The Stampin' Schach

Tickled Pink for the Players

Ann Schach August 14, 2011 December 12, 2014Uncategorized

It’s time to play a color challenge with The Paper Players! This week the talented Anne Marie has selected a trio of colors sure to tickle you pink! That’s right…Rose Red, Regal Rose and Pretty in Pink. I hope you enjoy today’s card which features the Established Elegance stamp set and the new Snow Burst embossing folder from the Holiday Mini!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips: It’s All About the Details

Create a collage! The new Oval Frame from the Designer Frames Textured Impressions Embossing Folders sets the perfect stage for creating a mini-collage. The Dress Form from the Established Elegance stamp set cries out for paper-piecing, while snippets of a doily from the Flirtatious Specialty Designer Series Paper and punched Itty Bitty Rose Red flowers with Basic Pearl centers complete the vignette.

Flourish and texture! A Rose Red Scallop Circle was created with the Scallop Circles #2 Die and the Big Shot. The Flourish from Established Elegance was then inked with Whisper White ink and stamped around part of the periphery. Fabulous texture was then added with the Snow Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. Let me tell you, this texture is gorgeous!

Pennant! Flag! Banner! Whatever you call it, sentiments always look better with a little snip-snip end treatment! A Pretty in Pink Flourish, a few speckles with the Color Spritzer Tool and Pearls complete the look!

Bow-wow! And we are not talking like Brody and Muffy here! This Whisper White Organza bow is the “wow” factor needed to finish this card!

So what do you think? Is this card “in the pink”? Let me know what you think in today’s comment! Your comments are so important to me, and I do read each and every one! And of course, I LOVE answering your questions about the cards that I create and the techniques that I use. Remember…I am only an email away! Until next time…

Coming Soon:

* Twin Talk: The Twins share their first United Kennel Club experience in Michigan.

* A couple more retired stamp sets have been discovered. A very short “For Sale” list will be forthcoming.

* New Club and Classes information

* The Stampin’ Pantry

Stamp Sets: Established Elegance (W 122530, C 122532), You’re a Gem (W 122268, C 122270); Inks: Rose Red (101778), Whisper White (101731), Soft Suede (115657), Soft Suede Stampin’ Write Marker (120973); Designer Series Paper: Flirtatious (122360), Subtles Paper Stack (117152); Card Stock: Pretty in Pink (100459), Rose Red (102544), Regal Rose (105130), Very Vanilla (101650); Tools: Big Shot (113439), Scallop Circles #2 Bigz Die (113469), Designer Frames Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (123130), Snow Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (124114), Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack (118309), Color Spritzer Tool (107066), Sponge Dauber (102892), Paper Snips (103579); Glitz and Glam: Whisper White Organza Ribbon (114319), Rose Red Seam Binding (121884), Basic Pearls (119247)

A Daring Adventure for the PPA

Ann Schach August 11, 2011 December 12, 2014Uncategorized

It’s Thursday and time to play at Pals Paper Arts! This week the Pals are having a “Dress for Success” challenge. The recipe is simple. Just use 1 piece of Designer Series Paper, 1 Punch, and 1 Sentiment. How easy is that! Having just received the Daring Adventure set, I could hardly wait to ink it up and make a card for my son, Brady. Since he will be enrolling in his final year of college, I felt that the Helen Keller quote from this set was perfect. I know that I will miss him immensely, as will the Twins. But before I get all teary-eyed, let’s move along!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips: Masculine and Distressed

Pick your Designer Paper! For my masculine card, I decided on this fabulous geometric design from the Well Worn collection. I drew my colors (River Rock, Cajun Craze, Not Quite Navy) from the colors in the pattern. Geometric patterns are often great choices for masculine cards. I opted for a busier pattern since the only major stamping was a sentiment and there would be no competition with an image.

Pick your Punch! I love using the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch for masculine creations. The Linen Thread cross-stitching adds texture and interest.

Pick your Sentiment! In this case, the sentiment says it all and was perfect for the motherly advice I was wanting to convey.
Pick the Perfect Details! I am a fool for the tool…the Color Spritzer Tool! Soft Suede speckles were added instantly. A Sponge Dauber and Soft Suede ink were used to age the edges. Of course, who can resist the “Waterspot” stamp from French Foliage! I inked it up with Soft Suede ink, stamped off once, and then stamped away!

Pick the Unexpected! Whoever said you can’t place Pearls on a masculine card never asked me! I like the interest they add. Brads would do the same, but the pearls are just so…ME!

Pick a Panel! A back panel was stamped with the Lettering, Flourish and Footsteps from Daring Adventure. A Houndstooth embossed strip anchors and balances the design.

So, what do you think? I love mixing up styles, and it felt great to get down and dirty after the clean card I created for Sunday’s The Paper Players challenge. What about you? Do you like to mix it up, or do you find yourself getting stuck in a rut? Won’t you please leave me a comment and share your thoughts? Now that my Internet service provider seems to be providing me with Internet service, I feel as if I am back in the land of the living! I can’t wait to respond to your emails and check out your blogs! Woo hoo! As always, if you ever have any questions about the cards that I create and the techniques that I use, I am only an email away! Until next time…

Stamp Sets: Daring Adventure (W 122600, C 122602), French Foliage (W 120845, C 121166); Ink: Soft Suede (115657); Stampin’ Write Markers: Cajun Craze (119678), Not Quite Navy (100059), Early Espresso (119680); Designer Series Paper: Well Worn (122359); Card Stock: Naturals Ivory (101849), Cajun Craze (119684), River Rock (108640); Tools: Big Shot (113439), Houndstooth Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (123134), Color Spritzer Tool (107066), Sponge Dauber (102892), Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch (119275); Glitz and Glam: Basic Pearls (119247), Linen Thread (104199)

Happy Birthday, Twins

Ann Schach August 9, 2011 December 12, 2014Uncategorized

I know! I know! This is supposed to be a card blog where I speak of all things Stampin’ Up! However, I know that I am not alone in that there are many of you who are just like me, and adore your furbabies! It is a special day for the Schachs because the Twins turn one year old today!

They are such a part of my life, as well as Kim the Husband’s and Brady the Boy’s, that I would be remiss if I did not celebrate their birthday with you. As I look back on the last year, I wonder how I survived raising not just one, but two, bouncing Boxer babies. Was I crazy? Well, maybe it was just a moment of temporary insanity. Indeed, what was I thinking when I agreed to have the breeder deliver “What Were You Thinking” (Brody) the day after she brought Muffy to live with us?

Yet I survived double the housebreaking woes, double the vet bills, buying double the food and double the toys, and paying for double the show expenses…in exchange for quadruple the unconditional love.

The Twins fill my days, now that I am retired. They are my constant companions…my adoring fans…who never care if I have any make-up on or if my closet still contains the same clothes it contained five years ago. They do not care if the bed is unmade or the dishes unwashed. They do not judge me, but love me regardless. Like Missy the Boxer before them, they are now content to lay at my feet as I create.

They are the stuff of which childhood dreams, now the dreams of an old woman, are made. And even though they may never be the champions of which I have always dreamed of owning, they are champions in their own right.

From them, I have learned many lessons.

That not only should you take time to stop and smell the flowers…

it is OK to eat them, too…

and laugh about it afterwards!

I have learned that if you bury your head in the bushes…

you will come out covered with cobwebs…

and you will sneeze!

And that even though the judge may complain that your legs are not straight…you still have four perfectly good feet on which to run and jump and play.

That even though your head may not be perfect, your eyes can still see…

your ears can still hear…

and your nose can still sniff.

That although your chest may be too thin…your big butt is still capable of greeting all those you spy with the wiggles and jiggles like only a Boxer can do.