Latest Instant Garden release – Hops and Barley!

It’s time for another Instant Garden release from Power Poppy! Today, Marcella Hawley is introducing Hops and Barley! This digital stamp set features a gorgeous tumble of harvest botanicals, as well as a few libation-themed sentiments. Barley and hops have been used in the brewing of beer for millennia, but they are lovely and interesting plants on their own as well.

In fact, let me lay some plant facts on ya: Did you know that hops are called Humulus Lupulus (the latter being Latin for “little wolf”) after an ancient Roman saying “wild among the willows, like wolves among sheep,” to describe their growing habits? And barley has a Roman connection too! Gladiators were sometimes referred to as hordearii meaning “barley men,” because it was such a big part of their diet. Conclusion: this stamp set would be perfect for any occasion that needs some warrior-type energy.But for this post, I decided to take my inspiration from the Ben Franklin sentiment: “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy,” and make a fun sign of sorts. I put the Hops & Barley image into Pages, and then duplicated and flipped it, so the images surrounded the quote.I used my little Minc to add gold foil to just the sentiment (this is Bristol paper), and then colored the hops, barley and background with distress inks and a water brush.I mounted the panel onto woodgrain-embossed cardstock that I swiped with some gold Nuvo mousse.  I also added some gold Perfect Pearls details to the barley kernels.

I think this sign could make a fun gift for anyone who’s getting into home brewing, or who just enjoys beers and ales that feature hops.

Before you head off today…LOOK AT WHAT IS COMING SOON FROM POWER POPPY! The Happiest Holiday clear stamp collection rolls out previews starting tomorrow, October 16th, and everything will be available for purchase on the 24th! There’s Santas, florals, confections…It’s gonna be epic!

Now you can go check out what the other Instant Gardeners have created with Hops and Barley.  Enjoy!
Nancy
Broni
Barbara

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Merriest Berries – a new digi from Power Poppy!

Hello! Have you seen the brand-new digital stamp set from Power Poppy yet? It’s called Merriest Berries, and it has seasonal greenery, ribbons, and yes – lots of berries! There’s three different styles of be-ribboned clusters, and even a candy cane nestled in there.  But my favorite feature of this release might be the sentiments: they say “Merriest Wishes” in sleek script, and the words are available together and separated, so you can customize to your heart’s content.

I decided to make a circle-shaped card with the candy cane option, so I was glad that I could move around the “Merriest” and the “Wishes” to get everything to fit. I thought a shiny rainbow theme would suit, as we are still in the throes of summer here in SoCal.  I colored up the image with my colored pencils, and added silver accents via foiling, a silver gel pen, and a silver-glittered background. I discovered that you can shade (somewhat) over the metallic pen, and I added a hint of shadow here and there.

I love how colored pencil pops against kraft card stock, and the berries and sentiment glow in the light.

Merriest Berries is available in the Power Poppy shop  now, and you can be downloading and coloring in no time!

Be sure to check out more awesome creations by the design team here:
Nancy
Broni
Rhea
Barbara
Jessie
Jennifer

One more thing! This is my first post as an Instant Gardener for Power Poppy, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to join such a special and talented team.  Look for more posts from me here, and occasionally on the Power Poppy blog.

Have a great day! I love questions and comments, so don’t be shy 🙂