Pan: Untold Story

     A few posts ago, I introduced you all to the trifecta of my fascinating people and/or historical events. I cannot stress enough just how much I love that list. I think I have done pretty well these past few weeks...read 11/22/63 (gave me my Kennedy fix), watched Titanic on Saturday and then again on Tuesday (I lose it at the same part every single time. This time it was worse because I cried in anticipation of said part. That was new for me), and finished Untold Story, a fiction novel about my favorite princess, Princess Diana.

     I first read about Monica Ali's new book in a People magazine what seems like forever ago. As soon as I read the review, I knew I just had to have it. Hell, as soon as I saw the cover picture (this is me, judging books by covers) I knew I just had to have it. Unmistakeable silhouette of Princess Diana? Go ahead and take my money already. I really enjoy the 'historical fiction' kind of concept that is seen in Philippa Gregory novels circa Queen Elizabeth and the Tudors, so I was happy to see a modern member of the royal family get her story told as well. This book proved to be pretty tough to find, and after many trips to Half-Priced and Sam's and Target and Wal-Mart, I ended up getting lucky at a Barnes & Noble back home. I did a double-take past the New Arrivals and snagged me one. Great success.

     The story revolves around Lydia, a middle-aged woman living in small town Kensington, America. The reader quickly becomes privvy to an elaborate plan thought up by the former Princess Di and her faithful adviser, Lawrence, that involves Diana faking her death in order to escape the wrath of scrutiny from in-laws and paparazzi alike. The novel is set at the 10-year anniversary of Diana's "death" and we are introduced to her new life as she continuously copes with her decision to flee. Lydia's perpetual guilt for leaving her boys behind subtly adds to the melancholy undertones of the novel as a whole.

     Lydia's world is turned upside down when a former royal family paparazzo and admirer rolls in to Kensington, looking for a place to stay overnight. Grabber is simply passing through town on his way to Los Angeles, but has stumbled upon the biggest story of his life. It's the touch of green in her bright blue eyes.

     Monica Ali really surprised me with this story. I was very excited to get going on this, and I can say that I wasn't disappointed. There is romance, mystery, and action, all in just the right amounts. I'm a sucker for the -isms (parallel, symbol, and all the others) and the character development comes together just right. The ending is so perfect and so unexpected and I wouldn't have it any other way.
       

Pin: Refinished Dresser

     After living with a 30-year old dresser for the past 15 years of my own life, I decided it was about time to  fix it up. The wood is pretty, but the glossy polyurethane coating and 1980s hardware just make it look a little outdated. These observations, combined with some Pinterest inspiration, led me to the local Home Depot. Now don't get me wrong, I love Home Depot. The crafting possibilities seem endless and I really like the tool shed-y smell (is that weird?). At the same time, this place is so intimidating to me. I know absolutely nothing about building or painting things and I bless the man who had to help me that day. I admit that I am a terrible decision maker, so you can imagine my struggles with flat vs. eggshell vs. satin vs. semi-gloss vs. gloss finish paints. It's stressful thinking about it now. BUT! about an hour and $40 later, I had a primer, two quart-sized paint colors, and a couple of free paint sticks in my hands and was headed home.

     This is my biggest project to date.

Goal!

Snazzy, eh?

This whole adventure really didn't require too many supplies. Primer, two 1-quart cans of different colored paint, brushes, and a paint stick. I suggest investing in halfway-decent paint brushes. This is the one thing I would have changed if I were to go back and do it all again. A $3 brush set from Habit for Humanity's Renovation Station left me with some imperfections, but nothing terrible.

     My original plan was to completely sand off the polyurethane coating in order to get rid of that glossy look. However, my paint man at Home Depot sold me on the idea of using a primer that will adhere to the polyurethane and thus eliminate the need to sand it down. The Zanssir 1-2-3 Primer worked great. I painted this piece in two different colors--a white for the drawer fronts and a deep brown for the actual dresser. For this, I used satin finish Behr in Gallery White and Bear Rug. My dresser is relatively small, so I was able to pull off quart-sized paints with no problems.

     I used our apartment balcony as a workspace. Oklahoma is experiencing some incredible 108+ degree weather right now, so working outside was a challenge in and of itself. I did not purchase a protective tarp, instead I actually used an old shower curtain liner I had lying around. This worked just as well. Side note, every time I am reading a craft blog in which the writer claims they just happened to have "______ lying around," I am always so jealous. Some people have the handiest things lying around. So it was cool for me to be able to have said thing as well...the priming took about an hour in order to complete a single coat for all four drawers. I went with two coats to be on the safe side.

After two coats of the Gallery White

     Once I primed and painted my drawers, I moved on to the body of the dresser. Spending just 20 minutes under the Oklahoma City sun had me feeling like I underestimated the size of this thing. I was able to complete two coats of the Bear Rug in a few days, however. My work schedule is off the wall and sometimes it was just too hot to feel like doing much of anything, so it probably took longer than need be. However, I was totally satisfied with my pace. 

Bear Rug sans drawers

     The last part of my project was the most frustrating of all. I wanted new hardware and I was bound and determined to purchase pretty drawer pulls. The top two drawers of my dresser have single pulls (easy!) and the bottom two have longer handles (NOT easy). Long story short, I spray painted the bottom two pulls and reused them. For the life of me I could not find an exactly 4'' long handle and I wasn't about to get wood filler, repaint, and use a power drill for new holes. Nope.

9 years later

The belfry in Ghent, Belgium overlooks this piece of handywork. As does Paris' Sacre'-Coeur

     Your turn!