Stamp plain gift tags with a pretty pattern or special message. To create an all-over design, use a patterned stamp that has a greater surface area than the tag. Customize messages using special multiletter stamps from crafts or office-supply stores.

Objects from your collection of rocks, shells and driftwood have a place at the table - use them to weight place cards or as place markers themselves. Select a stamp that bears an image appropriate to the object it will imprint. You might rest an egg stamped with the image of a hen in a store-bought nest with a paper tag lettered with the guest's name. A seahorse can similarly adorn a seashell picked from the beach.

Dress up paper party products, such as napkins and plates, with a set of stamps, creating a matching set. The surfaces of recycled-paper cups and other items readily absorb ink, making them perfect for stamping. Try stamping green leaves and pink flowers together for an attractive floral motif, or use animal stamps for a child's party.

Design a personalized stationery set. To make the letterhead, print your name and address on a sheet of paper, then add a flourish with an artistic design or perhaps a bold monogram. Make matching accessories by repeating the pattern on cloth albums, scrapbooks and more.

Painting with stamps is easier than painting with stencils, because the designs are meant to be more free-form. Use several flower stamps in different designs and sizes to create a garland of flowers that stretches across a headboard and trails onto the wall, overlapping different shades of paint, such as blue and green, to create more depth.

When you stamp with ink, do some test runs on scrap paper. Sometimes the edge of the stamp will pick up ink and leave a mark on the surface you're stamping. If this happens, wipe the stamp's edge clean with a baby wipe each time before you stamp. On curved surfaces, apply the stamp in a rolling motion. Close ink-pad cases tightly after each use.

Before you apply the design, practice on a sheet of kraft paper. Always use a brush to apply paint to the stamp. And if you make a mistake, don't fret - on many slick surfaces, you can wipe wet paint away with damp paper towels.

You'll need to purchase fabric pads - special sponges that are saturated with fabric-safe ink. Test a fabric swatch before stamping on a garment or linen to get a sense of how much ink and pressure to use. Wipe away any excess ink on the edge of the stamp, as described in tip No. 1. After you've stamped your fabric, follow the manufacturer's instructions on the fabric pad to set the design.

You can have any graphic design or text made into a rubber stamp: Search online or in the telephone book for a vendor. Prices are usually about $5 a square inch. Try clip art or your own artwork, or have stamps made in your own handwriting or a favorite font.

This is cache, read story here