I finally worked up the courage to paint my bathroom vanity!

I have hated the cabinets in this house since before we moved in almost two years ago.  In that time, I have spent MANY hours online looking at the various options - replacing (expensive!!), staining (iffy), and painting (iffy and far to many ways to do it).  I was really leaning toward the staining option - mainly because I have successfully stained over older furniture pieces in the past.  But these are cheap, builder grade, ugly honey oak cabinets and everything I'd read led me to believe it might be hard to cover the grain.

And then I stumbled across this gorgeous image of a painted navy blue bathroom cabinet with gold hardware.  Here is where I would link the image - but being the bad blogger I am, I didn't save it, pin it, or do whatever was necessary to recall where I found it.

Use Navy Blue Painted Bathroom Vanity with Gold Hardware to Google it and you'll 

get an idea of what I mean - despite combing through the results 

I still haven't found the original post (*sigh*).

Just like that I was obsessed.  I mentioned to The Husband that we should paint the guest/Man-Child's bathroom vanity.  He responded with "Do what you want."  Which indicated that he thought I was just making a random statement.

The next day I hopped over to Home Depot to talk to someone in the paint department.  To my utter delight, the woman I talked to had just painted her kitchen cabinets over the summer.  And this woman told me how "easy" it was - but mentioned that it IS time-intensive - which I sort of assumed.

Now, just imagine The Husband's utter shock when I came home with all the supplies to paint that vanity.

Friends Matt Leblanc GIF from Friends GIFs

Yep, that about sums it up perfectly

As I began to prepare the space, he found that he "needed" to be somewhere else.  But before he could leave I made him remove the doors for me.  So that and the subsequent re-hanging of the doors is his sole contribution to this task.

After he pulled his disappearing act, I had the presence of mind to actually take a "Before" picture (I know! A miracle!)

Ignore the clutter behind the doors, please.  Phase Two of this
project will deal with storage

Note:  I wasn't kidding when I said ugly, cheap builder grade vanity.  I knew something had to be done.  AND I knew that if I completely screwed this project up I was more than willing to shell out the money to replace this vanity.  I didn't want to spend the money to replace the vanity right now - as I have other plans that will require money - but if this project went south very quickly, I would have replaced it.

And that's the one caveat I'm offering here - be willing to replace it or live with it if you screw it up.  Just because the paint lady at Home Depot claimed she successfully painted her cabinets - it didn't automatically translate that I would successfully paint mine.

I will give the paint lady at Home Depot credit - she claimed I only needed a quart of paint - and she was right - I used less than a quarter of the can.  I did have to buy a full gallon of primer because they only had a spray can or a gallon.  I figured that this primer will come in handy for future projects though.  This project only cost about $100.  I'll list all the products used below.

As to the "how" - I removed all the doors, drawers and hardware and cleaned every inch of it using Liquid TSP Substitute.  Then I primed each piece.  Here's what I learned - be sure to put the primer on evenly with no drips because, surprisingly, paint does not cover those mistakes.  So yes, my finished project is NOT perfect...particularly since I went with such a dark color - but I'll take it.  I could probably sand those imperfections and re-paint.  But I think the imperfections aren't that visible. I used an angled brush for the beveled edges and tight spots.  Other than that, I rolled everything I could.

Once the primer dried, I painted the first coat and let it dry for 24 hours.  Then I painted the second coat.  That coat I let dry for about three days - I wanted that sucker to be good and dry before I allowed Man-Child back in the room and put everything back together.

Now here is where I got really irritated.  When The Husband put the doors back on we experienced some nicks - totally not his fault.  I will touch those up and see how it goes - I may need to seal it but I'm going to wait and see.  And as I said earlier - if needs be, I have no problem with replacing the vanity, but I'm hoping to get a few more years out of this one.

But in the meantime?  I LOVE the result.  What do you think?

Yes, I realize I need one more knob for that middle drawer

Yes, I skipped the gold hardware that was in the inspiration photo (that isn't here) despite the fact that all the doorknobs are gold in this house (see above picture).  Mainly because all those gold doorknobs are slowly being replaced.

Products I bought (all links are for your convenience only-this post is not sponsored in any way):

Liquid TSP Substitute
Kilz Odorless Oil-Based Stain Blocker

Behr Alkyd Satin Enamel

4 inch roller

Zibra Square brush

Blue painters tape

New knobs (LOVE the new square knobs!)

Products I had on hand:

Plastic (to cover the floor)

Gloves (to keep my hands clean - this marginally worked - re the Kilz in my hair at one point).

Drill

Screwdriver

The upcoming steps in this project?  Remove the other vanity (yes, there is another vanity - the original owners obviously coveted two vanities in this room rather than a linen closet) and install floor to ceiling shelving and sand the Amityville Horror paint off the walls (the last owners used old, oil based paint - and the oil continues to leach through - maybe that gallon of Kilz will come in handy after all...)

If you plan to tackle this project - I would suggest waiting until it's warmer so you can contain the majority of the mess in the garage.  I was stuck in a small space with everything everywhere and it was a mess.

This was early on - it got more cluttered the further the project went.

You can only imagine the contortions I went through trying to get in and out of that room without brushing up against wet paint or primer...which may explain the Kilz in my hair.

I am so pleased with the results!  So much so that I am now eyeballing the Master Bath vanity...

Procrastination - again.

Despite telling myself over and over that I'll do better, I never seem to *sigh*

Remember this post from November 2016!!  You will note, that I had cleaned out the dressing room/closet/whatever, but had left two boxes of pictures, frames, etc. to be dealt with later.  My reluctance to deal with those boxes had to do with pictures that I don't have copies of and what to do with them.

And here we are a year and some months later; and today, I finally went through those boxes.  And, as I reckoned in the above referenced post, I was able to toss some pictures and others were sent upstairs while I ponder the best way to deal with them.  I'm sure what will eventually happen is that I will scan them and consign the originals to an album, as that only makes sense.  I'm sure two years from now, I will have a post saying "Remember those old photos I sent upstairs to be dealt with later..."

Before I could begin dealing with those two boxes though I had the jigsaw puzzle to finish.  Yes, the card table was set up in the dressing room/closet/whatever - so between that and the boxes this room was not a fun room to be in, as it was crowded and messy.  I attempted to finish the puzzle last night but, as I told The Husband, I'd spent so much time looking at the remaining pieces that they were beginning to look like the same color.

This morning when I came in to finish the puzzle, I noted that most of the remaining pieces were different shades of black and blue - so I wasn't wrong.  As I slowly winnowed away the remaining pieces, I was looking forward to that last, VERY satisfying "there" as I snapped the last piece into place, when I realized...

NO!!!!!!

The last piece was no where to be found! I "might" have told The Husband that this was probably Man-Child's doing - who isn't here this weekend.  The Husband thought this was unfair BUT I recall a few years ago, that he had absconded with a random piece.  He wanted the satisfaction of putting that last piece in place without doing the work.

Eventually, I gave up and went to get dressed.  When I opened the closet, I found the missing piece.  Apparently, it had attached itself to my clothing at some point and fell off in the closet.  At least I got that last satisfying, "there" as I snapped it into place.

Now that those boxes have been dispatched - off to Goodwill filled with the clothes and shoes that I pulled from the closet that I will never wear, the puzzle and card table have been put away and the room is positively huge with nothing cluttering up the place.  And once again, I have reclaimed the room.

Can I now state with certainty that we are officially unpacked after moving in almost two years ago?  No. There is still a box of books and another stack of books sitting in the master waiting for me to figure out a home for them - which will require a new bookcase, I fear.  The problem?  Where to put said bookcase.  And let's not even mention the garage or upstairs - where there are several items in addition to those photos to be dealt with!

But we won't dwell on that just now - no, instead we will relish in the fact that this one room is done.  Well, not really.  I have thoughts for the future but am working with what I have for the moment; so for now, it IS done.

And, for an update on my disgusting and lazy co-workers...

This was taken EIGHT days after the first photo
in the above referenced post

Someone has cleaned the knife - but not the platters.  Personally, I think Housekeeping finally took pity on me; because I seriously doubt if anyone in this group would have taken care of it; obviously since they are still sitting here.  It's still beyond my comprehension why these items haven't been claimed yet.

What I've been preoccupied with lately...

All you have to do is search my winter archives to find me complaining about how cold it is; as my husband informs me, I'm a baby.  BUT this time, I'm in the right to complain.  This morning's high was 8 degrees.  I think we haven't made it out of the 20's for the past week.  I am SO over it already.  I live in the South not in Canada!

At any rate, during the Christmas holidays we have a tradition of doing a puzzle or two.  Well, actually, *I* do a puzzle or two.  I'd started this tradition hoping to entice the guys to work on it with me - well, actually, Man-Child as I knew The Husband had NO interest.  Surprisingly, Man-Child has no interest either.  He actually claimed that he "hates" puzzles...this seems odd to me given the way Man-Child's brain works...I figured he would enjoy them.

At first, I was disappointed that this was another tradition that was mine and mine alone - along with watching It's A Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve (I have NO idea why all the photos in that post are sideways - or why the guys don't love that movie as much as I do).  But I've come to enjoy spending that quiet time, squirreled away looking for matching pieces.

This Christmas I completed one puzzle and figured that was that for the season.

So what prompted this to happen yesterday?

Well, the table was still up.  I was sick (thanks to my guys.  Or my friend and her family.  Surely one of them was the culprit).  And the weather.  It was too cold to go out and do anything.  Plus, as mentioned, I was feeling poorly.

The Husband asked how I could sit there for hours sifting through the pieces looking for that elusive piece.  Obviously, he and Man-Child do not know how extraordinary it feels to find that elusive piece, pop into place with a self-satisfied, "There!" whispered to myself.

Generally, I confine puzzles to the Christmas holiday because I know how I am - I just spent the majority of yesterday and today confined to that table whispering, "There!" occasionally.  Ignoring the laundry that needed folding, the plants that needed to be watered and the bathrooms that needed cleaning.  During the holiday, I have that kind of freedom.  When I go back to work, I do not.

So, I finally pulled myself away to tend to the things that needed tending and took the time to craft this post.  Because I know where I will be spending the majority of my evenings for the next several days or so...

HAPPY NEW YEAR! And, apparently, I work with disgusting, dirty people

Happy New Year!  I wish only the best for you and yours for the coming year.  I think we all deserve a fantastic year out of the coming months.

The alarm clock went off well before dawn this morning.  I may have uttered some "colorful" words before I crawled out of bed in search of coffee.  It's not that I've spent the past few weeks sleeping in - far from it.  But I haven't HAD to wake up so very early.  Nor have I HAD to be dressed and out the door in the pre-dawn hours.  So, to say the least, this morning was rough.

Luckily, I had brought my work laptop home during the long holiday so I was able to keep up with work.  I also popped in a couple of times to deal with mail.  But generally, the week before Christmas and the week after are usually so dead at the office that there wasn't much to keep up with - so I was able to return to the office without being buried; which was nice.

But going back into the office meant that I had to deal with people.  *sigh*

I was having a conversation with a co-worker this afternoon when he mentioned our Holiday Treat Day/Week, that was held in early December.

This is what prompted the conversation.

Yes, those ARE disgusting, dirty dishes left over
from THREE WEEKS ago!

These dishes, including the knife encrusted with solidified icing, is right in my sight line.  My co-worker informed me that this came up while I was out with another co-worker.  And that this co-worker said, "We aren't going to do anything with these dishes because when Gigi gets back, SHE will eventually get tired of looking at them and will take care of it."

Excuse me?!  What?!

When I asked WHO had uttered this font of nonsense, he refused to say; probably because he was afraid I'd use the crusty knife on the perpetrator.

But here's the deal...I KNOW I'll get tired of looking at those dishes.  BUT, I refuse to touch them.  First of all because they aren't mine (WHY hasn't the owner come looking for them?!) and second, because REALLY?!  I am not the maid or mother of this floor.

I then recounted the whole coffee saga to my co-worker, he doesn't drink coffee so had no idea.  Since then, I have issued a fatwa on the break room.  I have since bought my own coffee maker and refuse to monitor what is going on in there.  Which means they are down to two carafes - one regular and one decaf.  Since no one on this floor drinks decaf, someone wrote NOT DECAF on the decaf pot.  Yes, it's total anarchy around here.

And because of this those nasty, disgusting, gross dishes will sit there FOREVER!

Eventually, someone else will get tired of looking at them and will throw them away...soon, I hope.

Christmas Dessert - help me out here

Usually, at this point in the Christmas season, I would have had at least one request for a particular dessert for Christmas dinner.  This year, no requests and I'm at a loss as to what to make.  And, I need to make whatever it is fairly soon because I know that The Husband will have commandeered the kitchen by Sunday afternoon.

So today I asked my family if they had any particular desire for one treat or another.  Even Man-Child, the one with a major sweet tooth, the one that loves to be home when I'm baking so he can lick the batter bowl clean, had nothing.  So I asked my friend, whose family will be joining us, she couldn't think of anything - but then again, she's got a lot going on in her life right now.  Too much to be thinking of desserts.  I do know that her middle son would be over the moon if I made a coconut cake - but to my mind that is more of a spring/summer kind of treat.

So here's where you come in.  Tell me what dessert makes you think of Christmas.  Perhaps it's something that is always on your table for Christmas.  Or maybe a childhood favorite.  Or something your mother or grandmother always made.

If you guys can't help me out or give me something overly complicated, I'll probably fall back on the Lemon Pound cake - but that also strikes me as a "summer" dessert.

Jeans report...

I have been on the hunt for new jeans now for about six months; basically ever since our company announced that we could wear jeans to work on Fridays.  Yes, this very old-fashioned company is slowly, but surely, being dragged into the 21st century.  The guys are still rejoicing that they don't have to wear ties everyday.

So for the past six months or so, whenever I was out and about, I'd look at the jeans.  And, inevitably, they'd all be far too long for my short, little legs.  I just knew the solution would be to head to the Levis outlet because I recall the last time I was there, many moons ago, I saw that they did offer jeans in various inseams.  Something that isn't offered at Kohl's or wherever, apparently.

Today was the day.  I had The Husband wake me up before dawn as he was leaving for work.  My plan was to be out the door by 8:30, as the outlet stores open at 9:00 am.  I had to revise my plan after my day started and I got a little distracted.  Instead I was out the door by 9:00.  Semi-success.  Now, why was I so determined to get such an early start?  Because the outlet stores are about an hour away AND it is Christmas time.  I figured, if I got there early it wouldn't be too crowded.  Plus, I was banking on the fact that most people aren't off work yet.

My plan worked until I walked into the Levis store.  That's kind of where everything fell apart.  Yes, they did have some of the style of jeans (high waist, skinny jeans, if you must know - with these short legs bootcut; just doesn't work!) I wanted with the shorter inseam...but the saleswoman told me, after questioning why I couldn't find my size with the shorter inseam, that they only offer the shorter inseam on the "smaller" sizes. Seriously?!

What's up with that Levis?  Not ALL short women are toothpick thin, thank you very much!  You might want to re-think that whole strategy.

Needless to say, I walked out of the Levis store empty-handed but undeterred.

I found myself at The Gap - same problem.  Nothing in my size with the shorter inseam.  Although, they did have a pair of khaki-type pants that worked perfectly - so at least they got a sale out of me.

I continued my quest and eventually landed in the J. Crew outlet.  And lo and behold!  THEY had the skinny jeans I was after IN my size and with a short inseam!!  I was beside myself...until I looked at the price tag.  I had seen a sign that some jeans were on sale - these were not under that sign.  But I took a chance, before trying them on I asked the saleswoman if these happened to be on sale.  She replied that everything in the store was 50% off.  Given that assurance, I headed toward the fitting room.  Not only did they fit perfectly, the length was excellent AND there were real pockets - not full size front pockets, but pockets nonetheless!  Yes, this is huge because I have been tricked into buying jeans in the past that did not have real pockets which has led to me having trust issues when it comes to jeans.

Considering that they were on sale, I snapped up two pairs.  As I was checking out, I mentioned to the saleswoman that they apparently were the only store that carried shorter inseams in my size.  She commiserated with me and then mentioned that these jeans are great in that they hold their shape and don't sag as the day wears on.  I was stunned - every single pair of jeans I have bought in recent years always, always sag by the end of the day.

Upon arriving home, I immediately put on one of the new pairs of jeans and have been wearing them all day.  Not only have they not sagged, they are extremely comfortable.  Now, to be clear, I love these jeans - but I would not have bought them at full price.  The price point is just a little too dear - but at half off?  In the style I wanted?  Yes.

This is not a sponsored post - but if you are in the need for jeans with a short inseam - head to J. Crew outlet - they can hook you up since Levis, the iconic brand for jeans, cannot if you aren't a toothpick.

From our home to yours...Merry Christmas.

My friend, DJan, shared a sweet card with her followers and is the inspiration behind this post.  Thanks, DJan!

I've sent out a ridiculous number of Christmas cards for years - until The Husband was laid off several years ago.  That put an end to that practice fairly quickly.  Having just one income makes you re-think your priorities.  Once he found another job after a couple of years and I felt a little more stable, I was ready to start sending cards again - but this time I culled that list down; WAY down.

Also, back in the day, I would make a point of having a picture taken of us or just Man-Child to either include in the card or to be the card.  Then, all of a sudden, one day Man-Child grew up and never seemed to be around anymore for picture taking.  So I would spend hours (or so it seemed) trying to find the perfect card to send to those nearest and dearest.

This year, inspiration struck after an extra early snowfall.  And after creating the card, having CVS print them, stuffing envelopes, etc.  I went back and made one especially for you.

Yes, this is our house.  On the back reads like this post's title.

Whether you celebrate Christmas or another holiday - I wish you nothing but peace, joy and love in this season.

The Husband and his "date" and other random bits of information

Tonight is The Husband's Christmas party - and I'm going to be honest, I was dreading it.  He, of course, was looking forward to it.  About 3 or 4 hours prior, I kind of mentioned that I really didn't want to go.  Strangers, small talk, etc.  Not one thing about it appealed to me.  I take that back, the venue appealed to me, but not enough to overcome everything else.

The Husband, knowing how I am, told me I didn't need to go.  But I felt torn because I knew I should go and didn't want him to go alone.  So I floated the idea that he take Man-Child with him and he loved the idea.  Now, Man-Child wasn't home when we had this conversation so we had no way of knowing if he would even want to go.  But I figured, he's been having a tough time of it lately and that it wouldn't hurt for him to get out and have some fun - because yes, I realize that socializing should be fun but for me it's hard unless it is people I know.

Luckily, Man-Child readily agreed to go in my stead (which tells me he really needed to get out!)  So, I dressed them up, took a picture and sent them on their way.

Sorry for the weird cropping - the table is COVERED in stuff,
but I liked the Christmas tree reflection on the left side...

Now on to the other random bits...

Back at the end of October, we upgraded to U-verse (and, for the record, no, I still haven't dealt with the modem/box thing) and since then my phone has constantly dropped the Wi-Fi connection.  I've gone back and forth with AT&T over Twitter and they finally told me it had to be a problem with Verizon.  So I tweeted back and forth with Verizon and they told me it had to be a problem with AT&T since the phone will stay on Wi-Fi with other connections.  While not a serious issue, it was making me crazy.  But, I do have to say, tweeting with customer service at both companies was an awesome experience.  Yes, I said it.  Usually, when dealing with customer service over the phone they make me crazy.  Either the customer service is getting better overall or the tweeting customer service reps are just better.  Who knows.  I'm hoping the former.

While at the Verizon store the other day to upgrade Man-Child's ancient phone, I casually mentioned to the lady helping us my problem.  Her first response?  This an AT&T problem.  But then she thought for a minute and said, "Have you tried removing the battery or re-starting the phone?"  I had re-started it and "forgot" the connection and re-entered the password several times, to no avail.  I held off removing the battery because removing the phone from the Otterbox is an ordeal.  So after the guys left tonight, I sat down and went to work removing the phone from it's case.  I had forgotten how pretty and slim my phone really is!  But, I know me, it needs to live in the Otterbox or it wouldn't last a day.  I freed the phone, removed the battery, waited a few minutes, put it back in and turned the phone on.  Hot damn, if that phone hasn't stayed connected to the Wi-Fi for the last 30 minutes.  So hopefully, that is the fix. 

And, it's not.  The phone just now started randomly giving me notifications that the network disconnected again - of course AFTER I put it back in its case. *sigh*  Any tech gurus out there with an idea?  I'm so tired of these little, nitpicky things irritating me.

As for my car...OMG.  My car.  We really do have the worst luck with cars, it seems.  Triple A picked up the car and took it to the dealership.  We were told that if the first garage's diagnoses was correct the job should only take a couple of hours.  We never heard from them.  Finally, I asked The Husband to call so we would at least know where we were in terms of getting it back.

When The Husband finally was connected to the service manager he was told, "They couldn't find it."  Horrified, I said, "They can't find my car?!"  But no, they couldn't find the problem.  Are you flipping kidding me?  So where did all my antifreeze or whatever it is that keeps a car from overheating go?  They were supposed to call back when they found the problem.  But seeing as it's after 6:30 pm, I don't think we are going to hear back tonight.

So, in all probability, I will be car-less tomorrow too.  The only good thing?  I don't have to go to work.  But I'm behind on Christmas list buying and am beginning to fill the pinch; so I need that car to be fixed soon.  And?  I'm kinda tired of being house-bound and dependent on others to drive me around. 

Fascinating blog material, wouldn't you say? #yawn

Really, nationwide garage chain people? Did you think I was dumb enough not to look at other options?

So my car dinged at me today.  It took me a little while, but I finally figured out why - the car was overheating.  I pulled over immediately to mull my options.  I knew I didn't feel confident to drive the car any length of time, so I pulled into a nearby large, nationwide garage. 

They told me that they could look at the car, but that it would be a couple of hours.  I called The Husband to come pick me up.

Several hours later, I got a call from the shop.  They told me it would be over $700 to fix the car.  AND they suggested that the tires be rotated and aligned.  Oh really?  Why were they even looking at the tires?  That had absolutely nothing to do with why I brought the car in.

We informed them that we wanted to see if our warranty covered this repair and to not do anything until we determined that.  Then we called our friend who is car guy to get his opinion.  He determined that the car part was only $80.  So basically, this company was going to charge me $620 for labor.  I realize that car mechanics are experts and deserve to be paid for their labor but $620 dollars worth for two hours?  Really?  Who were they going to have working on my car?

We then called the dealership.  They couldn't tell us if the repair was under warranty; we'd need to call the warranty people but they told The Husband that if the repair wasn't covered it would only cost...wait for it...$200.  Which makes me wonder what the nationwide garage people would have quoted The Husband had he brought the car in?

After talking to the warranty people, it appears the repair is covered - thank goodness because, hello, Christmas time! 

Generally, I like to think the best of people but this has just left a really nasty taste in my mouth.  If I didn't have these options to turn to, I would have been taken advantage of; basically I would have been royally screwed over.  How can these people live with themselves?  I am utterly disgusted.

First snow of the season!

Here in North Carolina we are experiencing our first snow of the season...it's definitely early for around here.

After the harrowing ride home yesterday - no; not due to slippery conditions but more to do with overly cautious drivers (which isn't a bad thing, really) - which took me well over an hour and a half, I was pretty much done with it...no matter how pretty it is...and it IS pretty, I'll give you that...

My yard this morning

Then I saw on the news that it was snowing in Houston (what?!)  I immediately texted my oldest and dearest friend.  She confirmed, they had snow.  She even sent pictorial proof...

Seriously?!  This is a LOT of snow for Texas!

I assume hell must have frozen over. And dusted the palm trees.

Then we chatted about the improbability of us both having snow at the same time.

I remember the first time I actually saw it snowing after we moved here.  I was SO very excited.  Having come from Texas, this was a dream come true.  Dragging my New York born husband from the shower, I exclaimed over how pretty it was - he, soaking wet, wasn't as enthusiastic as I.

But today, as the snow continued to come down, I grumbled a little, "I've got far to much to do for this inconvenience..." but deep down inside, I marveled at how the world looked like a snow globe.  And realized, I have reached that point where I can still revel in the beauty and at the same time carp about the inconvenience.

But still...it's awfully pretty.

And, with any luck, the sun will come out tomorrow and the streets will be clear.