In early May, Hubby traveled back to New England to visit with his folks and work on a blueberry “fort” for his mom–dang those pesky birds! I don’t typically look forward to him leaving, but this time I could hardly wait to drive him to the airport. I had plans to work on a project I’d been itching to tackle since shortly after Christmas, but I wanted it to be a surprise, so couldn’t start until he was gone.
I dropped him off at the local airport early Saturday morning. A few short hours later, I’d pulled out the drop cloths (old tablecloths) and got to work…on my mahogany bedroom bureau.
Yes, that’s dust on the surface. I have two friends who read these posts and who each keep their houses spotless. I can imagine the looks of horror on their faces at seeing the state of my bureau. đ
When Kreh and I were first married, eighteen years ago now, we received much of our initial furniture from a good friendâs grandmother when she was moving into assisted living. Through that familyâs generosity, we were able to outfit (and thus move into) our little attic apartment with bedroom, living, and dining room furnishings mere days after returning from our honeymoon. A huge blessing for newlyweds who hadnât lived on their own up to that point.
Over the years, weâve replaced several items. We bought a new bedframe when we moved to Colorado in 2002. Upon moving to Nebraska in 2003, we bought a bigger couch and matching glider at auction. Before moving to Montana in 2008, we replaced the dining chairs. And the mahogany coffee table now resides at Hubbyâs office.
We have yet to replace our bedroom bureau and dresser, however. Mostly because of cost. Someday it might happen (weâd like to match whatever comes in with the cherry-stained sleigh bed we currently have), but after Hubby saw the relative success I had in redoing the mahogany sideboard, he’d uttered the words Iâd been hoping to hear for a while: âWhen are you going to do the bureaus in the bedroom?â
Sideboard makeover
Swoon!
I had ten days to complete my bureau and matching mirror before he returned. Sounds like plenty of time, but since I was pulling both mommy and daddy duty that week and a half, shuffling kids hither, thither, and yon, I only had school hours to work on itâŚplus I was committed to writing a certain number of words each day for a writing challenge. I succeeded in both, but the makeover took all ten daysâand the master bedroom, being the temporary âworkshop,â was a mess in the meantime. đ
Hereâs my process in a nutshell:
I used Bulls Eye 1-2-3 for the primer. It claims to have “outstanding adhesion to dense, glossy surfaces such as enamel paints and varnishes, paneling, laminates…” but so far, I’m still at a loss for a successful primer that won’t get knocked away (taking the paint with it) at the slightest bump. I used Valspar Warm Putty and Indigo Streamer in satin for the colors (along with tiny brushes for the indigo), and I’m very pleased with that outcome. And I used my trusty Mod Podge to adhere the fabric onto the drawer fronts. Lastly, I changed out the hardware, going with rounded square cabinet knobs from Amazon. Love them!
The mirror was the tricky piece, with the scrollwork and different surface levels, and I had a tough time figuring out how much blue accents I wanted. In the end, I think it came out perfectly balanced (IMO). đ Again, tiny brushes and a steady hand! (And if you’re wondering why the mirror-before-paint is hiding behind the door…it was the only angle that wouldn’t reflect my cluttered room in the background!)
After
Hubby loved the makeover–as I hoped he would–so the plan is to work on his dresser and the matching bedside tables over the summer. We’ll see how far I get, heh heh. Considering my children’s second semester of school zoomed past in a blur, I know this summer has the potential for speed. No blinking!
How about you? Have you been able to tackle any spring projects since the weather has warmed up? Do you have grand summer plans ahead you hope to accomplish? Share in the comments below!
Just had to share my exciting news. So, I’ve entered a few book contests this year, and while the outcomes of most are still a ways off (I won’t find out how I did in one until next spring!), today my heart leaped in my chest when I found an email with the word “contest” in the subject line.
Remember this travel bag I made the other year? Iâm itching to make another oneâsmaller with different colors and a different flowered pattern. I found the flowered pic below on Pinterest and spent a good hour or more translating it onto graph paper. I had only knitted about seven or eight rows into it, however, when I remembered something very important about the knit stitch: itâs wider than it is tallâŚbut I had used normal graph paper (i.e.: equilateral squares). If I continued knitting, my flowers would turn out looking squashed!
Discipline in writing. After a year in which my old and new WIPs (works-in-progress) saw very little forward movement, my creative juices have begun to flow againâpraise the Lordâand I must shift writing back near the top of my priorities. You see, it became easy this past year, sometimes necessary, to forgo my laptop in lieu of my knitting needles or a book or allow errands to swallow my days. Now I sense some internal resistance when I come to the laptop, even though ideas have begun to blossom in my mind. Traces of fear niggle at the back of it all. (Still? Yes. Ugh.) âWhat if I canât get the words out?â âThereâs an expectation now. What if my next book isnât as good as the first?â âUmâŚwill there even be a next book?â Iâm trying to quell these little doubts; to keep them, well, little. I want, instead, to cling to what the Lord has shown me over the last six monthsâHis love, His approval, His blessingsâand move forward with confidence.
Discipline in maintaining a healthy body. Iâve been fit much of my life and have a high metabolism, but I am in my forties now, and itâs become harder and harder over the last few years to motivate myself to go for a run or workout. And, sigh, I still donât like my vegetables. đ But slacking off now is the last thing I should be doing if I want to see good health into my fifties and sixties. SoâŚdiscipline. To get up at 5am to squeeze in a workout. Or put on those running shoes after I take my youngest to school in the mornings. To reach for that apple instead of the pretzels (câmon, letâs be honest: the chips and salsa). Not much fun in the processâwhen is it ever fun to tell yourself ânoâ to something?âbut Iâll be thanking myself later.
Discipline in keeping houseâŚand prepping for dinner. *embarrassed chuckle* Really, who wants to vacuum and mop floors, fold clothes, dust furniture, scrub bathrooms, and all the other nit-picky stuff I canât remember at the moment, when Iâm just getting back into a writing groove and there are new projects to knit and friends to hang out with and books to read andâŚandâŚand⌠And am I forgetting I wanted to be a mother and housewife? Hello! These duties are part of the job Iâve wanted ever since I was a kid. (Why, then, do they become more trying and annoying each year?) And while I might not enjoy cooking day in and day out, there are things I could do to make it easier on myselfâŚand show hubby that I love him and appreciate him going to work day in and day out, providing us with a warm house and money for food and all the extra amenities we take for granted here in America. So, Iâm pulling out my dusty copy of Sink Reflections, by the Fly Lady (anybody else remember that gem?), and I plan to implement her suggestions as I had done once before, years ago, to mild success. (Donât ask me why I stopped, if it was a success. I donât know!)
Tinsel and Niklas, at long last adorned with shoes and coats to keep them warm this time of year, want to wish you a blessed, Merry Christmas and an amazing New Year. Iâll âseeâ you again in 2018!
Paperback copies are actually available now online at 
