Instant Garden Introduction for October: Chickadee in Barberry

May we interrupt your regularly scheduled seasonal celebrations (all things autumn, pumpkins, costumes and candy corn) for a quick peek into winter? We want to give you a jumpstart on your holiday projects and so, for the next several days we’re going deep into Christmas card territory here at Power Poppy.

I hope that transitioning into winter territory is a little softer when it’s accompanied by a sweet little chickadee chillin’ in the shrubbery! This new illustration, Chickadee in Barberry, is available as a digital download that you can pop over and grab right away. It comes with not one, not two, but FOUR sentiments using very sweet typography and even sweeter messages.

Inspired by the wintery scenes looking out the window into my garden, where I can see my special Barberry (Berberis is the botanical name) called ‘Pee Wee’ go through its brilliant fall color, develop adorable dangling berries, and delight the birdies come winter. Check out this snowy cacophony from a few years ago! The Barberry is over on the left, and its branches were so heavy with snow, it’s looking a bit out of sorts.

Now, of course YOU can color up this branch any way you please, in fact, I love to see folks take my artwork and try new colors, whether they be impossible to be found in nature or if they mimic another similar plant. Isn’t that the fun of creativity, to just do whatcha want?

Speaking of doing what you want creativity, I can’t WAIT for you to see the cards created by the magnificent Instant Gardener team. Their birds are each so sweetly shaded, their snowy branches and berries each colored in uniquely — there is so much here to inspire! Come and see...

Debbie Olson

Cheryl Scrivens

Barbara Walker

Nancy Sheads

Jennifer Dove

Broni Holcombe

Hop on back to PowerPoppy.com to pick up a Chickadee for yourself, and get started on those holiday or winter-themed cards. The sentiments allow for all kinds of friendly expressions, they aren’t limited to Christmas, so you can get lots of use out of this digital set!

And folks.... TOMORROW we’ll start previewing the Happiest Holiday 2016 clear collection. I really cannot wait to start revealing glimpses into what you can make with these special new offerings.

The Happiest Holiday Collection.. IS... ALMOST... HERE!

Hello all! Can you just feel the excitement going on behind the scenes here at Power Poppy? Well, all of the Instant Gardeners and members of our beloved Bloom Brigade are anxiously awaiting this.....

While this teaser showcases little sneaky peeks of Marcella's illustrations being brought to life in our brand new clear stamp line, digi lovers should know that the Instant Gardeners will be here tomorrow to showcase our first holiday inspired digital stamp set for 2016! It is about as sweet as can be, I tell ya!

And ..... if that art doesn't just get you giddy, maybe these little sneaky peeks from our Bloomies will -- showcasing just a small bitsy bit of what's fresh off the Power Poppy Clear Stamp Production Line!

As you well know, Christmas card-making season is upon us and -- good news -- Power Poppy has got your creative process covered with five new stamp sets designed to add just the right touch of holiday sparkle to your life! From Action Santa whooshing by with a holiday "hi" to homespun stockings chocked full of goodies --- these images are ready to deliver heaps of holiday flair!  Trust me, you will not want to miss a day of the Happiest Holiday Collection festivities!

So, here's the scoop! 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, when all of the new sets are live in the Power Poppy Shop!

On that bright note, I know some of the 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 tomorrow with jingle bells on!

~Julie

p.s. Don't forget, our Make It Move Power & Spark Challenge is still underway! All you need to do is make something on your card to "Move it! Move it!" Just click HERE to read up on the challenge and link up your movin' and groovin' creation!

Inspire Me Monday: Simple Copic Air Brush Backgrounds

Howdy all and Happy Monday!  Welcome to the Power Poppy blog for another issue of Inspire Me Monday.  Today I, Allison Cope, am going to share some tips and tricks when making backgrounds using a Copic Air Brush System.

I've made a short video to share with you today.  Come and sneak a quick peek at how I made my focal image using the brand new "Fall Haul" digital stamp and greeting!

Watch in HD.

Here are one last look at the card front and the inside of the card.

I also used the 3 different sized leaves from the "Feeling Fall" clear stamp collection too!

And here is the inside of my center step card...

Thanks for stopping by and joining me today!  I hope I've inspired you to create fun back grounds with your Copics today.  Happy creating!

~  Allison Cope ~


supplies:
stamps: Power Poppy (Fall Haul, Feeling Fall)
cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Pool Party, Chocolate Chip), Neenah (Solar White)
patterned papers:  Lawn Fawn (Perfectly Plaid: Fall 6x6)
inks: Memento (Rich Cocoa), Copic Markers
dies: SugarPea Designs (Stitched Flags)
other: thread

Power, Spark & PEEPS!

Hello all and welcome to another action-packed, creative and chocked full of inspiration Friday here on the Power Poppy Blog! For starters, with a new month comes a brand spankin' new challenge hosted by the insanely talented Allison Cope! 

Check it out......

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!"

Thanks Ally! Now, I have to tell you, Ally's challenge card has a ton going on and you'll have to visit her blog HERE to see the other "moving" element she's planted inside her card. Here's a little snippet below showing how her wedding themed card shimmies and shakes! ;-)

And HERE'S a link to the step by step video she put together showing you just how she created this festive display for a happy couple! She also shares a little trick on using those "wobblers" -- even on smaller images! 

So play along. Why? Because we know "You Like to Move It, Move It!"

THE OFFICIAL RULES:

• Use Power Poppy stamps  if you have them, if not, it is a great way to win some! 
• Link your creation below using our Linky (please use the exact URL from your post instead of a generic blog address.)
• Please mention Power Poppy in YOUR blog or gallery post with a link back to THIS challenge
• The winner will receive a free clear or digital stamp set of choice from the Power Poppy Shop
• Enter as many cards as you’d like, as long as they fit the theme of the challenge!
• Deadline to enter is October 31 @ 8:00pm EST.  At that point, we’ll draw the winner randomly and make the announcement right here on the first Friday of November!

MOVING ON! We love the part of our Friday posts when we can take a little trip around the blogosphere and handpick a few Power Poppy beauties to show off right here for all of YOU! 

If you've never heard of Amy Shulke of Vanilla Arts Co., this lady has coloring skills that are downright remarkable! She recently posted this little number below and, of course, I gasped! Look at the hand drawn wood grain and all the details she's added in with fine tip pens? Amazing and brilliant at the same time, right? Amy used Power Poppy's So Grateful stamp set. You can bet your bottom dollar that I am going to bookmark this one and give this kind of coloring a whirl!

This second project was masterfully put together by Karen Holley for a friend who was retiring! I love the coordinating box she made for her card and her self-generated sentiment is pretty darn perfect! I love also how she separated and cut out that little mug just to sit there all on its own! So fun Karen -- so fun! She used the Power Poppy stamp set Feeling Fall 

Well with that kind of inspiration being doled out, it's hard to believe we have more -- but we do!! The Bloom Brigade is on standby -- ready and waiting to show off some of what they created this week to get your mojo a flowin'!

Allison Cope

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Julie Koerber

Katie Sims

Stacy Morgan

Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks for stopping by and sharing a bit of your day with us! Be sure to tune in on Monday for another Inspire Me Monday blast of creativity! Ally is back to share some tips and tricks to create beautiful and, dare I say dreamy, airbrushed backgrounds! Trust me, you'll want to tune in for this one!

While you're at it... mark your calendars because Power Poppy's Happiest Holiday Collection 2016 is about to be unveiled! The Instant Gardeners will showcase a holiday-inspired digital stamp set on October 15th and then the Bloomies will take over and show off the brand new holiday clear stamp sets that are ready and waiting to be inked, stamped and colored!

See you back here real soon!
~Julie 

New Digi on the 5s: Fall Haul

We’ve got something fun to introduce today (golly, aren’t most things pretty fun around these parts? How lucky are we?) — it’s a rustic remix of a fall image from my archives, and I was so excited to bring it back to life as digi, I had to get into the coloring action!

Out came my watercolor palette and my tin of brushes, and onto the couch I plunked. Someday my back is going to seek revenge on me for what I put it through by painting cross-legged on the sofa and leaning toward the lamplight... but that is for another time.... because for now we have this fun digi that you can download TODAY and get right to coloring!

I just SWOON at the sight of pumpkins all piled up like this. So much so, I may have to go out and load up for the season this very week, as our farmers’ markets and local street corners are already starting to taunt us with their hay bales, corn stalks, and gourd displays. I’m ready for my own personal Fall Haul. And with that, here is our newest remix to share with you today:

Introducing: Fall Haul

You can get this baby straightaway and plunk down in your own coloring spot to have some fun with these pun’kins! Would you like to see more inspiration from some of the most amazing colorists in the land? I know I can’t resist an invitation like that... let’s go ogle!

Jessie Banks

Cheryl Scrivens

Cindy Lawrence

Don’t forget to grab this one for yourself if you’re the fall-lovin’ type! I can personally vouch that it is a hoot to color. I might have another go with it later today.

Have a wonderful day, my sweets!

Mixed Media with Power Poppy

Hello, and Welcome to the Power Poppy Blog!  Rhea here to share with you a Mixed Media creation using Countryside Bouquet.

The glory of digital images is you are able to size them to almost any size you wish.

This image I sized to 8.5"x6".  I've done this in a card size previously, but it happens to be one of my favorites so I thought I would so something a little special with it.

1.  With a wooden board purchased at a box store, I used a 12"x12" stone wall stencil using Faber-Castel Whipped Spackle.  Once it was dry, I used my water brush filled with Blending Solution and Copic Refills to "Water Color" or "Paint" the stones to look like bricks. 

2.  I die cut the fence and sign from chipboard. Then covered with matching paper.

3.  Everything was attached using foam pop up squares with pieces of chipboard to lift from the "wall" this piece has a lot of dimensions.   

4.  Add a bow and that is it.  

All color is from Copic Markers and Refills as well as airbrushing.
Here are the colors I used...

  

And the Winner for Coloring Outside the Lines Challenge is....

Hello to all of you hardworking, brave, beautiful artists — you all deserve a round of applause for your cards entered in our Power & Sparklette Coloring Outside the Lines Challenge. I have to say that I am SO DARN PROUD of you gals for moving beyond your comfort zones, for trying techniques that were a little different, maybe a bit bold — and in some cases, totally out there!! It makes me really excited to see that you were up for the challenge. And then to show them off in public on your blogs, on Instagram, Pinterest, Splitcoast, was equally daring and divine. I had a few entries emailed to me directly, which I also appreciated seeing!

A huge bravo to every one of you! 

Thank you for pushing yourself. Thank you for being with us on a journey to go a little deeper in our creativity. I think you are AWESOME!!!

Reviewing the entries with my son, Finn, was such a pleasure for both of us. Let me tell you that he was just as amazed as I was at some of the cool techniques employed (from spattering to fingerpainting to watercoloring with wispy strokes). I wish you could have heard some of the adjectives Finn used to described these cards: “SO COOL!” was probably the most oft used of them all!

The winner of the Coloring Outside the Lines Challenge will receive our yet-to-be-revealed Holiday 2016 clear stamp collection — FIVE brand new stamp sets (retail price $90).

And the winner is...

DONNA PHELAN!

Donna, your creativity was operating at such high rates, you could have gotten a speeding ticket. We absolutely love how you worked your way around the stamped images, and let the paint go where it wanted to go, nudging it along lovingly. I’ve never seen anything quite like either of these bookmarks. Congratulations, Donna, and thank you for showing off how you stretched yourself, girl!

I’ll be sending you a bundle of all five new Holiday sets when we release them on October 21.

Thank you again to EVERYONE who entered, who commented, and who cheered us on all month long with our Power and Sparklette Challenges. I had great fun getting to know you all a little better and I hope you feel empowered to do something fresh, something different, and something artistic. You are Courageous and Creative and I am very proud of all of you!

Big love,