Rose Bag Tag for Angel's Wedding & LESSology

Do you have a collection of little bags? I do and they seem to multiply when I'm not looking. Sneaky little things! It occurred to me the other day to use one as a tag after I prettied it all up with a huge hand made bloom and a doily. This is one project that really didn't take all that long, used up one of those bags, and is useful! You could even put the card inside and the plant tag.

I had several large vintage leaves hanging around, that epic hand made white flower with rhinestone center, and a hot pink doily that matched the rose. It was as simple as hot gluing them on the bag. Since this pretty plant was our present for an outdoor wedding, I added the burlap around the bottom of the plant to match one of the flowers and some cool vellum sentiments. Angel scrapbooks with me, so there is NO DOUBT IN MY MIND that she will either reuse the bag in some way shape or form or the flower gets added to a page. ;-)

Angel's Wedding was epic. Even though it hasn't rained here in what seems to be months, it downpoured. It's my second outdoor wedding ever in the rain and both were cozy and romantic under the tent. Not to mention you could watch the grass get greener by the minute. Don't worry, I have tons of cool photos to share with you from her day, but I'm making a page...and you'll see them then!

Our current challenge over at LESSology is to upcycle a bag and I bet you have a few hanging around, I'd love to see what you create!!

Orange Envelope ABC Book Swap

One of my bloggy friends suggested a swap the other day of envelope books. I wasn't sure how to make one, but figured that I could grab a bunch of envelopes, add a bit of cardboard inside to stiffen them up and then seal them...add in some cool paper and bling & punch some holes, Voila! Envelope book!

I specifically left several completely blank pages for a bigger photo or for adding journalling, but it works here so you can see some of the envelopes I started with. I found these orange mulberry envelopes at a stationary store ages and ages ago. They are thick and have a really cool texture. Plus, they match this Chalk It Up paper pack from Close to My Heart which I have been hoarding for like forever. (there is new paper out so I had better get going on using some of it so I can buy more...)

I added some little gold dot bags in the middle in differet spots with extra paper. I took a quick peek on my swap partner's Facebook and it appears she has little people that likely will be going back to school soon just like me so I figured a fun little book for photos would be just her thing!

That is also of course why I put those acetate ABC's on the cover too! Hope she loves it! Happy Hump Day!

Better Together: Date Night Layout for Another Freaking Scrappy

When I read this month's challenge I knew I had the perfect photo & the accompanying ticket stubs! Paired up with this super delish paper from Close to My Heart in these happy colors, this page really rocked, pun intended!

Our challenge at Another Freaking Scrappy:  August challenge is to use a souvenir from a place or event on your page - maybe a theatre ticket? A subway pass? A map? A pamphlet from somewhere you visited or want to visit? 

Since the concert was just a couple of weeks ago, I happened to still have these ticket stubs on my dresser. I was trying to to decide whether I wanted to scrap the concert or just use the photo for something. Turns out doing both was just the ticket (yes more puns). 

Loving these textured blooms from Petaloo...I'm using more of their flowers these days than Prima as I seem to prefer the ones made from material over paper, but it looks like some of the new Prima releases are following along...which is awesome!

Happy to have gotten this page scrapped! Hope you get to chance to hang with us this month and pull out some ephemia! Happy Tuesday!

Memorandum Monday: Fireworks and a Topless Hot Pink Hot Mess

This weekend was full of living. We had a wedding to run off to that was epic...more on that later. Then a pig roast with awesome fireworks and Tippy Cow Green Shamrock Mint Rum which tasted like mint chocolate chip ice cream. Sunday was a bit more tame with some grocerying and then sanding.

When I told Steven, the guy I work with at the Corning ReStore that I wanted to buy this hot pink broken table (table implies you can put things on it, it didn't actually have a top so it's more like the theory of a table) he said WHY? I was like no really, I am buying it. I then realized he wanted to genuinely know what would bring me to purchase something that was clearly going in the dumpster after the tent sale was over.

I suspect THE MAN has him on retainer. Here is $20 a month to not allow my wife to bring home things that clearly should be thrown out. THE MAN had a similar reaction when I took the "table" out of my jeep and this was after I waited until he had at least several glasses of wine. Thankfully he's a good sort and showed me how to rip two boards for the bottom which was also broken. Then I predrilled holes for finish screws, attached the boards firming up the table and got crazy with the sander.

I added a few pieces of scroll work and that cool little circle piece from my stash with the air nailer & finish brads. We'll be building a frame for the top later, using a piece of marble that I also scored from Corning ReStore and that I've been hoarding.

The first coat of spray paint is making me happy. It's a satin so totally will not be this shiny when it dries. It will need a second coat. Those bottom boards were also stashed in my closet and took the paint a little different than the rest of the table, so a second coat will level the playing field a little. It's nice to head off into the week feeling accomplished!

Happy Monday and please join me in waving to Sian from over at From High in the Sky who also has epic weekend adventures involving socks and ice cream.

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!