Babyjewels Unique Custom Rubber Stamps

This week's featured artist is Cat of Babyjewels Designs http://www.babyjewels.etsy.com. Cat is from New England and has been selling on Etsy since October 2006.


How did you choose your shop name?
The shop name came from my previous blogging name, semi based on my cat Jewels and that I was making baby jewelry at the time.

What is your specialty and what drew you to it?
My specialty on Etsy evolved over the years to what it is now.
I started selling jewelry, which I had also been selling to local boutiques. Concurrently, I was also working as a graphic designer and started selling graphic design here. I did well, but longed for something that I could get a little more mileage out of my illustrations. With graphic design you sell something you absolutely love and that's it. It's never to be repeated as it's a custom item to represent someone's business. I really wanted to find something where I could not only provide custom work but get a bit more life out of designs. I absolutely love coming up with ideas
for stamps as well as fulfilling custom requests.

What inspired the “birth” of this item? One of my favorite designs is the tandem bike with the license plate for customer info.
It was a custom request that I fell in love with. It's a great seller and I love knowing it's been part of a few brides' big days, from being used on invitations to favor bags.

Does this item have any personal significance to you ?

I love the tandem bike because it represents an illustration that is outside my comfort zone. It tends to draw whimsically and it needed to be more a technical illustration. I desperately needed an example of a tandem bike so ended up taking a photo of a bike into photoshop and mocking it up as a tandem. Then drawing it in vector from my frankenstein example.

What is your favorite part of the process of creating your item?
I really love trying to come up with stamps I haven't seen anywhere else.
Interesting illustrations that then have interesting ways to present the custom wording.

Please briefly describe a workday in your “studio” and how you created this item

I really work around the kids. Mornings I answer convos and emails, afternoons I design any orders or tend to the shop, and evenings are more design work and packaging. The bulk of my work is done in the evenings when my husband comes home and takes over.

If this item is part of a special line that you do, has there been an evolution in your process?

There has been evolution in design, fine tuning stamp sizing, text sizes and rethinking how a stamp designed for wood handle will translate to a self inking should the customer want that style. I've also rethought and refined packaging a few times. You definitely want cute packaging, but I strive to find ways to keep it cute and keep costs down.


Check out her shop for more fun designs and great ways for you to use them!