Recently I posted a photo of a set of recent carves on my facebook wall. One of my friends reached out and asked if I'd be willing to carve another set for her daughter for her birthday, she is turning 5.

So I'm currently carving another set. I usually don't mount my stamps on anything but since these are going to a child's art table instead of tupperware in the woods, I thought maybe I should. Especially if it helps her get a better stamped image.

So I'm looking for advice: best way to mount stamps for a 5 year old's hands? Including type of glue?

Thanks and Merry Christmas!

(I was relieved when she asked me and did NOT ask for them to be done by Christmas...but I still only have another week to get them packaged and in the mail in time. Good thing I genuinely love the little squirt!) :)

If I mount my stamps at all, I usually use 1/4 inch craft foam, cut to exactly fit the back of the stamp, and I glue it to the stamp using E6000 glue. (You should be able to get both of these at any craft store.) I follow the instructions on the glue package to get the best bond.

For me as an adult, I find that this gives a good backing that I can grip well, and the foam helps to evenly distribute the pressure during stamping, especially for larger stamps.

However, it might not be thick enough for a child. When I made some stamps for my grandma, she had trouble gripping the foam well enough. I eventually got some wood blocks cut to size and glued the foam to them. This made it easier for my grandma to handle.

So my suggestion would be to mount the stamps to wood blocks, with a layer of foam in between. E6000 glue should work for both layers I think. I would trim the edges of the stamp down to the shape of the image (rather than leaving a wide border of carved-out material surrounding the image, as some people do) and trim the foam to roughly follow the shape of the stamp. The wood blocks could be rectangular but cut to be the right size for the stamp. You could also stamp the stamp onto the wood before mounting it, to help stampers see the correct orientation.

I use 6mm (1/4") thick fun foam, and cut it just a teeny bit wider than the stamp so there is something to grip when inking up and stamping.
The glue is some white, general purpose glue* that is allowed to dry to tacky before touching the pieces together. You can still peel apart and adjust them for about 15 seconds.
I score the back of the foam with a knife point, and the back of the stamp in the opposite direction with a small gouge, and give a little twist as I smack them together. It has to dry about 4 or 5 hours before you can stamp or it may slide sideways a little. It depends on how long you wait to put the pieces together, longer being better.

*Crafters Pick from Hobby Lobby - water based, non-toxic, and seems to resist water when dry, since I have successfully washed stamps in the sink. I don't soak them in the water, but run a trickle across the stamp as I clean it, so I guess it's OK.

I get the thick foam from Stampeaz for $ .69 a sheet. She has lots of colors.
Edit: I don't use the foam on the new Japanese carving material. It's thick enough on its own.

I am grateful to anyone who mounts their stamps with some kind of backing because I tend to drop them ~ OFTEN!

I like to mount my stamps on 1/2 foam, I found a piece of foam laying by the road to my home, it is that alphabet letter, square, that is for a floor. It is flat on the bottom and textured on the top, I use lock-tite glue that seems to work really well. I always cut it to fit the stamp..with very little overhang.

Thank you everyone! This is super helpful! I didn't think to put foam between the stamp and wood block if I go that route. I'll be going to the craft store this weekend! :)