One trend that has grown like wildfire has been that of un-mounted stamping. Traditional stamps were rubber and mounted on wood. Those were the stamps of choice for many years. However in today’s stamping world, the economy and space have led to the option of going un-mounted.
There is also an abundance in the variety of un-mounted stamps. Close to my Heart gave me my first taste of un-mounted stamps with their clear acrylic stamps. Along with their clear acrylic blocks, you could simply see where you were stamping. They also came in a sleek case for space saving options.
Many other stamp companies are following suit like the fabulous Papertrey Ink and Sweet N Sassy Stamps, to only name a few. Local craft stores like Michaels, also offer up cheap clear stamps.
Then there are also the stamp companies that use the red rubber in an un-mounted form. I remember the first time I received an order and the stamp was only the rubber. I was shocked.
Stamp companies like Gina K and Stamping Bella are 2 companies I know of and am fond of, that sell only the deeply etched rubber of the stamp. Well, then what do you do with these stamps that have no wood block to stamp them with?
Most acrylic stamps are already clingy on the back of the stamp. Simply peal off the stamp from and cling it to the block and you are ready to stamp. The sets each come with a foam cushion to lay underneath your cardstock to cushion your image, much like the cushion layer between your wood and rubber. When you are done, they cling right back on their storage space. When you start to notice they aren’t clinging as well, simply use your stamp cleaner or soap and water to clean the back off.
The blocks I am talking about are acrylic blocks or clear blocks. For instance with use of Close to my Heart acrylic stamps, the company offers a wide range of acrylic blocks to use with their stamps. These blocks are clear and come in a variety of sizes to fit the stamp image you wish to use. There are also many other companies that market acrylic blocks, including scalloped edged blocks and those with gridlines for placement of the stamp images. Making sure that you have the right size block compared to the size of your image is also important. Too big of a block will make it harder for you to stamp a good image. However once your build your collection of acrylic blocks, you should be able to use more un-mounted stamps.
Simply buying the rubber from companies like Stamping Bella is a little different. They do not simply cling to your block. There are a couple different ways that you can use them however. Because these images are so deeply etched on the rubber, you can simply add a piece of double stick tape to the back of you rubber and it will stick to your acrylic block. It works so well, most times you do not need to use a cushion. If you feel tho, that you would like to, simply borrow one from your Close to my Heart set, or use an old magazine under your cardstock.
The other alternative to using the rubber is to use EZ Mount foam. I plan to talk more about that, as well as storage solutions and pricing versus the ole wooden block tomorrow in Part 2. Please stop back by. In the mean time, if you have any opinions or wish to share a company not mentioned above that sells un-mounted stamps, please leave us a comment. We look forward to your input.
I tore a second piece of eclipse strip, and created another section of cardstock, which I stippled with Kiwi Kiss ink from Stampin' Up!.
And when all of the Eclipse masking strips are pulled off, here is the final result! 
Just take a can of spray duster, give your new stamp a quick spray, and TaDa, your new stamps are all ready to go.
For my set, I chose Holiday Cheer. I love the funky, retro style of these stamps. And I knew they were just screaming for glitter! These stamps are closely trimmed unmounted rubber, so it was easy to position the star and sentiment. Those were both stamped in Versamark, then I used heat and stick powder to apply the glitter.
Originally being from Texas (and proud of it!), I had to have the Cowboy and his matching Howdy sentiment. And it's great to have around when you need to make a boy card. I colored him in with my Stampin' Up markers and distressed with Tim Holtz Distress Ink in antique linen. 
I couldn't get the sentiment to do what I wanted on the outside of the card, so it went inside. Worked perfect! And there's still room to write a message!
And finally, I thought the Sunflower was just too cute! But couldn't really think how I wanted to use it. So I turned it into background paper. I stamped it all over in SU Rose Red, Marigold Morning, and Cool Caribbean. And it's hard to tell in this picture but I doodled the center swirls with my stardust gel pen for some extra sparkle. Add a sentiment and ribbon and your all set, Easy peasy!
