It's a Release Day Blog Hop!

Well folks, it's the moment you have all been waiting for! After a week of sneaky peeks of Power Poppy's brand new release The Enchanted Garden, we have good news to share! All the stamp sets we've been giving you a glimpse of are available NOW in the Power Poppy Shop! 

And to celebrate, we have even more fun to share! The Power Poppy gals have teamed up with the absolutely fabulous designers over at Ellen Hutson Papercraft Essentials & More!  Yep, that's right! And, on top of seeing all kinds of fun eye candy featuring Power Poppy's brand new release, Marcy and Ellen have teamed up to share the chance at some goodies for YOU!

WE'VE GOT FUN PRIZES! 

As a part of this fun-filled blog hop, we're giving away a chance at $25 to the Ellen Hutson shop and $25 to the Power Poppy shop! To enter for a chance to win, make sure to leave comments at each stop along the hop. Two random & lucky commenters will win! Comment before Sunday, July 7th at 11:59pm PST! 

Okay, on to my creation! 

I absolutely adore Power Poppy's new Floribunda set. All those beautiful blossoms! Because you can definitely get lost in all those petals coloring with reckless abandon, I wanted to create a card that showed you could use this mondo image without coloring it up! So, I grabbed some Versamark ink, a soft brush and some Pearl Ex. I have just about every color made of the mica powder and it's been years since I have pulled it out from the drawer. So, I thought, now was a good time! 

 I started by stamping and then brushing Spring Green Pearl Ex over top. After you brush on the color, you need to burnish it and "set" it by rubbing it with a cloth. I used a paper shop cloth but you can use a dry Swiffer pad or something along those lines.

You can see below that I also tried the Duo Blue-Green, which took on a more turquoise shade. I liked it but it wasn't as bold and I knew I really wanted those flowers to stand out!. :-)

 From there, I stamped the little hummingbird in the set on white card stock and colored him up with Copic Markers. I used B24, B26, BG11, BG13, BG15, and YG05.

I fussy cut the little guy and set him aside. I used a 2-1/2" punched circle and stamped the sentiment using Versamark and embossed using gold detail in. I mat it up on a stitched circle (cut out of really light turquoise paper) I added some green accents with my YG05 Copic marker just to add a little something more 

Here's a closeup to show you the mica shine and the sentiment.... 

And that, my friends, is it! So, be sure to hop on over to see what both teams did with some of the sets in Power Poppy's Enchanted Garden release! Remember to comment on each blog for a chance to win either a $25 gift code to the Power Poppy Shop or $25 to the Ellen Hutson store!

Let's Get Hopping! 

Allison Cope
Adelina Starace

Barbara Walker 

Christine Okken 

Ardyth Percy-Robb 

Julie Koerber  >>> you are here! 

Broni Holcombe 

Carly Tee Minner 

Kathy Jones 

Emily Midgett 

Stacy Morgan 

Kelly Griglione 

Jennifer Dove 

Sandy Allnock 

Leslie Miller 

Therese Calvird 

Nancy Sheads 

Rhea Weigand 

Thanks so much for joining us this week and seeing all the new goodies! Good luck in the giveaway and I'll see you back here soon! 

Happy Stamping!
~Julie 

All About Love....

What do you say to a woman who has been your friend through ups and downs through thick and thin, through old creative pursuits and new exciting endeavors? What do you say when she is about to step into a new and beautiful chapter of her well-lived life?

Well, let me take a stab at it because this woman happens to be Ms. Marcella Hawley. Tomrrow at 5:30 PM CST, she and the love of her life will pledge their love and with the celebration of vows and a kiss to seal the deal, she'll be Mrs. Douglas Scronce!

Just check out these two love birds, will you??? Those little photos of fern and woodsy greenery is just a teeny weeny sneaky peek of the look Marce is going for on her big day. So unique. So whimsical. So Marcy!

Marce, you are an absolutely amazing woman. You constantly amaze me with -- for lack of better words -- your beautiful human nature. You teach me on a daily basis what it means to truly care for others, to give them your best. I told you before that for me to give you advice on your new married life would be silly. You and Doug already have all the "ingredients" for a beautiful recipe for marriage. The way you honor eachother is something that is a testament to love. It's beautiful and I know the two of you are going to just traipse through life from one adventure to the next. I so wish I was there just to capture a bit of the magic that will soon unfold. Cherish your special day sweetie and know you are loved by so many -- including me!

Because Marcy's decor inspiration board included some succulents for her centerpieces, I decided to make a wedding card to honor this theme using Power Poppy's Succulent Singles! I created the front thanks to just a little handiwork in PhotoShop and then, stamped and masked all around the names & date. It was hard, as you can see, to center it all up and I didn't really do the best job but, overall, I think it was a fun effect! I pretty much used every shade of green I own in the YG shades --- YG00, YG03, YG06, YG17 along with BG70, BG72, G21, G11, G20, G24, V01, V04, V06, before highlighting with BG000 and BG0000. I also added, which you can't see in any of the photos, some Wink of Stella clear pen. This really sparkles in real life when it hits the natural light, which is super fun and ramps up the wedding feel!

Here's a close up, you can see that I added a little dimension to portions of this spray of succulents!

From there, I matted this on pearl green Bazzil card stock - again, you can't really see the pearl sheen, but it's there! Then, I added some pale pink satin ribbon and a layer of white sheer with an irridescent edge for another pop of razzle dazzle. I kept the razzle dazzle on the down low for this because Marce is more of a simply elegant lady! ;-)

I'm not the only Bloomie posting today! There is a whole slew of us and it's all a part of this...

Check out our Bloom Brigade and Instant Gardener Team creations and heartfelt words as they help celebrate this happy and beautiful couple! 

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Kathy Jones

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Jennifer Dove

Broni Holcombe

Cheryl Scrivens

Barb Walker

Nancy Sheads

Jessie Banks

Elizabeth Zaffarano

And, if YOU want to send Marcella away wishing her a lifetime of happiness, please HOP ON OVER HERE leave your sentiments in the comment section! I happen to know Marcy reads each and every comment and this would just be icing on her wedding cake knowing you care enough to share the very best with her! 

💗💗💗 All the best to you Marcella & Doug! 💗💗💗

~Julie

Color YOUR World!

Hello Folks! Are you ready to grab your markers, your colored pencils or paints and color your world? 

Kathy Racoosin of The Daily Marker is unleashing a world of color on her blog and Instagram (@kathyrac) this month, and she wants all of us to join her in the fun!



The Daily Marker 30 Day Coloring Challenge energizes us to color something every day — even if only for a few minutes. Whether your love markers or prefer paints, colored pencils or crayons, all media is welcome! CLICK HERE to find out where to share what you are coloring and join the encouraging community of happy colorists. You'll also find answers to questions you may have along the way, participate in contests and more! If you share your work on social media, don't forget the hashtag: #thedailymarker30day and if you use Power Poppy stamps or digis, add the hashtag #powerpoppy

On to my colorific creation! 

When Kathy announced that she would be kicking off her 30 Day Coloring Challenge in grand style, I knew I wanted to grab one of Power Poppy's soon-to-be released stamp sets -- just to tease you all a little bit! ;-) 

This stamp set -- called Natural Beauties -- is a part of Power Poppy's March Release, which will start being unveiled on March 10th! That stamp is actually designed as a repeating border, allowing you to stamp and keep on stamping this illustration in one beautiful row... to infinity and beyond! 

I stamped in Tuxedo Black Memento Ink and then grabbed close to every color of Copic marker that I own to doll this image up! I stamped it on an angle, just to give it a little extra interest and then added the sentiment from the set below, also on an angle! Add some paper piercing, a scalloped edge and some minimal, yet fun decorative papers and.... Voila! 

Here's a close-up! 

Guess what? You have a chance to win this set, along with 7 other never-before-seen clear stamp sets as well! How? With this.....

GET READY FOR A POWER POPPY GIVEAWAY!

To kick off the challenge, Power Poppy’s Marcella Hawley has a surprise of epic proportions! She’s giving away Power Poppy’s SOON-TO-BE-UNVEILED MARCH CLEAR STAMP SET RELEASE! That means EIGHT of the freshest, most fun Power Poppy designs to hit the market yet. It's a $144 value! Plus you can enter a friend to win.

Read all the details here!

Winners will be announced on the Power Poppy Blog/Instagram/Facebook on Sunday, March 12th, and also over on thedailymarker.com.

THERE'S ALSO A SUPER SPECIAL DEAL THIS ENTIRE MONTH AS WELL! 

Power Poppy is offering 25% off all digital stamps for folks all month long to tie in with the Daily Marker's 30 Day Coloring Challenge! Just enter the code COLORMEHAPPY at checkout! This is good on digis only to help you enjoy this beautifully colorful month!

Some of my fellow Bloomies are joining in the fun today, so be sure to pay them a visit.....


Allison Cope
Cindy Lawrence
Christine Okken
Julie Koerber >>> you are here!
Kathy Jones
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker


AND THEN -- pop back over to the Power Poppy Blog for the full link list of today's huge 30 Day Coloring Challenge Hop! Kathy Racoosin assembled a HUGE hop to give your creativity a jump start with some of her favorite stamp companies and Online Card Class Partners -- you won't want to miss out!

Thanks for stopping by -- remember to mark your calendar for Power Poppy's HUGE MARCH RELEASE, which will kick off March 10th! 

See you back here soon!

~Julie

It's a Winter Blitz Power Poppy Hop!

Are you ready for an all out Power Poppy Hop? Well, I am! The past two days, the Bloom Brigade has been showing off Marcella Hawley's latest illustrations and the fun thing about this release? It's all digital-- meaning you can order, print, color and ENJOY immediately! 

And here's a peek at the florals you can cherish.... right now!

Camellias and Winter Pick-Me-Up are both digi images that come with beautifully scripted sentiments to help you in your card making all year long! 

So to honor this oh-so-special hop, the Bloom Brigade is joining forces to show off another take on this mini digi release! And the fun news? If you comment on all of the designers' blogs today, you'll be in the running to WIN this entire digi release! FUN!

On to my creation!

Doesn't this little bouquet of winter blooms just make you SWOON? It sure made me and I have to say, I could not wait to print this beauty off to color it up! I printed, grabbed my Copic markers and had a blast just trying to bring this floral burst to life. I used these Copic colors: R01, R0000, E23, E25, BV01, BV0000, B61, B63, B66, V01, YG21, YG23, G20, YG0000, YG01, Y35, Y38, Y21, E40, E42. E0000. 

The rest is just matting this all up! I kept my layout rather simple. I used Spellbinders Labels Fourteen for my main image and while my die was still on the stamped image, I took a sponge dauber and sponged on some Cool Peri Ranger Adirondack Ink. I also added (while you can't really see it) some glitter glue to the base of each pussy willow for a little splash of fun. The sentiment was punched out with a Stampin' Up punch and accented with some tiny gold embellishments. Add a kraft doily, some May Arts lace and gold cording and... ta da! Done!

What did the rest of the Bloom Brigade whip up for this Winter Blitz Power Poppy Hop? Well, you'll have to see for yourself! I know you won't be disappointed! And remember, every comment you make on their blogs is one more chance to win this digi release!

Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber >>> you are here!
Kathy Jones
Katie Sims
Leslie Miller
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks so much for stopping by! I'll be back with more.... SOON!

~Julie

Let's HOP!

  

 Today the CardMaker Magazine Blog Team is pairing up with the Flourishes Design Team to bring you some fabulous inspiration with our most recent Flourishes May Release sets! It’s a taste of creativity you’re sure to love!

Flourishes loves CardMaker Magazine and its endless source of inspiration in each edition. You’ll find gorgeous photography, beautiful creations, step-by-step instructions and card and paper-crafting designs from the simple to the elaborate! We also love the fact that a number of our Flourishes designers have been published on its pages!  So hop along today and be doubly inspired by two great teams, and you'll want to be sure to comment because we're giving away our entire May Stamp release valued at more than $70...one prize over at the Flourishes Blog and one prize hidden along the blog hop! So comment on all the designers' blogs and increase your chances to win!

I should mention, if I am the first place you've hopped, you'll want to travel HERE to the CardMaker blog to make sure you don't miss out on any of the fun! There are giveaways! :-)

On to my creation!

This card started out easy because for starters, I grabbed Flourishes new set Old Tea Rose and then cut out the shape for the Old Tea Rose Silhouette Cut File from Classic White card stock. I stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink and then went to town using my Copic Markers (see below to check out what color collections I used!). The other easy part of this card was the fact that I used Flourishes new 123 Create Kit called Prairie Chic. The ribbon, lace, decorative paper and bling are ALL a part of that kit. What fun, right?

After I was done coloring it all up, I made a sentiment flag and used one of the sentiments from the set. The mat was cut thanks to the Spellbinders Labels Seventeen. I cut and then, after embossing, I did use a sanding block to reveal the paper's white core. Add some paper piercing and that, my friends, is it!

Here's a close up for you.....

As you can see, I also used the Silhouette Cut File for my little butterfly too! And... when I added the little guy to my card, I used some foam tape to pop him up! Ta da! Are you ready to hop on over to the next ever-so-talented designer? You'll have to go see....

Latisha Yoast 

Latisha used to be a senior design team member at Flourishes. I love her clean, fresh, creative and colorful design style. I know you will to so hop on over and pay her a visit! And, don't forget to leave her a comment -- you could win Flourishes brand new release! You have until Friday, May 17th at 5PM EST to comment and winners will be announced Saturday on the Flourishes Blog! So... good luck!

~Julie

Supplies:

Let's get swimming!

Hi all and happy Monday! I have a very special post to share with you today and I'm not alone. I'm with a "sea" of talented designers to honor one very courageous and talented woman and mom. Starting today though the 12th of October, some of the best stampers out there in blog land are joining forces to support and encourage our friend, Katie Renz, who is currently battling inoperable gastric cancer. If you don't know Katie, her fight with cancer started just before Christmas last year. After going to the doctor complaining of stomach aches, she discovered that she had stage 4 gastric cancer. This beautiful, bubbly wife and vibrant mom of three with an infectious smile was facing this very difficult diagnosis. Her first post about it is here.  The idea of “Swimming for Katie” came from her recent post here.

This exclusive stamp used in my sample, designed by Becky Oehlers is available as a clear stamp, as well as a digis or a dig and SVG cut file.  100% of the profits go to Katie's fund to help her and her young family.  Her husband, Kevin, and her three young children need our help and support.  In addition to the Keep Swimming Octopus, Marianne Walker and True =D Doodle Designs both also donated digis that are for sale.  Direct donations are also being accepted.  Information central is HERE.  This is a permanent page that will stay active at i {heart} papers with current information and the full 3 day blog hop listing, as well as the donation button.
 
Here are all the items available for sale... they are cute! You'll want to check them out!


On to my creation using this ever-so-darling Octopus!

I actually used the digi version of this darling little lady and colored her up with Copic Markers using BV0000, BV00, BV02, R81, R83 and RV00 to give her a bit of rosy cheeks! Afterward,  cut her out and mounted her on this fun Jillibean Soup paper. The zig zag paper is from My Mind's Eye and I just trimmed that along the design line. Add some sparkle, a stitched edge and some fun May Arts ribbon and that's prettymuch all there is to it! 

Here's a close up of this cute little gal...

I hope you will join me in supporting Katie through a purchase of one of these digis or through a donation. We are really hoping to do some wonderful things for her family during this difficult time. Like I said, we were blessed to have more than 100 designers join in today's hop. Here's the list -- we hope you stop by and leave these designers some love!

AJ Otto 
Beate 
Carolyn Mustopa 
Dawn Burnworth 
Deb Felts 
Gretchen Belknap 
Heather Jensen 
Jen del Muro 
Julie Ranae 
Kate - i {heart} papers 
Kendra Wietstock 
Lisa Johnson 
Loretta Lock 
Lori Tecler 
Lynn Mercurio 
Marianne Walker 
Michele Gross 
Stacy Morgan aka Twinshappy 
Tracy Schultz 
Debbie Olson 
Cindy Lawrence 
Cindy Haffner  
Julie Koerber 
Christine Okken 
Tammy Hershberger 
Danielle Kennedy 
Barbara Anders 
Makiko Jones 
Ashley N Newell 
Shannan Teubner 
Taylor Usry 
Jen Tapler 
Jenn Balcer 
Jenny Chesnick 
Jess Larsen 
Jessica Knutsen 
Jimmi Mayo 
Joan Bardee 
Joan Ervin 
Julia Aston 
Julie Day 
Julie Ebersole

If you'd like to send Katie a card, here's her mailing address. I'm sure she'd love some snail mail.

Katie Renz
PO Box 5913
Bellingham, WA 98227-5913

Or, if you'd like to donate to this fund set up to benefit her children, please click the Donate button to make a secure donation. 

I have to say a very special thanks not only to Becky Oehlers and Marianne Walker for designing such darling images but to Kate at i heart papers for organizing this amazing event. We hope it not only warms Katie's heart but helps provide some support for her family. God Bless!


~Julie

It's a BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!

Does anyone want to sing a little Happy Birthday song with me? Today is my bloggin' buddy Tammy Hershberger's special day and a special day it is! I'm joining a few dozen amazing stampers to help roll out the red carpet for Tammy's birthday with a special kind of blog hop to wish her the best day ever! It's a  SURPRISE Birthday hop! If you came here from Frances Byrne's blog.... you're on the right track! If not, be sure to hop on back to Barbara Anders' blog and start from the beginning!

On to my creation!

I don't know this.... but when I think of Tammy, I think she's a reader. I hope I'm right because I kind of based my whole card on that thought! ;-) I thought, what would be so nice to do on a special day? Curl up with a good book and a little TLC like a bunch of fresh flowers and just Ahhhhhhh... relax! So, thus -- the image from Flourishes From the Desk of. After stamping it on Flourishes Classic White paper, I cut it out using Spellbinders Labels Seven. I thought this was fun since the shape reminds me of the open pages of a book! (I also used my new Grand Calibur to cut it out -- LOVE this new machine). I colored it up with Copics (RV32, RV34, RV00, RV02, B000, Y21, G82, G40) Add a fun little sentiment -- Dream Big (from the FLLC Enjoy the Ride set). Add a little fun and festive dp, some silk ribbon, some stitching and a fun little button and... almost done!

I also added some glitter glue to the centers of my flowers... see?

I should mention, for my card, I used one of the new March CardMaps that were just unveiled today! If you're looking for inspiration, you can check it out HERE! 10 new sketches with samples from ten designers (including moi!).

So, as I wrap up this post, I hope Tammy gets to kick up her feet and enjoy some down time! I'm so glad to have met this fine woman a few years ago and that we've been able to keep in touch! Tammy, you are one creative and funny gal and I hope you ahve the best birthday EVAH!!!!  And, now, please hop along to Betty Wright's blog as the celebration continues!

It's a BIRTHDAY Blog Hop!

Welcome to Flourishes first-ever Birthday Blog Hop Celebration! Jan Marie, the owner of Flourishes is turning another year older and we thought we'd celebrate! Not just with a party and blog hop, but a special stamp set in honor of her day! Let Them Eat Cake was designed by artist Becky Fleck with a Marie Antoinette flair and, just in case you wondered, it's available now HERE in the Flourishes Store!

So, let's start our Birthday Blog Hop with a hop back through the decades! When you think back over the last 60 plus years, what comes to mind? Those bell bottoms from the 70’s? How about those poodle skirts and ice cream shops of the 50’s? Blu Ray discs of the 2000’s, or Disco from the 80’s? We thought it would be fun to challenge our Senior Design Team and Friends of Flourishes team to pick a decade and using our new Let Them Eat Cake set, be inspired in some way by that era! If this is your first stop on the journey, be sure to click HERE to start at the Flourishes blog!

My decade is all about the poodle skirts, ducktails, soda pop and sock hops! Yep, we're taking a trip back to the 50's! And, this was my little piece of inspiration! Isn't this photo divine?
And here.... is my 50's inspired creation!

I loved the pink and black, the decorative trim and the feminine flair! Use some pink decorative paper, mix in a decorative punch border, some sheer polka dot ribbon, a glittery button and of course, this fabulous image! I stamped using a Versafine Black Onyx and Tea Rose Vivid ink to match my paper. Add some paper piercing and... voila ! You can't see,but my candles to have a little sparkle on the flames thanks to some glitter glue!

So, you made it through the 50s... time to move forward a bit in time and see what the lovely Dee Jackson cooked up with the Let Them Eat Cake Set! And don't forget to start at the Flourishes' Blog! There's details there about some fun giveaways!

See you back here soon!