Hues is Getting an Overhaul!

Hello sweet peeps! Normally, when you check in you'd find a delish color combo just waiting... no, begging, to be used on your next card or creation. Well, my friends, today is a little bit different because we have some changes brewing here on the ole Power Poppy blog!

Wouldn't you love to know? 😋 We are going to keep that a secret for just another week but we promise it will definitely be worth the wait. It will be all the things you love about Hues to Use... and MORE! We'll still have guest designers here from time to time but we're adding an extra dose of creativity with each challenge and we are adding... PRIZES! Yep, that's right! We'll have an extra little bit of fun for those peeps who play along with us from week to week!

We'll have all the details and our first challenge kicking off next Tuesday! Can't wait!

~Julie

Earthy & Delish Hues!

Hello sweet color craving stampin' friends! Today's little hues have a tasty flavor attached to them and show off a recipe crafted over HOURS in our own Power Poppy Peep in Chief's kitchen. Check it out, will you? (And try not to let your mouth water!) 

This, my friends, is Boeuf en Daube in progress in Ms. Marcella's cooking space. What I found even more delish than the meal's looks was the fact that she made this feast in her Grandma Dorothy's 1960's era Wagner Ware tureen. Apparently, creating this recipe takes hours upon hours of simmering! I think those are the absolute best kinds of meals -- you get to savor the smells all day long!

HOW TO PLAY: Playing along with this week's Hues to Use is sweet and simple! Just look at the color cues above -- plum, pumpkin and straw and use them in your card or creation. After you're done getting those fingers inky, link up your creation on the link below so we can all see! YIPPPEEEE!

Are you ready for another little fun surprise today? We have another guest on tap today! This lovely lady loves all things crafty and lives in a gorgeous part of the country. She's about as talented as she is sweet so put your hands together for.....

"Hi all, I'm Sue! I'm from a small city, North Tonawanda, NY between Buffalo and Niagara Falls, New York. I have been married to my high school sweetheart for 52 years. We have one daughter, a great son-in-law and two grandchildren -- Megan, who just turned 20 and is in college studying art, and Michael, who will graduate high school this June and attend college in the fall. I worked as an accountant and tax preparer for 28 years. I have been retired since 2008 and don't miss giving up my life from January to April 15th each year for tax season!"

I have crafted all of my life beginning at a young age with a box of 64 Crayola Crayons. To my late mother's delight, I learned to sew all on my own while I was a stay at home mom. I made Cabbage Patch dolls and their clothes when they were all the rage, and have sewn American Girl doll outfits by the dozens. I took decorative painting classes and did that for many years. I learned calligraphy and did invitations and place setting cards for friends. Then, I bought a couple of rubber stamps in 1995, became hooked and now have a large collection of stamps, digis, paper and dies. I took classes from Kevin at Stampscapes and became obsessed with scene stamping for a while. I have taught rubber stamp classes at my local stamp store too.

When it comes to stamping, Copic markers are my go-to choice for coloring right now, replacing the Crayola crayons. All these years later, I still LOVE to color.


SUE'S CREATION

For my card, I chose the digi, Cup of Columbine. (Did you know this image also comes in a clear version? It's called Cheerful Columbine) I knew I wanted to make a shaped card, so I chose a Spellbinders Grand Die Label 4. I cut an eggplant colored mat for the Copic colored image. I attached them to a white card cut from the same die set and embossed the purple mat and the front of the card with a Creative Expressions embossing folder, called Braided Vines. It's an 8-1/2" by 11" embossing folder.

Next, I stamped and embossed the word Enjoy, from Jillibean, and cut it out with the matching die in the set. I then cut two more of the word Joy from white cardstock and glued them to the back of the orange embossed original to give it some dimension. The word Everyday was stamped on
white cardstock and embossed with the same orange embossing powder and die cut with the flag die from the same set. A few purple sequins were finishing touches to the card.

Here's a close up for you! 

I am thrilled to have been asked to design a card for the Hues to Use, and I would like to thank Julie for the opportunity!"

Thank YOU Sue, the pleasure is all ours! I love the combo of purple and orange and I think you really did a beautiful job of marrying these two bold and happy hues! We should mention that if you want to see what crafty endeavors Sue is up to, you can check out her blog Sue's Rubber Stamping Adventures by just clicking the link! Thanks again Sue!

Before we get to the linky and bid you a farewell for the week, I did want to tell you happy Hues to Use lovers to stay tuned! Why? Well, we think you are all pretty awesome and Marcella and I chatted about how we can up the ante and give you coloristas a little extra incentive to play along with us from week to week. So, like I said, stay tuned! Some exciting news will be unveiled SOON!

Until next week!
~Julie 

An InLinkz Link-up

Neutral Hues

Hello all of you creative paper crafters!!  Tosh here filling in for Julie for today's Hues to Use Challenge.  I hope you are enjoying a day surrounded by color, but that doesn't mean it has to be bright, bold, or even soft pastels.  Today...it's all about being NEUTRAL....so get out your grays people!! 

It seems Marcy is thinking about Mr. Tibbs today, and for those of you who love bold, bright colors, today's hues might be a bit of a challenge. We're going grayscale.

Would you like to play along?  All you have to do is take your color cues from the photo above  (Julie has highlighted 3 of the most prominent colors in the photo), create a project using those colors, and link it below.  We'd love to see where your creativity takes you, and by participating, you could be chosen to host one of our Hues to Use challenges.  If so, you would get to choose a Power Poppy digi set to play along with.

Are you ready to see my interpretation?  I chose to work with the digital set Easy Breezy Coneflowers.  Now, I LOVE working with neutrals, but shoot, I just can't resist adding a little pop of color.  I might have stepped out of the box a bit, and since this is on the Power Poppy blog itself, I thought I better not make my "pop" very bold, so I just added a subtle purple to the Coneflower center.  This is my first time hosting the Hues to Use Challenge, so since I'm a newbie, hopefully, I won't get in too much trouble. 

The Easy Breezy Coneflower digital image itself includes two Coneflowers and I wanted a grouping of them.  So, I used Photoshop to make a little collage out of the blooms and included one of the sentiments.  I then colored the Coneflowers using T2, T1, and T5 along with V17 and V15.  The background was made using T0-T6.  I soaked a piece of textured cloth with Copic Blending Solution and dabbed the background to get that stippled effect.

I created the randomly striped base piece using 3 of the Copic colors listed above: T1, T3 and T5.  I didn't have gray string that matched as closely as I would like, so I just colored up some string with my T5 Copic, and I did the same with the mini clothespin using V17.

Thanks for visiting today.  I look forward to seeing how you all are inspired by these gray tones.  Don't forget to link your creations below.

Have a fantastic week!!

Happy Stamping!!
Tosh

An InLinkz Link-up

Star Spangled Hues!

Hello you color lovin' peeps! Today's Hues to Use is going to give a nod to the ole red, white & blue on this eve of our nation's Independence Day! It didn't take long to find a photo in Marcella's IG stream that would be a good fit, so here's your inspiration so you can get cracking -- just like those fireworks that are about to be set off in skies all across the nation tomorrow night! 

If you know Marcella, you know one of her intense loves professionally is typography. She loves how the words fit on a page. She loves the curves of different fonts and how they all meld with each other. She loves the graphical punch you can create with words alone! So, it's no surprise that on one of her family jaunts, she snapped a pic of this sign, simply because she loved its flair! By the way, you'll find the Flash Cafe in Saint Genevieve, Missouri! 

HOW TO PLAY: Easy peasy, lemon squeezy! All you need to do is use these shades of red, white and blue on your card or creation and then link up your project below for all to see! 

And now, drum roll please, it's time to meet our next ab fab guest hostess of the mostess for this week's Hues to Use! After reading a little bit about her, get ready to be WOWED by her creation using our patriotic color cues! 

"Hi there! This is Kim. I live in San Diego, CA where the weather is pretty nice year round and we enjoy beautiful beaches all along the coast. I am "mom" to a bunch of awesome grown kids. My baby just graduated from high school this year. I work from home with my own business and love every minute of it. In my spare time, I enjoy a good movie with my family or spend whatever time I can at the beach. 

KIM'S CREATION

When I thought about the colors for this challenge and the Climbing Clematis digital stamp I chose, I looked up this flower to see the variety of colors the climbing clematis comes in. I opted to go with red for the flowers and work the blue and white around it. I used various shades of red and chose to keep some of the flowers at the top a bit lighter for light/contrast. I added some red, white and blue sequins to add some sparkle --- after all, it is for celebrating the 4th of July.

Thank you, Julie, for the opportunity to play along with this fun challenge!

Oh. My. GOSH! Don't you all just love that bold red on the crisp, clean and very white backdrop? Yes. Yes. YES! I absolutely do. I think this is a stunning creation and love the addition of the little sparkly sequins. I might need to CASE (copy and steal everything) this card I love it that much. Thanks so much to Kim for sharing her incredible talents with us! We should point out if you want to see more of Kim's work, it's just a hop, skip and jump over to her place on the web -- Lily Patch Stamps! 

Now my sweet stamping friends, it is your turn to take these patriotic colors for a test drive! Let's see what you've got! After you do, don't forget to link up your creation and share! We absolutely love taking a gander at your color inspired works of art!


Until next week!
~Julie

An InLinkz Link-up

Summer Inspired Hues!

Hello happy stampers! Are you ready for a colorful feast for the eyes? I tell you when I look at this week's Hues to Use color-coded bit of inspiration -- My. Mouth. Literally. Waters! Seriously. One should never write a post like this when hungry. I want to jump into my computer and take a bite! 

At this point, you might be shaking your head and wondering what is wrong with me, but scroll down and you'll get a glimpse of the summer-infused goodness that is at the heart of today's Hues to Use! 

Oh, MY GOSH! Isn't that just delish looking? I am a huge lover of tomatoes and cheese and balsamic and fresh herbs. This little plate above has them all! So, with summertime officially here, why not use some of its best as fuel for a major creative blast? 

HOW TO PLAY: Simply use the three colors above in your card or creation, when done, link it up using the linky below (so we can "ooohhhh" and "ahhhh!"). It is just that simple people! It's just that simple!

Today, we have the distinct honor of having another talented guest in our midst to show off our weekly color scheme. To meet this amazing artist, we'd have to travel across the ocean to the United Arab Emirates. I've never met anyone from this neck of the woods so, what a fun little blessing it is to be able to introduce.... 

Hi Crafty peeps, This is Sathya Kala from Paperie Expressions. I am from India residing currently at UAE with my dear hubby and 9-year old son. I am a toxicologist by trade and have a pulsating desire to pursue my doctorate. Being a child of an oil painting artist, I have loved arts and crafts since my childhood. Thanks much to my Mumma and her genetic transfer of these creative streaks in me. It's what keeps me sane!

After my son turned two, I started crafting and blogging with Quilling as my passion. Slowly I branched out as a stamper, cardmaker and for the past three years, I have been enjoying the nuances of the mixed media art form. A year and a half back, I attended a brush calligraphy and watercolor florals workshop and from then on, I must say, I am smitten. Coloring with pencils is so therapeutic, and digis with pencil coloring is my go-to kind of activity whenever I have free time. I always stock up on printed digis, so I can color them up at any time. I can't wait to see Marcella’s artistic illustrations and soulful indulgence with each digital stamp set release! My happiness knew no bounds when I was offered this guest design spot. I am humbled and totally honored. Many thanks to Julie. I adore digital stamps for the fact that it renders such artistic freedom. It can resize, flip, crop and design in any fashion. Marcella’s artistically drawn lines make everyone an artist. Knowing these nuances of coloring brings out the beauty of these digis instantly.

SATHYA'S CREATION

For today’s project, I have done a wall art piece. It's also altered art with mixed media touches. Here's how I created it!

I printed off the digital stamp set Monarchs & Milkweed and used Prisma colored pencils to color it up. I roughly measured and cut a circle around the image. From there, I ruffled the edges of my paper with scissors and added some Peeled Paint Distress Ink. I took an 8" round wooden cutting board and applied crackle texture around the corners of the board. Once this dried, I added black gesso over the crackle paste. I then applied Prima waxes in two shades of green over the black gesso to reveal the crackle. I also foam mounted the colored piece and tucked bits of Spanish green moss under the edges. I added mini art stones using gel medium over the moss as a finishing touch. 

Here are a few close-ups... 

I hope you like my wall art. Thanks much to Marcella and the Power Poppy Team for this awesome opportunity to showcase my talent here.

Thank YOU Sathya for sharing. What a gorgeous work of art! I can honestly say I have never seen something like this and I truly believe that you are going to spark all kinds of wall art creations with this beauty! Who would have thought to use a cutting board as a base for a stamped creation? And can you imagine all the time and care it took to color up a digital image in that massive size in such an impressive way? Wow! I also love the brick wall Sathya hung this beauty on -- it just helps all that gorgeous coloring to POP! 

Now, my stamping friends, it is your turn to take these colors for a test drive and show us your creative prowess! We love it when you join us, link up your card and share it with our little corner of the creative world!

Until next week! Happy stamping!
~Julie 

An InLinkz Link-up

Mystery Hues!

Hello you creative coloristas! Today's Hues to Use feature a fun little twist for you all! How so? Well, stick around and you'll see that you have almost a full rainbow of colors to capture this week!

Let's get right to the action!

A few months ago, Marcy put this little photo up on Instagram and said, "Let's play the guess what this is game!" It didn't take long for someone to chime in and say... "a paperweight?" And yes indeed, that's what it is! So, I thought with all those colors packed inside for a major punch, why not have a Hues to Use that offers YOU a chance to pick three colors!

HOW TO PLAY: All you need to do is look at the photo above, choose three hues and use them on your next card or creation. Just that simple! When you do create, just link up your project below so that we can all see! I can't wait to see just how many different variations we can come up with!

And we have the distinct honor of having another amazing card maker here today to serve as our guest hostess of this color-coded challenge! So, let's meet her!

"Hi there! My name is Linda, and I live in Alberta, Canada… a province full of beautiful parks, stunning mountains, and golden prairies. My province is called Sunny Alberta because it has more hours of sunshine a year than any other province in Canada! All that sun gives us beautiful flowers in the summer. I have been an avid gardener all my life and that’s why I’m drawn to Marcella’s images … there is no better way to spend an afternoon than playing with colour and re-creating the beauty of nature on paper and then giving it as a gift to someone special!

LINDA'S CREATION

Now, a little bit about the process I used for the card! When I start a project for a challenge like “Hues to Use”, I look at my digital images and pick one that would look good with the chosen colours. Then I go to my stash of patterned paper and pull out colours in those same hues. Finally, I sit down with my Copic markers and pick out ones that go well with the paper. (Yes, I’m a “matchy/matchy person!) I felt Julie’s colours this week, leant themselves well to an outdoor scene, and with Father’s Day happening this month, the digital stamp set “Leaping Trout” came to mind instantly. I also love the Wreath: Birch and Evergreens set and thought it would frame that beautiful trout perfectly! The patterned paper collection that I used is an old one called “Strong” by Authentique. 

Thanks Jule for the opportunity!

Well, thank YOU Linda for blessing us with your talents this week! Don't you all love how Linda used what was presented as a Christmas wreath as a frame for her masculine image? I think this is so creative and dare I say, perfect! I love the way she colored both up and the layout of the card just makes everything POP with interest and fun factor! I actually smacked my hand to my head saying, Why didn't I think to use that frame in other ways? Thanks Linda for the great idea!

We hope you take a stab at this Mystery Hues challenge and join us this week! We can't wait to see what you craft up. Don't forget to link up your creation so we can all see. It also gives you a chance to host this post in the future as a guest! (Did you know you get a freebie digi set to work with when you host?)

Thanks so much for joining us this Tuesday! Have a wonderful rest of your weekend creative peeps and we'll see you back here real soon!


~Julie

An InLinkz Link-up

Window Shopping for Hues!

Hello my sweet stamping friends! How's life in your neck of the woods? It is wonderful here in mine. Sun is shining. Birds are chirping. Who could ask for more?

Well, if you are looking for a burst of color to kick off your creative week, do we have some fun color cues for you today!

Take a gander at all the goodies in this window above. Don't you just want to hop on a plane to St. Louis to see this lovely little shop in real life? I sure do! Those cake plates are to die for and I just adore the lovely way the shop is merchandised -- color coordinated to the hilt! The shop is called Civil Alchemy and it bills itself as a modern day general store with housewares, clothes, jewelry and a flower bar with fresh picks to enjoy. Sounds divine, doesn't it? 

HOW TO PLAY: Simply use the three colors of the week in your card or creation, then, link up your card here on the linky below for us all to see! Remember, the link below is never ending- meaning you can play along any old time you wish! And let us also note those who play along might just end up being asked to guest host here on the blog to lead one of our weekly Hues to Use! If you're chosen, you get to pick a Power Poppy digi set to play along with! 

Okay... on to my creation for the week! Because the color scheme of THIS colored up image really matched the hues for the week, I decided to make it into a card! 

Because the image is so full with detail, I decided to keep the layout on the simple side, adding the green and dirty yellow shades from this week's color combo and letting the rose shade speak from the image itself. I used a mix of decorative papers and then added that cotton scalloped edge ribbon, gold cording and bling for an extra bit of razzle dazzle. I am not sure I *love* the layout. I thought about ripping it all apart and trying again but truly didn't want to ruin my main image. 

SO QUESTION FOR YOU TO ANSWER FOR BONUS POINTS! 

(Leave answer in comments below)

1. How often do you rip apart cards for a "redo?"

2. If your mojo went south for an extended vacation, what do you do to try to get some of that creativity back?

I would love it if you would share. My mojo is non-existent right now. I love coloring up images but struggle lately bringing it all together in a card. So, please let me know what YOU do to get that mojo to return home! 

So, my friends, let's see you get those fingers inky! We'd love to see your take on this week's hues! And, when you do, don't forget to link up your creation below! Oh, and while you're at it, why don't you play along in Kathy Racoosin's 30 Day Coloring Challenge? You can learn ALL about this fun little fest designed to get you coloring every day HERE at thedailymarker.com! 

Have a fabulous rest of your week and we'll see you back here real soon!

~Julie 

An InLinkz Link-up

Let's Rock A New Color Combo!

Hello happy stampers! Are you ready to rock a brand new color combo this week? In about 1.2 seconds you'll see I did a pretty masterful play on words there. Hehe! We are ready to usher in a new set of color cues for you to use the next time you hit up your snappy little stamping spaces!

So, let's check it out, shall we? 

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So, you might ask, what is this that we are showing you a picture of above? Well, this is a gorgeous shot from the Smithsonian of what they call Variscite. I had never heard of it before but Ms. Marcella snapped this photo on a trip last summer to that fabulous place and then asked if it was too late in her life to become a "rock nerd?" That girl. I tell you. She just seizes life and dives into all the things that fascinate her with reckless abandon. Love it.

HOW TO PLAY: Playing along with us is so easy. See the colors. Be inspired. Use them. Link up your creation. Let us all be wowed. Drop the mic. Fade out. Yep, just that easy!

Today we have the honor and privilege of having the AMAZINGLY talented Christine Okken in the house to show a card that perfectly depicts this little color combo. Take a look, will you?? With Father's Day fast approaching. You might want to CASE (copy and steal everything) when it comes to this design. Christine used Power Poppy's digital stamp set Leaping Trout to create this card showcasing one of nature's wonders! How can trout fly? Really? 

I love all the little extras Christine added to her card without even an ounce of making it look overdone. Sheer perfection! 

Here's a closeup so you can see all detail Christine added fabulously with her Copic markers! 

And here's a look at the colors she used to bring this trout to life!

So, sweet friends, want to pick up these serene and earthy colors and play along with us this week? Simply use this color combo, create, and then link up your card below! Who knows, your card might be chosen as one of our faves and you might end up guest hostessing this little post one day soon! Each guest blogger gets a color palette to create with along with a digital stamp set of their choice! Fun stuff, right?

FYI: If you want to take a trip back through past Hues to Use, just click that link. Remember, the linky is never ending, meaning you can play along whenever you feel like it! Why not challenge yourself to take a color-coded trip through all of our past challenges? Now THAT would be fun! ;-)


Thanks for stopping by!

~Julie 

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An InLinkz Link-up

Racy Little Hues to Use!

Hello Power Poppy fans! Sorry, this post is a bit late going up. I was following my darling daughter all over the state for a holiday weekend of softball and rolled into town late last night. I was glad we rolled into town late because that meant she made it to the championship game, which is always a plus! On the downside, we had a major storm while we were gone and for some reason, my internet is slower than molasses. So, yet another wrinkle in getting this post up! Thanks for your patience peeps!

Are you ready for this week's color-infused challenge to take a trio of hues and put them to use? Well, ready or not, here's this week's color combo! :-)

This little photo above was snapped by Ms. Marce on a trip last year to Savannah to check out, as she calls them, "lots of juicy little two strokes!" Love that girl, honestly! And, we loved just how peppy these colors were and thought, why now? Why not put a nifty little moto in the spotlight for cardmakers from far and wide?

HOW TO PLAY: Just as easy as one-two-three! Use all three colors highlighted above when you craft or create. Snap a picture of your handiwork and then share here on the linky below for all to see!

And guess what sweet peeps? We have the honor and privilege of having yet another fantastic guest designer joining us this week to share her talents with all of us! So, without further ado, let's meet her and learn a little more about her! Just in case you wondered why our fine and fabulous designer is holding a heart-shaped potato, well, she snapped this pic to show a friend who decided to gift her with this unique find! Too sweet, just too sweet!

Hi! I'm Beverly. I was born and raised in Missouri and I love to travel. I've been married to my love for 37 years, am mom to three daughters, and "Mimi" to two grandsons. I am a lover of all things crafty and I love being in the pool. I am a two-time heart transplant recipient and believe everyone should be someone's hero and donate life. I've participated in the www.transplantgamesofamerica.org and later this summer will be competing in my 8th games in Salt Lake City Utah, swimming, naturally! The games are for transplant recipients and our heroes, living donors and donor families.

BEVERLY'S CREATION

I'm a traditional stamper and this is my first try at coloring a digital stamp, Everything's Rosy. My favorite coloring medium is Copic Markers on Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb card stock. I tried to print my image on that heavy card stock and my printer wasn't having it! So I changed tactics and chose Canson Mixed Media and Kuretake Gansai watercolors. After I finished painting, my image just looked flat, so to add dimension, I watercolored more portions of the flowers and fussy cut them. I used Tim Holtz Collage Medium to adhere and I carefully placed those cut pieces directly on top leaving some of the image a bit raised and then set aside to dry. I added glossy accents for some shine on my polka dot cup. Finally, I added accents with a white Uniball gel pen and black Micron pen. To bring my card together, I used Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive to glue fun foam to the back of my image and then to my card base, Recollection card stock. I love this image and chose to not add a sentiment.

Beverly, your card is gorgeous and I love how that yellow just POPS in such a vibrant way on those greyscale tones. Thank you so much for sharing a little bit about yourself and the powerful gift you received not once, but twice. What a story you must have to share. If you'd like to see more of Beverly's work, it's just a click away at her blog Beverly2hearts.blogspot.com! 

Now my stamping friends, it is your turn to take this color combo for a ride and then link up your creation below! As always, we love to see because we love to choose those that played along to guest host here on the Power Poppy blog from time to time! So, create, link and let us see your handiwork!

We'll be back on Friday with some more good vibes, so be sure to swing by and see what the Bloom Brigade has in store!

~Julie 

An InLinkz Link-up

Hues for YOUs!

Hello color lovers! It's Tuesday which means we have a new crop of colors for you to pick up next time you have that burning desire to create -- which, honestly, should be every day, right?

Today, we traipse into the kitchen for inspiration. I am sure this photo below features fresh picked herbs and maybe even handmade pasta with a splash of spice, pistachios and cream. Since I was somewhat hungry when I was scrolling through photos, I gravitated to this little photo on Marcy's feed and then, I craved pasta for some reason! ;-) Try not to let your mouth water as you take a gander at Ms. Marce's lemon fettuccine! YUM!

HOW TO PLAY: Three colors. Use them, then, link your creation. Just that simple my cardmaking peeps!

Since we love to share how this week's colors can be used to create beautiful things, we turned to the cardmaking prowess of this fine guest below! She's known as Simply Monica, but her cards are anything but! Let's meet this hostess with the mostess and see her take on this week's hues!

"Hello everybody, I'm Monica, a single mom of two older children. I have been crafting since the birth of my son. I love all things crafty and one girl's scrap is definitely my treasure. Hence, my original blog name "scraps2treasure", but my daughter thought it was corny. So I am now known as "Simply Monica." I hope to inspire everyone to be crafty through my work.

HUES TO USE CREATION

I printed this digital stamp -- Cup of Columbine -- on my Epson WF-3640 printer using Langton watercolor paper which works beautifully with digital images and has no smearing. I then colored my image using Zig Clean Color pens along with Kuretake Gansai watercolors. Once done, I used a Creative Expressions die by Sue Wilson to die cut the image. I matted the image against some gold shimmer paper I picked up from Hobby Lobby and popped a sticker sentiment that I thought went beautifully with the image.

Beautiful job Monica! I love the clean and classy design and your coloring is to die for! I am so glad too that you mentioned what watercolor paper and printer you used. So many of us have troubles finding just the right printer/paper that works to watercolor digital stamps! So, thank you! We are so glad you joined us to guest hostess this week and share your gorgeous design. We know it will inspire!

One quick note, Monica used the digital version of this stamp but did you know, thanks to last week's release, this image now also comes in a clear stamp? Yes! Yes, it does! It's called Cheerful Columbine and comes not only with the main image but four beautifully scripted sentiments as well!

Okay folks, now it is your turn to pick up these hues and put them to use! Don't forget to link up your creation so that we can all see your take. We LOVE seeing you put these color combos into play!

Thanks for stopping by! We'll see you again next week!
~Julie

An InLinkz Link-up

Hues That Are as Sweet As Can Be!

Hello happy stampers! Are you ready for a candy-coated color infusion? It's time for Hues to Use and this one is a mish-mash -- literally -- of colors, guaranteed to make your mouth water just a wee bit! 

So, let's check it out, shall we? 

I have to laugh because, if you know Marcella, you know she LOVES her gummy bears! When we went to CHA a year ago January, the hotel we stayed at had a candy bar that guests could hit up as they checked into their room. Well, Marcy made a bee line for the jar of gummies and it became her BFF while we were there! So, if you check out this image, you might say, "What the heck is that?" Well, read up in Marcy's own words below! LOL! 
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• marcellahawleyWhen you leave your secret stash of gummy bears in the glove box and it gets up to 80.... 🌈☀️🔥 12 flavors melting in your mouth at once! Best gummies on the planet!! @albanesecandy

So, I thought this little photo might be a fun pop of color to inspire that super sweet bit of creativity next time you hit up your stamping spaces! 

HOW TO PLAY: It's pretty sweet and simple! Just use those three colors above in your card or creation and then... link up your project below using our linky! Just. That. Simple! 

On to my creation!

Recently, I cued up one of Amy Shulke of Vanilla Arts' coloring tutorials. This one was on Color Sculpting and using coloring and shading to create the depth that's needed to make sure a cake, for instance, looks round. I thoroughly enjoyed the class! I loved the background that she helped us created with Distress Inks as well and know I'll be pulling that one out of my little bag of tricks again soon! Just in case you wondered, she used the Layer Cake digital stamp set by Power Poppy for this little tutorial! 

So, you can see that all the main colors are there thanks to that amazing background! I will say to create this background is super simple -- simply mask your image, sponge on three coordinating colors of ink and then, wet your hands and flick the water over your background so that you get those super cool watermarks! 

Here's a little closeup for you....

And here's a peek at the inside of my card where I used the sentiment from the digital stamp set on the inside! 

So, sweet friends, want to pick up these vibrant colors and play along with me this week? Simply use this color combo, create, and then link up your card below! Who knows, your card might be chosen as one of our faves and you might end up guest hostessing this little post one day soon! Each guest blogger gets a color palette to create with along with a digital stamp set of their choice! Fun stuff, right?

So get those fingers inky and let's see what you can make with this candy-coated color combo in this week's Hues to Use!


Thanks for stopping by!

~Julie 

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