Stamp Cleaning MIRACLE

Hi everyone!  I have something SUPER exciting to share with you today!  A BRAND-NEW stamp cleaning MIRACLE!  Seriously... it is THAT awesome, that I am calling it a miracle!

I have been struggling for as long as I have been stamping to figure out the best, easiest method for cleaning my stamps.  I started with the Stampin' Up stamp scrubber and it's ok... but not great.  I experienced little fibers coming loose and transferring onto my stamps or stamp pads and then dealt with little inked fibers making their way onto my projects.  Annoying.  It also gets dirty quickly and I didn't like having to continually wash it and run it through my dishwasher.  When I cleaned my stamps and then stamped off, the stamps still made an impression with dirty inky mess from the cleaner. YUCK!

Next I moved on to baby wipes.  There are tons of baby wipes on the market and you have to be really careful when choosing one for your stamps.  You have to make sure they do not contain alcohol and worry whether or not they will leave fibers on your stamps.  Rest assured they do.  Even the expensive ones... which I purchased for years.  I just dealt with the fibers because it was an improvement over the SU Scrubber and I didn't know what else to use.  It seemed to be the best of two evils.

About a month ago, I had ruined yet another stamped image because some fiber from my baby wipe got in my ink, which got on my stamp, which got inked up with a nice shade of black, which left an impression with my stamped image.  I was FED UP.  I ripped it up (and maybe said a few choice words) and sat there and asked myself out loud (ala crazy woman), "WHAT can I use to clean my stamps that will NOT leave ANY fiber of any kind on anything?".  Then I went searching.  I am not sure why I thought I would find the answer in my house... but I was desperate.  Surely there was SOMETHING that would work and stop driving me crazy.  Then I saw it... the thing I use to dry my truck after I wash it at the car wash!  I looked at it, all stained black from dirt on my truck and figured it wouldn't hurt anything to give it a try.  I grabbed a pair of scissors and cut off a piece about 8 X 8 inches and rinsed it out in the sink with some dishwasher detergent.  I didn't notice anything "dirty" rinsing out of it, so I figured whatever was on it, was just stained.  I took that piece of "miracle" to my stamp room and squirted a little bit of my MFT stamp cleaner on it.  I grabbed the dirtiest stamp on my table and just swiped it with the material.  Then I stamped off on my scrap paper and it left NO "dirty" image on it.  It was clean as a whistle.  Seriously.  It leaves NO fibers of any kind.  In fact, it doesn't even feel fibrous.  It is more like a rubbery, foam-like piece of material.  It cleans stamps like a CHAMP.  I used the "dirty from my truck" piece of material for over a month before I decided to tell you all about it.  I wanted to be SURE that it was the miracle I have been waiting for... and it is.  :) 

The product is called the absorber.  I bought mine at Walmart for about $10 for a 27" X 17" piece.  On the package, I saw that there is also a website: http://www.theabsorber.com/ (it appears to be down at the moment, but I also found this product listed at Amazon).  This is NOT like a Sham WOW.  I thought it was, but when I went to the store to buy a brand new one for my blog post, I noticed that the Sham WOW appeared to be fibrous.  It is not the same smooth material of the absorber, and therefore I cannot say that it will have the same effect.  You NEED one of these.  REALLY... NOW... go out and buy one and see how amazing it is when cleaning your stamps.  You can find it in the automotive aisle at Walmart.  I use the MFT Cleaning solution with mine.  I like it because it doesn't lather and leaves your stamps clean and smells GREAT (citrus-like).  The piece I have been using is a yellow absorber (the color doesn't matter, it comes in a variety of colors) and is super stained with black ink.  What I have noticed is that the ink doesn't transfer to anything else (I'm sure it COULD, but I haven't had any problem with that at all).  Once I wipe off my stamp, the ink is "sucked" into the absorber and it stays there.  It can be machine washed (although I have just continued to rinse mine with a little bit of dish detergent) and with the large piece you get for only $10, you'll ALWAYS have a clean one available.

It comes in a little bag within a tube.  It is pre-moistened in the bag, which makes it pliable and "cloth-like".  After I have used it, I keep it in a baggie, sealed shut and it stays moist.  If you leave it out, it dries up and gets hard.  All you have to do is rinse it out (or wet it) and it is ready to go again.  

Here is some information from the package:

The Absorber
The original PVA drying skin
made by CleanTools

• Dries small cars in 2-3 minutes (I can vouch for this, as I use it for my truck and it dries it quickly)
• Resistant to most chemicals
• unharmed by grease and oil (which should make it safe for Stazon cleaner and Ultra Clean)
• Tough, lintless (which is a MIRACLE)
• Lasts for years with normal use
• Great as a towel on the beach or on boats
• Use it anywhere you'd use a towel, chamois or even a sponge.

Instructions:

• Before first use, rinse out thoroughly with warm water.
• May be stored damp in tube - so it's always ready to use (won't rot when kept wet in tube).
• If absorber dries out, simply re-wet.
• Machine wash with regular laundry - use liquid laundry detergent.
• Note: Thoroughly clean before storing to help avoid odor or mildew.  Odor or mildew will not affect the absorber.  If either occurs, wash as above (do not use bleach). 

I have been impressed and amazed at how wonderful this is for cleaning my stamps and I just HAD to share with you!  Perhaps some of you are having the same issues I was OR you're just looking for a better option. :)  Keep in mind that if you have been using baby wipes or a scrubber with fibers that come loose, those might be on your ink pads.  I "scraped" my Memento ink pads with card stock to remove as much of the baby wipe fibers as I could, so that I wouldn't continue having the fiber issue.  Make sure to check out your ink pads to eliminate as many of the fibers as you can. 

If you go buy one of these, be sure to come back and let me know how you like it.  I am NOT worried at all.  I LOVE using it and I am confident you will too!  :)

*Note: I have not been compensated in any way for this post.  I purchased this product and am providing this review as a GIFT to YOU!  :)

Have a wonderful day!

Jody