Tried & Tested: StampCuts from Creative Expressions Review & Tutorial

How do StampCuts work?

The idea behind the concept is to stamp and die-cut in one go. This to me is brilliant and StampCuts from Creative Expressions here’s why – have you ever tried die-cutting a stamped image? How many times did it take before you finally got the outline around the image even? Granted, there are ways of achieving it on the first go by die-cutting first then stamping the image onto the die-cut inserted into the negative die-cut part with a help of a stamping tool.

How long does that take though? If, like me, you like instant satisfaction when creating and don’t like tedious processes, like the one mentioned above, then the StampCuts dies are made for you. Just place the die onto your cutting plate facing up, ink up, place the cardstock on top and run it through your die-cutting machine. Job done! It literally takes a minute to create a beautiful stamped and die-cut image for your card! Amazing!

I am sharing five different techniques within this feature for your inspiration but there are so many more techniques that you can explore. Try alcohol-resist techniques with the Ranger Alcohol Lift inkpad and alcohol inks on a Yupo paper, heat embossing on vellum paper, dry embossed effect on vellum (try adding a foam sheet on top of the vellum paper) or a watermark ink resist. These are just a few I could think of. What techniques can you think of? Make sure to share your explanations with us via socials or CraftWorld.

What effects are possible with StampCuts?

Talking about dry embossing or the lovely letterpress effect, you’re probably wondering if it’s possible. It is, to a certain extent. You will get the embossed grooves, as showcased on one of my cards, but the grooves are not as deep as you would get with an embossing folder, so make sure to use a light hand when applying ink on top to keep the grooves white/light. The StampCuts dies are designed to imprint the image and cut out the image out at once, not to emboss, and for that it works beautifully. You can use one or more colours to ink the surface of the stamp/die so no limits there!

Different inks will create different effects. Add a mist of water and we’re getting into the mixed-media territory, which is always fun. The small inkpads will work better when using more colours in one stamp/die as you can see better where you’re adding the colours. And if you are wondering that the metal won’t take your ink well or leave the image blotchy then know that this has been taken care of too. The stamp part of the die has special coating (feels soft and smooth) and takes ink very well. I tried various types of ink including embossing inks and got a great result each time. Sounds great, right?

So, what are the negatives?

There really aren’t many. The manufacturer recommends using a water or a wipe to clean the stamp so I do wonder if avoiding solvent-based inks is a good idea as these would need to be cleaned with a special cleaning solution. Would it damage the special coating? I am yet to answer this question, but it might be a good idea to keep this in mind. With all sorts of water-based inks on the market, I really don’t see it as a huge issue.

Another potential negative is the stamp will always be a die-cut, meaning some techniques like repeat stamping, creating continuous backgrounds could be a miss with this one. As with my tag (find the instructions linked at the bottom of this page), you can always adhere a bunch of die-cuts flat all over the background so it’s just a different way of achieving the same result. But crafters being crafty, I’m positive that they will find a way around it? A double-sided adhesive tape and a good old acrylic block could come in handy in this case (as long as you don’t mind cleaning the thin die outline before stamping…unless you don’t mind it). See, it really is hard to find a negative here!

I personally love the concept and the StampCuts set are stunning. Give them a go and make some speedy cards to wow their recipients.

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Step-by-Step Guide: master the StampCuts sets from Creative Expressions

Ingrid has produced this easy tutorial to show you how simple it is to use these clever products. Once you've got the hang of it, read on for five complete step-by-step papercraft project tutorials for beautiful festive makes using the Poinsettia StampCuts set.

Place the die face up on the cutting plates of your machine (use copy paper to protect them from unwanted ink).

Cover the inked die with the white cardstock – trimming to size as appropriate.

Place the top plate on top, then run it through your manual die-cutting machine.

Carefully remove the die-cut and stamped panel and clean your dies.

Your stamped and die-cut element is ready in a blink of an eye!

Make 5 Christmas Projects with StampCuts

Ingrid has put the Poinsettia StampCut set to the test to make a collection of gorgeous Christmas projects and we're delighted to share the step-by-step tutorials with you. Whether you follow these instructions exactly, or go your own way, we can't wait to see what you make!