Stamping Wrapping Paper

Since I've been making stamps to use with my gelli plate, it occurred to me that I could also use them for making wrapping paper. I got a big roll of white paper and a roll of kraft brown paper, and I've been having fun stamping them.



Kate's friend Kael had a Pokemon-themed party, so I made this wrapping paper for his present. I cut the shapes out of craft foam (Doug helped me get Pikachu's ears right), and glued them onto flooring scraps.



This was for a white elephant gift exchange.

(There were a few others--one where I used potato stamps--but I didn't get pictures.)



So, I ambitiously decided to make all our wrapping paper for Christmas. I started this well enough in advance that I had some time to find shapes and cut out all the fiddly bits. 



Doug cut some plywood blocks for me to mount the stamps on. (I used PVA glue and let it dry overnight.)



I use my brayer to roll out a layer of paint on a piece of plexiglass, and load up the stamp. Or sometimes I turn the stamp over and roll the brayer right on it. That works too. Since the stamps are unfinished wood I can't get them too wet when washing them off, but wiping them with a baby wipe seems to work well enough.



 I thought the Christmas tree stamp worked really well--probably because it's kind of triangular, and they fit together nicely in patterns.



Well, after that I had to do birthday paper too. These were a lot faster--mostly pretty basic shapes. (The cat was adapted from a tattoo I found online.)



I used some other stamps that I had already made up, too. I'm not sure how long all the stamping took me--maybe an hour or a little more. When you've got this much paper you have to have enough room to spread out all the pieces to let them dry, but overall it's not that much of a hassle, as long as you're not trying to do it at the last minute the day of the party. I'm sure I'll be making more in the future!