It’s Thursday! And that means it’s time to play the Pals Paper Arts challenge! This week we are hosting a theme challenge: Gratitude and Thanks. Whether your project represents something (or someone) for which you are grateful, is a simple thank you note, or has a Thanksgiving motif, we encourage you to create with a spirit of gratitude and thanks. I opted to create a Thaksgiving card. Although I have used the Gifts of the Earth stamp set for several cards, I had never inked up the turkey image. The shape of the stamp seemed perfect for an oval, so I simply used the center of the Bigz Oval Frame Die and decorated the edges with leaves stamped from Lovely as a Tree. And if you do not recognize the sentiment, it is from the sweet little Gobble, Gobble turkey. How about it? Are you ready to talk turkey?

The Stampin‘ Schach Tips:

• When planning on sending large square cards through the mail, prepare a 5-1/4″ x 5-1/4″ card base. It will fit perfectly into Stampin‘ Up!s Medium Square Envelopes. As for my card base, I selected Always Artichoke. It coordinates well with Really Rust, Dusty Durango, and Pumpkin Pie for exquisite fall cards!
• Forget about diamonds…Paper Snips are a girl’s (and guy’s) best friend when it comes to snipping out intricate designs like these Oak Leaves from Lovely as a Tree. Sharp all the way to the tip, they were indispensable in the creating of this card.
• Bling it “down” for Fall! As much as I love bling, my autumn cards are better served with Vintage Brads. And for perfect placement of them, I used the Template from the Mat Pack.
• Distressing should not be distressing! I simply use a Sponge Dauber to apply the ink to the edges of the paper. It couldn’t be easier! For today’s card, Chocolate Chip was the color of choice. And what could be easier than using a Color Spritzer? If you do not have one, I would encourage you to add one to your next order. Paired with a Chocolate Chip Stampin‘ Write Marker, I used the Color Spritzer Tool to distress the background of the turkey image and the “Give Thanks” oval.
• Never underestimate the power of a Blender Pen! I do all of my watercoloring with Blender Pens and ink. I simply “dab” the tip of my pen directly on the ink pad itself. If the color is too strong, I stroke the pen a few times on a piece of scratch paper. The colors that I used for the leaves included Really Rust and Old Olive. The veins of the leaves were enhanced with a Close to Cocoa Stampin‘ Write Marker. For the turkey, from Gifts of the Earth, I used Creamy Caramel, Basic Gray, Ruby Red, Not Quite Navy, and Close to Cocoa. The speckling was enhanced with a white Signo Gel Pen.
• Dare to be different! I wanted my “Give Thanks” label to have a unique twist. So I inked the sentiment from the bottom of the adorable Gobble, Gobble turkey using my Chocolate Chip Stampin‘ Write Marker, stamped it onto Very Vanilla, and punched it out with the Small Oval Punch. After a little distressing, it was ready to adhere to this card’s “unique” factor…the label prepared from the Modern Label Punch. A label was punched from textured Really Rust, which was distressed, and a second was punched from Always Artichoke. This one was simply cut into two pieces and adhered to the Really Rust. Linen Thread was used to further enhance the look.
• And if you are wondering about the random leaf in the upper right hand corner…it’s only there because I spent a rather large amount of time cutting these leaves out…and by-golly I was going to use it somewhere!!!

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Stamp Sets: Gifts of the Earth (116501—Holiday Mini), Gobble, Gobble (116535—Holiday Mini), As Lovely as a Tree (115026)
Inks: Chocolate Chip (100908), Really Rust (102549), Old Olive (102277), Sahara Sand (105208), Close to Cocoa (103139), Basic Gray (109120), Ruby Red (102259), Not Quite Navy (103008), Creamy Caramel (103220), White Signo Gel Pen (105021), Chocolate Chip Stampin’ Write Marker (100071)
Designer Series Paper: Autumn Traditions (115668), Autumn Meadows (116769—Holiday Mini)
Card Stock: Very Vanilla (101650), Always Artichoke (105119), Really Rust textured (108697—Earth Elements assorted)
Tools: Big Shot (113439), Bigz Die Scalloped Oval Frame (114521), Small Oval Punch (107304), Modern Label Punch (107590), Paper Snips (103579)
Embellishments: Vintage Brads (109109), Linen Thread (104199)

As hard as it may be to believe, I have never participated in a Splitcoast color challenge. However, I could not pass up today’s challenge to use Pretty in Pink, Going Gray, and Sage Shadow. As is the case with many of you, time is a precious commodity. And because I brought home a briefcase full of papers to grade, it was even more precious this evening. So I “CASED” one of my own cards, Trio of Ornaments. Of course, I switched out a few things in addition to the colors! Of note is the embossed background and the lack of ribbon. When it was all said and done, this color palette reminded me of the late 1950’s with gray skirts and pink poodles! It is certainly a non-traditional choice of colors for Christmas, but you know what…it is refreshing for a change!

The Stampin’ Schach Tips:

• “Oh it don’t mean a thing, if it ain’t got that bling!” Holiday cards are the perfect choice for glittering, embossing and rhinestones. If time is of the essence, it does not get any quicker than adding rhinestone brads, such as the Circle Ice Brads and Clear Rhinestone Brads on this card.
• Texture, texture, texture! The Petals-a-Plenty background was actually added after I had already matted Very Vanilla onto Going Gray and Sage Shadow. After laying the ornaments onto the “plain” Very Vanilla, it was just…too plain! So in a matter of minutes, I had zipped a second piece of Very Vanilla through the Big Shot with the Petals-a-Plenty Textured Impressions Folder. In this case, it was a much better choice. Think of it like ice cream…why settle for plain vanilla?
• “Three is not a crowd” when it comes to designing. Odd numbers are often a good choice to balance a design. Here we have three ornaments, three brads, three layers to the matting, and three focal colors. Think “odd”, not even!

• Over 50 6″ x 6″ sheets of retired Stampin‘ Up designer series paper
• 10 yards of Certainly Celery ribbon from the 2009 Sale-a-bration Ribbon Bundle
• An unmounted “Yummy” stamp set
• Four brads from the retired Soho collection
• Sixteen corduroy brads in “Grasshopper” and “Tink Pink” (non-SU!)

Stamp Set: Delightful Decorations (116517—Holiday Mini)
Inks: Sage Shadow (102532), Pretty in Pink (101301), Going Gray (103274)
Card Stock: Going Gray textured (108693—Neutrals assorted), Pretty in Pink (100459), Sage Shadow (101563), Very Vanilla (100730)
Tools: Big Shot (113439), Ornament Punch (116794), Petals-a-Plenty Textured Impressions Folder (116824—Holiday Mini), Standard Texturz Silicone Rubber (114615), Standard Texturz Impressions Pad (114614), Eyelet Border Punch (113692)
Embellishments: Clear Rhinestone Brads (113144), Circle Ice Brads (109111)

After a series of rather time intensive cards, I decided that it was time for another Simply Schach creation…this time with a masculine theme suitable for a teen boy! Masculine cards are always tough to create, at least for me, but the Night and Day Designer Series Paper from the Holiday Mini can make it a little easier! However, I still could not resist a touch of bling and a snippet of ribbon. This particular card will be rockin’ its way to Western Illinois University and into the mailbox of Brady Schach. In keeping with my blog candy theme of “Celebrate with Me”, we are celebrating Brady’s featured trumpet solo with WIU’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble this past weekend!

The Stampin’ Schach Tips:

• Details are always a critical aspect of any card’s design. A card can be simple to create but still have those special little somethings. In this case, rounded corners and three strategically placed black brads do the trick!
• Want an even more masculine card? Instead of ribbon, substitute a paper strip to hide the interface between the two patterns.
• Afraid to bling? Replace the Red Circle Fire Brad with a black brad.
• The actual design process itself often takes the most time in creating your cards. When in a pinch for time, select coordinating patterns from the same Designer Series Paper collection, and read the fine print to find out what colors coordinate with it. The end result will look professional and put together!
• When I design a card, I consider my purpose for making the card and who will be the recipient. Black and white cards almost always convey a more formal look. That was not the “personality” that I wanted for this card, so by selecting a stamp set with a playful font, it suddenly became less stuffy, and suitable for a young man!

• Over 50 6″ x 6″ sheets of retired Stampin‘ Up designer series paper
• 10 yards of Certainly Celery ribbon from the 2009 Sale-a-bration Ribbon Bundle
• An unmounted “Yummy” stamp set
• Four brads from the retired Soho collection
• Sixteen corduroy brads in “Grasshopper” and “Tink Pink” (non-SU!)

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

Stamp Sets: FYI (114365), Friends Rock (113816)
Inks: Basic Black (101179)
Designer Series Paper: Night and Day (116768—Holiday Mini)
Card Stock: Basic Gray textured (108693—Holiday Mini), Whisper White (100730), Basic Black (102851)
Tools: Corner Rounder Punch (109047)
Embellishments: Vintage Brads (109109), Circle Fire Brads (109110), Basic Black ¼” Grosgrain Ribbon (115605)