Hi Hollowers!
Hope you are having a great week? We are busy preparing your tool boxes and subscription boxes, the whole house has been taken over by box fever! Today I wanted to share a review some of you have been asking for. There are so many different platforms on the market these days that it’s hard to know what one to buy and what the differences are. I have had most of them, I have also review the We R Memory Keepers platform form HSN last year which I wasn’t a fan of, it was a great ideal badly executed in my opinion; im looking forward to try their newer version later in the year. If you want to see the original video click here. I also did a comparison on the MISTI vs the Hampton Art Stamp Platform which is no longer available in the USA but can still be found in Europe; you can view that video here.
It’s so much fun looking back on old videos and seeing how far our videography, lighting, editing and just the Hollow itself has come! I have a few more videos you might be interested in on stamp platforms: I have my first unboxing and impression of the Tim Holtz platform here, how I added foam to my TH platform which is my preference and is super simple if you like to stamp that way too. Plus I have 10 tips for stamp platforms and I had forgotten a few, click here. Why I use craft sheet in my stamp platforms here, I have since learnt their are some difference between the ranger sheet and the amazon ones but for this purposes the amazon ones are perfect. Nearly there! If you want to find out which size MISTI is for you click here; for my top ten tips with the TH platform click here. Finally, I have a playlist on using the MISTI corners which work in all platforms, click here.
Phew, I’ve created alot of videos! Today is a comparison between the main three available on the market, the Tim Holtz Platform, the MISTI and the Stamparatus. I have purchased all of these myself and these are my personal and honest opinions. Many craft tools are personal preference so I have tried to be objective on each one as to the pros and cons. I’d love to know what you think too…
I hope you found todays review useful, overall I prefer the Tim Holtz in the new travel size, the stamparatus comes second and the MISTI third. I’d love to know which you prefer, I have linked up all the options for you to consider… (affiliate links may be used at no cost to you)
Thanks so much for joining me today, I have just posted our winners in the Hobby Holster post here too.
I don’t remember you stating that with the stamparatus it have a feature that the other two do not. The stamparatus as the ability to stamp vertically and horizontally while giving the image equal space all the way down or across your card front. This feature is why I prefer the stamparatus over the other two.
In addition, I didn’t hear you mention that you can flip the panels around on the Stamparatus, which allows you to quickly and easily do three or four+ step stamping. The Tim Holtz panel can flip over, but one side is for polymer, and the other is for rubber, whereas both of the Stamparatus platform sides can be used for whichever stamp type by simply adding in or taking away the foam (like you would in the Misti). It’s much more versatile, in my opinion, than any other stamp platform I’ve seen come on to the market to date.
Careful cleaning any of these products. Plexiglass (acrylic) should never be cleaned with window cleaners. They will lead to cracking and cloudiness. (http://www.eplastics.com/Plastic/eplastics_how_to_videos/cleaning-plexiglass-video). Windex on any of these will damage your tool over time.
Thank you so much for the review! This and the comments below helped me tremendously!
I just purchased a smart Tv for my craft room , and I can’t wait to watch more of your videos! Subscribing now.
Oh – and I’m sooo buying that stamp see you used! It’s a most gorgeous flower!!
I have both Tim Holtz now. I had a MISTI. I love the Tim Holtz because of the ease of flipping from clear to rubber. I had my MISTI about two years and unfortunately dropped it, bad fingers, it landed on it’s corner and broke. I knew it wouldn’t be covered as they only warranty for one year with normal use, I figured dropping it wasn’t “normal”. But I did take a picture and sent it , twice, to My Sweet Petunia, and they never returned my email. I agree with you about their customer service. Since I live in the US I am considering buying one each of the other Tim’s before they are gone! That way I have backups!
The newer Misti has an etched plate so you don’t have to worry about the grid lines rubbing off. They also sell a mousepad with grid lines on it, which is very easy to clean, unless you are using Stazon Ink, or a permanent ink. The mousepad with grids lines up exactly with the top plate, which makes it really easy to line up your stamps. I think this stamp positioned works the best, but it doesn’t have the open sides.
Tim Holtz stamp positioner is heavy duty and the side is open, so you can use any sized paper. If you want to use larger sized paper, this is a good option. Fun foam would be helpful. I also find it harder to clean the plastic on this positioner than the other two.
There are a few problems with the Stamperatus that you haven’t mentioned. Each Stamperatus is slightly different, but most of them won’t stamp well in the corner, and Stampin Up won’t replace the ones that don’t stamp in the corner. It kind of defeats the purpose of a stamp platform because it means you can’t just put your paper in the corner and restamp it if it doesn’t stamp well the first time. In the Stampin Up demo video, they tape the paper onto the platform so it can be restamped in exactly the same place.. It does help if you put an extra fun foam on the bottom to lift up the stamp, but then the magnets don’t hold the paper down well.
Another problem is that the plates don’t lie flat when opened, so it’s difficult to ink up your stamp unless you place something like a stamp case under the plate so it’s level.
Theres a youtube video where a lady bought magnetic vent covers at hardware store and then she could stamp in corners fine
Thanks for sharing!
Instructions on the Stamparatus clearly state not to store with both plates attached. I also noticed you missed showing one of the best things about it. You can stamp repeatedly either vertically or horizontally by removing the plate and moving it along the hinges. This is great to create stripes which are perfectly spaced or for repeating sentiments several times on the card!
This has been interesting for me, deciding which one I liked best. I have had all three you described above and for a long time the Tim Holtz was my favorite because it was nice and large, sturdy and affordable. But. (haha you knew that was coming didn’t you??) For the last while now I have not been liking my TH platform. Yes it’s large, but for my small crafting space that’s actually not a good thing. It feels bulky and when I have to get it out I find myself sighing and rolling my eyes because it’s such a chore. So I think if you have a nice large space the TH would be great. Was not a fan of the Stamparatus at all, it just did not appeal to me for various reasons and I thought it too expensive when you could get the TH which is basically the same thing for cheaper. In the past I’ve had the MISTI, the mid size one and the mini. Not sure why I didn’t like the mid size MISTI, I think I may have sold it during one of my purges. The mini I had trouble with because it kind of warped for some reason and I had a lot of trouble with it. So now I’m turning back to wanting the mid size MISTI again. It’s nice and thin and doesn’t feel as bulky, plus I just love the design. What I don’t love is the price. But I do have the feeling I’ll be going back to that one soon. Can I also add that I think the various lawsuits involving MISTI are so ridiculous and seem kind of petty. Great article by the way! It definitely does seem like a personal preference, whichever one feels right to you is the way to go!