Have you seen Stampin’ Up’s new Letterpress plates? You use them with the Big Shot, and instead of embossing, they add ink to a debossed image! So cool!  Here, watch this video and then I will tell you more about them. (If you are reading this in an email, you will need to go to my actual blog to see the video.)

How cool is that? There are currently four letterpress plates available, all from the Holiday Mini Catalog.

120980 Trick or Treat Letterpress Plate $7.95

120981 Joyful Season Letterpress Plate $5.95

120982 Northern Trim Letterpress Plate $5.95

120983 Lots of Love Letterpress Plate

To use Letterpress Plates, you’ll need a Big Shot machine, multipurpose platform, one standard cutting pad (as unused as possible), card stock or paper, and Craft Stampin’ Ink™ (pigment ink).
Tips:
• Pigment ink, such as Craft Stampin’ Ink, works best for letterpress projects. Classic (dye-based) Stampin’ Ink does not lay down evenly on the plate or transfer evenly to paper.
• Do not apply too much ink, or your image will not look crisp.
• You can use a Stampin’ Spot™, Stampin’ Pad™, or brayer to apply the ink.
• If you want to apply different colors of ink to one plate, it’s easier to use a Stampin’ Spot. Simply dab the Stampin’ Spot on the plate.
• If you want to apply one color of ink to the entire plate, you can also use our un-inked Craft Stampin’ Pad, filled with the Craft Stampin’ Ink refill color of your choice, applying the ink from the pad directly to your Letterpress Plate.
• If you want to apply one color of ink to the entire plate, it might be easier to use a brayer to apply the ink evenly. A brayer is also helpful if you want to create multiple projects because it allows you to re-ink the plate quickly. Simply ink our un-inked Craft Pad with Craft Stampin’ Ink, ink the brayer thoroughly using the Craft Stampin’ Pad, and roll the brayer across your Letterpress Plate.
• Because the Letterpress Plates emboss so deeply into your paper, they may press into extremely small recessed areas, such as scratches in cutting pads. For best results, we recommend that you use a cutting pad that is relatively new and unscratched.
• Letterpress Plates work well on card stock and other paper. Porous paper (such as watercolor paper) or paper with weakened fibers (such as textured card stock) will create a deeper impression.
• Make sure you test your materials before creating your projects to ensure you get the results you want.

Instructions:
1. Apply Craft Stampin’ Ink directly to the plate, using one of the methods described above (Fig. 1).
2. Open the multipurpose platform to Tab 1. Place the inked Letterpress Plate face-up on the multipurpose platform (Fig. 2).
3. Place your paper on the Letterpress Plate (Fig. 3).
4. Place a standard cutting pad on top of the paper (Fig. 4). (Remember to use a cutting pad that has few or no scratches.)
5. Run the sandwich through the Big Shot.
Warning: Supervise small children.

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