HI Wendy,
Glad to hear from you!
*** Quoting Wendy Apgar to Julia Sidebottom dated 08-13-97 ***
>  I will probably buy one eventually, although can't afford
>  to right now. I have enough stamps, and occasionally I
>  get a new one, either because I buy it or because I have
>  a friend who sends me her stamps that she is tired of.
>  :-)
I have been looking closely at them again the last few days.  I got a flyer 
from Comotion in the mail saturday and they are now offering them as well as 
they are offering their entire line of stamps unmounted!  Something to think 
about for sure... but like you I cannot afford to much more right now so the 
acrylic mount as well as other stamps  are just going to 
have to wait.
  I don't think I could say that I have tired of many or any of my RS's as of 
this time... there are some that I have put in swaps. Those stamps though 
were stamps that were not being used as much as they had been at one time.  I 
have a lot of unmounteds right now that I want to put into use... and if I 
were to get the acrylic mounts they would be put to use right away.  I had a 
woman on the internet that exchanged unmounteds with me earlier this year. 
And there are better than 50 unmounteds there that I have not even had the 
chance to really explore yet. With this move and getting settled my RS's have 
just had to wait.
*** Quoting Wendy Apgar to Julia Sidebottom dated 08-13-97 ***
>  I learned a little while ago how to make pins (that you
>  pin on clothing) using my rubber stamps. One stamps and
>  colors it (don't emboss) and then get it laminated and
>  cut it out. Then glue a pin on the back. They have been
>  great fun, although I won't make a bunch up to sell
>  because they cost more to do.  
I am hoping to take a jewelry making class for RS's here sooner than not.  
  One of the things I have done though to make jewelry is to use a clear EP 
over my images that have been cut out to size... I use several coats of the 
EP so that the piece is "hard" after several coats... I do this on both sides 
of the piece... then if it is a pin or earings then I add the findings etc.
  I also like using shrink plastic with my RS images for jewelry making... 
now this is definitly a lot of fun IMHO... though this project can be a bit 
costly because the shrink plastic is not cheap IMHO.
*** Quoting Wendy Apgar to Julia Sidebottom dated 08-13-97 ***
>  I've also made magnets using poster board. I stamp and
>  color and cut out and stick a magnet on the back. I have
>  a lot of 3-d winnie-the-pooh magnets that I have made.
>  I'm hoping to sell some of the magnets at the bazaar
>  and to friends as well.
Yes, Yes, Yes,!!!!  The magnets are a great idea! I have made any number of 
them myself!  Many of them deck the refrigerators of my family members right 
now as well as I have sold a number of them over the last several years. The 
possibilites there are endless!
  Another thing that I have been toying with is redoing old furniture pieces 
and RSing them to give an interesting designer finish!  I have also made some 
lovely wind chimes using my RS's.  Just a few more ideas you might find 
interesting.
*** Quoting Wendy Apgar to Julia Sidebottom dated 08-13-97 ***
>  I stamp because I enjoy them, and sell what I can.  I never
>  make cards that I do not like unless someone is paying for
>  a specific card...but I love rubber stamping and have the
>  time to do it since I'm on disability. It's the funds for
>  supplies that is sometimes a struggle, although my parents
>  are picking up some of that cost in exchange for me keeping
>  them supplied with cards. That isn't a problem. I usually
>  make a couple of one kind for me, one for mom  & dad, and one
>  to sell at the bazaar.
Like you I stamp for the sheer pleasure of the craft... and if I can make a 
few pennies along the way I do... 
 I have made a number of special order cards and such for different people as 
well as wedding invitations... in fact I have the stuff here now for 200 
wedding invitations that I need to get going on here real soon... I am just 
waiting for the final go ahead from the bride on inks and EP's to be used on 
this beautiful parchment that she is having the invitations done up on.
  Like you I am on disability.  My energy levels are "limited" to say the 
least and it is good to have a craft like RS'ing or Pergamano that do not 
require much of any physical exertion... 
  Right now I am teathered again to continious oxygen... fortunantely I have 
50' of tubing that allows me to go pretty much anywhere in the house I need 
to go... as well as I have portable tanks for going out for short trips.  
Needless to say $$$ are limited here too... I have had to curb my spending a 
great deal over the years with the worse crunch coming just in the last year 
or so...  So now it is a matter of finding creative ways to get a few extra 
pennies together so I can get the goodies that I want for my stamping or 
quilting.
*** Quoting Wendy Apgar to Julia Sidebottom dated 08-13-97 ***
>  FQ's?
A FQ is a "fat quarter" yard of fabric... it is 1/2 yard cut down the middle 
so that your quarter yard of fabric is 22"x 18".  In quilting it is a better 
size piece for being able to cut larger pieces that some patterns call for.
 I have well over 600 FQ's here right now... most of them I did not buy 
either... many of them have been gifts or from swaps etc.  I keep going 
through them again and again so that I can use them sooner than later in some 
of my quilting projects... then there are the ones that are just to pretty to 
cut into!
Take care of yourself Wendy!
Julia
--- He Lives! 
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