The Blossom Challenge Winners and Jingle Bell Inspiration

Greetings Power Poppy friends!  It’s Christine welcoming you again today!  Is it warm and toasty where you are today?  From what I can tell from weather reports, a lot of the map of both Canada and the US have had some significant cold and snow!  

To warm it up, today I’m bringing you a design with this sweet image from Power Poppy called Blankets and Bells, AND I’m also here to announce November’s The Blossom Challenge winners!  I travelled quite a bit last month for work, and it’s taken me a while to catch up at home. Thanks for appreciate your patience!  

Isn’t this a delightful little stack that looks cozy-cabin ready for snuggling?  Colouring is done with Copics and I’ve paired the design with some fabulous patterned paper I had in my stash with a fun colour palette.   Behind the patterned paper I sponged Distress Ink through a basketweave stencil to mirror the patterns in the blankets, added a few enamel dots, and then I tied a pair of little golden jingle bells to Baker’s twine to mirror the image.  Always sweet to hear the sound of jingle bells on a card!  

NOW For our WINNERS!  Our Designers had a chance to enjoy all of your beautiful entries into November’s Gold, Silver and Shimmer challenge and they have picked 2 winners as their favourites!  

Maggie https://maggiescathouse.blogspot.com/2022/11/mitten-power-poppy.html

and 

Nicola https://amethystlilydesigns.blogspot.com/2022/11/sparkling-treats.html

Congratulations ladies!  Please contact Marcy at bloom@powerpoppy.com to claim your prize!  

We’ll be back January 16th with a new The Blossom Challenge, so enjoy your Christmas and Holiday season and we’ll look forward to connecting in 2023!  

Inspire Me Monday: Poinsettias Eight Ways

Hello, my Power Poppy Friends! It is my turn once again to share some inspiration with you. 

I am sorry to say that I did not have any time to create a new project for you today, so I decided to share eight past projects...showing how you can use the Power Poppy digital Poinsettia images in various ways! (See the list of stamp sets below.)

This is the Ultimate Poinsettia digital stamp set colored with Prismacolor colored pencils in fairly traditional and vintage-leaning colors. I love when poinsettias are mixed with other flowers, and this bouquet is one of my favorites! 

This is the Poinsettia and Pomegranates digital stamp set. I colored this one with a combination of Prismacolor colored pencils and Copic markers. This is a very different color scheme, but if you like non-traditional colors, this style may be for you!

Here is the same image, rotated and colored with traditional colors using Copic markers. Those reds make me swoon!

This is the Poinsettia XL digital stamp set. This sample is colored with Prismacolor colored pencils onto kraft cardstock for yet another look. It is much more fun to color white flowers onto the kraft paper! This project is a more vintage take on clean and simple, which works perfectly with that HUGE white bloom!

Here is another traditional color scheme using the Joy to the World Bouquet digital stamp set colored with Copic markers. This is a deeply saturated coloring project! I always love the traditional red and green combination the most! This project is a larger scale, suitable for an 8x10 picture frame.

This "Santa's boots" image is from the Garden of Gratitude: Boot Bouquet digital stamp set. I colored it with Copic markers in a traditional color scheme, but chose greens that are more trendy. This is another great example of  the poinsettia mixed with other Christmas flowers. 

For this scene I used Season's Greenings: Wheelbarrow and Season's Greenings: Planta Claus. Again, I used Copics to color the scene and stuck to traditional colors, but here the poinsettias are NOT the stars of the show! But, the punch of the reds is perfect for this snowy scene!

For this slimline card I used the Winter Flora digital stamp set, colored with Copics. I used some digital wizardry to create this slimline layout showcasing those poinsettias very well. The addition of the blue, silver, and gold Christmas ornaments really makes that red pop! This style is also more modern...no printed paper, just clean and simple!

Power Poppy Digital Stamp Sets with Poinsettias

Ultimate Poinsettia

Poinsettia and Pomegranates

Poinsettia XL

Joy to the World Bouquet

Health and Happiness (NEW)

Garden of Gratitude: Boot Bouquet

Season's Greenings: Wheelbarrow

Winter Flora

Thanks for stopping by today! I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

The Blossom Challenge: Gold, Silver and Shimmer!

Hello Power Poppy Friends!  It’s Christine with you today wondering when our lasting fall will begin to turn to the white of Winter.  Even though I don’t love long winters, I am so glad I live where it snows.  There’s is nothing more beautiful and peaceful then a soft snowfall, or looking at a sparkling snowcovered area.  It’s shimmer and shine makes the world look like a faceted gem! 

Today at Power Poppy, we’re excited to be kicking off a brand new Challenge and showcase some brand new digi images in the 2022 Digital Blitz that Marcy has cooked up for us!  You’ll see some wonderful remastered images that Marcy has released in the past in polymer that will be delightful for you to create with.  

The Blossom Challenge this month is called Gold Silver and Shimmer, and it’s all about metallic and shine.  

I have two designs to show you and I’ll begin with this brand new and lovely Wrapped with Love Digi.  It is filled with little pretties that evoke a elegant and classy traditional vintage Christmas all wrapped up in a bow!  I coloured the image with Copics, and added lots of touches of shimmer with my glitter pen on the ornaments, stars and paired it with pretty glittery paper.  Paired with the non-traditional coloured plaid patterned paper and it’s full of charm.  

My next design is cozy and warm with rustic touches using a remastered image called Mighty Pine.  I love winter botanicals like this where you can really dig into the colouring.  I brought it to life with Copics, a little Prismacolour Pencil and some gold metallic pen touches on the jingle bells.  All layered onto a distress oxide ink blended and stencilled background.  Little splatters of gold shimmer and wood veneer hearts tie it all together.  

Does Gold, Silver and Shimmer make your heart sing? We’d love to have you join in the challenge this month showing us your best designs with gold, silver or shimmery elements.  Pull out your embossing, gold, silver or shimmery paper, foiling, embellishments and paper treatments.  Dazzle us!  

This month we’re going to have our Bloom Brigade Designers pick their favourites from the Challenge Entries as winners, so pull out all the stops!  Remember you must use at least 1 Power Poppy stamp or image.  This month we’re going to pick 2 Winners of a $20 Gift code to the Power Poppy Store!  Enter below.  You have until November 20th to join us.  

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Were you a WINNER last month in our Fruit and Veggie Challenge?  Random.org picked Maria Rodriguez’s pretty veggie display.  Maria contact Marcy at bloom@powerpoppy.com to claim your gift code!  Congratulations!

There’s more to see with the rest of the Bloom Brigade playing along today.  

Barbara

Gloria

Essie

Inspire Me Monday: Digital Mash Up!

 

Hello all and Happy Monday! I have to admit, I didn't have a ton of time to craft this week so I thought of a way to share a little creative tidbit this week, in a bite-sized post! So, here we go!

Have you ever looked at two stamps or images and wished you could combine them to make a completely new image? Well, the beauty of digital stamps is.... you CAN! 

I'd been looking at the Glittering Glass Santa ornament and that lovely branch....

And, I wondered, what can I perch on that branch instead of an ornament? Well, I'd always been a fan of the little birds in the digital set Cardinal Couple! 

So, why not mash up the two images?

I started by opening up the cardinal image and then, I knew I needed to start "erasing" the cups and berries in the image...

If you have a photo editing software, most of them have an "eraser" tool, allowing you to take out pieces and parts in one fell swoop! I use Photoshop Elements and the tool is actually... an eraser! On this image, I was careful to erase everything but the bird and her little feet and made the tool rather small to get into all those nooks and crannies. 

Next, I opened up the Glittering Glass Santa image and then erased dear Ole Santa! Sorry, Santa! 

After he was erased, I clicked on the layer and duplicated it so that I could arrange the two branch images just how I wanted it in a way that a bird might perch on it. (To do this, you right click on the layer to the right and "duplicate" will be an option. 

But you can see above.... wow... that's a lot of foliage. I decided to get rid of the lower portion of the branches on both and then just arrange the top portions by tilting, dragging and dropping. 

I should mention, I used the magic eraser tool and with one click completely erased the background so that I could "see" the top branch over the bottom.  

And, I also shortened the lower branch erasing up to a portion that looked natural. See? I know this seems complicated but... trust me... it's not. If you erase too much? Pushing Control Z is your friend! :-) 

Then, all that is left to do is perch my little cute birdie! Below is a look at my finished digital image, just ready and waiting to be printed. While I don't have a picture of it, I also printed off the male cardinal. I wasn't sure I'd use him but wanted him on "standby!"

And here's a look at how it all came together! Some die cuts, a wee bit of layering, some sparkle, ribbon and a little bling! I now officially have my first Christmas card ready to send! I should mention that the sentiment is from a Power Poppy clear set called Simple Joys! 

Here's a little closeup! 

Now, after I finished my card, I thought, "Wow, that little birdie looks a little lonely!" So, remember that male cardinal I said I printed? I ended up coloring him up and tucking him into my layer so that they would be looking lovingly at each other. 

Truth be told, however, I honestly can't decide if they are looking lovingly or if the lady birdie is just looking at the gent saying, "Hey, quit being such a creeper cardinal!" I might have to look at this card just a wee bit more before the jury comes back on that one! Long story short, this was a tutorial on digital mash-ups, not creeper cardinals so... my work here is done! ;-)

Hope you took something fun away from all of this and... I hope you have a beautiful and creative week! See y'all next month! 

The Blossom Challenge: Christmas in July

Welcome to another round of The Blossom Challenge friends!  It’s Christine here today and we’re excited to jump into another theme that’s become quite popular in the summer, it’s Christmas in July!  Marcy’s images for the Christmas and Holiday season are always show stoppers, and it seems a shame to only pull them out in the winter, so this month we can create to get a jump start on our Christmas cards and packaging.   

Today I pulled out a couple of Christmas sets from Marcy to create a mini-slimline card and coordinating tag.  The mini-slimline uses Garden of Gratitude: Trellis Digial Stamp to showcase this pretty trellis Christmas tree made of oranges.  It’s so charming! 

The colouring is done with Copics, with patterned paper really helping to achieve that citrus feel I was going for.  A bit of paper ric rack accents the top.  

  

These sweet sentiment stamps are something we could use a little more of don’t you think?  I’ve added some enamel stars to highlight the sentiments and to tie back to the star on the tree.  

The gift tag is created with Power Poppy’s Handmade with Love Tags placed on some Kraft paper that has a slit in it for tucking in.  After I took the first picture in this series, I realized the tag looked a bit bare where the slit is, so I added a little circle punch to the tag which will also help with stability.  

So now it’s your turn!  Your Challenge this month is to create anything Christmas or Holiday using at least one stamp from Power Poppy.  You can make a card, tag, gift packaging, or frameable art.  Show us what you’ve got!  You could win a $20 Gift Code to the Power Poppy Store, just for playing along.  Entries close on August 15.  Be sure to add your link below!  

BUT before you go....there’s a SALE!  Marcy has kindly discounted ALL of our Christmas Digi’s in the Happiest Holiday Category for you if you want to pick up something new to create with. If you know Marcy, you know they’re all beauties! 

Now for last month’s randomly selected winner....congratulations goes to:  Carol Dee with her lovely forced hyacinth design.  

Carol Dee please contact Marcy at bloom@powerpoppy.com for your prize code!

For more inspiration here’s two other gorgeous beauties from The Bloom Brigade:

Lisa

Gloria

Stunning isn’t it?  We look forward to seeing your creations this month friends!  

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Garden Dirt: Merriest Berries, Copic Marker Swatches for Power Poppy Stamps

 

Deck the Halls with Copic Coloring!

Way back in 2017, I taught a little local Copic Marker and colored pencil class using Power Poppy's Merriest Berries stamp. 

I remember it fondly because the class fell smack-dab in the midst of the Christmas crazy time and everyone came to class completely frazzled. Who still has gifts to buy? Who really should be home baking right now? Who still doesn't even have their tree decorated?

Coloring can be very calming. While it won't decorate the tree for you, color can soothe your cares away.

So this month, when the tasks feel overwhelming, tell that creepy elf on the shelf to go bug someone else. 

Sit down and color for a while. You'll be glad you did!

By the way, my name is Amy Shulke and I'm the illustrator and art instructor over at VanillaArts.com. You can check out some of my previous articles on the Power Poppy blog here.

My specialty is hiding secret special colors underneath my Copic blending combinations in a process called Underpainting. This is how I create extra depth, dimension, and realism in my coloring projects and class samples.

Let's color festive & dimensional holly leaves!

Today I'm sharing that original version of Merriest Berries with you. Even though I colored it long ago, it's still a project that makes me smile.

You can find the Merriest Berries digital stamp in the Power Poppy shop here but don't over look all the other beautiful holly images Marcella has created. My Garden Dirt recipe can be used on any of them but if you're looking for a quick, last-minute Christmas project try the digital version of Hollyberries. It's sweet and simple!

Garden Dirt? Yep, that's how I think of the secret colors I use to make Power Poppy images really pop. It's the secret underpainting that you'd never know was there if I didn't share the secret here each month.

Under-painting and over-painting?

Hang on, this holly recipe is much easier than it sounds!

Now keep in mind, I always color dark to light. ALWAYS!

Start with Copic B34 and lay that color into your deepest holly zones. Any place that something overlaps a holly leaf or where the leaf is coming out of the cluster? Those are great candidate zones for the magic blue marker.

Then use YG67 to flick over the top of the blue, coming out slightly beyond. You're only 2 steps into the underpainting process and already you should be seeing two distinct greens. The blue under YG makes a deep and shady green. It's a shade of green Copic doesn't even make!

Then finish the blend with YG63 using it to smooth everything out.

Once dried, I kiss the points of each holly leaf with a bit of Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil in PC1030 Raspberrry. This hint of deep red adds interest and complexity to an otherwise standard looking green leaf. Red draws your eyes and makes the leaves something special.

So that's the Garden Dirt for December:

• B34 as underpaint for YG greens
• Raspberry pencil as overpaint, decorating the edges

Together this four color blending combination will make your holly very festive!

Want to color Merriest Berries with me?

As I mentioned, I colored this image quite a while ago. I don't even have a recorded class version to share with you.

But I didn't want to leave you hanging without some help!

I've put together a super-helpful Merriest Berries coloring guide for Copic Marker at a beginner to intermediate level range. This booklet has an easy to follow recipe guide, a color map, the original photo references, plus lots of step by step info.

It's everything but the stamp... which you can instant download here.

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone and Happy Holidays too. 

I know it's standard and almost trite to wish each other peace and joy during this season... but this year? Boy, we really need it. I hope you have the best celebrations possible.

And I'll see you back here on the Power Poppy blog in January for another Garden Dirt color tip!

Inspire Me Monday ~ Take The Challenge!

 

Hello everyone!  Gloria here!  Today is a special day for Inspire Me Monday!  Instead of just one Bloomie, you get two!  Bloomie Allison and I are having a friendly challenge.  We each sent each other a challenge. We each picked a stamp set, a coloring medium and a sketch for each other!

The challenge that Allison sent me was:

• to use either Forest Friends or Gifts of the Sea stamp set,
• use Copic Markers and Colored Pencils as a combined coloring medium
• use the sketch provided (by Mojo Monday)

Well, not too big a challenge!  I really wanted to use the Gifts of the Sea image as I live in California and thought a beach-themed Christmas card would be awesome. However, I could not color such a detailed image to fit the small size needed for the card sketch! 

 

I ended up printing the digital version of Forest Fellas: Maximo Moose to color for my project. I colored Maximo with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. 

 

I followed the sketch very closely and created a slimline card (tall and skinny is what we used to call these in the "old days"). My card is 8" tall and 4" wide. 

 

I had fun digging into my vast stash of 6x6 paper pads for some moose appropriate patterns for my card! I was thinking lumber jacks and log cabins! I love how it turned out!

I stamped the clear version of the sentiment in brown ink. A bit of twine and a few enamel dots finish off the card.

I had fun doing Allison's challenge! I hope the Bloomies can do more of these! Thanks for looking and make sure to visit me at Scraps of Life blog.

******

Howdy all!  Ally here now!  Isn't Gloria's card creation magnificent!??  I just love that moose paired with that plaid!!!

The challenge that Gloria sent me was:

• to use either Garden of Gratitude or Maize for Days stamp set,
• use Watercolor and Colored Pencils as a combined coloring medium
• use the sketch provided (by Mojo Monday)

I chose to use the bloom filled wellies image from the Garden of Gratitude stamp set.  I stamped the image using Antique Linen Distress ink for a no-line effect and then I water colored them using Derwent Intense Pencils.  Then to add all the fine detail back into my image, I used my Polychromos Pencils.

I haven't watercolored in a long time so it was a great challenge that Gloria had me using this medium.  It was super fun to create this holiday card.

I hope Gloria and I have inspired to get creating.  Why don't you take a wack at each of our challenges and join us!??! We'd love to see what you create!  Share with us below in the comments.

Have a great week everyone!

~ Gloria & Ally ~

Twelve Days of Christmas - Day 12: Mossy Pots with Paperwhites!

Hello Friends! Welcome to the 12 Days of Christmas December Challenge and here we are at Day 12! I'm Nancy Sheads and today I'm featuring an image from the Mossy Pots with Paperwhites: Accent Pieces Digital Stamp Set. This image is also available in the Mossy Pots with Paperwhites Clear Polymer Stamp Set. 

First - let's take a look at this beautiful digital stamp set! I love paperwhites and so this was a natural for me to color. As Marcella says - they are so dainty, fresh, white, and bright! So how could I resist?

Today's project features:

• Mossy Pots with Paperwhites: Accent Pieces
• Copic coloring (see marker list below)
• Additional basic supplies listed in the directions below.

DIRECTIONS

Cut card base from from a heavy weight white cardstock to 4.25″ x 11″ and score at 5.5″ for a top fold card.

Cut pattern paper to 3.75" x 5"

Cut solid card stock to 3.25" x 4.5"

Print digital image on paper appropriate to your coloring medium. If you need help printing a digital image see Julie's blog post HERE or my YouTube video HERE.

Color image. I used Copic markers and my marker list is shown below.

Trim image layer to 3" x 4.25"

Adhere image layer to center of solid card stock.

Apply craft foam or foam strips to back of solid card stock.

Adhere to center of pattern paper.

Adhere card front to card base.

Add sentiment if desired.

Does it look like something is missing? Yeah - I didn't add a sentiment to the front of my card. I may add one at a later date when I send the card, but as it is now, it's suitable for any occasion - holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. So by adding the sentiment later, I can tailor it to the recipient and occasion.

I previously posted a project using the other image from this set. You can take a look at it HERE.

If you missed any of the days of our fun little Power Poppy 12 Days of Christmas extravaganza, just click HERE to scroll through all the days and.... get ready to be inspired! 

Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES

• Mossy Pots with Paperwhites: Accent Pieces Digital Stamp Set 
• COPICS:  BV00, Y38, B60, B63 (flowers); YG03, YG25, YG67 (leaves); E21, E23, E25 (bulb); YG93, YG95, YG97, YG99 (moss); C0, C1, C3, YG03, YG25, YG67 (bowl); BV00, B60 (shadow)