I have been seeing other people carving small stamps out of erasers lately. @cactuscloudart on Instagram has a book out about doing this, for example. Erasers are cheap, particularly by the box, and this seems like an inexpensive way to try out lino plate carving. So, I grabbed some erasers and a set of lino carving tools.

I know from experience that focused work cutting small details has a fair risk of cutting oneself. I had the idea of making a holder for the eraser to increase the average distance between my fingers and the carving surface of the eraser. The design is very simple but works well: it’s just a square of MDF with a cut out slightly smaller than the eraser so that the eraser will friction fit in the hole. It worked out really well.

I modified my existing retro rocket ship design a little and printed it on the laser printer. I used a cotton swab dipped in acetone to transfer the toner to the surface of the eraser.

This was fun and it seems like it came out okay for a first attempt. There are now a bunch of erasers here. So, I am sure there will be more eraser stamps.

A rectangular pink rubber eraser with a retro-style rocket ship carved onto one face laying on a piece of paper that has been imprinted with the stamp. The tip of a lino carving tool is also visible.
Retro Rocket Eraser Stamp
A square of 3mm thick MDF board with a rectangular hole about the size of the pink eraser sitting next to it.
Eraser Carving Holder
A square of 3mm thick MDF board with a rectangular hole with a pink rubber eraser pressed into it.
Eraser Carving Holder
A rectangular pink rubber eraser with a retro-style rocket ship carved onto one face, the design highlighted in black laying face-up next to an imprint from the rocket eraser stamp on a piece of paper.
Retro Rocket Eraser Stamp
A rectangular pink rubber eraser with a retro-style rocket ship carved onto one face laying on a gridded cutting mat. The design stands out in black, having been covered with black ink. The tip of a lino cutting tool, a pile of rubber cuttings, and an archival ink pad are visible on the surface behind the rocket eraser stamp.
Retro Rocket Eraser Stamp

Two minute carving video on YouTube.

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