Not a Treat Layout: Johnny Rockets

Sorry about the shadows on this page! It's getting on towards fall here and my trick of sneaking out in the am before work isn't going to cut it much longer! Just a simple page with limited bling (nothing like yesterdays) to showcase a cool photo from a summer camping trip to Lake George where we went out to eat for lunch. Normally we cook our own food, so it was supposed to be a treat.

To be fair, I'm sure Johnny Rockets normally has really great burgers, but there seemed to be a large amount of kids & a bus, so perhaps they were just overwhelmed. Us Pratts are pretty familiar with a good burger. Either we are making them or having them local. Potsdam had an epic burger place and we have one here in Corning. Pair it up with a good cider on tap, it's epic. However, nobody has ever made us smiley faces with ketchup, so they did have that going for them.

Had fun printing that vintage sign and making some accordion blooms. I always enjoy pulling out that die and cutting a couple. Loved this paper with the little conversation bubbles too that I used to write my journaling on. Some mellow colors!

Hoping this Hump Day finds you in good spirits. I'm off to work on a house. Fun times await. Talk about mellow, you should see the pretty color they picked!

Rain on a Wedding Day

I must admit, I had the Alanis Morissette song Ironic stuck in my head while I made this page, hence the title. And boy did it rain. It rained so much that this dude was ferrying people under umbrellas to the food tent to keep them and their plates dry.

Can you tell the cute little bandana banners are a little wet behind Mike and Star? Loved all the decorations. So very casual and pretty! Even got out a stamp to make those clouds and raindrops!

I got a lot of mileage out of those bandanas! I took some photos and made background paper! I of course printed the one photo I took of the bandanas that matched our outfits!

And one more look at the whole page. What strikes me today as I write this post is how much crap I managed to fit on one page...I think I was trying to make up for not making anything for a while! WOW, talk about throw a bunch of stuff at a layout!

Happiest of Tuesdays to you!

Sitting on a Dike & Wearing an Ass Hat for Memorandum Monday

The end part of this last week involved a conference for work. The classes & certs are never exactly the only thing you come away with. There is that whole team building thing and then learning that the team you are on is pretty rock star. Everyone wants to be on a winning team so this is good. The icing on cake was coming home and getting to hang with THE MAN who was playing with his new hobby. Mostly I just sat and watched. Not quite ready to try my hand at it yet.

He has been teaching himself how to fly a drone. Might be a side business, might just be for fun. Regardless, he has been getting some epic shots. This one is a photo of two of the bridges here in Corning. The one directly in front is the Bridge Street Bridge. It's the fancy one. Over to the right, that white tower is called Little Joe and is one of our icons. I've blogged about Little Joe before.

Our little town flooded badly back in 1972 so all the rivers are built up this way. Excellent walking & biking trails, and an awesome spot to fly. How do you like our hills? They are green at the moment but at some point soon they will turn colors. Or in theory they will. It's been really dry and it sounds like we won't have much color due to the drought. 

Of course someone has missed me. Duncan has turned into an epic jerk. He has been clicking his dog bone, running around like a freak, and bumping into me. While folding the laundy, I decided he needed an ass hat. Found some undies and put them on his furry little head. He tried eating them shortly after.

I'm pumped to start a new week! Happy Happy Monday! Please join me in wishing THE MAN well in his new hobby! Shall we start calling him Fly Boy?

Thanks for hosting us, Sian From High in The Sky blog!

Shabby Little Nook with a Spotted Pumpkin

There is a nook in the desk in my office where a big monitor should go. It's a throw back to when you had a desktop pc and accompanying monitor. These days most peeps have laptops which well, you use on your lap or they have a tablet. Anyhow, the desk has great storage but that weird awkward spot needed something pretty.

Threw this together recently and having added a couple of pumpkins to it, I thought it would be fun to post. Everything you see here with the exception of the pumpkins and that little type tray came from the Corning ReStore at one point or another.

A little collection like this looks best with a variety of shapes, sizes, and textures. The type tray works well for something tall in the back, but honestly I have plenty of room so I could actually add something even bigger. A empty frame with some cool texture would work or a cool silver tray. Looks like I need to do a little more thrift shopping!

Happy Hump Day!

Sew Buttons on your Underwear Layout for THE CUTTING CAFE

Been hoarding this photo for a while. As I'm not a selfie taker, it's a rare one. I had texted THE MAN the photo as I was sporting a rose behind my ear earlier this summer. It's a photo from work, believe it or not, so it worked well for this layout.

Over at THE CUTTING CAFE, Regina has asked us to use one of her new files called Let's Write a Letter. She wanted us to write an acutal letter so I did. To myself. I had to add a funny spin to it. I have several pairs of shorts only fit for painting in. One in particular has several revealing holes and my family thank god told me I was not allowed to wear them any longer to work.

Regina thought she was making writing paper, but I saw journaling spots with the images she included. Printed out two to use here on my layout to tell the story. BOY THEY ROCK! Since I went with a funny title too, I had to include some buttons tucked into the side.

I enjoyed adding some torn bits of paper under the photo and some pretty posies to match the one behind my ear. Really love this layout, it's been cookin' all summer!

Have a most awesome Tuesday! I'm back tomorrow with something else that is shabby....but not paper related! HUGS!

Wronging a Pedi & Cinderellaing for Memorandum Monday

 At some point earlier in the week, I got a text message from the boss that simply said, are you in? It should be fun. I had no idea what she was talking about. I was pretty sure I had forgotten something important that I may or may not have said I'd do. So, I asked.

The Pink Tie Affair on Friday night, was the text back.

Oh! MY! Yes. Wear a cocktail dress, paint the toes, and eat free fancy food at an open bar for boobies? Count me in. Having to run the Habitat build at Bridge Street the Saturday after? No prob. I'm All IN.



















My ass was a bit dragging on Saturday. I felt a smidge like Cinderella who was out too late, but since
I had also forgotten to wear appropriate footwear, I ruined the pink pedi that I had given myself in haste the day before.

It's the story of my life. I can't decide what to wear as some days I'm painting, other days I meet the future mayor of Corning. On that same note, I met the potential future new homeowner at our Bridge Street Build earlier this week. They seem perfect. Let's see how they do painting. ;-)

On that note though, the previous homeowner was not perfect. It's been implied by several who might know, that the fancy lettering on the concrete wall near the house may in fact be from the past home owner's children. It's going to take some special neighboring to erase the bad memories from
those neighbors. I'm ALL IN on that as well. Nobody should have to put up with that shit.

Sunday was spent making an epic breakfast, working on a new lamp of which the pieces came from a sweet trade, and scrapping. Just an easy peasy kinda day with some perfect spray painting weather. Good thing the pedi was already ruined. May or may not have painted a toe copper...

Anyhow, I wish you the best kind of day on this fabulous Monday. Off to help an old lady with a garage door opener and inspect a paint job. Fun times!

It's a new week so join me in wishing Sian, our most fabulous host of Memorandum Monday who blogs over at From High in the Sky a hello!

Love Layout from Crafternooning with Hitch Hiker Fly

Try to take a quick photo before you hand off a recently made page for a friend...and you get a fly who decides to hang out for a minute...I take my photos outside, so you always run that risk...So anyhow, try to pretend that fly isn't there...and enjoy Teri and Craig's happy faces..so nice of them to match this new paper from Close to My Heart! I hosted a Crafternoon at my house this past Sunday and made this page for them.

Tried to keep the page nice and flat. Teri's Mom cut us all kinds of pretties from glitter paper and I enjoyed using some of them up. Of course had to add some grungy gold paint and some splatters.

The prima flowers are from my stash although I added a couple from the dollar store. Really love the new Fundamental paper from Close to My Heart. Wouldn't have been something I would normally have bought, but it's so bright and pretty! The new ribbon is pretty cool too! See the sea glass ribbon printed with Love? So nice.

Had a great time making this page with friends! Have a couple more things to show you, so fun to scrap book with friends in your own house where you have access to all your stuff! Fun times!

Happy Friday Eve!

12 tags of 2016-September & One Little Quote

Ugh so totally in love with these Crazy Dog Stamps still. Usually can avoid the lure of newness but not when I spotted these. I even had to pre order it! On that same topic of conversation, the tag this month over at Tim's involved a new kind of paper they are selling, which of course I don't have. Not to mention he show cased a totally awesome technique for the bottom piece and then covered up a huge chunk of it with an image...

So I decided to run with using a piece of epic paper I did have on hand...photo paper. Usually yes, you use it for printing photos, but it takes ink well & it's glossy so it's cool. All I did was ink up a plastic surface with stamp pads, spritzed with a shimmer spray and dropped my photo paper face down on the inky mess. Voila, epic background. Pair up with a crazy dog stamp all fussy cut? Super coolness!

I also added some stamped gold embossing power on the edge. Since I'm still working on revealing the One Little Quote that has inspired me this year....I have included the word "the" to torture you. I mean, we're really close to the end here...three tags left! I did manage to add a dangle to match the star used on the tag. It's of course a dog bone!

Not sure if you noticed, but I used a metal piece that you'd use on pair of overalls. I'm pretty sure Tim will be picking up that idea soon, so you might want to rush to your nearest store and grab some. They sell them here in the sewing section. Just used a little bit of glue and some thread to keep it attached.

Happiest of Hump Days to you peeps! We're half way to the weekend! Hugs!

Gold Washi Tape Canister with Feet

I have been hoarding the most perfect of metal containers for a while. The fabulous Chi Tea has long since been a memory and it was time to apply some spray paint, add feet, a knob, washi tape, and flowers. Not to mention it was getting all dusty and lonely on my desk....

All the hoarders of small bits and bobs for crafting now see why this is the most perfect of containers..I know. It's awesomeness AND is gold inside....(smells like tea too, oh my)

I'm always so busy using that Looking Glass Paint to make something look like mercury glass, I forget what it's main use is for...making little white ceramic feet look epic! Do you not love those? They were just itty bitty white ceramic knobs before I started.






































Used that same looking glass paint on the knob. It helped blend in the metal top piece a bit and made it look a little more vintage.

Oh my, love you little tea canister! Currently it's hanging out in the World's Smallest Bathroom, but soon it will migrate back to my office to be used...

Happy Tuesday!

Scary Ass Baby and working at the Ketchup & Mustard House

Have I mentioned that the people I work with are crazy? I mean, there is an endless supply of items for practical jokes at the ReStore...and although I wasn't the intended victim, it was most unpleasant finding scary ass baby doll in the crisper one early morning. Volunteers are also crazy, but crazy cool. On top of painting endless coats of primer paint over the bright red, banana yellow, and cobalt blue paint, some of them are working on the retaining wall at our Bridge Street Habitat House. Since the grade slopes downward toward the house, we're trying to divert water in a functional & beautiful way. In case you are wondering, those freaking stones are heavy....I am a bit sore today.

On a side note, the folks who worked on the house before we went in called the house the Ketchup & Mustard house in regards to the epic paint choices. We had a huge mold remediation job because the pipes burst over the winter. Not only was the basement of the house filled with mold, but the living space was visually upsetting. All I can say people is THINK before you buy. Dark colors in small places do not make good choices paired up with bright colors that clash. I can only hope the previous owner was color blind....

Also, been working on a bathroom at the home front. All that painting at Bridge Street got me inspired to paint up the world's smallest half bath. It was a powerder blue that had gotten tired and I wanted a fresh new color to spruce it up. I always fall victim to the names of the paint hence I came home with a gallon of Sea Glass and two cans of white spray paint. I think in the case of a small space and calming color, I chose wisely.

I am a fussy painter. Grandma Skip was epic at edging and I dislike using tape, so it takes me a while to cut in. This bathroom took me all Labor Day Monday to finish. I had to spray paint the heater since it was rusty and I hated the cheap over the toilet vanity THE MAN had picked up & installed when we first moved in, so that got a coat of white spray paint as well. The fact it was perfect spray painting weather helped. Kinda sorta wanted to get that bathroom painted  'cause yesterday the girls came over for a Crafternoon. Fun times were had by all.

Pages for that will be coming soon. It's a new week so join me in wishing Sian, our most fabulous host of Memorandum Monday who blogs over at From High in the Sky a hello!

Interesting Invite for LESSology

I must admit that this month's challenge at LESSology had me a bit stumped: Make a handmade invitation. Create an invite to a special event. Think beyond a simple card. In fact, this little tea cup came home with me from the Corning ReStore but wasn't for this specific project. I just liked the gold and the black. Suddenly I thought up making a tea party invite with this little vintage cup and some tea bags. 

Heck, you could even stick some pieces of special chocolate in the cup, or a biscotti. Yum! I happen to know for a fact that little vintage cups like this are quite common at second hand stores. Making the tea pot for the invite was super easy too. I used a cutting file from THE CUTTING CAFE called The Tea Pot Shaped Card Set.

I used a little printable for the actual invite. Added some clear vellum from a clothing tag to make steam coming out of the tea pot. Added some bling and a gold bow I had left over.

The colors were inspired by my tea pot & that gold tin that also came from Corning ReStore. I used gold embossing power on the very top of the lid and the handle to match. So pretty!

Hope you get a chance to play along! A good start is something that catches your eye at a second hand store!

Gone Country Layout: Cousin Richard's Wedding

Never gone to a wedding where people were wearing jeans. It's about time! The bride was of course wearing a pretty dress. I haven't meet many brides that will forgo the princess gown on her special day! Uncle George (or UG) moved to our road when I was pregnant with Luke almost 14 years ago bringing with him a teen that needed some country life. Richard's first car was a truck. We watched Richard grow up as our kids got taller too. It was good to see him step into a new chapter in his life.

I actually didn't take a lot of photos when we were at the reception, too many people to talk to. So, I was lucky that I could swipe some from Facebook. Love this photo of UG and counsin Richard that I fussy cut and put among the flowers! I'm all about saving the invites these days. Saves time having to write down all the detaisl! Plus, this one was lovely! And about those flowers...

They are so big and pretty! Didn't cost much either! Want my trick?


Got some mileage from a dollar store branch of posies. Time was short when Lexi was making their wedding card and I cheated and bought some flowers we took apart. We were looking for daises, but she made it work with some water colors. I opted to use the same ones for the page, but added a brad with a sparkle on top and left the little yellow flower stamens. Easy Peasy!

Still on a kick of printing out larger photos. I went rouge with this one and used brown paper! Love how it's almost background paper, but still there! So pretty!

Glad this one is done and dusted! We're all about invites, so come hang with me tomorrow for the LESSology post...happy Hump Day!

Autumn Blessing Cards for THE CUTTING CAFE

It's official. I put the fall decorations out! We're in that awkward week where the kids have three days off and then go back to school on Thursday. It's the downward slide now to the holidays. I'd say it gets more hectic, but we did a pretty good job of cramming all kinds of camping trips into the summer, track practise, trips to CMOG for volunteering, and hanging with some friends.

I was impressed with myself on how much bling I could get on one card. These are not for mailing! I have been hoarding these vintage pumpkins in my stash for ages! Was glad to pair them up with some vintage foliage & pinecones over top of a scrap piece of burlap.

The real rock star though is the cool Autumn Sentiment Card Frames Printable Set that

I started with from THE CUTTING CAFE. Love all the different fonts that Regina used. I added some glitter to add a smidge of a sparkle. But it was so easy to just print four card bases to start with! Love all the different fonts Regina used! 

Added a bit of sparkle glitter to the words, some gold paint, and sequins to bling them up more. If you are curious (which I know you are Lizzy Hill) as to what paper I used for the tattered Tim Holtz leaves? Yeah, that was scrap paper from a paper Lexi wrote. Totally upcycled it!  

Happiest of Tuesdays to you! Soon you'll be seeing photos with pretty colored leaves in the background, but for now you'll have to enjoy these cards instead. 

Craftgasm & Sick as a Dog for Memorandum Monday

THE MAN asked (with his eyes shut because he's good like that) where I was wandering off to at 6:30 am this morning. I had a hot date with some coffee and cards in my craft room. By the time he came in to see what I was up to at 9:30 there was glitter everywhere, all three available surfaces were covered with paper and flowers and my office smelled like hot glue. Oh my, it was good to get my craft on! Haven't had a lot of free time lately between camping and working.

See yesterday I worked because well, our Habitat House isn't going to fix itself. We are back in a house that has been vacant for at least two years. The previous owners weren't right for home ownership so we are back working on a train wreck. Yesterday's battle was covering the primary colored walls with a stain blocking paint, testing the water lines to see if I could get the city water turned back on, and re-siding the shed. It's rumored the homeowner took a hammer to things and at this point I believe it. I'd be sad, but the rock star volunteers I work with worked on this same house back in the day and they aren't sad. If anything, they are happy to be back working with sheet rock and mudding a bit.

On the home front, we're working on installing a door in the back bedroom. We have an exchange student coming at the end of the month from Italy and we're making sure our guest room is ready! She will be hanging for a week or two and we can't wait! Well, most of us can't wait...some of us....well, we're a bit sickish....

Duncan has had a tummy ache that the vet has been treating. He's been 

mopey and tired for around a week. He seems a bit perkier this weekend but has been enjoying the babying. 

Posting this now because well, tomorrow is another day off! Hooray for a holiday!

Waving over to Sian who is our host for Memorandum Monday who blogs over at From High in the Sky!