Mango Juice, Cardboard and the Art of Lazy Genius Stamp-Making
Today, I’m about to revolutionize your art journal game with the world’s most underrated DIY project:
The Juicy Mango Stamp
No fancy lino cutters. No overpriced hobby-store kits. Just you, a piece of soggy mango packaging, and an artistically questionable desire to make something fabulous.
The Method
Step 1: Buy a mango. Eat it. (This is crucial for both the crafting process and your soul.
Step 2: Look lovingly at the cardboard packaging. Think about its journey. It held a mango. Now it will hold your creative destiny.
Step 3: Cut a piece of the package and glue it on your cardboard.
Step 4: Slap some paint on it. Any paint will do. Old acrylics. Markers will also work perfectly and not to forget ink (pads). Even night’s pasta sauce will do the trick (though I don’t recommend that unless you’re into food-themed journaling).
Step 5: Stamp away! Onto paper, onto fabric, onto your forehead during a mid-craft existential crisis.
Why This Works
I’ve been using this method for 12 years when I first got the idea. I couldn’t get myself to throw away the package because it had a nice soft feeling and had awesome holes in it which also were/are very customizable.
With every pull you can get bigger holes vertically or horizontally. You choose. So back then I thought why not make cheap stamps out of them instead of dump them in a stinky lonely and dark garbage bin.
This mango packaging is truly the Leonardo da Vinci of trash-crafting materials. It’s soft, textured, and already slightly smug because it knows it’s better than those store-bought stamps.
The Results
Maybe your first few stamps might look like a mango sneezed on your journal. But after the first try, you’ll start creating patterns so chic that even Pinterest would be jealous.
And when someone asks, “Where did you get those beautiful designs?” you can look them straight in the eye and whisper, “From the sacred depths of my fruit bin.”
So go forth, crafty people: raid your recycling bin or directly prevent stuff from endimg up there. Devour your mangoes.
And remember: art doesn’t have to be expensive: it just has to be juicy.
(And yes, I’m trademarking ‘Juicy Art’ as we speak.)