Thursday, January 31, 2019

How to make linoleum stamps - DIY





















Tools and materials I propose:

3D carver links:

In this video I explore a couple of methods on how to make linoleum stamps. Some more DIY and some involving more advanced techniques. 

Linoleum is an awesome material to use in block printing. It comes in a few variations. Some are harder than others. The difference between carving wood and linoleum, is that wood is harder and you have to pay attention to the grain direction as you carve.

First of all you must transfer your design on linoleum. I print it out and use a pencil to add graphite on it’s back side. I use a soft 2B pencil. Then I secure the printout on the linoleum and trace over it with another pencil. This leaves the trace on the linoleum. Please note that stamps print their mirrored image. So your design must be flipped.

To carve linoleum you can use cheap linoleum chisels. The skew and the V are used for the outlines. While the gouges remove material fast. Keep your sharpening strop close, because you need to keep your tools really sharp.

You can also carve linoleum with a CNC machine. V carving bits work great for stamps, especially if you have complicated designs. 

If you have a lathe, you can obviously turn a handle for your stamp. This is mostly spindle work. Once you turn the handle you can use wood glue to glue the linoleum on it.

If you don’t have a lathe, you can use a block plane and a chisel to make the handle as shown in the video. To make the base use a hole saw. Join the base and the handle together using an 8mm dowel.

With your stamps ready you can begin printing. Spread your ink on a flat surface with a spatula. I used plexiglass. Then fill you roller with ink and ink your stamp, you are ready to go. Experiment with different colors and materials. I use water based inks, because they are easy to clean and are more eco friendly. You can also create gradient effects. Add two colors side by side. Fill your roller by moving it back and forth only at one direction. The results are pretty interesting.

This is a really fun technique and can give you hours of creative fun. In the CNC files I have included a few vector designs so you can play around.

I hope you liked this one. See you soon with a new project!



Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, that at no cost to you, I get a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.

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