gatherings made from, I believe, Mars Carve. I would estimate it's been
used at least a couple of hundred times. That I know of, it has not been
cleaned on a regular basis, if at all.would almost be sacrilege to do
so. Those of you who have really looked at it know what I mean. The
patina on its surface is quite as beautiful as the image it creates. The
stamp still strikes a near perfect image after surviving untold
applications of both dye and pigment inks.
If I run across a stamp in a letterbox here in CT/RI/MA that is
particularly messy, I gently wipe it off or more likely blot with a soft
paper towel. The brand, Viva, is the softest I have found and quickly
absorbs much of the surface ink. If the bag the stamp is in is messy, I
replace it, but before I return the stamp to it, I wrap a small square
of paper towel around it as many people do here in New England. I cut
sheets of Viva into quarters and carry with me. If a stamp looks like it
will continue to be messy and if there is room, I leave two or there
quarters of paper toweling in the box.
As with all art, a hand carved stamp is ephemeral. That being said,
whatever each person can do to take a little time to carefully prolong
its life is a gift to the next person who encounters it. This is
especially true as many carver/letterboxers are leaving eraser carving
behind for intricately carved stamps that take hours to complete. It is
very frustrating when we find a box or check our own boxes and encounter
a mess that was left by someone who seemed to have valued the "F" more
than demonstrating respect for the box's creator and for those who would
come by later to enjoy it. Likewise, if a box is cracked or a finder
does not have extra baggies or towels to clean up a leak or mess, as
often happens, a quick nod to the owner for follow-up is always greatly
appreciated.
Linda a/k/a Alafair
-----Original Message-----
From: Debbie Teeter [mailto:dlt22@cornell.edu]
Sent: Friday, June 06, 2003 2:23 PM
To: letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [LbNA] Baby Wipes
Well, I don't think so, as you'd be using a really small amount and wash
it
away (the wipes solution stays of the stamp) - but I've used unscented
soap
products for so long due to allergies I've forgotten there's any other
kind!
Our area doesn't see the letterboxing traffic that seems to occur in the
New England states - after seeing what some of the local stamps look
like
after a few dozen visitors, I was wondering what the experiences of New
Englanders are - do the stamps get really gummy, do people generally
clean
them after use, are there any cleaning tips you could share, or is this
not even an issue?
Debbie T, "the Bee"
At 09:39 AM 06/06/2003 -0400, you wrote:
>Hi Debbie T.,
>Wouldn't detergent have the same 'scent' drawback as baby wipes?
>
>
> Dye inks clean up much
> > easier - the best way to clean up after pigment ink is with a
toothbrush,
> > dish detergent and running water, especially with intricate stamps.
We're
> > considering carrying an old tooth brush loaded with a little
detergent,
> > then using our drinking water bottle to rinse stamps off.
>
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