Good Vibes for our Gorgeous Friends

Hey there, Gorgeous! I’ve collected so many juicy tidbits of fun today, get ready to catapult into the weekend loaded up with fresh ideas! Be sure to scroll down to the bottom for links to today’s Christmas-y creations by the Bloom Brigade. Enjoy!

GOOD VIBE #1

Scrolling through Instagram the other day while sipping my morning coffee, I was stopped in my tracks by this ADORABLE gift card envelope created by our customer, Esther Asbury. She used our Gingerbread Family digital downloads to create the cutest projects on Kraft paper! There are a whole bunch of them — go see, go see! Follow Esther at @shoregirlscreations

GOOD VIBE #2

My friend Bethany makes most every dinner into something special and memorable. Spending a week visiting her (above with my husband, Doug) was a joyful jolt we both needed. Bethany set the table differently each night using linens collected on her travels (this one is from Africa), candles in exotic scents, recipes culled from exciting cookbooks, accents on the table such as seashells and plants. We were even tickled that the labels on the IPA craft beer matched the lettuce and napkins. Letting the simple things in life be a celebration — that’s what it’s all about!

GOOD VIBE #3

Oh, how my heart did palpitate upon opening the handmade candy-pink envelope from Bloomie Allison Cope, and pulling out this incredibly intricate card. Can you believe she sent this to me?! I’m tickled pink and green, man!!! What a keepsake it is. Ally masterfully masked multiple stamp designs from Bottlebrush Holiday and Under Glass: Christmas Traditions to create a highly cohesive card. The focal point of Santa and his reindeer could not be more perfect, and the entire card positively glistens and sparkles!! And she wrote something really sweet inside, too, because she’s a dear-hearted, generous soul. I am one lucky lady, thank you, Ally!

GOOD VIBE #4

Beautiful Bloomie Stacy Morgan has been on a real tear with blog posts this week, you’ve got to see all of her new posts — if I didn't know any better, I’d say she’s trying to make every single one of our 12 Days of Christmas projects!! One that really caught my eye, her calendar page for December. Using our Simple Joys clear stamp set, look at how she colored those ornaments!! They look like little Earth models hanging in the branches!! I don’t know that it was her intention, but I sure think it looks cool. You could use this stamp set for Earth Day colored up like this. Clever indeed.

GOOD VIBE #5

Jeannean has been posting gorgeous botanical cards on Instagram lately, and I just had to show off her stuff! Get a look at that stippling technique to enhance the edges of her Poinsettia and Pomegranates leaves. That’s not something you see everyday. And her white highlights on the pomegranates and flower center help give the image a nice pop. Follow her @jeanneanmarshall to be sure you don’t miss a post. 

GOOD VIBE #6

Guess what? The Vanilla Arts coloring livestream has been postponed to December 19th! You can still get in on it, and save 20% off on the digital set, Merriest Berries using code VANILLABERRIES20. Amy helps boost your coloring confidence, and who wouldn’t want to learn to shade like this? I know I could learn a few things!

GOOD VIBE #7

This is an oldie from 2012, when Doug and I took our little brood (who are now either as tall as I am, if not taller) down to the historic river town of Sainte Genevieve, Missouri. A day of shopping in quaint crafty stands, antiques stores, and the old-timey candy shop led up to a tractor ride up and down the streets singing Christmas carols. If you can find time to get out of town and enjoy some of the experiences that they just don’t have in the bigger cities, I highly recommend making some small-town memories this year!

Heyyyyy, it’s Friday, Friday, Friday! Come see what the Bloomies have been making this week. Everything from recycled wrappings used in a fresh way, to using tiny stamps to create a very rich wreath. ~ Enjoy ~

Allison Cope

Christine Okken
Katie Sims
Stacy Morgan

Searching for vivid colors to kickstart your next card making project? Try this trio of Turquoise, White, and Cherry Red!

Featured card by Nicola Gold

Tune in to our most recent Hues to Use — where a crocheted purse embellished with vintage buttons give us ideas for shading a pair of Ruffled Wild Orchids. A new Hues to Use returns this Tuesday!

I hope you’ve had a little time to get inspired by Power Poppy’s 12 Days of Christmas — where our talented designers and a few special guests created inventive projects to inspire you! Remember, if you make a craft using any one of our 12 projects as a springboard, and enter it HERE, you will be entered to win a $50 Power Poppy Shopping Code!

May your weekend be filled with merry and memorable activities, family and friends, craft supplies and cookie ingredients galore!! We’re finally going to put the tree up this weekend, and I cannot wait to get started!

Big hugs, and, thank you so very much for spending a little time with us here. We love you!

xoxoxo,