A Little Friday FUN!

Goodness, gracious! Doesn't it seem weird to be talking about when you're going to carve pumpkins one minute and then, sharing a card you've already got in the bag for Christmas? Well, I think it is! But, that's exactly why I am here today!

While Power Poppy popped the lid off its 2016 Happiest Holiday Collection, I did have a card I made for release, and can you believe it, forgot to share! Fully Stocked is one set that has a mix of whimsical, elegant and earthy all packed into one stamp set. I love that! So, here's my take on the stocked stuffed for those who are young and... young at heart!

I just love this little teddy bear popping out the top! I had a blast coloring this image up and then fussy cutting it so that it took center stage on a holiday-themed piece of background paper. I used Copics, of course, and reached for nearly every family of green and red that I had! After I was done coloring, I added some sparkle thanks to a Spica glitter pen and some accents thanks to a white paint pen. You can't see the glitter, but trust me, it's there! 

Here's a close up view for you!

From there, I just matted it all up, added some grosgrain ribbon and gold cording and then stamped the little cluster of buttons from the stamp set on strips of kraft cardstock to create my own kind of decorative paper. It's all ready to be stuffed in an envelope and mailed to someone across the way!

Want to check out what some of my fellow Bloomies whipped up this week... just for you? Well, head on over and see these fine ladies, will you?

Ally Cope
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber >> you are here!
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker


Thanks so much for stopping by and spending a snippet of your day with me! I so appreciate and enjoy it! I'll be back Monday with a little teaser of a holiday gift giving idea that you can literally make in minutes!

See you back here then!
~Julie

The Happiest Holiday Collection is HERE with a Power Poppy Hop!

Hello folks and welcome to RELEASE DAY for Power Poppy! After teasing you for five days, the Bloomies are on standby, ready to show you one more fabulous creation from the 2016 Happiest Holiday Collection. WARNING: It's designed to release sudden cheer and evoke feelings of instense Christmas joy so... watch out! ;-)

On to my creation!

I had colored up this little mason jar full of goodies on a recent color fest and decided -- it needed a home on the front of a card! I used Power Poppy's new set Holly Golightly and I think this set is full of simple, classy charm! After stamping, I grabbed my Copic markers of course and went to town coloring in the leaves, berries and accenting that darling little mason jar.

After coloring and die cutting with a double stitched oval die, the rest is just matting it all up! I used a decorative paper pack I picked up from Hobby Lobby and just used three coordinating papers. Add a little red and white twine and an ink-sponged, scallop-edged circle perfect for a sentiment and.. ta da! I kept this layout sweet and simple! I am really loving sweet and simple these days! ;-)

Here's a close up for you!

And that, my friends, is it! You will have to truly take in this Power Poppy Hop and see the rest of these fine ladies as well!

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber >>> you are here!

Kathy Jones

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

BEFORE I LET YOU GO -- TAKE A GANDER AT THIS SUPER SWEET SPECIAL! Just to "enable" you a wee bit more, check out this fabulous deal Marcella is offering up through October 25th at midnight CST!

That's right! There are two special offers.... just for YOU! Buy ANY 4 clear stamps and get the 5th clear set free!  Enter discount code: INTHECLEAR at checkout. - OR - Buy ANY 5 digital sets and get the 6th one free!  Enter discount code: DIGILOVE at checkout!

These promotions are good on all in-stock stamp sets at PowerPoppy.com. Promotions cannot be combined in the same transaction. However, customers can complete one transaction for clear stamps, and one transaction for digital stamps if they would like to take advantage of both specials. Now isn't that special??? What are you waiting for? Click HERE to visit the brand new Happiest Holiday Collection and while you're there, shop around and see what stamp sets you'd like to stock up on and... save! 

Thanks for spending a bit of your week with me -- hope you had fun! I know I did! 

~Julie

Sneak Peeks Day 5: Glistening Paperwhites!

Hello folks and welcome back to the sneaks for Power Poppy's Happiest Holiday 2016 Collection! Today, imagine one of the most glorious and elegant Christmas botanicals and then, set your sights on Marcella's take on these beautiful blossoms.....

You can't have Christmas without boughs of beautiful greenery. This special grouping will breathe a whoosh of fresh winter air into your card making, with an illustration of classic Paperwhites paired with Juniper and Seeded Eucalyptus. The natural elements in this brand new set -- Glistening Paperwhites -- would be shimmeringly lovely embossed in metallics, dusted with glitter, or colored in cool shades of green, blue, and ivory. What's even more wonderful is the fact that this set comes with a handful of  accent images and six sentiments to help you make cards for the most wonderful time of the year!

On to my creation!

Being a lover of Paperwhites, I knew that I wanted to play off the icy shades of blue to bring to life the juniper berries and add a little cool shades to the flowers themselves. I used B60, B63 and B65 for the berries, accented the flower with BG0000, RV0000, and then colored the centers with Y11, Y13 and added dots of Y15. The Eucalyptus seeds were colored up with G20 and BG72 and the leaves were colored with G20, G21, G24 and G28. Add a little shading around the image with RV00 and ... ta da! Here's a close up!

The rest is just matting it up! I added some rock candy glitter to parts of the berries. You can't really see it in any of the photos because it is more of a textural glitter but it does add a little shimmer in real life. The sentiment from the set was added to a banner die cut. The pale pink decorative paper and blue strips were just a part of my stash. Add a little glittery ribbon and some bling and that's it my friends!

I know with an image this beautiful that my fellow members of the Bloom Brigade will make jaws drop with their creations! So, see for yourself and hop on over to pay these fine ladies a visit! 

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber >>> you are here!

Kathy Jones

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Tomorrow is the big day my friends! Tomorrow we get to roll out the entire collection with a big party -- showcasing more of the sets and letting you know how you just might be able to get your hands on this swoon-worthy designs! Can't wait? Me neither! 

See you back here tomorrow!

~Julie

Happiest Holiday Sneak Peeks Day 3!

Hello all! If the thought of cheerful packages covered in bright berries and greenery make you swoon, then today's stamp set reveal showcasing Power Poppy's Happiest Holiday 2016 Collection has its sights set on YOU!

Check out the latest sneaky peek.....

With Holly Golightly, what you have is an essential ingredient of Christmas cheer: Holly! Done up three ways, will you go with the hollyberry branch, used as a focal point, a bough, or a pattern piece? What about the sweet little Mason jar with boxwood and holly for a humble holiday scene? Or, you can try the happiest holly tag that you ever did see with a whole bunch of Holly Jolly sentiments! This set offers so many mix and match opporutnities with 12 stamps total in this fabulously merry set!

On to my creation!

I started by stamping my image and then, reaching for my Copic markers in shades of neutral browns, greens and, of course, reds! I used G05, G07 and G09, blending with G20. The reds were R24, R27 and I blended with R20 and R01. I added a little E55 to the stem and then the tag was done up with E81, E50, E51 adn E53. I also accented with a little white gel pen. And... ta da! Oh, I should mention that when it came to inking up and stamping the sentiment I selectively added ink using a Memento Dew Drop to get the inner phrase with Ladybug Red and the outer portion with Cottage Ivy. 

Here's a little close up! I matted this little tag up with a decorative paper stack that I picked up at Hobby Lobby along with a kraft colored doily. Sweet.. and ... simple! 

And that, my friends, is it! There are so many cute elements in this set that you'll have to make the rounds to the lovely ladies below to see their creative take using this new Power Poppy set -- Holly Golightly! 

Allison Cope

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Kathy Jones

Stacy Morgan

Thanks for stopping in today, be sure to hit up the Power Poppy Blog tomorrow  for the next sneaky peek. This one is stocked full of fun and just can't wait to be hung by the chimney with care! Yep, that's your little hint! ;-)

See you back here soon!

~Julie

Happiest Holiday Sneaky Peek Day 2!

Hello all and welcome to Day 2 of the sneaky peeks for Power Poppy's 2016 Happiest Holiday Collection! I can't tell you just how much I adore the set that's being revealed today! I mean, just take a look at this, will ya??

So what does Santa do when he's not overseeing all of the hustle and bustle at the North Pole? Well, he doesn't always take his trusty sleigh to get packages to the good little boys and girls world wide. He's a 21st century kind of guy! At least that's the vision Marcella had when she whipped up this new offering -- Action Santa! This chocked-full-of-cheer clear stamp set offers two whimsical views of Santa on his way paired with five holiday greetings and several little accents to help set the scene!

On to my creation!

Since this little stamp set tells Santa to get a move on, I decided to take Ally Cope's Make It Move Power & Spark Challenge and put 'Ski Santa' in a snow covered winter wonderland a.k.a. a shaker card! ;-) If you've never made a shaker card, Ally offers a fabulous tutorial HERE to get you started. It's a good one to pin for later! 

After stamping my Santa, I have to tell you that I used pretty much every marker in my stash to bring Ole Saint Nick to life! I wish I could name them all but honestly, there are far, far too many! After I was done coloring, I used the tips and tricks Ally offered to make my shaker, added different sized sequins for a little snowy sparkle and... ta da! Add some twine, a sentiment from the set and some sparkly decorative paper!

Here's a little close up to show you "what's shakin'" with this creation!

And that, my friends, is it! If you want to read up on the inspiration behind this set and see some of the other fabulous creations from my fellow Bloomies, just head on over to...

THE POWER POPPY BLOG!

Tomorrow, you'll have to swing by to see how one festive berry takes on a holly jolly feel as we continue the sneaky peeks for the 2016 Happiest Holiday Collection!

See you back here then!

~Julie

Happiest Holiday Sneak Peek Day 1!

Hello all and welcome to day one of the Happiest Holiday Sneaky Peek Week for Power Poppy! All this week, the Bloom Brigade will be sharing some of their creations with this soon-to-be-released Christmas Collection! And today, we start this kick off with some SIMPLE JOYS! 

Take a gander at this set and you're bound to get that feeling of homespun country charm. A rusty old watering can primed for the Christmas season, a glass ornament hanging cheerfully on an evergreen branch or a fresh-clipped group of holly berries decked out with holiday sparkle and joy. That's what Simple Joys -- a set of vignettes delivers! 

On to my creation!

When I first set my sights on this new set, I just keep seeing blues and reds. Not sure why but I thought of that steely blue that you see so much in country decor. And so, my sweet stamping friends, I grabbed for those colors when I started coloring up this image! I had B91, B93, B95, E31, E33, R27, R29, C00, C01, C03, C05, YR27, YR24 and E81. I shaded the bottom with some of the grey toned BV markers. BV20 BV23. From there, I matted up my card using some scraps in my stash, added some twine and coordinating buttons and... ta da! Fini!

Here's a close up for y'all! 

Easy, peesy, lemon squeezy! I honestly love when a simply designed card and layout can really make an image sing! Oh, I should mention, that darling sentiment is also a part of the Simple Joys stamp set (along with 6 other beautifully scripted greetings!)

When it comes to this day of sneaky peeks, you could say the gang's all here! You'll have to hop on over to see the rest of my beloved Bloomies to see their take on this stamp set full of country charm!

You can find the full linky list over at.....

THE POWER POPPY BLOG

Coming up tomorrow, the fun continues with a set that not only keeps Santa on his toes but on two wheels too! Just wait until you see this cute-as-can-be set! When's the full collection going to be released? Mark your calendars for October 21st! 

Until then!

~Julie

It's Amost Time!

Hello friends! I am giddy as I type this because in just a matter of days, Marcella is going to take the lid off her Happiest Holidays Collection for 2016.  There are so many fun elements to this Power Poppy collection that I just KNOW there is something for every kind of card maker! Check out this little teaser, will you?

And... just to tease you a bit more, here's a little snippet of one of the cards that I am going to share in the coming days....

Just look at that little fuzzy bear peeking out at you all! Can you even stand how cute he is? So here's the rundown my friends. TOMORROW, Power Poppy's Instant Gardeners will be kicking off a heavy dose of holiday spirit sharing the first holiday digital stamp set for the year! SUNDAY OCTOBER 16TH through THURSDAY OCTOBER 20TH, look for sneak peeks of the brand new clear stamp sets and then on FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21st, join us for a Power Poppy Hop, when the Bloom Brigade shares some extra inspiration on release day!

On that bright note, I know some of the other Bloomies have cards and snippets to share so, be sure to hop on over and see.....

Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Kathy Jones
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker
See you back here Sunday for the start of the holiday cheer -- just in time to get you ready for the Christmas cardmaking season!

Until then!
Julie

Movin' & Groovin'!

Hello happy stampers! Gosh, do I have so much to share with you today! First, I sure hope life is treating you all well and giving you lots of time to pursue all your crafty endeavors! Although, you and I both know there's never enough time for that!! ;-)

Since it's a brand new month, that means there's a brand new challenge over at the Power Poppy blog! Check it out sweet peeps!

Want your cards to jump, jive, move & groove? Well, you're in luck! For this month's Power & Spark Challenge, Ally Cope is encouraging us all to do just that! Here's what this creative phenom had to say.....

"For this month, we want to see You Move It, Move It! That is, we want to see an element of your card move. It could be anything from a pull-out tag, to some sequins in a shaker card to a fun element that jiggles all on its own! Let's see you Move It!"

I know before the month is over I am definitely going to have to give this challenge a try! You can read up on all the official details HERE!

On to my creation this week!

As you can see, I used Power Poppy's new freebie digital stamp set called I Can Do All Things which just so happens to feature one of my favorite Bible verses of all time! That's why I loved coloring this up so very much. When it comes to the Copic Markers that I used, I sadly didn't write down which ones I specifically used, but I can tell you that I chose a light, medium and dark in each of the color families and went from there. After I was finished, I added some shading thanks to E81, E0000 and R0000. As you can see, I also added a few accents here and there with a white gel pen. Here's a little close up for you!

The rest is just matting it up and adding a few candy dots. Easy peasy lemon squeezie! Now it's time to turn things over to my partners in crafting crime -- the Bloomies -- to see what they've been up to this week!

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

Thanks so much for stopping by and spending a bit of your day with me! I hope you have a wonderful weekend planned!

See you back here soon!
~Julie

Keep The Faith

Hello all and happiest of Fridays to you! The feel of autumn has fallen on my neck of the woods, which made for some chilly and rainy days -- perfect weather for a little bit of coloring and creating! 

I had yet to print off Power Poppy's Pure Prairie Bouquet and so I took this time to grab my markers for one big color fest! 

As you can see, I blew up the image so that it would more than cover the front of my card. I chose all kinds of colors -- too many to count or list -- and then highlighted my image with some soft blue shades. After I was done, I fussy cut around the top and bottom and then matted the image onto a piece of soft blue decorative paper. From there, I added the Keep the Faith sentiment from the stamp set Happy Crabapple. Because thse coloring was such a huge part of this card, I chose to keep it simple in design and let the flowers do the talking! And that, my friends is it-- now I have a card full of color that can hopefully send a little cheer to a friend in need.

Moving on! Since it's Friday, that means the Bloomies are here to share a bit of what they've whipped up this week creatively, so be sure to stop on by and see what they have to share today!

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

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a fabulous weekend ahead and I'll see you all back here soon! And, if you are looking for some creative fun and a bit of a challenge, don't forget to stop by Power Poppy's blog tomorrow to see if Marcy has another element to her Power & Sparklette challenge for you all!

~Julie

A Weekend of Creative Fun!

Hello peeps and happy Friday!  There's a flurry of Power Poppy activity to share with you all and guess what? It. Is. ALL. FUN! 

First off.... did you see the Instant Gardeners strut their creative stuff yesterday with Power Poppy's brand new digital stamp set - Black-Eyed Susan? If not, you can take a step back and check it out HERE! This little dose of fall-themed sunshine is ready and waiting to buy up, download, print and color! And if you missed THIS news, there are two new digital freebies for you to grab up too! Just click the linky to learn more!

That leads me to the second big bit of news! Power Poppy is having a first-of-its-kind bundle sale that lets you decide if you want to save a little or a LOT!

Between now and Monday at midnight CST, some of Power Poppy's most beloved digital stamp sets are going on a FAB 5 SALE  and are therefore, super ripe for the pickin'! Check out these lovelies above that you can steal buy for just $4 apiece! If you want to save even more, you can pick up all five of these sets for just $15! Woot woot! I hate to enable you my sweet stamping friends, but this sale is a doozy!

One you've picked up one of these fine fall-themed illustrations, then you can hop over to our good buddies at Passionate Paper Creations and Friends for this....

To get in the running for this festive affair all you need to do is color up (you don't even need to make a full-fledged card) Cuppa Buttercups, Apples in Season, Pure Prairie Bouquet, Sunshine of My Life or our newest - Black Eyed Susan and link it up on the Power Poppy post over HERE on the Passionate Paper Creations and Friends Facebook page. If you play along, you could be picked the winner of our random drawing for a $20 gift card to the Power Poppy Shop. So grab those colored pencils, watercolors or markers and get ready for a little colorfest this weekend! ;-)

In light of Power Poppy's little contest, I decided to print off and doll up the new digital stamp Black-Eyed Susan! Check it out!

I printed it in a dark sepia tone and then went on to color it in nearly every shade of yellow Copic marker that I had -- Y02, Y06, Y35, Y38 -- just to name a few and then the leaves were colored with YG03, YG13, YG00 and a bit of G20 to soften the glow a bit. After it was all colored a used my warm grey tones to shade around it and give it a kind of antiqued feel. Add a few dots from the white paint pen, some paper piercing, a paper pierced sentiment (also from the digital stamp set) and mat it all up! Easy peasy lemon squeezy! 

Now it's the Bloomies' turn to "grab the mic" and sing you into the next scene! We've got pretty much the whole team here so let yourself "roll" through this link list and see what they've been up to!


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


Thanks for stopping by! I hope you stop by the Power Poppy Blog tomorrow to see what Marcy has up her creative sleeve and don't forget about playing along in the Coloring Contest HERE. I just know that I will love looking at all the entries!

See you back here real soon!
~Julie

What's Up Buttercup?

What's up Buttercups? This card is just for you! We've been hit with some fall rainy weather in my neck of the woods and so I needed to dig up and deliver a little "sunshine!" And so, my friends, here's what I put together for this Power Poppy Friday!

On to my creation....

If this layout looks a weeeeeee bit familiar to you then you have a KEEN eye! I actually made two of these layouts when I put together THIS card and planned to use one of the other sentiments from the Small But Mighty Affirmations set and then, life hit and I never got around to it. After coloring up these itty bitty blossoms from the Cuppa Buttercups digital stamp set, I thought this layout would be a fun one to plop down my colored up and die cut image! 

Here's a close up for you! I have to say, I went on the simple side for coloring and only used a few markers Y06, Y08, Y0000, BG0000, BG11, BG13, YG06 C01, and C03. After I was done coloring, I had to add a little razzle dazzle with some glitter glue! See?

And here's a peek at the inside using the digital sentiment that is a part of the Cuppa Buttercups digital stamp set! I colored up the UP with BG000, BG11 and BG15 for a little ombre effect! 

And that, my friends, is it! Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Well, especially when you have a half done card that you can just plop an image on and it works! ;-) I think I actually might do that and just whip up some layouts and leave the image space blank to make way for those days when the mojo doesn't flow but you really "HAVE" to color! :-)

Before I go, I have some last minute news about a new "pop up" feature over on the Power Poppy Blog! Did you hear about this?

Click HERE to get in on the first challenge before it fades into the sunset! Psst! Just a hint for you, you "might" want to check in on Saturdays here at the Power Poppy blog. Just sayin'!

Now it's time to make your way through the roll call below to see what some of the other Bloomies have put on display! 

• Allison Cope
• Cindy Lawrence
• Julie Koerber >>> you are here! 
• Christine Okken
• Stacy Morgan

Thanks for stopping by and spending a bit of your day with me! Hope you have a wonderful weekend ahead! 

See you back here soon!

Julie

Birthday Wishes for Someone SPECIAL!

Hello folks and happy Friday! Hope your week is ending on a high note! Since it's Friday, I have a little Power Poppy goodness to share along with some of my fellow Bloomies! Woo hoo! 

So, let's get right to it, shall we? My creation today is in honor of one of my fellow Bloomies who is celebrating a BIRTHDAY today -- Ms. Cindy Lawrence! Happy birthday sweets, I hope you have the best day ever and know I am sending virtual hugs, a delish virtual cake and plenty of good wishes to last the whole year long! 

On to my creation....

Since I had yet to color up this little cake image from Power Poppy's Party Time stamp set, I knew I wanted to make it cute and colorful! So, I grabbed a rainbow of Copic colors and went to town! I also wanted to add that darling little banner from the set as well and make each one a different color to add another layer of fun! As you can see, I did add some accents on the banner thanks to a white paint pen -- little dots, little bits of plaid, hearts -- we've got it all! 

From here, it's just layering it all up with a punch of color in the decorative papers that I used. I also added a few enamel dots for a little extra sumpin' - sumpin'! 

Here's the digital stamp that I used for the inside. This little number is actually from the digi set called Layer Cake. 

And, here's a little close up for you! 

And that, my friends, is it! You'll have to run over and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the lovely, vivacious, creative and sweet Cindy Lawrence (there are many more adjectives to describe this amazing woman but you get the jist!) And, while you're hopping, pay these other creative ladies a visit too! ;-)

Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan
Power Poppy Blog -- make sure you check to see if you are the Power & Spark Winner this month!

Thanks for stopping by and sharing a wee bit of your day with me! Hope you have fabulous weekend plans ahead. We might head for the mountains, my happy place! See you back here soon!

~Julie

Soothing Sympathy

Hello folks and happy Friday! I hope the sun is shining and air is light in your neck of the woods! It was back to school week for us here and man, was I NOT ready for a schedule! After sleeping through her alarm, it appeared my daughter wasn't either! ;-)

Moving on, I have a Power Poppy card to share on this Bloom Brigade Parade Friday and it's one that already has a stamp on it ready to be put in the mail. I really hate having to make sympathy cards but do love that I can put a piecce of myself in each one I make so that the recipient knows it was truly sent from the heart. On to my creation... 

This card is being sent to one of the ladies I met while watching our sons play football together. Her husband lost his fight to cancer after several years in the battle. Even on his worst days, he would be in the stands. Even in the midst of her pain, she always had a smile on her face and an unshakable faith. It was and is so inspiring. So, even though we weren't terribly close, I really wanted to share just how much her love for him and her faith touched my heart. 

I picked up Power Poppy's set Soothing Sympathy and colored up the peony in the set using soft peach tones. I honestly don't remember which ones but if I had a guess I would say I used R21, R01, RV00 for the flower and G20, G21 and G24 for the leaves. I kept the background crisp and simple and didn't even add any shading around the image. I put it together using a clean layout and added a bit of bling thanks to a row of rhinestones. 

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

And here's a peek inside. You might not be able to see but I did stamp the rosemary sprig from the stamp set on the inside using a super soft green ink. 

And that, my friends, is it! Some of my fellow Bloomies have some fun things to share for this little Friday show and tell! So, click on over and see these fine ladies....

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

Thanks for stopping by and spending a bit of your morning with me! I hope you have a wonderful weekend ahead and I'll see you back here real soon!

~Julie

Let the Trout Fly!

Hello all! If you are looking for a little creative inspiration to kick off your week, head on over to the Power Poppy Blog HERE! Why? Well today, yours truly is sharing four cards using four different sketches with only 1 digital stamp! Here's a little sneaky peek for you!

If you click on over, you'll see why these cards are great ideas to stash away when you need just the right "man card!" :-)

See you back here real soon!
~Julie

The BIG DAY is HERE!

Well after being tempted and teased with sneaky peeks all week, the day has finally arrived when all of those fun and fabulous new sets are there for the buying at the Power Poppy Shop! You just need to click HERE to see the Nature & Nurture Collection LIVE in the store! Woo Hoo!

And, just like every release, the Bloom Brigade uses this unveil day to share one more creation using one of the new sets! So.... on to my creation!

Since I didn't get in on the sneaky peek hop for In Praise of Sunflowers, I decided to take this image for a test drive. I absolutely love the flouncy nature of the blossoms Marcy drew and did I mention that sunflowers are my absolute favorite flower? They make me happy with their larger than life "faces" and sunshiney colors. In fact, wild sunflowers grow in the field behind our home and there are times when I am blessed to capture them on my evening walks... See? ;-)

But,  I digress! I guess you can tell why I 1. love this set and 2. had fun coloring it all up! After I stamped the image, I reached for the orange range of colors to make it even more bright and bold. I used Y35, Y38, YR04, YR07 and Y01 for the petals, G20, G21, G24 and G28 for the leaves and B60, B63 and B66 for the vase. E23, E25 and E31 were the colors that I used for the center of my flowers. I grabbed W00, W01 and W03 to add a little shading at the base of the image and BG0000 to add a little shading around the floral portion. You can see that when I was done coloring, I did add some white paint pen spots. I seem to be addicted to my white paint pen lately!

And here's a look at the inside. I decided to use the other image in the set to create almost a watermark on the inside of my card and then, matted up the sentiment as well. I figure when it comes to writing on this baby, I have the whole top of the 5-1/4" card. I'll probably leave this space alone! ;-)

And Power Poppy Peeps, like I said, the rest of the Bloomies are ready and waiting for your visit so that they could show you some of their extra special release week creations! So, don't leave them hanging! Head on over and see...

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

And, that's not all sweet stamping friends! Power Poppy has a special promotion on top of all of this! Friday through Monday, you'll get FREE SHIPPING on all domestic orders when you spend $50 or more (or $5 off international orders). There will be select discounts on clear stamps throughout the shop. Just click HERE to see for yourself and... get this... take advantage of Power Poppy's DOWNLOAD FRENZY with 25% off all digital stamps! Click HERE to check out the more than 50 digital stamp sets that are ready for you to buy up, download, print and color up in a jiffy! 

And there you have it friends! Hope you had fun this week and like what you see when it comes to Power Poppy's newest offerings! I know I am already in love with these images and see many, many crafty days ahead with them! 

Thanks for stopping by & I'll see you back here real soon!

~Julie

Power Poppy Sneaky Peek Day 3: Feeling Fall!

Hi all! Sure hope you've been enjoying all the sneaky peeks this week from the fabulous group of Power Poppy designers! If you missed the action click HERE to see day one of the peeks and HERE to check out day 2!

Today brings a fantabulous offering that's perfect to usher in those crisp days where you just want to curl up and enjoy the colors of the season around you. Take a gander at.....

Welly, welly, well... what do we have here? Power Poppy's brand new set -- Feeling Fall -- showcases three sweet vignettes with pumpkin, maple, and a plucky plaid! It's all meant to get that fall vibe kickin’ on your craft table. You'll find fun sentiments plus a stack of decorated pumpkins with a mysterious black cat, a trio of gourds, fall berries, and what has GOT to be a pumpkin spice latte PLUS stylish plaid wellies perfect for a day of raking the leaves of that gorgeous Maple tree in the yard. So incredibly fun and so very much in season, don't you think?

On to my creation! When I saw this pair of cute and dapper wellies in this set, I knew that I HAD to pick that image to start with. I loved the plaid that's worked into the image and wanted to play off that timeless burberry plaid. So, I put my markers to the test and here's what I got! 

After I was done coloring the stripes of black, red and pale yellow, I did use my fine Copic multiliner to add some stripes. From there, I used an array of autmn hues to give life to those beautiful Japanese Maple leaves. Add a little distress ink, sponged to the back of the image and.. voila! 

Here's a close up....

And here's a peek at the inside where I used some of the single leaves in the set with fall colored Memento inks to dress it all up! Don't you just love that sentiment?

And that, my friends, is it! A cute-as-can-be fall image perfect to share the feeling of fall with friends far and wide! 

Speaking of friends far and wide, my sistahs in the Bloom Brigade are here to share their Feeling Fall creations. The gang's all here so stop on by and visit...

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

And -- by the way -- you won't want to miss tomorrow's post! It's our Power Poppy Hop -- a roundup of the release. It's also the day when all these fine fall stamp sets will be there for the buying at the Power Poppy Shop! Yippeeeee! See you back here then! 

~Julie

Power Poppy Sneaks Day 1: Prairie Cheer

Hello all and welcome to a week that's full of color, style and creative inspiration! Why? Because Power Poppy is unveiling a brand new crop of clear stamps and this one is designed to usher in a little bit of nurturing nature!

Check out the very first sneaky peek, will you?

This little number -- Prairie Cheer -- offers a trio of prairie-plucked stems which truly complement our newest Instant Garden digital release, Pure Prairie Bouquet. Did you see the Instant Garden show off this showy bouquet Monday over on the Power Poppy blog? If you missed it, click on over HERE to see this bunch of blossoms and how these gals caused this beauty to explode with color! I digress! This new clear set is all about spreading an easy-going vibe along with some good feelings. From wheat lazily blowing in the breeze to those prairie populists coneflower and smooth aster, this set offers approachable imagery and sentiments that just plain cheer folks up!

On to my creation!

I have to say this stamp set arrived just in time. I have a friend who often snaps up my cards. Well, she mentioned needing one to send to a friend who was a little under the weather. What's nice about this set is that is offers simple and sweet illustrations that really do stand on their own without a lot of extra fluff, if you know what I mean. Because I wanted to get this card whipped up in record time, I opted to let the coloring be the main focus and keep the layout rather simple. After I was done coloring this up with Copics (V0000, V01, V04, V06, Y35, Y38, Y21, YR0000, YR01, RV00, G20, G21, G24), I added in the little details -- decorative paper, a punched circle with the sentiment from the set attached with foam tape and accented with silver cording. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

And here, sweet friends, is a close up! You can see I accented the centers of these little flowers with a little white paint pen and the fuzzy little bumble bee's wings with some Wink of Stella clear glitter pen. 

I  have to laugh because when I talked to Ms. Marcella about this image and how I loved the sweet simplicity of the set she said you could play up the images or let them sing all on their own. In her words -- "The world is your aster!" Ha! Gotta love that girl. 

And with that -- here are the Bloomies! Check out what they colored up using the brand new Prairie Cheer set!

Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Kathy Jones
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan

Be sure to stop on by The Power Poppy Blog today to read up on what inspired Marcy to bring this set to life! And, I have to say that tomorrow's sneaky peek is sure to add a little sunshine to your days. So much fun! So... stay tuned! 

Until then!

Julie