Knowing your Clear Jelly Stamper

I have been reading a lot of advice on how to make our CjS Clear Jelly Stamper work properly and it is information that I want to correct. There are a lot of imitators of "our" Original & Authentic Clear Jelly Stamper out there. I cannot speak for them nor will I try. I know the CjS stamper and I promise you that these are the ways to care for it and use it properly. Here are a few of the common issues that people are having & some possible solutions:

1) I just got my new stamper. What do I need to do to get it ready to use for the first time?

TRUTH: You DO NOT need to do buff your jelly or wipe it with acetone. It is ready to use right out of the package. If you are having issues picking up images, it is in the technique. Doing either one of these things will make your CjS stamper cloudy which completely defeats the purpose of it being see-thru to create layering art.

2) My jelly seems to be getting a little too sticky. Do I need a new one?

TRUTH: If your jelly seems to be getting a little too sticky, wash it with soap & water. Pat dry on a lint-free towel. It may also be sticky because of the climate. If you are in a climate with high humidity, you need to store your jelly in an air tight container when not in use. This will extend the life of your stamper.

3) I've done everything I've been told but I still can't pick up fine images.

TRUTH: Technique, technique, technique. Pressure, pressure, pressure. Picking up fine images happens very easily if you have the correct technique and the pressure. You cannot smush the jelly onto the image. It works like a magnet if you ROLL the CjS stamper across the image with a feather touch. Smushing rarely works. The shape of your jelly should not change. It will feel like you're not even touching the plate if you have the right pressure.

4) I'm doing everything I'm supposed to and I am still having issues picking up images.

TRUTH: You can try placing your new Clear Jelly Stamper face-down with the jelly sitting on a plain, clean piece of paper. Allow it to sit there for an hour or two. There is some oil in the jelly and this will allow the paper to pull out some of that oil.

TRUTH: What kind of stamping polish are you using? Is it CjS stamping polish? You can sometimes use other brands but we know our stamping polish is formulated to work best with our stampers. It has 4 times the pigment which provides clean, clear images.

TRUTH: Make sure that your CjS stamping polish hasn't thickened in the bottle. Over time this will happen and it will happen sooner with the Metallic polishes. If the polish becomes thick, this will affect your pick-up as well. Put a few drops of our CjS Polish Thinner into the bottle along with a mixing marble and shake, shake, shake. Getting your polish back to its' original viscosity will make a world of difference.

TRUTH: Be sure there is no air flowing in the area you are stamping. Any air flow will dry out your image quickly and affect your pick-up. If there is a fan blowing, A/C or heat vent blowing air nearby or a breeze coming in through the window, it can dry out the polish on the plate.

TRUTH: The overhead light you are using can also let off a lot of heat which can also dry out your stamping polish on your plate. Use a daylight light, if possible, because they don't let off much heat.

TRUTH: The speed at which you scrape then roll your stamper can make a difference. You want to work relatively quickly. Scrape the polish off with one hand and roll the stamper over the image with the other hand immediately after scraping.

TRUTH: You have to remember that the images etched onto the plates are very shallow and they can dry out quick if you take just a little bit too long to pick up. Once you have the image on the stamper, there isn't too much urgency required to get it to transfer onto the nail. Push the stamper straight down onto the nail to release the image. Pull the stamper away slowly to make sure the image has attached itself.

Clear Jelly Stamping is SO MUCH FUN and I love it so much! If you are still having issues after trying these troubleshooting ideas, please feel free to contact me with your questions at education@clearjellystamper.com. Sometimes I will get you to send me a quick video of your technique and it will show me exactly where to adjust the technique. Hope these tips help and, as usual, I wish you Happy Stamping my friends!💖💖💖💖