Custom Ex Libris Stamp Review

[irbyls]

I've always liked bookplates, but I didn't like the idea of buying customized stickers for $x, then running out of them and having to pay $x again for another printing run. Waste of money, in my opinion. Enter the Ex Libris stamp.

 

Ex Libris, for those of you who have never heard the phrase, is Latin for "from the books of" or "from the library of." Ex Libris bookplates and stamps are fairly common book-related paraphernalia. I decided Etsy would probably be my best bet for an affordable custom stamp.

 

I've had my eye on the Archeress Ex Libris stamp from the Etsy shop Asspocket Productions for about six months now. I finally came into a little bit of money that didn't go to pens and took the plunge for $18.

 

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy159/irbyls/IMG_0213-1.jpg

 

The stamp itself is made of photopolymer, not red rubber like many stamps. You have the choice to get it either unmounted on clear cling photopolymer or mounted with a wooden handle. I love wood, so I chose the mounted version. The image is about 1.5 inches by a little less than 2.5 inches.

 

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy159/irbyls/IMG_0216-1.jpg

 

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy159/irbyls/IMG_0217.jpg

 

The handle did not come already inserted, which I thought was nice. It means--to me, anyway--that I can get a customized handle made at some point in my life if I ever want something fancier. There was a hole in the wood block and you had to stick the handle in there; it fit very tightly, discouraging the idea that it would fall out easily.

 

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy159/irbyls/IMG_0215-1.jpg

 

I used a red and black duo ink pad that I found in Walmart. I ordered my stamp on July 6 and received it today, July 12. Six days for a customized stamp is a great deal, I think. Plus, it came with a very tiny free stamp!

 

There are about 150 more Ex Libris stamps available from Asspocket Productions, and I would definitely recommend doing business with Ms. Burns. I can't wait to get another Ex Libris stamp!

 

 

 

 

Edit: I'm not affiliated with Asspocket Productions in any way. I'm just an extremely happy stamp customer!

Edited July 14, 2010 by irbyls

[Ravenmoon]

Fantastic! I've looked over her shop, and I will definitely be ordering a few things. Thank you so much for sharing this!

[LostInThought]

Thanks for the review, what a great idea!

[drifting]

That is very cool. Thanks for the link to the stamp maker!

 

Ryan.

[bogiesan]

Cool, took me way back to when I was making rubber stamps myself.

Ex Libris stamps were common among the art stamp makers but rarely did they include a custom name. Part of the fun was using one's favorite pens or sname samps to apy the name. If you used a custom name stamp, you could use a different color ink.

 

david boise ID

[Lorna Reed]

On this recommendation I ordered an Ex Libris stamp from Asspocket Productions. I chose the 'priest following angel' design. It arrived very quickly and I am very pleased with the stamp and the transaction. All I need to do now is stamp several hundred books! I also learned something as I had never heard of the 'etsy' website before-you can always learn something on FPN

[Mr Ink]

Thanks for posting this. I've been searching high and low for such a stamp without much success. I found exactly what I needed thanks to you.

 

 

The stamp itself is made of photopolymer, not red rubber like many stamps.

 

 

Is there any advantage in having the stamp in photopolymer rather than red rubber? Just wondering.

[irbyls]

On this recommendation I ordered an Ex Libris stamp from Asspocket Productions. I chose the 'priest following angel' design. It arrived very quickly and I am very pleased with the stamp and the transaction. All I need to do now is stamp several hundred books! I also learned something as I had never heard of the 'etsy' website before-you can always learn something on FPN

 

That design is one of the most beautiful! She has so many cool designs available. I'll probably end up getting another sometime.

 

Etsy is probably my favorite website to shop on if I want to get something unique and handmade. One can find nearly everything!

[Northwoods]

I hadn't thought about a customized Ex Libris stamp. What a great idea!

 

My recent custom stamp idea was to appeal to my anachronistic nature and have a rubber seal stamp made using a QR code image. For those who don't know what a QR code is, they're 2D "barcodes", specifically a pixelated block of encoded information. A lot of smartphones can scan and read them, so it creates a personal seal that is machine readable.

[Stargazer34683]

Very nice. I might get one although the wife might be angry. She bought me an embosser "From the library of" and my name.

[Mr Ink]

Very nice. I might get one although the wife might be angry. She bought me an embosser "From the library of" and my name.

 

That is a very nice and thoughtful gift. Kudos to your wife!

[NateB]

Is there any advantage in having the stamp in photopolymer rather than red rubber? Just wondering.

 

 

I think photopolymer is an 'easy' way to makes stamps. You use a picture to create the stamp. As far as I know, rubber stamps have to be hand carved or machine made.

 

These look great. I have a few old bookplates that I would love to have made into stamps...

[Danisidhe]

Thank you for the review - I've been looking for an alternative to having stickers printed and this is great.

 

I noticed at the site that some people seem to have their address on their stamps, it boggled my mind that there are people who might stay in the one address for the lifetime of a book! I know I choose to move around a lot but aren't we talking 20-40years?! Wow!

[nxn96]

Very nice. I might get one although the wife might be angry. She bought me an embosser "From the library of" and my name.

American Stationery sells them for about $40. Very nice and handy to have around, particularly for books that people borrow and forget who they borrowed it from.

 

I think they also sell the gold foil discs, which are nice if your CD's or DVD's have the same borrow and forget problem.

[Lorna Reed]

Thank you for the review - I've been looking for an alternative to having stickers printed and this is great.

 

I noticed at the site that some people seem to have their address on their stamps, it boggled my mind that there are people who might stay in the one address for the lifetime of a book! I know I choose to move around a lot but aren't we talking 20-40years?! Wow!

I didn't have my address put on my stamp (didn't think of it!) but I have lived in my present home for 35 years and have no plans to move.

[Danisidhe]

Thank you for the review - I've been looking for an alternative to having stickers printed and this is great.

 

I noticed at the site that some people seem to have their address on their stamps, it boggled my mind that there are people who might stay in the one address for the lifetime of a book! I know I choose to move around a lot but aren't we talking 20-40years?! Wow!

I didn't have my address put on my stamp (didn't think of it!) but I have lived in my present home for 35 years and have no plans to move.

 

This is what I love about the 'net. You get an insight into lives so different from your own. My move from Japan to Sydney, last January, was my 38th move and I'm only 37! That kind of stability must be wonderful on so many levels, it's probably much more 'normal' than my life. I'll think of you, now, when people ask me how I "cope" with moving so much and maybe I'll be able to answer them a little more intelligently instead of staring at them trying to figure out what on earth they mean.

Edited September 9, 2010 by Danisidhe