Happy Power Poppy Friday~January 17th!

Hello there and happy Friday to you!  I hope you have been doing well.  I have not been a very active card maker the last few weeks....things have been pretty hectic around here, but I finally took some long overdue coloring time in my little craft space and what fun I had!  :)  


For my card today, I actually used three different Power Poppy stamp sets...Folk Heart (image), Good Thinking: Love Notes (sentiment), and Tweet Tidings (music notes). Don't you think this image makes a really sweet Valentine?  :)

 I started by stamping my image with Memento's Tuxedo Black ink on to rustic white card stock, colored it with Copics, then die cut it.  After adding a little shimmer with a Wink of Stella clear brush pen and some gold leafing with a Krylon 18KT gold leafing pen, I layered it with a scallop circle die cut.  Next, I stamped my sentiment and music notes, then stitched some patterned paper onto a card stock panel.  After that, I adhered the panel to my card base, rounded a corner, then adhered my image.  This card measures 3 5/8" x 4 7/8" .

I just love that darling little bird!  Marcella really added such sweet details to this image.  As always, this was a really fun color up!

So that is all for my card today but a couple of my Bloomie sisters have some Friday inspiration for you, so make sure you check them out and leave a little blog love while you are there. Also, if you haven't checked out the latest goings on over on the Power Poppy blog, you really should!  :) I thank you so much for stopping by to visit and I hope you will stop by again soon.....until then, take care.  :)

Cindy Lawrence    
Julie Koerber  
Katie Sims <------You are here 

~Katie

Copics used:  E40, E41, E43, E44, E47, E49, E55, E70, E74, E77, R11, R20, R24, R27, R39, YR21, BG0000, B0000, B91, YG61, YG63, YG67, and W2.

Happy Power Poppy Friday~February 9th!

Hello there and happy Friday!  I have a quick little post to share with you today featuring Power Poppy's new digital stamp set, Va Va Valentines!  This digital set has six adorable images with accompanying sentiments and four additional sentiments for the inside of your card..... all for the limited time price of $6!  If you haven't already, you really need to grab this set up!  I chose to use the precious sock couple image with sentiment for a special valentine for Mr. Sims!  ;)

I started by sizing the image and printing it twice...once for my card panel and the other to fussy cut the socks.  I colored the socks with Copics and fussy cut them.  Once I die cut my image panel, I colored the sentiment, sponged some ink around, stitched on some patterned paper, and adhered the fussy cut socks.  I added some shimmer and shine to the socks with a Wink of Stella clear brush pen and a Sakura Glaze pen so I could play along with Power Poppy's newest Power & Spark challenge hosted by the incredibly talented and super sweet Kathy Jones!  You can see all of the details about the challenge here.   All that was left was to adhere the assembled panel to my die cut card base.

Yes, indeed.....I am SO happy I found him and so happy to have the perfect image for his valentine.  That Marcella is definitely a romantic at heart.....the entire set is darling!  

So that is all for my little card today, but several of my Bloomie sisters have some beautiful cards to share for your Friday inspiration.  Make sure you leave a little blog love while you are there.  Thank you so much for stopping by today and I hope to see you around again really soon.  Until then, take care!  :)

Allison Cope 

Christine Okken 

Cindy Lawrence    
Julie Koerber 
Katie Sims <------You are here 
Stacy Morgan 
Tosha Leyendekker

~Katie

Sending Love on Power Poppy Friday!

Hi there and welcome!  I hope you have had a wonderful week!  Do you have any special plans for the weekend?  Maybe a little crafty time?  :)  I found myself with a little time to play with Marcella's newest addition to her digital image collection, Follow Your Heart.  How sweet this image is....and just in time for your Valentine crafting!  :)  Let me show you what I created for today's Power Poppy post...

Yep, I am still crushing on this darling sentiment from the Dynamic Duos: Glads and Gerberas stamp set...and I think it is perfect for this little Valentine!  I started by printing my image on Papertrey Ink's Rustic White card stock and colored it up with a few Copics.  This image is a breeze to color...there is so much detail packed in that sweet little heart, just a few shades of coral red did the trick.  I added some shimmer with my Wink of Stella Clear brush pen then added some Ranger Glossy Accents to the arrow.  For my card shape and layers, I used Spellbinders Marvelous Squares and Labels Twenty Two die sets.  I did also use my paper trimmer to cut out a square of patterned paper that I stitched to my card base. 

 For my sentiment shape, I used Spellbinders die sets in Classic Heart and Classic Scalloped Heart.  I stamped my sentiment with Memento's Tuxedo Black ink, sponged on some Papertrey Ink's Sweet Blush ink and added some shimmer to the letters with my Atyou Spica Clear glitter pen.  Before I adhered all of my layers together, I added some gold detail to a few of the edges with Krylon's 18 KT Gold Leafing pen.  After the gold leafing dried, and took a fine grit sander and distressed it a bit...when you do that, it takes off some of the bright gold and leaves you with more of an aged look.  I decided the sentiment heart needed a little extra something, so I punched a hole in it and added some ribbon and string. Did I mention the bit of stitching?  No?  Well, I did add some zig zag stitching to the border just 'cause I love stitching on cards.  :)

This image reminds me so much of vintage valentines....and grade school Valentine parties complete with paper sacks to be filled with Valentines from all of your classmates....and all things lovey dovey....and cupcakes...ok, I think about cupcakes a lot anyway, but you get the idea, right? :)

So that is all for my card today, but several of my Bloomie sisters have created quite a display of gorgeousness for your creative inspiration....so make sure you check them out and leave a little hello while you are there.  I am so happy you could stop by for a visit today and I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing weekend!  Until next time, take care.

Allison Cope 

Christine Okken 

Cindy Lawrence    
Julie Koerber  
Katie Sims <------You are here
Leslie Miller  
Tosha Leyendekker

~Katie

Supplies not listed above:  Patterned papers from Carta Bella's "Merry & Bright" 6x6 paper pad; Chamomile distress ink from Papertrey Ink and these Copic colors- R20, R30, R32, R35, R37, Y13, Y15, YR24, Yand R27.

Power Poppy's February Release- Day 2

Howdy all and welcome back for Day 2 of Power Poppy's fabulous February stamp release!  Have you recovered from yesterday's inspirational extravaganza with the Orchids Rock stamp set?  That was pretty wonderful, but wait til you get a load of this sweet new set, Good Thinking:Love Notes.  As the name suggests, this one is all about the love, and that's a real good thing!  ;)

Now I have to tell you, I had an absolute blast working with this stamp set.  I chose to use the sentiment "You Send Me" and if you are a Sam Cooke fan then this will definitely put you in a happy place.  Picture me at my work table stamping, cutting, and pasting to my heart's content...my little dachshund/stamping partner at my feet snoozing....and me humming along to Sam Cooke crooning "You Send Me" on my computer.  That song is such a classic....oh, be still my heart!  Now if you don't know who Sam Cooke is....you simply must hear this song....you will be an instant fan, I am sure!  By the end of the day, I guess my sweet husband had heard me play it so much that day that he was actually humming the tune in the kitchen!  :)  Seriously, go find Sam on the 'net!  Play it for someone else...and like ripples on a pond the good vibes will spread and so on, and so on.  I think I may be getting a little carried away, but Sam can do that to you!  :)  Ok, before I really get started and go off on the golden oldies, maybe I should show you my card.  

Is that not the sweetest sentiment and font?!  It was begging to be stamped in a heart so I happily obliged.  Next, I used the darling little heart stamp in this set to stamp the two hearts over the "You" and "Me" and traced them with my Atyou Spica clear glitter pen to make those words sparkle.  My card base is a few layers of some of the most perfect papers ever for a Valentine....Carta Bella's  6x6 paper pad "Words of Love" by Carina Gardner.  I used a fabulous mixed font paper piece and ran it though my Grand Calibur with Papertrey Ink's wood grain impression plate.  I roughed up the texture a bit by sanding it and I love how it turned out.  I did do a lot of stitching on this but I wanted it to have a vintage Valentine feel to it.  I added a little cream seam binding ribbon that I recycled from a package I had recently received from a dear friend.  A few die cut flourishes from a My Favorite Things die added a little extra pizzazz behind my sentiment heart.  Lastly, I added the button on the bow and the heart.  Now this may be a historical moment.....I am trying to remember the last time I didn't either color or gold leaf on a card and I am having a hard time.  I guess I need to look back through my blog to see!  ;)  

Marcella has done it once again....this time with the perfect sentiments.  This set is chock full of sweet, lighthearted, and sentimental expressions that can be used not only for Valentine's Day but any time you are celebrating love...you pick the occasion and surprise your sweetie with a handmade original work of heart from you!  :)  As for this card, it will be going to a certain Sam Cooke sound-a-like that I know... ;)

Well that is all for my card today, but you know what's next....my fabulous Bloom Brigade sisters have an amazing display of creativity and just plain heart felt hand made goodness to share with you, so make sure you pay them a visit and leave a little love while you are there!  Are you ready for Day 3?  Well, just fasten your seat belt 'cause we aren't even half way through this month's release!  I am so glad you could stop by today and I hope you can pop in tomorrow for another peek.....until then, take care!  :)

Allison Cope 

Christine Okken 
Cindy Lawrence    
Julie Koerber  
Katie Sims <------You are here 
Stacy Morgan 
Tosha Leyendekker
and .....
Marcella Hawley

~Katie

Supplies not listed above:  Ink-Tsukineko's Versafine in Onyx Black, Papertrey Ink's Chai ink, Stampin' Up!'s Raspberrty Ripple ink and Whisper White craft ink; Paper-Stampin' Up!'s Naturals White and Riding Hood Red card stocks; Other-Spellbinders die sets in Classic Heart and 5x7 Matting Basics B, buttons and twine from Papertrey Ink.

Power Poppy's Friday Challenge and a Rose...

Hi there everybody!  I sure hope all of you are doing well!  Things have been pretty hectic here on he home front, but I just could not wait to use the new and absolutely stunning La Vie en Rose digital image from Power Poppy!  This beauty was introduced in grand style by our new digital design team, The Instant Gardeners...and if you have not had a chance to get the 411 on these incredible ladies, you are missing out! You can read all about them here.  Marcella has a whole new team of incredibly talented ladies to create inspiration just for you using her digital images!  To further celebrate the release of this new digital image, the Bloom Brigade has joined in the fun for our Friday Peep of the Week Challenge....

There haven't been this many roses around since the Tournament of Roses Parade, I tell ya!  Are you ready to get your rose fix? :) If you happened to miss the big release yesterday, here are the details on La Vie en Rose...

So now, let me show you what I created....

I printed my image out and took a little time trying to figure out the angle I wanted for my die cut.  Once I had that decided, I colored my image with  Copics.  I paired my image with one of the sentiments from the Dynamic Duos: Glads and Gerberas stamp set.....a perfect match for a Valentine, don't you think?  And since I am sending love, I thought it only fitting to use a postage stamp edge die for some of my panels. The patterned paper is from one of the sweetest 6x6 paper pads from Carta Bella called "Words of Love" by Carina Gardner.  It is chock full of the prettiest papers just begging to be made into Valentines.  :)  Although there are many layers here, the card itself is still pretty simple and flat for mailing.  I did pop up the rose panel with foam dimensionals but there are no bows, buttons, or other embellishments to make it difficult to mail.  There is a little ribbon but it is not tied so it doesn't count, right?  And the bit of stitching is certainly flat.  Don't worry, I am not going to try to pass this one off as "clean and simple"!  :)  Can you believe Valentine's is right around the corner and this is the first card I have made so far?  Yikes!  I hope you are further along than I am!  Here's a little close up so you can see that awesome Marcella detail...

Well, that pretty much is it for my card today, but you know my Bloom Brigade sisters are ready to show you their lovely creations.....so get ready to be a-mazed!  I hope you have a wonderful Friday and why don't you come play along with our Peep of the Week Challenge....who knows, you may be our next Peep!  Until next time, take care.....

Allison Cope 

Christine Okken 
Cindy Lawrence  
Dawn Burnworth
Julie Koerber 
Kathy Jones 
Katie Sims <------You are here
Leslie Miller 
Stacy Morgan 
Tosha Leyendekker

~Katie

Supplies not listed above:  Paper-Stampin' Up!'s Naturals White and Riding Hood Red card stocks, Classic White card stock from Flourishes; Ink-Papertrey Ink's Smokey Shadow, Chamomile, and Chai inks; Dies-Spellbinders' A2 Matting Basics B, A2 Fancy Postage Edge, Classic Hearts, and Classic Scalloped Hearts die sets; Other-Atyou Spica Clear Glitter pen, Krylon 18KT gold leafing pen, Faber- Castell Pitt Artist pen in white, ribbon from Stampin' Up! and these Copic colors:  R20, R21, R22, R24, R27, R29, R39, RV99, G40, G43, G46, and G28.

Flourishes' Timeless Tuesday #257

Hi there everybody and welcome back!  Before we get started with our challenge this week, have you heard about the sale going on at Flourishes?  You really need to check it out....30% off this week!  You can read all about it here.

Now, on to the challenge this week.  The oh-so-talented Deborah is our hostess this week and she has a beaut for you...."Feel the Love".  Yes....just in time for Valentine's Day....you need to incorporate "love" and the color red in your card or project.  You can read all of the details of the challenge here.

Now...I don't know about you, but nothing says love quite like chocolate....am I right?  So of course, I was instantly drawn to this darling image from the Love Sweet Love set.  That sweet little box of chocolates done up in red most certainly evokes love, don't you think?  :)

I started by stamping my image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on to Flourishes Classic White card stock.  I actually stamped it three times and fussy cut and stacked each layer with glue dots to give it a little more dimension.  The rest of the card is made up of die cuts from my most favorite die set from Marianne Design...it's called Anja's Squares and it still makes me giddy to use it...perfect for a Valentine, right?  I also used Spellbinders Heart and Scalloped Heart dies to build up my sentiment area.  Speaking of sentiment, isn't this one gorgeous?  I love the font! It is in the same set as the image and it is perfect for a Valentine for my Matt. The rest of the card came together pretty quickly using more Classic White card stock and some pretty papers from Carta Bella's "Beautiful Moments" 6x6 pad.  After I die cut the pink heart, I decided it needed a little something else so I put it back in the die and pierced a border around the heart to give a little more detail.  To finish it off, I added a few sparkly gems and we're done!  Here's a close up of those sweet little chocolates...

This brings back precious memories of when I was in elementary school and we had Valentine's Bags so all of your classmates could put your Valentines in it.  One year, somebody put a heart shaped box of chocolates (much like this one) on my desk because it would't fit in the bag!  Oh, what a wonderful day that was!  Now if this doesn't make you want to haul out your paper, scissors, and glue and get to work on your own Valentine, I don't know what will!  But before you get to work, please make sure you check out what my wonderful team mates have created for your inspiration...you will definitely be feeling the love there.....and make sure you leave a little blog love for them in return!  I am so glad you were able to stop by today....take care and I can't wait to see what you create! Til next time.....

• Allison Cope
• Cheryl Lea
• Deborah Anton
• Jenny Gropp
• Katie Sims-that's me!

~Katie

Supplies:
Stamps:  Love Sweet Love
Paper:  Flourishes Classic White card stock, Carta Bella "Beautiful Moments" 6x6 pad
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black ink, Ranger Antique Linen Distress Ink, Stampin' Up!-Bravo Burgundy
Dies:  Marianne Design-Anja's Squares; Spellbinders Nestabilities Heart and Scalloped Heart sets
Other:  gems-Stampin' Up!
And these Copic colors:  R20, R22, R24, R27, R29, R59, RV11, RV13, RV14, BV000, C3, YG11, YG13, YG17, G28, E40, E42, E44, E47, E49, E51, E55, E57, E59