I became familiar with some sign language after my oldest son was born. It came to my attention that sign language helped babies to communicate before they gained the ability to speak, so I taught my son how to use his hands to communicate with his father and me.

A few photos were taken of my son using what he had learned to convey his need for "more" and to show his politeness with "please". Being an avid scrapbooker, I was excited to discover that a company owned by Kendra Harness called Lost Angeles Rubber Works offers stamps and embellishments with sign language symbols through their ASLstamp.com website. Not only can I use these in my scrapbook, but in my altered books as well.

Even more fun is the variety of stamps Lost Angeles Rubber Works has available. If you're looking for that hard-to-find rubber stamp, you'll want to become familiar with this company.

Kendra has always been interested in art. In 1980 she moved from the East Coast to Los Angeles where she majored in art at California State University, Northridge. She remembers one of her art professors as being a rather innovative "fine-art photography" teacher who accepted anything his students came up with as long as it was somehow related to photography. It was then that Kendra became involved in mixed-media art which still has a strong hold on her today.

She was introduced to rubber stamping sometime during the '90s and fell in love with the idea of being able to stamp an image in seconds. She states, "I had so many ideas and images I wanted to use but couldn't find, so that inspired me to create my own business."

In 1994 Lost Angeles Rubber Works was created as a source of alternative images for mail art and correspondence. It has since grown to include a variety of designs. ASLstamp.com came a few years later as a source of sign language stamps for teachers, scrapbookers, and others, and as a way to promote American Sign Language and the Deaf Culture (Kendra is deaf herself).

"Artists who would like to experiment with finger spelling and sign language imagery have a lot to choose from at ASLstamp.com." She continues, "Rubber stamping is a great addition to other image formats. They can be used with polymer clay, scrapbooks, altered books, and more."

Arts'n'CraftSupplies.com was introduced recently as a source of a variety of art and craft items. Some products they offer include inks, papers, and embellishments.

Lost Angeles Rubber Works has over 800 different stamp images available both mounted and unmounted, and according to Kendra, they will be adding more soon. The images cover a variety of themes and styles including vintage images, multi-cultural art, animals, holidays, etc.

Many of Lost Angeles Rubber Works original images are also being made available on a variety of products including clothing, journals, and gift items which can be found at www.cafepress.com/aslstuff.

Kendra first heard about altered books in college; and her first thought was, "She ripped up a book?" That thought almost immediately changed to, "Hey, that's actually a great way to give new life to unwanted books instead of tossing them in a landfill." She feels a special bond with books. She explains, "Books were my best friends for a period of time as a child. I learned to read when I was 3 1/2 years old, and a few months later became profoundly deaf. I was placed in an oral-only class where I floundered with no real communication until I learned sign language at the age of 11. I used to make weekly trips to the library and came back with a stack of books up to my chin. Books helped me continue to learn in a manner that was accessible whereas class was inaccessible."

Kendra considers herself an artist. "I believe most of us should call ourselves artists; we don't always see the creativity in our own lives. When I create a work of art, whether it's a 'WORK OF ART' or a little thingy to have some fun with, I'm usually trying to communicate an idea or theme as well as creating eye candy."

Contact:

Lost Angeles Rubber Works
www.larubberworks.com

ASLstamp.com
http://www.aslstamp.com

Arts'n'CraftSupplies.com
http://www.artsncraftsupplies.com