Envelope Wax Seal Stamp Guide: A Comprehensive Guide

Do you want to take your wedding invitation game to the next level? You do! In this article, we’re going to equip you with everything you need to know about wax seals. As they’re used more as an artistic expression these days they can be crafted in a variety of colors.

The Allure of Wax Seals

Wax seals and weddings seem to be a match made in heaven. For many, the idea of using wax seals evokes a sense of personalization and care. It just seems like the perfect little "extra" to show card recipients that you really care, but at the same time looks like so much fun to make.

Historical Significance

Red seals have been used throughout history and are seen as a formal way of sealing important documents. It would often be used by royalty as the color indicates power as well as a certain urgency in which to deliver the document. In the past green wax seals were commonly used to seal letters between friends.

Choosing the Right Wax Seal Color

As they're used more as an artistic expression these days they can be crafted in a variety of colors. At the same time, stamps can be personalized or kept simple with floral patterns. The color of the wax can add a layer of meaning and style to your stationery.

• Red: Seen as a formal way of sealing important documents, often used by royalty to indicate power and urgency.
• Green: Commonly used in the past to seal letters between friends, pairs well with floral or botanical designs for wedding invites. Using a green wax seal for your wedding invites would pair brilliantly if you’ve got lots of floral or botanical designs. Set against a white envelope they’ll be in perfect harmony.
• Pale Blue: Offers a calming hue, suitable for bridal shower invitations or for those who simply love the color blue. Pale blue wax seals offer a calming hue that may be more suited to a bridal shower invitation. That’s just our opinion though. If you love the color blue then they’ll be perfect for your invitations.
• Gold and Silver: Ideal candidates for wedding stationery, exuding elegance and opulence. Gold and silver wax seals are ideal candidates for wedding stationery. They’re a very popular choice as they exude elegance and opulence.
• Pink: Traditionally used for letters of appreciation, can add a touch of whimsy to wedding invites. Pink wax seals have typically been used for letters of appreciation. However, perhaps it’s just your favorite color and you want to add a little whimsy to your wedding invites.
• White: Emphasizes a fresh start, a blank canvas, synonymous with weddings and timeless. A white wax seal could emphasize the fact that a wedding is a fresh start, a blank canvas to write your future on to. White is synonymous with weddings, isn’t it? 9 times out of 10 the bride will be wearing a white dress. You can’t go wrong with a white wax seal, they’re timeless.
• Black: Traditionally used to signal mourning, can be used as a stylistic piece of flair. For those that want to mix things up a little the black wax seal might be an option. In the past, they’ve traditionally been used to signal mourning but we think they can also be used as a stylistic piece of flair for your letter. After all, people rarely use them for their intended purpose anymore and black wax seals just look awesome. It’s much like choosing to wear a black dress over a white wedding gown on your big day.

One little tip we’ve found is that mixing the colors of wax is super effective. It gives each stamp a unique marbling quality. White wax is a great option to pair with almost any other color.

Read also: Exploring the Phantom of the Opera

Wax Seal Materials and Methods

So you want to have a go at creating wax seals? Well, you’ll first need to familiarize yourself with the different types of sealing waxes out there. They all do a very similar job but have different methods of getting results. Not only that but some are much less messy and safer to use.

Types of Sealing Wax

• Wax Sticks with Wicks: Traditional and simple to use, like burning a candle and letting the wax melt. Traditional yet timeless, wax sticks with wicks are very simple to use. Essentially all you’re doing is burning a candle and letting the wax melt on the area of the envelope you want to seal. They can be a little messy as there is the potential for drips. Ordinary candles (stearic acid and paraffin) are too weak and brittle - not durable enough to survive the postal machines.
• Wax Beads: Heated on a spoon over a flame, ensuring a consistent amount of wax each time. Another popular method is to use wax beads. You heat these up on a spoon over a flame. This method ensures you’ll use the same amount of wax each time. When we were practicing we found that two beads of wax was the ideal amount.
• Glue Gun with Sealing Wax Sticks: Ideal for producing a large number of wax seals quickly. If you need to produce a lot of wax seals we think that a glue gun with sealing wax sticks is the way to go. With one or two pulls of the trigger, you’ll have a small puddle of wax to press your stamp into.

Essential Equipment

• Stamp Head: The metal engraved device that creates the pattern in the wax. You’ll need a stamp head. This is the metal engraved device that ultimately produces your chosen pattern in the melted wax. Most stamp head handles are interchangeable. You simply unscrew them and replace the head. I have a signet ring which belonged to my grandfather. At least, that's what I assume it is - otherwise why would it have an incuse bust of Pallas Athene on it? He passed away about a year ago, & all Grandmother can remember about is that he was wearing it when they met in 1944.
• Handle: Most stamp head handles are interchangeable.
• Source of Heat: Depending on the method, this could be a flame for wax beads or sticks, or a glue gun. You’ll need a source of heat to melt your wax. This will of course depend on the method you’ve chosen above.
• Ice: Stick the metal head of your stamp in the ice for a few seconds before stamping. This will make it much easier to remove the stamp head as it prevents sticking. If you’ve got to make a lot of wax seals then ice is going to be your friend. Stick the metal head of your stamp in the ice for a few seconds before stamping. This will make it much easier to remove the stamp head as it prevents sticking.

The Wax Sealing Process: A Step-by-Step Guide

Preparing your equipment and surroundings is important for a stress-free wax seal-making process.

1. Choose Your Wax: Choose the color or colors of wax you want to use.
2. Heat the Wax: You can now begin to heat your wax. You want it all to go gooey. If you’re using the spoon method you’ll place it over your tealight at this point. BEWARE the spoon gets very hot!
3. Pour the Wax: Now pour your wax over the seal of the envelope. Add a little more wax than you think you need. This was the biggest hurdle for me. I kept thinking I had added enough wax, but my design ended up imprinting kind of lopsided. Plus it looks extra cool when there’s a big bulgy ring around your stamp design.
4. Cool the Stamp: Your stamp has hopefully been cooling off in the ice cubes.
5. Press the Stamp: Simply press your stamp into the wax and hey presto you’ve done your first wax seal! WOOP WOOP!
6. Alternative Method: This is where you create say three blobs of wax at a time and then press your stamp into them. You could do this on a large piece of card. Then carefully scrape off all your wonderful creations. This can be a quicker and more efficient way of creating wax seals.

Tips and Tricks for Perfect Wax Seals

• Cooling the Stamp: My girls find that if they dip the stamper thing in water first, that the wax will let go more easily. They also place it on the hot wax (actually plastic, I think), press lightly, then leave it there until the wax cools/hardens. Then it comes right off.
• Moisture Barrier: You can also use you breath to create a moisture barrier that many traditional waxes may need to have in order to release the sealer from the wax.
• Double Stick Tape: Seal envelopes with double stick tape before applying wax seals. Licking that glue strip doesn’t cut it for a wax seal project. The heat from the wax can cause the glue to lose its stickiness and your envelope may open back up.
• Weight Considerations: Wax seals add some extra weight to a package, and when paired with a thick cardstock greeting card or enclosed gift card, you may go over the weight limit.

Addressing Envelopes with Style

Want to see how I addressed the envelopes above? I used my Cricut machine and Cricut’s iOS SnapMat feature.

Personal Experiences and Recommendations

In our experience creating wax seals is a very therapeutic experience but it won’t be for everyone. I have always wanted to be that person that uses wax seals on holiday cards. It just seems like the perfect little “extra” to show my card recipients that I really care, but at the same time looks like so much fun to make. Every single year I made plans to stock up on supplies and use wax seals but I never got around to it. But this year I finally got to try them and I absolutely fell in love.

Starting Small

As a beginner, you’re probably dying to load up on all kinds of seal stamps so you have a huge variety to play with. I want to encourage you to dial that enthusiasm back a bit and start small. I also recommend starting with just one color of wax sticks. If you’re like me, you probably want a rainbow of colors to choose from, but swapping wax colors is not like changing a marker color. You have to clean your spoon or heat gun before every color swap, so it takes a lot of effort. If you plan on using wax seal stamps for other holidays, it’s better to wait until you need than rather than loading up all at once.

Read also: Wax Seals for Harry Potter Fans

Choosing the Right Tools

Use A Low Temperature Glue Gun for big projects like holiday cards, invitations, or gift wrapping. Yes, a glue gun is harder to clean, but melting wax in that tiny spoon or dripping a candle would take you forever.

Historical and Alternative Sealing Methods

In the old days, people used all kinds of things to seal wax with. The standard items were of course, sealing-stamps and signet-rings. I've usually used a coin. I used to use a Navy issue peacoat button. They(the old ones at least) have steel buttons with a nice looking anchor and rope design. I stopped using that when I got a monogramed brass stamp for my birthday a few years back. Ive carved a few seals of my own in lead, used buttons, and used ready made wax seals. On all of them, except the lead, I lick the seal before pressing it into the wax. Doing so makes the wax release easier. Your thumb makes a good seal imprint and it is hard to counterfeit. Just make sure the wax isn't too hot. Just don't do it when the wax is too hot….

Read also: Wax Stamps for Weddings

tags: #envelope #wax #seal #stamp #guide

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