. It seems to blend into the wax of the crayon. This technique is quite easy - at least I say this because if I can do it anyone should be able to. I really just followed the Gamsol tutorial I saw but switched to baby oil instead of Gamsol because it is what I had on hand and it was also recommended as an alternative. Try it. It is fun.
__________________ Pia "I am not old and haggard. I am Shabby Chic."
Here are some videos on You Tube by Susie B that show you how to do the technique and then a link to her online gallery.. get prepared to spend a lot of time oohing and aahing.. she is very talented. Pam
I use emery boards or fine sandpaper...I also find that the solid stumps work much better than the hollowed out ones. Never used baby oil, interesting.
What you need to shape your blending stump is not an emery board, but kind of is. You buy the shaping tool at an art store, next/close to colored pencils and Gamsol. It is wider than an emery board and uses wide strips of light sandpaper on a flat board with a handle. You tear off used strips when the abrasive surface is gone. Can't remember the exact name, and I use it everyday, but it's very inexpensive, but essential to change colors and keep a point on your stump.
I can still recognize my keys and their uses so I guess I'm OK for today.
I have stumps and sanding blocks for sale in the BST. The sanding blocks are much nicer than an emery board and are only $1 plus shipping. They are a 5" piece of wood and have 12 rectangles (about 1 x 4) stapled on them. You sharpen your stump on them and when the top sheet is used up you rip it off to expose the next sheet.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
Right now I am using SU! sanding blocks. Probably not the most efficient, but what was at hand when I needed one. I have a large assortment of stumps, which I like! Some of mine are Taiwan and some are China. I have taken a pair of scissors and snipped the end to get to a little sharper point. I will have to get a coarse emery board, might be more efficient. I tried the baby oil with my prisma pencils one time and did not like it.
Thanks for all the sharing of tips!
Rhonda
__________________ I stamp ~ therefore....I work!
NavyWifeArmyMom Come Visit Me At ... A Work In Progress
I bought a thing that looks like a short paint stick with a handle. It has pages of sand paper attached to it. You use this to sand off the old color and sharpen the stump. It's very convenient since you can just tear off the sand paper when it's used up and you have a new sheet underneath. I found mine at Michaels and it was near the stumps and very cheap. Hope this help.
I bought a thing that looks like a short paint stick with a handle. It has pages of sand paper attached to it. You use this to sand off the old color and sharpen the stump. It's very convenient since you can just tear off the sand paper when it's used up and you have a new sheet underneath. I found mine at Michaels and it was near the stumps and very cheap. Hope this help.
That's the type of sanding pad I have in my stump share. Lots of pads left.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
Here are some videos on You Tube by Susie B that show you how to do the technique and then a link to her online gallery.. get prepared to spend a lot of time oohing and aahing.. she is very talented. Pam
Pia,
I just got home from Michael's and I bought the sander stick for the blending stumps for $1.19. They had the 8 different sizes of blending stumps for $4.99.
I've tried SU watercolor pencils, with the gamsol and it works great.
Hope this helps.
Jeanine
__________________ Retired 8/27/04 in Arizona moved to TN.
I love make cards, digital images and making new friends!! www.blstamper.blogspot.com
I use the baby oil and stumps(taiwan ones) and it works perfectly. I'm very sensitive to the fumes of the oms (and yes, just because it's odorless doesn't mean it doesn't give off odorless fumes)
Me too - so I've avoided this technique. I'm glad to hear that the baby oil works well. I can't wait to give it a try (just need to get some baby oil first)!!
My friend told me about the Gamsol technique...and of course it was a Sunday evening...so I experimented with what I had on hand...that was Crayola Pencils, Q-Tips and I kid you not, Skin-so-soft! It blended the pencil for that watercolor effect! I have got to get the Blending Stump because the Q-Tip is too broad for tight spaces!
Not sure - I think the pencil just needs to be a wax based colored pencil. I read somewhere that this technique even works on Crayola crayons.
A bit OT but it is kind of scarey that Baby Oil has the same effect as Odorless Miniral Spirits.
From what I understand, you can use the Crayola brand, but the art pencils do work better. The OMS or baby oil breaks down the wax to allow for blending. The art pencils have less wax in them, thus blend a little better...
__________________ Sharon S. "A child is not a vase to be filled, but a fire to be lit." - Rabelais My Gallery
Stumps and the Gamsol Technique - a ?
Paper stump maintenance
Blender Stumps
