As always, I would love to give you a little peek at my Pals Paper Arts card which I designed for Thursday’s challenge. Challenges are one of the best ways to sharpen your paper crafting skills. Although the PPA Design Team showcases Stampin’ Up! products in our inspiration cards, we encourage everyone to participate and to use any brand of products they wish. Just to whet your appetite, and to make you come back for more, my card features a sneak peek of two of Stampin’ Up!’s newest sets. I hope that you will join us on Thursday! And be sure to check out this week’s Pals Paper Arts Artist Picks!

$99 Starter Kit is Still Available!

• Through June 30, Stampin’ Up! is offering a special $99 Mini Starter Kit. You will receive a $180 worth of product and business supplies, as well as FREE shipping.
• As a demonstrator, you can pre-order select items in June from the new 2010-2011 Idea Book and Catalog, and you will be able to take advantage of other pre-order times, too!
• Enjoy full Stampin’ Up! demonstrator discounts and benefits. This includes 30% off your first $150 product order (within 45 days of your joining date). With the release of the new catalog, what could be a better way to make quick work of your Wish List!
• Perfect for the hobby stamper!

To see what is included in the Mini Starter Kit, just Click Here!

I would love to have you as a member of my Stampin’ Up! team, The Schach Pack. I take a personal interest in each member of my group, helping them to develop both their artistic skills and their businesses. Here are just a few things my team is saying:

“Any time I have had questions, or just needed a creative boost, I have not only been able to read Ann’s blog, but have been able to call her and get answers to my questions. What better upline and mentor could a stamper have?”

“I am thrilled to be part of such a creatively inspired group and look forward to seeing where my dreams can take me as a demonstrator!”

“After toying with the idea of becoming a demonstrator for quite some time, and avidly checking out Ann’s blog over the past year, I phoned Ann for advice on what being a Stampin’ Up Associate entailed and how to start. I have never been more pleased to be a part of anything in my life!”

Email Me today, and we will set the process in motion, or simply visit this page to sign-up on-line! My recruiting password is stampinschach. Trust me…I have the new catalog in hand and it is filled with fantastic new items. Becoming a demonstrator gets you more bang for your buck, as you can take advantage of your demonstrator discount AND you can also receive 30% off your first order. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions.

I hope you enjoyed the tiny peek at my PPA card, and that you will join me Thursday for the Pals Paper Arts challenge! Just what do we have in store! Until next time…

Click Here to Order Stampin’ Up! 24/7!

Sometimes it is sad to say good-by to our old friends. I always thought of the Autumn Traditions Designer Series Paper, which is being retired, as an old friend. It was my “go-to” paper for all of my fall cards and many of my masculine cards. In fact, I used it on this masculine card which was designed for my first Dirty Dozen gallery, “All Creatures Great and Small”. I entitled this card, “Coming Out of My Shell”, since it depicts the “Turtle” from Nature’s Nest doing exactly that! I had a great time watercoloring this little reptile, once again armed with my trusty Blender Pens and inks. I hope that you enjoy today’s card, and the subsequent revisiting of two cards made with this lovely Designer Series Paper, which is still available on The Last Chance List.

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips:

• Easy-peasy! Nothing is easier than watercoloring with Blender Pens and inks. I just load the tip of the Blender Pen with ink from the corner of my Classic Ink Pads. For this card, I used Basic Brown, Old Olive, Crushed Curry, and Always Artichoke inks. And for those little white highlights on the turtle’s shell, a White Signo Gel Pen did the trick. Tip: There are options for those inks which are retiring. I would use Early Espresso or Chocolate Chip in place of Basic Brown, and More Mustard for Crushed Curry.
• Customize your dies! Use only the section that you need. A few precise snips with my trusty Paper Snips converted the Lattice Bigz Die into the perfect embellishment that was needed for the right side of this card.
• Men deserve bling, too…albeit not so flashy! Simple Gold Brads add a touch of glitz without being too glam!

The classy “More Mustard Abstract” pattern used in today’s featured card was just one of my faves from the Autumn Traditions DSP. I also loved the “Always Artichoke Vines” and the colorful “Autumn Leaves”. They were stunning for autumn cards!

And the winner of this round of Stampin’ Schach Blog Candy is:

#17: Carol
Beautiful card! I really need to put some ink to that stamp.
That is some awesome blog candy!

Carol will have until Thursday, 3:00 PM CST to email me with her address! Congrats Carol!

Please let me know what you think about today’s masculine card by leaving me a comment. I do appreciate your comments and reading what you have to say. And of course, as always, if you ever have a comment about the cards that I create, or the techniques that I use, please do not hesitate to email me. Until next time…

Click Here to Order Stampin’ Up! 24/7

Stamp Set: Nature’s Nest (113826); Ink: Basic Brown (104315), Old Olive (102277), Crushed Curry (115659), Always Artichoke (105219); Paper: Chocolate Chip textured (108697—Earth Elements assorted), Chocolate Chip (102128), Olive Green textured (108697—Earth Elements assorted), Naturals Ivory (101849), Autumn Traditions Designer Series Paper (115668); Tools: Big Shot (113439), Stampin’ Up! Lattice Bigz Die (115958), Scallop Trim Border Punch (118402), Corner Rounder (109047), Paper Piercer (116631), Gold Brads (104337), Stampin’ Dimensionals (104430), Blender Pens (102845), Paper Snips (103579), Signo Gel Pen (105021)

I am so enjoying my first weeks of summer vacation. Oops! I mean retirement! It has been wonderful to finally have the time to stamp and play with my new pre-order items. And it has been fun experimenting with different looks and techniques, as we shall see with today’s card, which features the new Hostess Level I set, Because I Care. I know…it looks like a dead hydrangea. But since everyone else has been using this set to make such gorgeous pink, blue, purple and even green hydrangeas, I wanted to use a monochromatic color scheme using my two new favorite colors, Crumb Cake and Early Espresso. (Why are my favorite colors always named after foods?) Did a make a mistake selecting this combination? I don’t know. I like distressed and “dirty” cards. I like beautiful pink, blue, purple and even green hydrangeas, too. When I was teaching, I always told my students, “A mistake is only a mistake if we fail to learn from it.” And since I learned several things while creating this card, it was not a mistake. I hope you enjoy and benefit from my learning process. And at the end of the post there will be a Blog Candy opportunity. Why? Because I care!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips:

• Distressing shouldn’t be stressing! My favorite tools for adding a distressed look are Sponge Daubers, the Color Spritzer and the 7-Sided Tool from the Cutter Kit. After inking up the “Hydrangea” image from Because I Care with Basic Brown ink, I stamped it onto Very Vanilla card stock. Then I heavily distressed the edges of the paper with the 7-Sided Tool. Using the Sponge Dauber, I dabbed Early Espresso Ink on the edges, bleeding in toward the center at the corners. After a few spritz with the Color Spritzer Tool and an Early Espresso Stampin’ Write Marker, my distressed look was complete. Note: The Basic Brown Classic Stampin’ Pad is on The Last Chance List. As of Thursday, it was still listed as available.

• Move aside Monet! Although Monet’s medium of choice was oil paints, I’ll take Blender Pens and Classic Ink Pads any day! I simply touch the tip of my Blender Pen to the corner of an ink pad to load it with ink, test it on a piece of scratch paper, and “paint” away! I used Crumb Cake for the blossoms and Always Artichoke for the leaves.

• Design your own “Designer” paper! I randomly stamped Crumb Cake hydrangeas on Crumb Cake card stock, for a subtle tone-on-tone background. After daubing a little Early Espresso ink on the edges, I had achieved the “smoky” look I wanted.

• W-A-C it! Sometimes focal mats look better when they are adhered Wonky, Akilter, or Cattywampus…all of which translate into “not exactly centered or straight”. I tried centering it, but it just looked better askewed.

• Step it up, if you wish! A few random pearls add so much! Or add a few random petals, snipped out and adhered for added depth.

So there you have it…three similar, yet different, looks!

How About Some Blog Candy?

View One

Here is what I have gathered together for this huge retiring In-Color Blog Candy Package:

• 36 —6″ x 6″ sheets of textured card stock (12 Bermuda Bay, 16 Dusty Durango, 8 Crushed Curry)
• 72 —6″ x 6″ sheets of Designer Series Pattern Paper (24 of each of the 3 colors)
• 36 Card Bases (12 in each of three colors)
• 3 new ink refills (Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango, Crushed Curry)
• 3 like new Classic Stampin’ Ink Pads (Bermuds Bay, Dusty Durango, Crushed Curry)
• 3 yards of 1/2″ Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon (1 yard in each of the three colors)
• Vintage Labels Clearmount Stamp Set (New)

The rules: I will select one random comment (using a random number generator from Random.org) from all of the comments left on THIS post between now and Monday, June 21st at 3:00 PM, CST. I will announce the winner on Tuesday, June 22nd. The winner will have until Thursday, 3:00 PM CST to contact me with an address. I will ship your scrumptious candy out pronto!

View Two

Don’t forget…there is still time to take advantage of Stampin’ Up!’s $99 Starter Kit! Join The Schach Pack for less than the cost of a trip to the grocery store…and start receiving your demonstrator perks and benefits today! After seeing the new catalog, you will be glad that you did! Click Here to see a short video about being a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator and to sign-up on-line (my recruiting password is stampinschach) or Email Me to learn more! Hobby stampers…here is chance to really make an impact on your Wish List!

So please, leave me a comment to let me know what you think about today’s card, and to take advantage of this wonderful Blog Candy. And remember, if you ever have any questions about the cards that I make, or the techniques that I use, I am only an email away! Until next time…

Click Here to Order Stampin’ Up! 24/7

Stamp Set: Because I Care Hostess Level 1 (W 118384; C 120118—Available July 1); Ink: Crumb Cake (121030—Available July 1), Early Espresso (119670—Available July 1), Basic Brown (104315), Always Artichoke (105219); Card Stock: Early Espresso (119689—Available July 1), Crumb Cake (120953—Available July 1), Very Vanilla (101650); Tools: Color Spritzer Tool (107066), Cutter Kit (106958), Sponge Dauber (102892), Early Espresso Stampin’ Write Marker (119680—Available July 1); Glitz and Glam: Very Vanilla 5/8″ Satin Ribbon (117291), Early Espresso 1/8″ Taffeta Ribbon (119959—Available July 1)