Metal Stamping for Beginner's | Jewelers' Guide 2021

The best way to customize your jewelry is to stamp initials, dates, or names in metal tags or blanks, easy to stick to a collar or bracelet. The use of metal jewelry tags is a perfect way to practice your stamping technique, as there is a way to get it right.

Metal Stamping for Beginners

Here we have set up a metal stamping guide to aid you with the creation of your jewelry. We hope you can easily and efficiently stamp metal after this guide.

Metal Stamping Tools you’ll Need

Metal stamping comes with its own materials, like any new project, and the paraphernalia must begin. It can be an expensive hobby or art to follow, but after getting the equipment, it might last long for you, so if you are looking for a lot of projects to use metal stamping, these things can become like investment pieces!

You can find them in craft or online stores. You can also purchase the starting kits with most of the following list:

• Hammer to stamp
• Stamp of metal (letters, numbers, icons, shapes)
• Block of stamping
• Tags of Metal/White
• Tape of stamping
• Cloth polishing

Why do You Need all of These Tools?

It may look like a long, relatively affordable list of craft shopping, but you need the right tools to make it right. If you already know someone with the equipment, you can ask them whether they can test it before purchasing it.

Top 7 Metal stamping Tools List

Below we have listed the best metal stamping tools.

1.   Stamping hammer

The use of a stamping hammer to handle controlled strikes is generally smaller than your regular toolkit. But to get the best results, you need a high weight hammer. The risk is greater because the strike is less precise and the stamp feels lacking and hits your hand.
  

2.   Stamping block

You don't want to stamp something on your desk or any surface you use, so you need a metal block to cover it. These metal blocks are heavy and usually come with gently padded stickers for the support of the block on each corner or base. You should take additional care and use a more significant piece of solid wood or hardboard to handle the hammer's impact even further.

The softer metals like gold and aluminum curl, as stamped, the hammer and block can be fixed. The more delicate hammer and block shouldn't impact your stamped template, but just flatten the shape of your blank. Usually, you flatten a curved metal piece from behind - rotating the nylon block and striking with a nylon hammer on the wrong side.

3.   Metal stamps (letters, numbers, icons, shapes)

When you find the stamps you want to use in this hobby a little pricey. They are mostly bought in sets:

• Alphabet Uppercase
• Alphabet of the low case
• Numbers
• Marks of pointing
• Symbols, forms, or icons 

Icons, letters, shapes, and numbers can be found in loads of various types that allow you to pick your favorite look for your printing project. A newsprint or typewriter that is easy to read and can look very rustic is one of the most common fonts for metal stamping – the perfect choice for handmade pieces. Shapes like hearts, stars, and flowers that can really make a piece of it off are also super famous! It is beneficial to have a very simple stamp that produces dots or complete stops because this is excellent for dates or initials. You can also make special hammers with different textured effects if you did not want to add letters or shapes to your blanks.

4.   Metal tags/blanks

To stamp your letters or forms, you need metal tags or blanks that possibly are brass, copper, or sterling silver. The use of flat tags is an excellent starting point since, unlike 3-dimensional shapes/angles, it is relatively easy to stamp a flat part of the metal. After the stamping is complete, the metal blanks can be plated. Pre-plated tags are not appropriate for stamping since the plate is scratched. Use a less costly material such as copper or aluminum while you are stamping, so you do not wish to waste any beautiful silver or gold blanks. You can buy larger dishes of those alloys big to bring the technology down to a tee. In the following alloys, stampable products are more than likely to be found:

• Aluminum 
• Copper 
• Brass
• Silver Good
• Pewter
• Gold Sterling
• Filled 14ct gold

5.   Stamping tape

You can buy tape that is specially made for stamping that lets you position and holds your blank when you stamp it on. If you stamp something, tiny objects that cannot be kept by hand, then it is a must for protection. It also means that any stamped marks are finished better, so you can use the full effect when the tag is supported.

Masking tape will assist with your stamps' placement - masking tape is an excellent way to do this if you want to stamp a word correctly. You may also use crayons on the tape to differentiate the characters!

6.   Polishing cloth

Before and after stamping, you can use a cloth or wipe to clean your sheet. Usually, you can buy polishing cloths from your nearest craft shop or use a rag on an old flannel shirt. Polishing your blanks, tags, and charms will finish their look, make them ready for jewelry, and look fantastic if you're hoping to sell your craft.
  

7.   Setting up

Start with the workspace setting.

• Choose a durable or, at least, a robust surface that prevents hammering. You can always put strong wood over your table or desk to ensure you don't damage surfaces.
• Get all your tools out before you start metal stamping and have it at hand and reachable quickly.
• Place your stamping block close enough in front of you to efficiently stamp your workout.
• Use your stamping tape to keep your blank on the block and add any tape guides you can need.
• You will want the stamp to be stabilized with more fingers (check that you're not upside-down), keep the stamp between your thumb and forefinger.
• Take your hammer and strike the stamp top (be careful to pay attention to where you aim the hammer). This is the safest way for the practice to strike the stamp, just to be sure how hard and whether you would like to hit twice.

How to Begin Metal Stamping Process?

Small and straightforward start-ups are advised and practice until the finished design is ready for all projects. Make sure you have some blanks or larger tags you can use to get your technique right when you buy your white ones for stamping. For beginners, flat surfaces are the safest since they are simple to mark and easy to mark.

It's all in the technique.

The practice of your metal stamping is so critical because there are a few factors that could affect your performance.

Pressure/Impact

The best type of how hard it is to strike the stamp can be hard to achieve. You can't really go over again unless you can correctly arrange your stamp to see that you have just made a mark. This will change over time, of course, and you will hang it. Most metals would need to be hit very harshly by the hammer to induce stamping. And you should be mindful that, because of their differing densities, different alloys can actually take various techniques; aluminum won't need as much impact as, say, metal.

Placement

Before starting the project, it is important to decide on the design and ensure that your word or design aligns with your preference. To mark the placement before stamping anything, use masking bands and pencils. Marking the middle and outer planning is a charming way to keep the concept as smooth as possible. This might sound dumb, but ensure that your stamp is on the right track – you don't want a 90°-angle letter.

Time for fun

If you feel confident that you are learning enough and want to get into the real art, begin to think about your designs. You may design ideas for various tags or think about personalized gifts for your family and friends (or for yourself).

Such great projects of metal stamping for beginners include:

1. Initial joy charms – main project for beginners with minimal characters
2. Name pendants – an individual addition to a pretty perforated necklace or a simple chain
3. Tags for special occasions – suitable for marriages, birthdates, and other events.
4. Tags for pets – as simple as pending names

Stamping is an excellent process because the finished parts are polished and can look so professional. Even if your prints are not perfectly clean, or you have uniform margins, this will make your work feel beautifully handmade and rustic.

Finishing touches & Extra tools

You can create and improve your pieces to suit your tastes using tricks and extra tools if you're not satisfied with the simple metal stamping end.

Letters with impact

You may have noticed that Etsy or on the craft markets have markedly stamped products that really give birth to the letters and types. The look to do this is straightforward. You can carefully fill in the stamped area with a straight, fine sharpie to make it really stand out.  This can be fixed with your reliable polish fabric if you happen outside the lines!

With our stamped blank enamel, the same result can be accomplished, and this would be much longer than Sharpie, which can be rubbed over time. The enamel will produce a very professional finish appropriate for the use of jewelry pieces.

Making holes

If the blanks are not equipped with holes in them. So, you may use the same method as the stamping technique or in the form of a punch plier, using specialized tools that can punch the metal hole.

Surface effects

If you want to have a classic look, you can produce an aged effect on your metals. Some metals are very rapidly reacting to vinegar acid. So you can soak your stamped products in a vinegar container covering your item chosen to distress/age. Use white vinegar, salt, and clear ammonia in this fast video to produce a Patina effect. You could try to do this technique more if you felt more comfortable using metals.

Textures

You already know chasing hammers are used to add texture, such as dimples, zig-zags, lines, etc., to metals in a section on metal stamps. You can invest in these things later as you expand your variety of stamping techniques.

Shapes

Blanks can come in a variety of sizes and shapes that are very fun to work with. So you just buy your blanks when you need them; there is no need to invest in many different ways.

Dapping

Using a dapping block, simple blanks can be pushed into curves. This equipment has different sizes of circular roofing in which you can put the white and round instruments on top to produce a curved or rounded effect on your white roof. Dapping will not impact your model stamped.

Future projects

After you get really hung up the metal stamping. You can use a multitude of channels to produce really unique articles to further your designs. There are several great tutorials on Pinterest to make your own stamped metal objects, whether they are based on jewelry.

Here are some great projects you might make once your metal stamping whizzes:

• Customized accessories and jewelry
• Silver Bangles
• Pieces of earrings
• Keyrings
• Pendants
• Charms of the bag
• Charms with bracelet and necklace
• Silver stamped products
• Bookmarks for quotes
• Markers for plants
• Designs of the constellation - or pendants
• Charms of the invitation card
• Using your clay designs stamps