While I was in Provence I took part in an art and yoga retreat called “Cultivating the Creative Spirit” Hosted by my lovely and talented mom, Sigrid Olsen. You can read more about it and future retreats here. One fun lesson we got was how to make your own stamps, letting your surroundings be your guide. Provence is so beautiful it was easy to find inspiration virtually everywhere you looked. Making your own stamps is a simple skill you can learn that will come in handy for a bajillion projects. With a few supplies and a tiny bit of practice you can create beautiful icons for virtually anything from invitations to lampshades to tablecloths, even a paper prototype before you make your own Vecco rug!

Supplies: moo carve carving block, blick speedball lino cutter set, stamp pad, paper of your choice, and of course... inspiration. (I chose the ubiquitous lavender stem as inspiration for my project)

Lino Cutter Set

Moo Carve

Lavender; get inspired by your surroundings

Step 1

Cut off a chunk of moo carve that is the size you want for your stamp. Decide if you want a positive or negative design. I chose to print the negative space around the lavender, which means I carved the shape of the flower itself into the moo carve.

Step 2

Carve your design. You can sketch it out or go for free-form interpretations.

Step 3

You will have tiny bits of shavings as you carve away.

Step 4

The finished product isn’t a carbon copy of the original but it will do.

Step 5

Get your stamp pad and get to stamping. I love the tiny imperfections- it looks more handmade that way.

Step 6

I chose to use this one for place cards. But it is a great simple icon that can be used on cocktail napkins, menu deigns etc.

Check out this leaf border, looks like a rug in the making!

I love this method for trying out color palettes etc before you commit your rug designs to Vecco.

One of the meals I cooked got its own unique menu with a homemade stamp treatment!

My mom and her own homemade stamp!

Thanks so much for letting me share my trip with you. It was such a wonderful experience and I hope you enjoyed following along! Cheers!