Creative Confetti: Feeling Fall

Hello all and happiest of Tuesdays to you! Well, yesterday we ushered in the first day of Fall. So now, we can officially love all things pumpkin spice, spicy scented candles and, of course, sweater weather! In honor of this change of seasons, I thought there was no better time than now to have a kick-off celebration and use Creative Confetti to really ramp up our use of fall-themed stamps or color schemes! So, without further ado, check out this week's challenge!

HOW TO PLAY: It's just as simple as the graphic suggests, create with Fall in mind! It could be an image. It could be a color scheme. It could be using fall themed embellishments! It's just as easy as that!

On to our creations for the week!


Because this season is so beautiful, I thought I would share some fall-themed creations, not just from me but from some of the Bloomies to show you just how far you can take the challenge this week!

I absolutely love this creation from Ally Cope using Power Poppy's Fortunes of Fall  stamp set! For those digi lovers, this beautiful-for-fall stamp also comes in a digital format and it's called Maize for Days! This card is a perfect reminder to not only celebrate the season but to show some love to the shades of colored pencils that might not get a ton of use! 

Check out this masterpiece by Christine Okken, using Power Poppy's Olive and Oak digital stamp set.  I love how Christine can make any Copic creation almost have that dreamy watercolor feel. Sigh.... just too pretty!

This image above that Stacy Morgan captured so well called Fall Wellies is a heart-warming homage to autumn -- a time when we kick up our rain boots, taking a few fallen leaves with them! I adore how she not only colored up the fall leaves on the image perfectly but added a few as embellishments to boot! (pun intended).

For my creation, (which is one I actually did a while back), I chose to use just some bits of the Olive and Oak expanded stamp set.  I kept the design rather simple, letting the mix of patterns work their magic. I let the sentiment be the focal point and then adorned the die-cut and sponged panel with the cluster of leaves and acorns in this set. The Bible verse in this set is one of my absolute favorites!

Okay folks,  now it's your turn to enjoy "Feeling Fall!" Remember, after you create and play along, link up your project using the linky below so we can all see. Every entry is one more shot at a $25 gift code to the Power Poppy Shop! Woo hoo!

AND... a little teaser for you! You're going to want to check in on October 1st! Marcy will have a digital extravaganza -- releasing more fall-themed images for you to enjoy!

Also, I mentioned this last week! DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA FOR AN UPCOMING CHALLENGE? Email me at juliekoerber@gmail.com and fill me in! If your idea is used, we'll honor you on our blog for the week! Now don't be shy! I can't wait to hear your ideas! We already got a couple of emails and we can't wait to share!

Until next time,

~Julie 

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Good Vibe WEEKEND!

Hello sweet peeps! This little post is so late this Friday that I am just going to rename today's post the....

So, sit back, relax, take a sip of your favorite beverage and get ready to be WOWED by good vibes and fun crafty stuff!

Your Good Vibe 5 Hit List

1. Giving Thanks I have to say that Stacy nailed it on the autumnal feel of her Friday creation! You'll have to hop on over HERE and see the beautiful way she used Power Poppy's Olive & Oak Expanded set. I can almost smell the spiced cider and hear the crunch of fallen leaves underfoot when looking at this beauty!

2. Colored Pencil Magic Okay, so I might just be on a fall theme kick here today but my jaw dropped when I saw this colored pencil creation from Frankie Bell. Oh. My. Gosh. Isn't it just delish? She used Power Poppy's Maize for Days digital stamp. Sigh... just too pretty. Click HERE to check it out in full glory!

3. The Sunshine of Life Want a little freebie lesson on how to color up Power Poppy's Sunflower Power digital stamp set? Well, Cynde Whitlow is doing just that! Just look at that colorful depth folks? I know... pretty amazing, right? Click HERE to check out all the deets!

4. Miraculous Mushrooms! Our own Bloomie Tosha brought out the absolute best in Power Poppy's Miraculous Mushrooms digital stamp and she did it while taking one of Jennifer Dove's Copic Bootcamps! Yes, THE Jennifer Dove who is on Power Poppy's Instant Garden team. Doesn't it just give you warm fuzzies to think of those two in a room together sharing creative vibes? Click HERE to see all of Tosh's ab fab creation!

5. Marce Hits the Bright Lights, Big City! Check out this little photo snapped by Ms. Marcella herself entering The Beatles LOVE by Cirque du Solei in Vegas. Can you imagine? She'll have to jump on here and tell us all about it because it looks pretty incredible. Live shows with good friends, that is indeed a good vibe! I hope she comes back! ;-)

Now we have one more GOOD VIBE to share with you! If you didn't know it, Marcy snuck a brand new holiday image under the radar and released it earlier this week! It's called Ultimate Poinsettia, and just because I know you'll want to SEE... take a gander my friends!

If it looks familiar, you're good! You know your Power Poppy images! This absolutely breathtaking illustration was released last holiday season in clear. It's the Winter Wonderland stamp set. Well, after it's release, Marcella got note after note from digi lovers begging her to release the image in digital form. So, this Christmas, your wishes were granted! It's a bouquet with a flouncy poinsettia surrounded by anemones, pepperberries and the leaves of dusty miller. Breathe it in people!

And with every Digis on the 5s release, we have that fabulous gang of gals known as the Instant Gardeners who lend their creativity to bring these images to life! So, be sure to stop by and see the gorgeous ways they colored up Power Poppy's Ultimate Poinsettia! 

Barbara Walker

Broni Holcombe

Leslie Miller

Rhea Weigand

Thanks for popping in to share in this week's Good Vibes! Ally Cope will be in the house as we kick off the week for another edition of Inspire Me Monday! You'll want to swing back by for that because, as we ALL know, that girl has mad skills!

See you then!
Julie 

Inspiring and Amazing Maize!

Hello everyone and welcome to another Inspire Me Monday! I'm Amy Shulke of vanillaarts.com and today, we're talking about the Achilles' Heel that usually gets in the way of developing realistic depth and dimension. You love pretty color... and so you want to use it everywhere. But, real life is muddy. Realistic coloring is murky. If all you’re using is bold, bright, and attractive color, it’s no wonder your coloring looks flat and fake.

Universal shading is a concept that you need to absorb and understand in order to add life and dimension to your coloring projects. And. pssst... this concept makes coloring so much easier! So, allow me to share a few tips using Power Poppy's digital stamp set Maize for Days. 

TIP 1: There are more corn husks than anything else in this image but they're not very important. I want the husks to fade from view, not attract attention. Because I know I'll be using a lot of blue-gray color in this image, I choose a set of Copic browns that are very cool and almost dull, then I shade them with a BV to tone them down even more.

TIP 2: Just as I did with the husks, I continue to find less important objects and give them the same dull treatment. Here, I've colored the ribbon and bittersweet with blue-gray BV Copics to keep them from stealing attention away from the colorful corn coming next. To tie everything together, I repeat some of that blue-gray in the corn.

 

TIP 3: I'm starting to add more colors to the corn but I'm being clever about it. I don't want the corn to be an obnoxious, eye-popping riot of color, so I simplify the color palette. I've chosen 4 kernel colors and created a light and dark version of each. This way I have 8 kernel colors but they feel coordinated, cohesive, and professional.

TIP 4: I've saved the least realistic corn color until last. I don't need a lot of pink to make a statement.

TIP 5: Working my way through the husks now, adding a vein texture and pushing the shady areas deeper. Notice my color selection here, would you have shaded tan husks with a violet pencil? Brown shade doesn't have to be brown!

TIP 6: Copic colorers get trapped into thinking that every color deserves it's own shade color combination. That really complicates the coloring process but it also leads to flat coloring when you choose a pretty shade color rather than a realistic shade color. Real shade is rarely pretty. Trying to keep that pink or yellow corn beautiful in the shade will flatten the depth!

If you want a few more real time ideas on how to pull off realistic coloring with universal shading, you're in luck! On Friday, October 12th at 11 a.m. EST, I'll be hosting a live stream class delving deeper into these theories. And there's more good news, students who sign up receive 20% off the digital version of  Power Poppy's Maize for Days.  

Click HERE to learn more about this intermediate to advanced class and check out the supply list. Don't worry, if you can't make the live stream, there is a recording you can play immediately after the broadcast ends which you can watch as many times as you like until April 1, 2019. I hope you join me!

Thanks for stopping by & happy coloring!

New Digital Stamp Set: Maize for Days

Hello and Happy Fall! After the beautiful blowout of Holiday stamps the past few weeks, it feels a little funny going backwards to fall, but such is the course of the crafting calendar. For any of us who love to celebrate fall color, who want to indulge in those crimsons and carmines, raw and burnt umber, burgundy, royal purples, yellow ochre and all things orange — we don’t want to miss our chance!

Does anyone else get excited to see “Indian Corn” come fall at the market? Indian Corn, or Native American Corn—the real name of these gorgeous jewels is MAIZE. Originally domesticated thousands of years ago (we’re talking 9,000 years!) by the indigenous people of America, maize was cultivated into the corn we see today across the world. The wonderful colors of Indian Corn usually turn up come fall in grocery stores and farmers’ markets, and can be found festooning the front doors and Thanksgiving centerpieces of folks all over the land.

We often had a little bunch of Indian Corn on our door when I was growing up (my Mom did not miss a decorating beat!). This year I couldn’t help myself and picked up a few ears myself for the first time in several years, and they are just as glorious jewel-rific as I remember. Now, if I were to get super-duper crafty, maybe I could braid the husks together to form something gorgeous to hang on our front door... but more likely, I’ll tie some twine around ’em and call it a day! But a beautiful day, at that. Will you try something decorative (or otherwise) with Indian Corn this year?

For our digital release today, I’ve remixed a drawing that’s really one of my all-time favorites, and there’s something about how this set came out that pleases me... maybe it’s the subject matter, maybe it’s the composition, maybe it’s the corny jokes — but I hope you’ll enjoy it too! Introducing Maize for Days!

With this digital stamp set, you’ll get one image of Indian Corn tied up into a nice, wide ribbon with tendrils of Bittersweet — PLUS THREE SENTIMENTS! Originally, we were going to have two sentiments with this set, but then our Bloom Brigade designer, Allison Cope, declared that this set was “a-maize-ing” and well, a third sentiment was born. I can’t pass up a good pun like that! Thank you, Ally, it’s my favorite one of ALL!

Today we have some awesome autumnal cards to share with you using Maize for Days, created by women who put so much heart and talent into their work, it warms me up every time I visit their blogs. Let’s go see what they’ve made for us today...

Stacy Morgan

Christine Okken

Cheryl Scrivens

If you come back here on Friday, we’ll have even MORE cards to share with you from our fabulous designers! And, and, and — we’ll announce the winner of the Power & Spark: Bits & Pieces Challenge — AND (can you believe all of these ands?) — we’ll kick off an all-new challenge with Kathy Jones!

Go have an a-maize-ing day, my friends!