It's in the Details

I have a lot of rubber stamps that may look pretty shabby to some people.  But they are stamps from my early days of stamping, when I would mount rubber images on anything that was even half-way workable.  These pictured are my favorite Merry Christmas and Happy New Year stamps, from a company called Leavenworth Jackson (remember her?).  The script is beautifully done, and I have used them over and over.  I could re-mount them on a nicer piece of wood (after all, I did eventually purchase a band saw and sander just for cutting wood for stamps).  Or I could put them on some of the modern cling mount cushion and use them with an acrylic mount.  But to tell the truth, these stamps are so nostalgic for me, just the way they are.  I could find them in the drawer with my eyes closed, because I know one is on a round cork, and one is on a round piece of scrap wood. 

These days, I buy a mix of stamps - unmounted rubber if its available, mounted stamps if I like it and it's right there in front of me, and cling mount if that's all it comes in.

Recently, I ordered a stamp from a company that is an oldie but a goodie - Meer Image.  It's one of those small stamp companies that has been around forever,  plodding away, doing what they do.  The recent email introduced a new compass design.  There was a discount to pre-order it.  I love compasses, and this one was really nice.  So I ordered it.  In the past, most of what I have bought from Meer Image has been unmounted.  I had forgotten what it's like to hold quality in my hand. 

And this is quality you just don't see anymore.  The image is a great design.  The wood is nicely finished.  Steven's initials are on the stamp.  The company name is burned (?) into the wood. (I assume it is burned, as it reminds me of watching them burn the logo into the Louisville Slugger baseball bats at the local museum and factory.) The red rubber is finely detailed and stamps perfectly.  Quality all the way.  Even the paper it was packed in was a piece of drawing paper from one of Steven's figure drawing sessions.  It made me feel special just opening the package!  

There are still some businesses and companies that produce a quality product, but it's sad that something like this stands out to me, rather than being the norm.

 

At any rate, I will really enjoy using this compass.  I won't lose my way with this one!!