How To Reverse Stamp With The Mirror Stamping Technique

Welcome! I hope you are having a wonderful day. I have a really neat trick to share with you today to basically double the use of the stamps in your collection. It is called mirror stamping or reverse stamping, and it involves taking a stamp that faces one direction and making it stamp the other. It’s almost like magic! You’ll need a Stamparatus and silicone craft mat to make it work, plus your stamps and ink. That’s it! Let’s get started and I’ll share much more!

What Is It?

Mirror stamping, also known as reverse stamping, is taking a rubber or photopolymer stamp and achieving a stamped image that is actually the reverse, mirror image, or reflection of the original.

Why Use Reverse Images?

First, because this is a really fun technique to try! It’s always exciting to try new and different ways of stamping, and when using this technique, you can do so much more with the stamps in your collection. Here are a few specific reasons you may want to stamp a reverse image:

• For proper positioning of an image on your project. Sometimes it just looks better (or fits better) to have that one thing facing left instead of right.
• To create a scene with two of your images facing each other or facing apart. This is often done with stamps of animals and people.
• To create double sided punches or die cuts, with the stamped image on both sides. This is simple to do without mirror stamping if your image is symmetrical, but when it is not, mirror stamping will allow it to be possible.
• To stamp an image and then show its reflection in water, a window, or a mirror.

Card Ideas

You can create amazing cards with this technique. Let’s look at a few.

This is a spinner card that I created using our Merry Moose stamp set and coordinating punch.

The punched moose faces left on the front side, and for the piece on the back he faces right. Neat, huh?

On the card below, I wanted these cute pups to be facing each other and looking madly ‘in like.’ I’ll demonstrate how to get this look below.

These goats were mad at each other, but one of them is ready to say ‘sorry.’

Here is a card showing how you can use this technique for reflected images. Reflections in water are such a gorgeous technique.

Ok, let’s talk about how to do this fun mirror stamping technique!

Materials Needed

All you need is a Stamparatus, a silicone craft sheet, stamps, and ink.

Video Tutorial

Watch along below to see exactly how to reverse stamp, or keep reading for more information!

How Do I Reverse Stamp An Image?

If you will be using rubber stamps, make sure to remove the foam mat from your Stamparatus. If you are using photopolymer stamps, leave the foam mat in place.

Lay the silicone craft sheet in the corner of the platform, and place your stamp on top.

Rotate the plate over to pick up the stamp. Rotate it back outward.

Ink the stamp, then stamp directly onto the silicone mat. Repeat if desired to get better coverage.

Carefully, lay your cardstock over top of the silicone sheet. Be very careful to lay the paper straight down and not to smudge the ink.

Stamp one more time.

You now have the original image on the top of your cardstock, and the reverse image on the back.

Carefully remove the cardstock, to avoid smudging on the back side. See the dog facing left? That’s my mirror image. For this project, I’ll add another dog looking right and now they’re happily facing each other 🙂

Because you have the exactly same image on both sides of the cardstock, you can punch of die cut these image as well. It wouldn’t work to punch or die cut the reverse image, but when you do it on the side with the original, it work’s perfectly!

Tips For Mirror Stamping

Here are a few tips that may help as you are trying this technique:

• This technique works well with thin, detailed, or outline stamps. It does not work as well with solid stamps.
• If you stamp a solid stamp and it doesn’t stamp evenly, use a Stampin’ Write marker to fill in the image. (I did this with the bird card)
• If you are planning to ‘create a scene’ with your reverse image, I suggest starting with cardstock that is much larger than your image. Stamp the image in the center, then you have space all around to create the scene. When done, trim off the extra cardstock. The reason I suggest this is that planning your scene in the reverse direction on the back side of your cardstock is tricky to think through if you’re not using extra cardstock.

I would LOVE to see what you create with this technique. Send over some pics when you try it out!

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