PANIC! at the Disco Layout

Randomly have been using a LOT more ink as I've been printing these large photos as background paper. Do love how it pulls the whole layout together. Add in some clear mist...and you get those cool splotches....and shimmer!

Been using up sticker letters like crazy too. I normally would have found a nice logo from the band Panic! at the Disco & printed it out, but as far as I can tell, they don't really have one, so went with my own idea of lots of different fonts. Lexi had an epic time with her friends. One of the girl's Dads drove them to Scranton and then home late late at night, so it was a bit of a grown up thing too...

THE MAN slept on the couch waiting for her since it was a work night the next day and he was sleeping so soundly she couldn't wake him...(way to go Dad, now the oldest thinks she can sneak out and back in anytime, lol) Next time it will be my turn to wait up....

Anyhow, tomorrow is Friday so I'm wishing you a happy one!

Being Watched by OSHA & CODE

You know that feeling when you're being watched? Yeah...that one. We were today. We had the hairy eye balls right on us. They alternated the long staring with barking. Can you see the doggie in the window? There were actually two of them, but it was a bit odd being on the second story of the house and having the barking. I took to calling the bigger one OSHA and the little one the Code Enforcement Barker. And yes, since you are seeing that rot in the window frame I am sure you want to know whether we will be fixing that or not...and the answer is of course yes. The Previously Pink House is nearing completion so we'll be leaving our peeping doggies and moving on to the next project. I'll be a little sad as we've enjoyed doing the siding and the very sweet & sick homeowner who is always concerned that we have cold drinks and lunch!

Speaking of watching...this caught my eye first thing Tuesday morning at the ReStore and I wished immediately I had room to take this home and put in my castle. Believe it or not, two people were fighting over it today....and the second offered the first more money than it was be sold for! Still kinda wish it was mine in a holy batshit that is a huge fancy fugly mirror....

I'll be posing a layout tomorrow...finally got a few minutes to do some scrapping! Happy Hump Day!

12 tags of 2016-July & One Little Quote

We have crested mid year and it's hard to believe this is the seventh tag already! In fact, we're getting down to just a few words left in my one little quote, so I'm going to skip showing you the previous tags, in case you guess it!

Tim's July Tag had plenty of inspiration, but I choose the stamp I used as we were spending a long weekend in Lake George and I was in an Adirondack kinda mood.

He featured a masking technique where you color your stamp first and then mask it so you can water color over it. I used Elmer's glue due to not having all the right products and it worked pretty well. I opted to just stamp it though in that brown. I did use a black sharpie to outline the boat a little.

If you look close near all the ribbon, you can see a piece of birch bark I cut in a scallop, which is actually FROM Lake George. Love those itty bitty blue flowers. They remind me of the little blue forget-me nots.

Really love the sparkle blue summer letters at the bottom of the tag. They were meant to mimic Tim's words on his tag, but really speak to the colors I used and the image!

Happiest of Tuesdays! I'm stuck going back to work! No more playing for me! I wish I was still on the lake!

Memorandum Monday: Chill Dogs & Jamming

I am sure you have had one of those weekends where you have jam packed so much into just a couple of days that it seems like a week has gone by? Yes we are in the midst of one of those, so I guess I had better just start at the beginning and work my way to the end...

Thursday afternoon at the wee end of the day I spotted these cool centerpieces at the Corning ReStore as I was leaving work so piled all 11 of them into boxes and made off with them. I was pretty proud of myself buying something for a Christmas project in July. See, I have to make CAP centerpieces again and these will give me something easy to start with.....plus they were like super cheap at $2 and $3 a piece and spray painting season is upon us...think that little metal one might have to be painted blue....as we're sticking with a red white and blue theme...

In fact, I got home and put them away immediately as we had to get ready for our camping trip to Lake George. The AUNTS have a cabin there and we were off to camp nearby. Speaking of jam, I got to collect my Br'apple Butter that I traded for a pocket letter. Also speaking of Aunts, the other one had an art show.

She has taken up print making....loving the purple and the orange! (I suspect she is like most of us scrappers...and dressed to match her art work...or in our case, make sure everyone is wearing the right colors so we can use that paper packet we really want to use!)

I will admit that my Dad, both Uncles and I made sure we tried all of the hors d'oeuvres, including the shrimp and deviled eggs regardless of the fact we were heading back to the cottage to throw a dinner party. We also tried the wine because, well wine. 

While we were at the art show, we came across a band which was super cool. They were totally jamming & rocking the little room while their pooches napped. I so so impressed with these chill dogs! Mine had a great weekend at the Lake. He got to swim and go out on a boat. He wanted to make friends with the ducks but they are a snobby sort, you can imagine!

Anyhow, we're heading back today, so wish us a good drive home.

Waving hello to Sian From High in the Sky who is our mighty fine hostess!

Vintage Beaded Purse with Dried Roses

To be honest, we are all a little afraid of Sue. So when she cashed me out at the ReSTore and told me that I couldn't tear up this purse I took her seriously. I had been thinking about adding it to a canvas and decorating with flowers or something, but then I thought it would look just as cool with my vintage hat collection. What? You don't have a top hat hung up on your wall? Don't judge!

I think it looks really pretty with those dried roses! I got those on Mother's Day and Lexi and I decided to let them air dry so we could keep enjoying them. Who knows too, I might just have the urge to use my little white beaded purse at some point...so leaving it on display is working for me!

Happy Thursday!

Unique Pocket Letter for Ronda

The other day I got a mysterious package in my mailbox. It was mysterious as I hadn't been expecting anything. Turns out it was HAPPY MAIL from Ronda! She's on a DT with me. I decided to return the favor with this pocket letter!

Turns out she is also stepping down from the team to travel (lucky duck) so it's a bit of a good bye gift as well! I used the Florence Collection from Close to My Heart. Actually I used the last of it up with these little pocket letter cards!

I also had a set of stickers with a lot of cool things like paint brushes and cool sayings that worked to keep the whole thing cohesive. Love the glitter on these too!

And look what she sent me! The rest of 2016 and 2017 in my own planner! Love the sparkle flowers!!! Don't they rock! Thanks Ronda and hope you like your letter! Hugs!

Happy Hump Day!

Now is the Time to Sparkle Layout for THE CUTTING CAFE

It's so cool when my kids act like kids! I try to encourage that behavior! This is why of course I bought them some packages of sparklers! Love that I got these photos and I'm also pumped I got to use that awesome Happy 4th digi stamp from THE CUTTING CAFE.

It's part of the USA Phrases Set  and I super sized it! This is printed out at 150%! Love to make a big element like that for a page! I made those accordion bloom flowers special for this layout by swiping ink pads in a vertical pattern and then cutting them out. I added some Tattered Angels clear shimmer spray to them as well as the photo of Luke.

Had fun using up some vintage music paper too! The 4th of July always makes me think of parades!
Can you see a bit of the shimmer on the photo of Luke? I love adding shimmer spray to the edges of photos!

Hope you enjoyed my layout! It was a blast to make, 4th of July pun intended!

Happy Tuesday!

Buttercream and totally NOT Buttercream

At my Habitat, we work Wednesdays and Saturdays on houses with volunteers. Lately we've been painting but then we have to get back to siding the previously pink house that will soon have pink shutters. I like painting. It's a good project for a huge group of people who aren't that experienced. Based on some of the places that paint has landed, perhaps they have no experience...but anyhow, thankfully the home owner is super chill, which is a good thing. In a long story of getting 15 gallons of paint tinted and that one happened to get tinted much more yellow than the other two, it's a seriously good thing. We get huge pails of base paint from Valspar for pennies and then run to Lowe's to get the color added...in this case one went a little south and it happens to have been the one we started with....and what's with the pink? This house we're working on was previously a pinkish grey....

The owner of the Not Buttercream House is happy with the more yellow thankfully. She is a rockstar in my book as she's been painting when we're not there and weeding. Not to mention she has done battle with the yellow jackets up on a ladder. As a single Mum (to use the Aussie term) she is pretty handy at her house so while it's nice to give her a hand, we'll be leaving the place to a good caretaker.

It is that painting time of year around here. THE MAN has been fancying up the garage which now matches everything else. I had thought for a while we were going to let it gray up naturally, but then it was just looking splotchy...which isn't a good look for anything. I am betting this year's burgundy is the pink of 2050....but anyhow it looks good for now!

Happy Monday!

Waving over to Sian our Host from High in the Sky...who I think lives in a brick house just like me....probably no pink siding for her!

In All Fairness

The one thing NOBODY told me beforeI took my job at Habitat was that I had to wait TWO WHOLE DAYS before I could buy something at the ReSTore. They date the price stickers so they know when to rotate merchandise, which means you have to make sure it's been out on the floor longer than two days. The dude that runs the store says they had to do that to make sure it is fair. So, this little collection is a compilation of a couple of days of shopping.

Even though that green bowl serving set doesn't match my set of dishes, I love the embossed roses and the color. I have it stashed for holidays, but I imagine it will make a visit to the counter with some fruit at some point soon. And check out that opalescent carnival glass bowl. I am thinking about putting the two bowls together using epoxy to make one that has a little foot to it.

Just a pretty little decoration I got a while back that I messed with a little. The crackle glass was originally clear and I painted it with some clear opalescent glass paint and then added a layer of opaque purple over top on the inside so you couldn't see through it. I added some silver leafing too so it brighted it up quite a bit. Love it now! You can see what it looked like below....

Yes, all that metal cording was a previous score...so you'll be seeing that on projects too! Just as soon as I stop hoarding it all...

And one last photo of my makeover on that little decoration. It's pretty isn't it! It's going on my new desk at work (just as soon as we get them and overhaul the office) so I'm pumped!

Happiest of Thursdays to you!

Simply Epic: Mary Feik Layout

This page illustrates one of those epic moments this spring where learning & training came together in an ah ha moment for my youngest. You can't plan these moments but simply let them happen and then be happy later that planets aligned.;-)

Luke had recently ranked up in Civil Air Patrol. That particular rank is called the Mary Feik, a woman pioeneer in aviation. So when we ran across her portrait at the Kitty Hawk musuem, it was instant recognition for Luke. So cool.  My son has also pointed out that I need to learn how to spell..I'll be fixing her name asap!

Loved mixing those fonts with the title! Also, totally dig that plane washi tape.....I think Mary would have liked the rose paper I used too! It's so pretty!

Hope your Wednesday is also EPIC! I'm off to work on my first volunteer house painting job for work! I'm a bit nervous so maybe throw me some good vibes!

Love 2 Run Track Layout

dear me I do love that large format printer I have....especially when I take a silly picture with my phone and it turns out cool enough that I want to make it super big! Yes, that is my boy leaping over that hurdle as if it wasn't even there....(he says his form is bad, but this is his first year so we'll agree and then figure he'll learn how to do it better).

Do you know what happens when you print out a photo that big on white cardstock and then spritz it with clear mist? It shimmers and runs a little...and then you get some splotches that make you happy....add in a couple of gold sequins and it's a winner.

A pretty simple page and even flat, gasp! In fact I lifted that bottom team photo from Facebook.....but it tells the story of a first year of middle school track. He's been invited to run with the High Schoolers so must be they think he has some talent. I of course know he does...as he's been running since he was little...not sure on the jumping thing...that is up to them to get him trained up on that!

Happiest of Tuesdays to you!

Glamping with my Paper Cutter for Memorandum Monday

Some people rate a campground based on ameneties...me? I like a sturdy & clean picnic table!
We were hanging out at a campground down near Knoebels, an amusement park in Elysburg, Pennyslvania this past weekend.

It was pretty epic...a bus took the kids over to the park and brought them back. And yes, the picnic table was also top notch! I took an opportunity to play with a paper pack and make a bunch of backgrounds. The paper is pretty & summery, so I am positive I'll use them right up.

 I kinda cheat and use a book full of sketches. Helen from Scrap Addict might recognize that book. She hooked me up with that Creative-Scrappers book ages ago. It's a staple for a camping trip. Makes it easier to scrap with a glass of wine and a good conversation as there is really not a lot of brain power required!

Waving some paper scraps over at Sian who hosts us From High in the Sky! I am sure she'd be down with scrapping on a picnic table...I just wonder if she is a wine or beer kind of girl...or perhaps more of a tea one...but in this case it would have needed to be iced tea!

Happy Monday!

Be A Rock Star Galaxy Hot Chocolate Container Trash to Treasure Blog Hop

Although I think it's odd that people send me their trash (I am looking at YOU Sistah in Law), I do usually dream up some kind of alteration. Nine times out of ten it involves feet and a knob...I do love my hardware! Add in a gold tassel....vintage rolled roses, and some gold paint, yum!

In this particular case I subcontracted the paint job. We wanted to make a galaxy bandana for the dog....and I ended up getting this epic fabric/glass paint that worked so well on the bandana, I wanted Lexi to paint everything like a galaxy....and yes, I knew you wanted to see the photo of Duncan so dug this photo out for you. You are welcome.

Yes, he's always that cute, but don't let those good looks fool you. He is a bed hog, menaces chipmunks, and likes to stick his nose under the bathroom door when you are in there in and inhale....clearly NOT Rock Star behavior. 

Anyhow, back to my container. I added a little glass heart dangle off the ribbon and rubbed on some gold paint. So pretty!

And if you are enjoying my hot chocolate container, I'd love it if you would hop around and check out the other artists participating in this hop!

• Tina Walker: http://adogslife-thirteen.blogspot.com/...
• Mitra Pratt: http://mitralee.blogspot.com/2016/0...
• Candy Rosenberg, A Vintage Girl: http://candyscraps.typepad.com/scra...
• Christy Strickler, My Scrapbook Evolution: http://myscrapbookevolution.com/trash-to-treasur…-milk-jug-basket/
• Robyn Crowningshield: http://cozienookhomestead.wordpress.com/...

Happy Friday!

Vintage Tea Cup with Rolled Roses for LESSology's Cup or Mug Challenge

It's entirely possible I have a thing for gold. Add in a vintage tea cup with gold accents and I'm smitten. However, I'm usually not inclined to actually use them for tea, although I can imagine a tea party with mismatched cups and fancy cookies and that makes me happy. I did need to eventually come up with a use for my addition! Thankfully Yvonne over at LESSology seems to read my mind and comes up with these cool challenges so I can stretch a little! So this time round we're decorating cups or mugs!

I cut a bunch of music paper roses and rolled them onto gold pipecleaners using hot glue. When they cooled, I then pushed them into a piece of foam I had hot glued in the cup so I could make a bouquet. Everything in this cup with the exception of the little white roses with gems & pearl branches are upcycled.

I had added a ribbon at one point but it made it really hard to see the cup, so I changed it up a bit, but think of the possibilities!

What does one do with a tea cup bouquet? I imagine they would make a nice "card" if you added a tag sentiment or a name card at a place setting. I'm enjoying mine on a corbel I painted up the other day.

Hope you get a chance to play along with our cup or mug challenge! You folks are really creative out there so I can't wait to see what you make!

Happy Birthday Water Color Card for THE CUTTING CAFE

I really enjoyed making this card. I started with Regina's THE CUTTING CAFE You Color My World digi stamp set & printed out the image larger than normal. It's a PDF, so you just print at 130% instead of 100%. I wanted to make my own background paper using the printable & water colors.

The water color looked nice, but it seemed to be lacking something, so out came some Tattered Angels clear shimmer spray. It made the printed lines bleed a little and added a really nice shimmer you can't quite see here. Then I added some glitter glue. All this wet work required waiting over night to finish the card. I KNOW, I am not patient either...it was hard to wait!

I trimmed the edges off and then cut out that scallop near the top for a faux shaker card look. I used a little of the clear cardstock that Regina sells and then matted the whole thing up, after adding some sequins and some little baby gems.

The little owl is from a clear stamp set also from the Cafe and was water colored as well. Added more glitter so he'd match the rest of the card and some little gem eye balls. Tucked in a few leaves and a flowers! Love it!

I'm excited to send this card out and I can't wait to use up the little scrap I have. It's all so pretty!

Happy Hump Day!