Hi, this is Esther from estieMade, kicking off a series called Craft Blast from the Past. The series is all about taking an old school craft and using it in a new and modern way.

Today's topic? Turning erasers into stamps! Remember how we used to use potatoes in grade school and carve them into stamps? Well, this is pretty much the same thing, except you use erasers instead of potatoes. This is a easy and cost effective way to spice up a card (Mother's Day is coming up), gift wrap, or packaging. Plus, you can reuse the stamps you make for a long time.

To make your stamps, you will need:

-no.2 pencils with new/unused erasers

-X-acto knife

-ballpoint pen

-stamp pads

-paper, or something else to stamp on

-a damp paper towel

step one Take your ballpoint pen, and draw out the desired stamp shape on your eraser.

I made a triangle and a heart. *I also tried doing this on the big white eraser you see in the images above, but it didn't work out for me. The erasers were too porous for the stamp pads I had, and the shapes that I stamped out looked more like blobs than hearts. Perhaps I should try with a larger design or a different kind of eraser next time.

step two Using your x-acto knife, carefully cut the excess eraser away, leaving just your shape.

You'll want to cut down to the base of the eraser, where the metal piece is. I made the heart by cutting right angles to get the general shape, then shaving down little pieces of eraser to give it a more rounded shape.

step three Admire your fancy work. Then bust out the stamp pads.

It's time to go stamp happy! Make sure your damp paper towel close by, so you can wipe off the stamps when you switch colors.

I ended up making a bunch of different patterns using my stamps, then went back with a Micron pen to add accents. I thought this one (below) would make a cute name card for a dinner party. (Or in my case, a tea party that has pb&j.)

So there you have it – the first Craft Blast from the Past. The more you use the stamps, the more ideas you come up with. I promise!

If you're interested in seeing more tutorials, stop by my blog.