Direct to Rubber : About the Technique

Direct to Rubber (or DTR) is the technique of applying Twinkling H20 color on the surface of a rubber stamp with a paintbrush.

The goal is to mix the product into a creamy texture a little thinner than toothpaste. If you have ever inked up a pigment pad the texture of the ink is creamy. A great test to try: Dip a paintbrush directly into a pigment re-inker bottle then brush it on the rubber stamp, feel the slight pull on the brush from the texture

Materials

• Fine Mist spray bottle ( Hero Arts)
• Paintbrush ( Art Institute #4 round)
• 80 weight cardstock (linen is best)
  or good 90-140 weight watercolor paper

Rubber Stamps drastically vary in design styles and rubber depth. Training the eye to recognize and utilize the different design styles can have a huge impact on the outcome of your artwork.

Stamp manufactures “etched rubber depth” vary.

There are some designs in which the rubber is extremely shallow, for example stamps of old photographs usually face stamps. These stamps reap the cleanest impression when inked up with a brayer then stamped.

The rubber is so shallow tapping the ink, by hand, with an inkpad does not give a clean impression. Not the best rubber for the Twinkling H20’s.

1. Solid Stamp: The rubber is solid flat rubber. Embossing or inking this image would result in one solid color. However, brush on several colors of Twinkling H20’s and images of pears, leaves, apples and many others shapes will POP off the page.

Demo Tip This design style has no etched grooves in the rubber a single application of color will reap 1-4 colorful stampings.

1. Tightly Illustrated: The lines or etching in the rubber are tight. If you were to emboss the image in black there is very little or no room to color in. Many leaves & botanicals have a tendency to be made in this stamp style: Penny Black Stampendous,& Hero Arts carry great images in this design style.

Demo Tip This design style has deep grooves in the rubber & will reap 8-27 colorful stampings

1. Open “Outline” : These stamps we recommend embossing the image and color in the lines. Yes! Embossing the images prior to painting with Twinkling H20’s will give you the best results. There are multitudes of outstanding designs in this stamp style.

Twinkling H2Os are highly pigmented, lightfast, brilliant shimmering watercolors. The H2Os are non-toxic and archival safe. The amount of water used will determine if the color is opaque, translucent or transparent. The watercolor begins as a solid hard-pan cake. The traditional method used for this type of paint is to dip in a wet paintbrush to pick up color. However, we discovered a time saving tip:

Open the jars and wake up the colors by spray misting water on the surface of the paint cakes. Allow the water to soak in for 3-5 minutes. Mist a second time and wait a couple more minutes. The paint will soften and when you dip in a paintbrush it will easily mix into a creamy texture. You can paint freehand, create color washes, and use the Twinkling H2Os paints to color inside the lines of a drawing or rubber stamped image. One of the most exciting techniques, Direct To Rubber (DTR), is explained below.

Getting Started with Direct To Rubber

Begin with a dry stamp and dry paintbrush. If you are using the same brush to paint color onto a rubber stamp as you used to mix the paint to a creamy consistency you need to clean it, squeeze out the water, and start with it as a dry brush.

Dip your brush into the pot and roll the excess paint off the brush. Paint the color across the top surface of the stamp. Too much paint can fill in the design and create a blob of color when stamped. Try not to get color into the valleys and crevices of the stamp. After rinsing the paintbrush squeeze excess water out, keeping the brush dry.

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If you remember that you would not introduce water when inking a stamp with an inkpad it will help you to remember to use a dry brush when painting Twinkling H2Os onto the stamp. .For best results it is important to keep the consistency of the paint on your paintbrush and stamp creamy and smooth.

Once the image is colored, it is ready to stamp. If you have applied several colors to the stamp and some have dried it is not a problem. You can leave the stamp with Twinkling H2Os on the surface for a few minutes or much longer. Use the fine mist spray bottle to activate the colors and the stamp will not be damaged.

• Always begin with your stamp on a flat surface, the image facing up. Gravity will take over and colors will run if you hold the stamp vertically or at an angle.

• Hold the spray bottle 3 to 6 inches from the stamp, allowing the water to gently rain on the rubber. Lift the stamp, turn it over and stamp.

• Mist again and stamp. Mist and stamp; repeat for multiple stampings until there is no more color.

• Stamping a second time without re-misting is sometimes a good idea. Watch as you stamp and you’ll soon learn how much water to use.

Clean up is simple with Twinkling H2Os. Water is all you need to wash the color off your stamps.

Reminder: Allow cakes of paint to dry prior to putting the caps back on