Wax Seals!

[playpen]

If you pay an extra fee to have your letters hand cancelled, the seals will remain intact. The fee however, is about a dollar.

[damien]

I've had the same problems with seals breaking off. In my case, I solved the problem by using a different brand of wax. The nice shiny ones tend to be very brittle and break off. The kind I get from Stuart Houton is softer and doesn't break off.

[Titivillus]

Sealing wax & seals have always fascinated me. As much as I'd like to have a few (Or several) of those things, I never got the chance.

 

I'm Chinese by ethnicity. Mum and dad used to say that I would be better-off with one of those old Chinese signature-stamps/seals. It would be nice to have one of those, but fiddling around with hot wax and a seal-stamp also looks like a lot of fun.

 

You can do both! a chop can also be used for hot wax just be sure to wet it down before use! I've used mine with wax and it works just fine. Just got another 6 from China and I'll try and post a wax impression of one of them.

 

 

 

Kurt

 

[Titivillus]

I've had the same problems with seals breaking off. In my case, I solved the problem by using a different brand of wax. The nice shiny ones tend to be very brittle and break off. The kind I get from Stuart Houton is softer and doesn't break off.

 

That's the irony in that seals are suppose to be brittle to show whether there has been tampering to either the signature or the letter!

 

 

Kurt

 

[Shangas]

A "chop"? Please tell me you're not talking about cuts of meat.

[Titivillus]

A "chop"? Please tell me you're not talking about cuts of meat.

 

 

fourth definition at Dictionary.com

 

chop4 –noun

 

1. an official stamp or seal, or a permit or clearance, esp. as formerly used in India and China.

 

2. a design, corresponding to a brand or trademark, stamped on goods to indicate their identity or quality.

 

3. the signature stamp of an artist, printmaker, etc., testifying to the authenticity of a work.

 

 

Kurt

 

 

[Shangas]

Ooooooooh.

 

Okay.

 

Yeah, don't have one of those.

[hardyb]

Here is one I picked up from Atelier:

Edited December 4, 2007 by hardyb

[Escribiente]

Those are fantastic wax seals. Is there a place where you can send your own design to get a wax seal made?

[Jen]

Between multiple fountain pens with different cheery colors, and the multiple seals; Christmas cards are a lot of work.

 

Joi

 

Yes they are! But being able to use my fountain/calligraphy pens and my seals is the only way to motivate myself to do the dreadful task. :blink:

 

[Jen]

Those are fantastic wax seals. Is there a place where you can send your own design to get a wax seal made?

 

These sites came to mind:

 

Wax Works Based in Canada. Looked most promising.

 

Cannizzaro Most of my local stationery stores order embossers and wax seals from them. It is a New York based business. I was hesitant because of their sucky website (there's only one page) but I did communicate with them thru phone and E-mail with modest satisfaction. I'm guessing if all the stores use them they must be pretty good or at least okay.

 

Scribes Delight (although I believe they use Cannizzaro's service) seemed somewhat knowledgeable; nice on the phone.

 

Nostalgic Impressions Contacted them for a custom seal quote. Twice they claimed they never received my JPEG attachment file. They gave me another E-mail address to send the file to, never heard back from them. I did order one standard initial seal from them and the delivery was prompt.

 

 

[jlepens]

Between multiple fountain pens with different cheery colors, and the multiple seals; Christmas cards are a lot of work.

 

Joi

 

Yes they are! But being able to use my fountain/calligraphy pens and my seals is the only way to motivate myself to do the dreadful task. :blink:

 

 

:ltcapd: I'll remember to be thankful for the opportunity to use up some of my ink while I's going through my 100. Also, hot chocolate and warm yeast bread with butter seems to help. (I take a bread break 1/2 way through). I can get them done in a day without interruptions. And my family and friends seem to like the care i put in.

 

Thanks for starting this topic. I did not think many people still enjoyed seals. I only get a few in the mail, always on the card or letter.

 

Joi

[Titivillus]

Last count I had about 30 seals and 14 chops and a cigar box full of wax. They go unused for awhile then present season comes and I get them out again.

 

There's a Van Cort instrument signet as well as a French style Murano glass one and some Aladine, Herbin, Stuart Mifflin, Flax, a masonic one I got at the National Archives, and several others that I can't remember where I got them.

 

 

Kurt

Edited December 5, 2007 by Tytyvyllus

[Jen]

Jen, am I reading this correctly, to say that you can use the Asian stone seals with wax? This brings on a whole new level of interest for me! While a custom wax seal is most definitely out of my price range at the moment, I recall seeing DIY hanko at Daiso where you can carve the stone yourself (I assume it's something relatively soft, like soapstone?) and for 2 bucks a piece, that could be fun to play with, especially if there's a potential for using it as a traditional ink seal/stamp, and also with wax! Although maybe this type of stone wouldn't work with wax, who knows...

 

I look forward to seeing any pictures you post of these!

 

Sabrina

 

Sabrina,

 

I think Kurt already answered part of your question for me. I actually got the idea of using the Chinese seal (chops, as Kurt explained) with wax from another thread on this board.

 

I have no idea whether the type of stone you mentioned would work with wax, but I'm assuming as long as you create a moisture barrier anything can make any impression with hot wax with no problem. If you're into experimenting, make sure to give us an update when you've made your very own custom seal!

 

 

name chop with cinnabar paste in the background. (I found the term cinnabar paste on Wikipedia... no idea if it actually is the name for what I have. Seems like it)

 

 

stamped with the red paste

 

 

I realized from this impression that the way my chop was carved is the opposite of what typical western wax seals would be. My name chop, when dipped in the paste and stamped, shows my name in red; while a wax seal would show the initial in white because it's carved inward. (it's late and this is the best description I can give you for now). Anyway the wax impression looks odd compare to the normal red paste impression. Looks like it's backwards.

 

 

inspired by this thread

Edited December 5, 2007 by Jen

[Titivillus]

I realized from this impression that the way my chop was carved is the opposite of what typical western wax seals would be. My name chop, when dipped in the paste and stamped, shows my name in red; while a wax seal would show the initial in white because it's carved inward. (it's late and this is the best description I can give for now). Anyway the wax impression looks odd compare to the normal red paste impression. Looks like it's backwards.

 

I have one set of chops that are negatives of each other. So one has the background removed and the other has the lines removed. One gives red lines and the other a red background. The red background is more like a european seal.

 

 

Kurt

 

[matthewk]

Cool thread

 

hisnibs.com sells some modern sealing wax too.

 

I've never worked with the material but maybe fimo clay can be used to make your own seals. It is a low-firing polymer clay.

 

The movies that make me want to try wax seals are: Dune and Robin Hood Prince of Thieves

 

matthew

 

 

[Jen]

Thank you Kurt for helping me with the description. Great collection! Put mine to shame.

 

These two pics demonstrate what I was trying to explain. (Source: Wikipedia)

 

Edited December 5, 2007 by Jen

[Ray-Vigo]

Right about the shiny wax- that's the good stuff that was used for sealing messages.

 

I'll consider the $1 hand cancel fee for my cards this year- it depends on how many I'm doing. I'll skip the seals if it's going to get very expensive.

[welfvet]

I seal the envelope of letters I send from the UK to family abroad. Never thought to ask if they arrived broken or not. I place them at the point of the flap, unless this is way down on the envelope, as I think the automatic machines at the post office propel the letters by the bottom / top margins (but this is pure speculation based on having seen some franking machines etc.)

 

My dad passed on his signet ring to me that he'd had made as a young man. He'd commissioned his family crest to be engraved onto the ring. Really enjoy using it.

 

I have used matches and a creme brulee torch and am quite good at browning the paper or occasionally my own flesh. Some waxes like to burn before they melt, can get quite hairy but all part of the fun. Is there a good way to build up a layer of wax, and is there an ideal time after dripping the wax before placing the seal into it?

 

I' keen to get a paper embosser with a personalised pattern now, just debating whther to use the family crest of my father or have a dabble with adding my own twist as I believe was customary for each subsequent generation to do. Never been much into heraldry but I'd hate to offend the ancestors!

[chud]

Damn, now I want some of these too, what do you melt the wax with to stop it getting sooty?

 

I use a torch-style cigar lighter -- it's basically like the (bleep) child of a creme-brule torch and a cigarette lighter; same operation as the torch, pretty much, but smaller - more like a cigarette lighter in size.

 

I don't generally mind a little soot in the wax from a match though, either, depending on the wax color. Goes well with the traditional reds anyway.