Paper Craft Planet and Stampendous team up to bring you this weekly series on the Basics of Rubber Stamping. This is lesson #2 -- an introduction to spectrum inks and different stamping techniques.

2. Rainbow Pads Kaleidacolor ® Pads are Water-based Dye Ink: Kaleidacolor pads by Tsukineko feature quick drying dye ink with 5 colors on each pad. The clever mechanism inside the pad allows you to separate the colored strips for storage or use as separate colors. Then slide them together to create a rainbow effect on solid image stamps. The divot in the lid has a tab on the underside that prevents the lid from being replaced on the pad when the colors are together. This keeps the colors from bleeding into each other during storage. Kaleidacolor pads come in 20 color palettes. You can also buy an uninked pad and ink it with your choice of 62 colored ink refills. Tsukineko has been manufacturing premium quality inks for the craft industry since the 1950’s. Check them out at: www.tsukineko.com

3. Use Rainbow Pads with Solid Stamps Rainbow Pads can provide a fantastic, quick color spectrum to a solid stamp image. It’s wonderful to be able to make such a colorful, dynamic card with just one stamp set and one ink pad.

4. Damask Season Card Supplies used to make this card: Perfectly Clear™ Stamps from Stampendous SSC1022 Damask Season Kaleidacolor ® Ink Pad from Tsukineko Royal Satin Hardware from Creative Impressions Heritage Glimmer Rounds – paper fasteners Card stock from Bazzill Basics™ Juneberry Oxford Adhesive from Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L EZ Runner Plus white card stock, foam adhesive, and1/8” hole punch. You can find Perfectly Clear™ Stamps and Acrylic Handles in 8 sizes at: www.stampendous.com

6. Damask Season Card Start with the Seasons Greetings stamp. When putting all the stamped images on one panel, it’s easiest to start with the greeting if there is one. Otherwise, you often run out of room to add it at the end. Remember to remove new Perfectly Clear™ Stamps from their carrier sheet very carefully. Stamp the words on the 3 ¾” X 5” panel of white using the blue and green ink sections. Use the mechanism handle to move the colored pads close to each other. We want the stripes on the first stamp to go horizontally, so rotate the pad to a comfortable angle. When using clear stamps with a dye ink pad, be sure to ink the stamp thoroughly and check it before stamping.

7. Damask Season Card Stamp the long ornament about 1” from the top of the panel above the greeting using horizontal stripes from burgundy through green. Stamp the rounder ornament lower and to the left of the long one using vertical stripes from purple through green. Alternating the stripes of color between horizontal and vertical adds interest to your design and makes your pad look more varied. On large, solid images like these ornaments it is usually necessary to clean new stamps before inking to get even coverage. Be sure to check the coverage before stamping your image.

8. Damask Season Card Use the mechanism to separate the colored ink pads. Now you can easily use the colors separately. Add the ornament tops, bows and ribbons to the card using individual colors for each image. Notice how easy it is to place each element precisely next to another one by using Perfectly Clear™ Stamps. Be sure to clean each stamp after each use while it’s still on the acrylic handle.

9. Damask Season Card Use a 1/8” hole punch to punch 3 holes in the white panel to the left of the stamped greeting. Insert shimmery Heritage Glimmer Rounds Paper Fasteners through the holes and open out the tines on the back side of the white panel. Creative Impressions offers Glimmer Rounds in 6 assortments of colors at www.creativeimpressions.com

10. Damask Season Card Use EZRunner adhesive to adhere the Juneberry layer to the folded Oxford card base. Attach the white stamped layer with dimensional foam adhesive to the center of the Juneberry panel. Add stamped embellishments to the other white panel and adhere inside card with EZ Runner adhesive.

11. Fall Foliage Card Use a brayer with your rainbow pad plus Perfectly Clear™ Stamps to make a card that will have folks asking, ”How did you do that?”

12. Fall Foliage Card Supplies used to make this card: Perfectly Clear™ Stamps from Stampendous SSC Fall Foliage SSH34 Medium Rectangle Handle Kaleidacolor™ Rainbow Ink Pads from Tsukineko Autumn Leaves Ribbon from Creative Impressions Swirl Organdy - Brown Card stock from Bazzill Basics™ Amber and Nutmeg Adhesive from Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L - EZ Runner Plus white card stock, white paper, and soft rubber brayer.

14. Fall Foliage Card To make the mask for this card, tear an 8 ½” X 11” piece of copier weight paper in half down the middle. Protect your work surface with a piece of scratch paper or newsprint. Place the mask over the 5” X 3 ¾” panel of white card stock so that the torn edges are separated by about 1 ½” – 2” of space.

15. Fall Foliage Card To use the rubber brayer on the rainbow pad, leave the pad sections separate. Start with the brayer slightly to the left of the lightest colored strip. Ink the brayer by pushing away from your body many times. As you repeatedly roll the brayer, move it slightly toward the right and the darker colors. Roll the brayer several times on the card stock between the torn paper masks. Start out rolling in one direction, then go back and forth. You may need to re-ink the brayer to get the desired even coverage.

16. Fall Foliage Card When the rainbow is how you want it, it’s time to stamp the Fall Foliage leaves in black. Leave the torn masks in place and stamp several leaves in black ink over the rainbow portion. Be sure that parts of each leaf go off of the edge of the card or on to the masks. To clean your rubber brayer, just pop out the rubber roller and run it under the faucet. Kaleidacolor inks are water based, so they clean up easily.

17. Fall Foliage Card Remove the right hand mask and slide the left hand mask to the right until it lines up with the edge of the brayered area. Now push the rainbow pad sections together and ink the leaf stamps with rainbow color. Stamp the rainbow leaves on the right side of the card front. Then remove the left hand mask and slide the right hand mask over to the edge of the brayered area and stamp rainbow leaves on the left third of the card front.

18. Fall Foliage Card When you remove all the masks, you’ll see you’ve made a really dynamic background for your Fall card. Be sure to clean all the stamps. Remember to clean Perfectly Clear™ stamps while they are still on the acrylic handle for best results.

19. Fall Foliage Card Insert one end of each of the two narrow strips of card stock into a corner rounder punch. Line up carefully to round the two corners on just one end of each piece. Stamp Cling Graceful Thanksgiving in black ink on the amber strip close to the square ends. Line up the two strips on the straight ends and glue them together. Dozens of easy-to-use Cling Rubber™ stamps are available at www.stampendous.com

20. Fall Foliage Card Fold 8 ½” X 5 ½” Amber panel in half. Use EZ Runner to glue Nutmeg panel to Amber card front. Layer rainbow leaf panel on top of Nutmeg panel. Punch two 1/16” holes in rounded end of strip and insert leaf brads. Tie 6” of Swirl Organdy ribbon to a Spiral Paper Clip and attach to strip. Adhere strip to card front with dimensional foam adhesive. Creative Impressions has Swirl Organdy in 35 combinations of colorful ribbon and swirls. Leaf Paper Fasteners come in 8 different assortments, and Spiral Clips are available in 38 collections from mini to large, even bulk. All available at: www.creativeimpressions.com