A pretty little gift bag

One of my memories from my childhood is receiving a little stamping machine for about my 9th birthday. I think it may have been called an Inker Stamper, but I cant recall the exact name. It was a horseshoe shape on a base. One end of the horseshoe held a stamp pad. In the middle of the base was a little platform with two small spikes, which was on a cog. At the midpoint of the horseshoe was an arm that was on a pivot and could also be lifted up and down. At the end of the arm was a part where you put on a rubber stamp (there was about 6 or 8 different stamps included) and this could be moved up or down the arm and secured into position. You would place a piece of paper over the 2 spikes and secure it with a clip, then lower the stamp on to the stamp pad, lift it and twist it down onto the paper. As you raised the stamp tp take it across to the stamp pad again, the cog would turn the paper slightly so you could restamp in a different position and would end up stamping around in a circle, and by moving the stamp head up or down the arm, you could do concentric circles, making almost mandala like patterns. Did anyone else have this machine?

 Anyway, when I saw the new Inkadinkado Stamping Gear set, I knew I just had to get myself a set, it made the pretty mandala type designs I remember making as a child. Watching the video from the inkadinkado site for the Stamping Gear I thought it couldn't be as easy as how they made it seem and was concerned about getting it lined up in the cogs, having the edge of the stamps being seen, and the wheel moving on the page, but thought I would certainly give it a go. And I certainly have not been disappointed. I have had quite a play with it since it arrived and not once has the wheel moved on the page or have I had the stamp edges come through and only once did I not line the stamps up correctly but that was my fault, not the wheels fault. It does have markings on every 2nd cog to make it easy, but I thought I would be tricky and stamp every third cog, but ended up being tricked myself.


A sheet of blank paper, ink in your choosen colour, the large wheel, my choosen stamp and the stamp pad, and I was set to go.











And I was off and stamping.














 My first finished pattern.

Close up of the finished pattern.











Once I had finished, I thought of the perfect project for it. My sister-in-law turns 40 in a few weeks and the whole family is getting together to celebrate. In my husband's family, whenever the adults have a "special" birthday, the ones that end in a "0", we tend to buy a large present from all the family. My SIL has requested some gold, slightly dangly earrings, suitable for wearing to work, and I have been put in charge of purchasing them. I wanted something a little bit nicer than the jeweller's box to present them to her in and so I thought of using the pattern I had created with the stamping gear to make a nice embellishment for the front of a left over gift bag I had used at Christmas time for my son to give to his preschool teachers.

This was filled with mini chocolate bars

 I used the same ink that I used for the pattern and stamped all over the outside of the unfolded gift bag.

I added some strips of bling around the front of the bag. And double-sided tape on the tab, and folded it into the bag shape.

 With my pattern, I cut it into a 3" circle, using my cuttlebug, put the same strips of bling around the outside and attached a large pearl brad to the middle. I then put double sided mounting tape on the back of the embellie, making sure to only put it on the bottom half so that the bag could still be closed with the closing tab.

The finished bag - the closing tab just sits behind the embellie, which will keep it closed.

Now I just need to make a happy birthday tag for it. Oh and go shopping for the earrings to go in it of course.

I purchased the Inkadinkado Stamping Gear set, as well as the brad and inkpad from one of my favourite stores kerryscraftycardsandcuts.com.au I'm not sure if she has any stamping gears in stock, but I'm sure she will be more than happy to help you out.