Creative & Curious Clear Collection Day 2!

Hello peeps! If you missed the big start of Power Poppy's brand new spring release, then you might just want to backtrack a bit and see what the Bloom Brigade put into motion yesterday with the sneaks of two new clear stamp sets by clicking HERE! 

Those sneaky peeks, along with today's offerings, are a part of this amazingly inspired collection! 

What sets do we have to show off today? 

First up... Wild Mushrooms! Whether in the wilderness or in your mulch pile, the world is filled with fascinating fungi — and foraging for mushrooms can be a thrilling treasure hunt! In the spirit of vintage mushroom identification charts, Marcy has illustrated eight little groupings of wild mushrooms in this new set Wild Mushrooms, often with the leaf-and-ferny bits you'll find them surrounded by when foraging. Have fun with this set — the cards you make can be as unique as the many millions of varieties of mushrooms! 

First introduced as the digital stamp called Rosé All Day, Artistic Bouquet offers a mix of art supplies, flowers, leaves, and branches beckons the colorist with unique imagery featuring some of our favorite things! Anchored by a plump rose, the bouquet is surrounded by Cyclamen, Redbud, and buzzing bees. Pencils and a paintbrush serve as skewers through the flowery composition. An array of sentiments are included, with everything from a birthday message to a simple directive, "Let it bee."

On to my creation!

I have to admit, I colored up this image weeks ago using Power Poppy's digital stamp set but the good news is, this image is sized exactly like the clear version and gives you an extended canvas to make sure these blooms are just as lush and large! I would share the color scheme I used but honestly, I took Amy Shulke's class that she put together for this image at Vanilla Arts HERE.  The class was one designed to showcase coloring shades of pink. I don't know about you, but I have a hard time. The pinks are either too bumblegum or too dull. Not anymore folks! Amy's class is the BOMB! 

I digress. After coloring up my image, I used a few different dies to mat it up and then, since I wanted a smaller sentiment, I actually used one from the Poppy XL set that we sneaky peeked yesterday! 

And here, my friends, is a closeup for you!

To mat up this card, I used a mix of  My Mind's Eye and Momenta paper designs picked to match the vibrant colors in my bouquet. And that, my friends, is it! The fun doesn't stop here though...

With two new sets to preview, there's lots of eye candy to see over on each of these Bloomies' blogs! So, go ahead, see what fun things they cooked up... just for YOU!

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker
Marcy/Power Poppy Blog

Be sure to swing back by tomorrow for Day 3! This sneak features two more sets, one that is the epitome of spring captured in a heart, the other is all abuzz with a vintage-inspired botanical flair! Both are stunning and I know when you see them, you'll have to have these beauties for yourself! See you back here tomorrow!

~Julie

Creative & Curious Release Day 1 with Power Poppy!

Oh my gosh... ARE YOU READY? Are you ready for a whole new crop of Power Poppy Clear Stamps?

This week, the Bloom Brigade is joining forces to bring you a supersize week of sneaky peeks leading up to Power Poppy's Creative & Curious Clear Collection! You are not going to want to miss one DAY of the action! These stamps were directly inspired by Marcy's sense of wonder with the natural world -- from the thrill of discovering a tiny mushroom in the forest to designing beautiful bouquets with an overflowing array of possibilities. From celebrating the birth of a baby, to sharing words that empower, love, and lift up. We have flowers, oh, we have so many flowers! Power Poppy is also introducing our largest stamp canvas yet, 6" x 8", which holds a massive amount of images and sentiments! There will even be coordinating dies for several sets, too! If you wait until release day, May 20, to order — we'll have a special discount for you!

So, let's get to DAY ONE, which ushers in two bold and beautiful stamp sets ... BIG SEXY LEAVES & POPPY XL! 

If you ask Marcy, it's about time that Power Poppy introduced a fabulously oversized, crinkly petaled Poppy! So, we share Poppy XL! With a dynamic bloom that's nearly 4" wide, you are sure to make unforgettable cards! Stay tuned for a look at coordinating dies that match this stunning set! r this set.

Big Sexy Leaves just so happens to be Power Poppy's very first background stamp! This leafy delight is packed with tropical details -- so many that you don't have to let this lush stamp fade into the background at all! This 6 by 6" stamp fills your entire card front with palms, ferns, peace lilies, caladiums and.... more!

Being that both were so big and bold, I had a tough time choosing but I ultimately set my sights on Big Sexy Leaves! Check out my creation, will you?

I started by literally reaching for almost every green and yellow-green Copic marker coloring each leaf with a slightly different set of shades so that each leaf would be unique and stand apart from the rest. I love caladium plants because of their intense and, at times, colorful variegated leaves. You can click HERE to see these lovelies in real life! 

When I was done coloring, I did something that I thought rather gutsy (mostly because I tried it AFTER I was done coloring). I decided to color all the white space -- silver. Yep, silver. I used a Wink of Stella Silver brush pen and just colored the time away. The result was eye-popping sparkle like truly nothing else! See?

I will say that the sentiment is another sneaky peek of a set that will be in the spotlight a little later this week..... so stay tuned for more on that one!

Now it's time to make the rounds and see all the gorgeousness that's out there in the creative spaces of the Bloom Brigade. I have seen a little bit of what they've done and man, prepare to be WOWED!


Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker


Be sure to swing back tomorrow for day two when we go into the wild for a look at some treasures beyond compare! Is that a tease or what? See you soon my friends!

~Julie 

Inspired by Nature!

Hello sweet folks! If you clicked on over to the Power Poppy blog earlier this week, you might have gotten a glimpse of this card below since it was in the spotlight over in our weekly color challenge HUES TO USE! If you've never played along with me for the challenge -- it's rather simple and so much fun! I steal a photo from Instagram and then, let that photo dictate the color cues for creativity! 

Want to see the photo I picked this week?

Well, I have to say that I have no real idea what is going on with the photo above but Marcy nailed it when she posted this pic and said simply, "Nature, being all awesome!" I couldn't agree more! This little number was posted almost a year ago, so, whatever this is being awesome, it's probably being awesome again as we speak! 

HOW DO YOU PLAY? Playing along with us for Hues to Use is easy as 1-2-3 -- use all three colors in your card or creation and then make sure to share a direct link to your creation so we can all see! YIPPPEEE!

Moving on to my card! Now, I have a few birthdays coming up and when I chose this color combo, I knew in my heart of hearts that I would use it to create a few "man cards!" My brother-in-law is a beer lover and it's funny when we hit happy hour together every now and then, he often reads the craft beer menu and he will look at me and say, "Will I like that?" So, more times than not, I end up choosing his beer for him. I figured this image below -- Power Poppy's Hops and Barley -- would be perfect for him! 

I started printing this digital image in a kind of sepia/brown tone and so that's where that color on the 'Hues' is used along with some of the accents in the barley. Then, I grabbed these Copic colors for the barley.....

And these colors for the rest of the image -- the hops and some of the highlights around it! 

After I was done coloring with my Copic markers, I did go back in to add some depth with a few Prismacolor pencils -- using an indigo pencil along with a burnt umber shade as well. I am really loving how a sharpened colored pencil can add that intricate detail that a Copic marker tip can not. 

For the inside of my card, since I knew how I would be using this card and who I would be giving it to, I went ahead and did this (below) on the inside! Printing a faint version of the hops and barley image with one of the sentiments that is included in this digital stamp set! Love! 

And that, my friends, is it! An earthy mix of colors inspired by nature herself! I hope you hand-pick these colors to use next time you create and will play along with me!

Before I go, some of my fellow Bloomies have been busting through creative barriers to share a little Power Poppy goodness with all of you! So, be sure to pay these fine ladies a visit, will you?

Allison Cope

Julie Koerber >>> you are here! 

Katie Sims

Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks for stopping by! See you back here soon!

The power of PINK!

Hello stamping friends! Okay, I'll admit it. Before last week, I was a complete newbie to live coloring classes on the web. I thought --"Hhhmm... that looks fun. I should try that sometime." But, I never did.... until this little class by Amy Shulke of Vanilla Arts caught my eye. I don't know about you but reds and pinks are two of the toughest colors to blend. My pinks either look too shocking or too dull. So, I thought I would give this one a try....

The cool thing about Amy's classes is the fact that you can watch them live, or join up later to catch her class archived on video. I chose the latter so that I could delve in, recue things if I wanted to, and just focus on parts of her coloring technique. She is a whiz and I never thought in a million years I could pull off a similar look. Well, I have a ton to learn about color layering but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the results! Check it out, will you? This class teaches you not only how to add shades of grey to create depth but how to texture with not only markers but colored pencils and water-based markers as well!

Amy has a class coming up tomorrow using Power Poppy's Heart Abloom digital stamp set that I wish I could attend -- it looks so yummy! You can click HERE to read all about it!

And that, my friends, is all I have for you today! I will have to make this little number above into a card and show that off at a later date! Until then, be sure to hit up the Power Poppy Blog today for your weekly dose of Good Vibes!

And, while you're hopping, be sure to pay these fine ladies a.k.a. the Bloomies a visit to see what fun they've whipped up to share with you all this week!

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks for popping in! Enjoy your weekend and I'll be back here real soon to share a little kick of creativity to brighten your day!

~Julie 

Two fun challenges just for YOU!

Hello friends! If you were over on the Power Poppy blog earlier this week, you might have spotted this post. For those who weren't -- you're in luck! I have some fresh creative eye candy to share and it's something YOU can have fun with as well if you play along with me for this week's......

If you didn't know it, every Tuesday, yours truly helps host a color-fueled challenge that's a super fun way to stretch your creativity AND get some free stamps too if you're chosen as one of Power Poppy's guest hostesses! It's called HUES TO USE and all you need to do is use this little trio of colors in your next card or project. Yep, just that easy! 

MOVING ON TO THE LATEST COMBO! When Marcella spotted this amazing swirl of color above, she was at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in our nation's capital. This, my friends, is Tight Malachite and as Marcy said when she first set her sights on it, "Dare you not to swoon!" Well, I did indeed swoon and then I decided this would be a wonderfully fun color combo for.. HUES TO USE! I'll admit, it's a bit tricky at times to pull off monochromatic color combos. But, you know what? I know you can do it! And, I can't wait to see how you pull it off! Want to play along? Just click HERE for all the deets! 

Want to see how I took these colors for a whirl?

For starters, I picked up Power Poppy's Succulent Singles and Prairie Cheer stamp sets (for the sentiment). I stamped two of the smaller leaves directly on my decorative paper and then, stamped a bunch onto white cardstock to cut out later. Actually, I could have used the Succulent Singles Die Set that goes with this stamp set but I had a lapse in judgment and forgot to do that! EEK!

Now, here's the fun part. I decided that instead of letting ink play a prominent role in my creation, I would heat emboss. I dug deep into my drawer of embossing powders. Deep! I have so many embossing powders and many of them are more than 15 years old -- so underused! Take a look at the three powders I picked. They are from a company called BMuse. The company is still around but no longer makes these amazing colors of embossing powder. I have Copper, Aged Copper and Bronze. Here's a peek at what they look like, pre-emboss.

And, because you really shouldn't use Copic Markers with embossing powder (I hear that it damages the tip of your marker), I decided to reach for my Distress Markers and picked up these colors below. I never color directly onto my image when using Distress Markers. I scribble them onto a plastic palette or even a large acrylic block and then pick up the marker with either a blender pen or water brush. This time I used my Dove Blender pen. I love how this allows you to add color gradually and almost with a watercolor effect.

And here's a close up of how those embossing powders turned out! It's so hard to photograph the metallic sheen but they are really quite fun in real life. The Aged Copper has that bit of navy in it, which picks up on the navy in the base portion of my card. I love that blue tint, the distressed bronze and the copper. LOVE!

And here's a little better shot of the coloring! I love the almost dreamy wash on each petal. And, to be honest with you? I just scribbled on the color -- didn't really spend a ton of time on it! Isn't that the best?

And that, my friends, is it! Now it's your turn to take these colors and put our own spin on them! After you're done, don't forget to link up your creation below and let us all see your take on this color combo challenge!

But, guess what? This isn't the only active challenge right now over at Power Poppy! Today, Ms. Ally unveiled a brand new Power & Spark Challenge and it's a super fun one! Check it out! 

 

That's right, all you need to do is be inspired by a piece of fabric, a fabric look, and then, create using a bit of that inspiration! You can read Ally's details HERE! 

I happen to know some of the "Bloomies" are on standby, just waiting to share a bit of their creativity with YOU! So, stop on by to these lovelies if you will! 

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Stacy Morgan

Thanks for spending a bit of your day with me! I love your visits! :-)

~Julie 

Love & Thanks

Well hello there! Happy Friday! Who is ready for a weekend??? I am! I am! We are hitting the road tomorrow to watch my darling daughter play her last JV Basketball game and then, I plan to cuddle in, cook, and maybe snuggle up by the fire for a bit. Afterall, we just got a heap of snow over night and old man winter doesn't seem to want to let up. So, when life gives you lemons.....

If you popped over to the Power Poppy blog earlier this week, you might have caught sight of the creation I am about to share! It is this week's....

That's the challenge we pose every week that invites you to use our color cues A.K.A. Hues to Use and then create using this color combo!

Here's a little bit of the backstory on this little piece of color inspiration below. If you remember back to the fall, Marcella married the love of her life, Doug. What an event it was! Marce created a whimsical woodland wedding that just paid homage to their different loves as a couple. Can you imagine beautiful greenery (Marcy's love) intermixed with Doug's love of all things motorcycles! This photo showcases the sparkle-daubed bridal headpiece handmade by one of Marcella's friends who is a milliner. It has clusters of bling and vintage leaves with a splash of silvery sage! Here's a peek at your color cues for this week! (HERE'S a darling picture of Marcy actually wearing this beauty!)

Aren't those colors just delish together? I love not only the photo with that glint of mettalic (which you can use instead of the light grey), but the super vintage colors like that dusty rose and sage!

HOW TO PLAY ALONG WITH US: To play along with us is simple -- use these three colors to spark a bit of creativity in your crafting space and then, when you're done, link up your creation using our linky HERE ON THIS POST! It's just that easy peeps! 

Want to see how I put these colors for a test drive?

When I picked this color combo, the image that first popped into my head was the digital stamp set Hellebores.  I knew these delicate flowers come in shades of pink and I have always loved the flouncy look of this illustration. So, off I went, printing, coloring and matting it up! I should mention that the sentiment is from the set Nice Things to Say! I ended up stamping it with Versamark and then embossing with a detail silver embossing powder. After printing off my image. I grabbed my Copic markers and used these to color the image from top to bottom...

Here's a closeup for you! 

And that, my friends, is it! Now it's your turn to take these colors and put our own spin on them! After you're done, don't forget to link up your creation (link is above) so I can see your take on this color combo challenge! I should mention, this card would also work for Kathy Jones' Power & Spark 'Love to Sparkle' Challenge too! If you haven't checked it out, click HERE to read all about it! Super fun! 

Need a little more inspiration to get you through the weekend? Never fear! The Bloom Brigade is here!

Check out these lovelies below and just some of their crafty pursuits for the week!

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber >> you are here!

Kathy Jones

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks for stopping by and sharing a wee bit of your day with me! I hope you have a fabulous weekend and I'll see you back here soon!

~Julie 

Happy Va-Va-Valentine's Day

Hello sweet peeps! Goodness, it has been AGES since I have posted here! I sure hope all of you are well and that you are staying warm in this winter we are having. Here in the north, the snow is falling, falling, falling and we are having a tough time digging out! We had freezing rain today on the heels of about a foot of snow. Not fun! It's like a little ice rink everywhere!

And that... my friends.. is why I had a little creating time last night! It's also why some of my pictures are a wee bit dark -- no natural light! I might take new photos and swap them out when the light returns. Until then, try to imagine these in full color! LOL!

What I am about to share uses Power Poppy's brand new SUPER fun digital stamp set called Va-Va-Valentines! Oh my gosh, this set is too cute for words and I know it will be one I print off and print off and print off with sheer joy! So, take a look at the trio of cards that I made. All were colored with various Copic markers and all measure 4" by 4". I had these little 4-1/4" envelopes that I never seem to use, so I thought these would be perfect cards to put those little envies to use!

Here's a peek at the first card, accented by silver foil paper and a few little domed rhinestones! Oh, and glitter glue, lots of glitter glue on those little hearts! This one, even though it looks a little girly will be sent to my son at college this weekend!

This next one was accented with a heart embossing folder, some twine and those darling little metal clips from Stampin' Up. The little "I Love You" sentiment is from Power Poppy's Lavender set. The size was perfect for my little punched heart. Don't you think? This one, I set aside for my hubby! ;-) 

And this last card was dolled up with some silver cording and some silver foil paper that was punched with a scalloped-edge punch. I did (on all of them actually) add a little doo-dads here and there thanks to a white gel pen. This one is going to be given to my darling daughter. I really am her biggest fan! So, it's perfect. 

And that, my friends, is it! Super cute images to deck out in minutes thanks to the fact that the sentiment and image are all included in one stamp. Don't you just love that? I do!

Well friends, we have a full house of designers joining in on the fun this Friday! So, be sure to hop on over and see these lovelies below!


Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker

I hope you have an amazing weekend ahead! Thank you so much for stopping by and seeing a little bit of what I have been up to!

~Julie 

Hues En Masse!

Hello all and happiest of Fridays to you! I have some old to me but new to you creations to share today and.... I hope you enjoy!

So, for starters, with both creations I am picking up on the color cues from Power Poppy's Hues to Use! If you've never played along with this weekly color challenge, you're missing out! You can click HERE to check out the archives and then, below, I am going to share a couple color combos from recent weeks along with my creations!

First up.... CARD #1

This little number was the color combination from January 9th. Yes, that might have been a few weeks ago but.... guess what? The linky for our Hues to Use challenge is never-ending, which means you can scroll through the archives, pick a color trio that tickles your creative fancy and then, put it into play in your creation! I loved this color scheme above because I am a fan of plum. I love, love, love me some purple and this shade is especially rich. Now, I admit, I would never have put these three colors together on their own but in nature, it looks so beautiful! So, I gave it a try!

When I check out the hues, I often stare at the palette and say - "What stamp set would rock this color combo?" Sometimes, the choices are easy. Other times, not so much. For some reason, I kept coming back to Poppies. I am not sure if I have been craving a color-fest with this stamp set or if I really, deep down felt that stamp set was the perfect pick. Regardless, I inked it up and let it fly!

After stamping in Memento Tuxedo Black ink, I grabbed my Copic Markers and these were the ones I picked! The reds were used on the poppies, the yellow plus YG03 and YG06 were used for the centers, the BV0000 and V01 were used to shade my flower and the greens took care of the leaves and stems!

After coloring up my image, the rest is just matting it up! I actually picked some Stampin' Up and My Mind's Eye scraps from my decorative paper stash and felt lucky that I had just the right purples, reds and yellows! I should also mention that the sentiment is also from the Poppies set.

Here's a little close up for y'all! You can see that I did go ahead and add some white gel pen accents to the center of my poppies.

And that, my friends, is it for the first card!

Next up..... CARD #2!

Will you look at those steely blue hues? If you missed this little shot on Marcella's Instagram,there is a super duper fun story behind this particular trio of colors that you see here....

She and her friend, Trenna, decided to make candy agates over the holiday season and this is one in progress! Once baked, THIS is how they turned out -- little color infused candy slices that could be edible or could be spray sealed to enjoy as ornaments for seasons to come! You can click HERE, HERE and HERE for more progress photos! Marcy decided to seal some to treasure down the road so she painted the edges but you can choose non-toxic edging that makes these little numbers as delicious as they are eye-catching!

I have to admit, when I sat down to create, this card was not what I anticipated or saw with my mind's eye, but, I do like it! I used all of the colors but did so in a very soft way. The navy is in the ink that was chosen when I printed out my Tree Peony digital stamp. And then used as well in my Copic markers that I picked to add a little color here and there. Here's a peek at the markers that I used. As you can see... not many!

After I colored up my Tree Peony, I did use the sentiment from the Peony Muse clear stamp set and using Versamark ink and silver detail embossing powder, I added the sentiment on a punched heart shape. Add a little silver cording and that's pretty much it for this card other than the double mat in silver and light blue papers! Actually, I forgot a step! I did lay down a stencil and using Summer Sky Memento Ink, I sponged on some ink through a Tim Holtz dotted stencil. I love the depth it added without being over the top!

Here's a closeup for you!

And that my friends is it! I am so glad you decided to stop in this week! I hope one of these color combos will inspire you to play along with me with Hues to Use! If you need a little more inspiraiton, there is a trio of designers who are ready to share more creative bits with you! 

Christine Okken

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

And..... I hope you have an amazingly creative weekend! I decided I need to bust out of my cabin fever a bit and try something new. What that is right now, I have no idea! LOL! But, I am feeling a bit adventurous! Any ideas for me??? hehe!  ;-) Hope you seize the weekend and I will see you back here soon! 

Until next week!
~Julie

Grab a Map!

Hello Friends! It’s a new month.... AND a NEW YEAR! And with all those new things, the Power Poppy Bloom Brigade thought we'd ramp up the fun and deliver not one, not two, but TEN ways to bring on a bit of design power with that undeniable creative spark. And, what's even better than all of that is the fact that we have a partner in crime for this month's challenge. Check it out!

For this month's Power & Spark Challenge, we're asking you to "Grab A Map!" and get in on some Power Poppy Fun! We've teamed up with Pagemaps.com's CardMaps to showcase 10 new sketches featuring some of Power Poppy's fabulous stamp sets. You can find all ten sketches along with design team samples HERE!  And, you can read all the official details surrounding this month's challenge HERE! Play alog and you will be in the running for a $50 shopping spree to the Power Poppy Shop! Woo Hoo! But wait, there's more! Becky Fleck, the fabulous Pagemaps guru, is also offering a $25 Power Poppy gift card and all you need to do is leave a comment on THIS post! The Pagemaps contest closes January 22nd, so hop on over soon! We can't wait to see what you create. 

Moving on! Let's check out the Cardmaps sketch that I used for my creation!

And here's a look at my finished card!

Since Valentine's Day is coming up in a few weeks, I thought this digital image - Follow Your Heart - would be a perfect fit! After printing my image on Neenah Classic Crest cardstock, I colored it up with Copics and used a mix of light reds and deep rose shades. I also added a little bit of glitter glue before fussy cutting the image.

The rest is just matting it all up! I used scraps that I had in my decorative pink paper folder, mixing and matching and die cutting along the way. The heart die is an old one from Spellbinders called Spellbinders Lace Hearts.  I added the sentiment also from the Follow Your Heart set and created a flag similar to the one in the sketch.

Add a little razzle dazzle with the help of some rhinestones and... ta da! Done! Just that easy! I love sketches for just this reason -- it takes all the guesswork out of creating and lets you focus on some of the other fun parts of card making -- like picking the right papers, adding just the right touches and... COLORING! 

And that, my friends, is it from me! Now it's time to make the rounds and see what some of our fabulous designers created when they were challenged by.....

All ten of these lovelies have a different sketch and a different sample to show off! While you can check out all the cardmaps HERE, you really need to give some love to these ladies below, pick a sketch and then, join us in the fun! Hop on over and see....

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber >>> you are here!

Kathy Jones

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Cheryl Scrivens

Barb Walker

Nancy Sheads

And that, my friends, is it! So glad you stopped by to say "hi!" Hope you have a wonderful weekend and... I'll see you back here soon!

~Julie