My Latest Hobby...

We moved into our new place a week ago tomorrow, and since we have been here we have been doing little things around the place to make improvements and add our own little touches. When Paul told me he wanted to install a new shower head cause the one in our shower was pretty weak I got a bit nervous. I have never seen Paul really work with tools before, and I was helping hang pictures earlier, and it wasn't always pretty. He was pricing new shower heads a various places like Target and Ace Hardware, and I would manage to talk him out of it. But he was bound and determined to install something!

So he went and bought a soap pump to install in our kitchen sink, which is easy to do. Turns out it wouldn't fit, so he had to take it back, and instead we got a remote door bell. The current door bell is antique and original to the door and you can't hear it at all. They had a door bell that all you had to do was plug in and install the buzzer with double sided tape to the outside door, perfect no worries there. Next thing I know we are in the shower head isle again, I am trying to distract his attention from them, it didn't work, he was determined to get one. At the checkout I am still trying to convince him we really don't need it right now, hoping he would let it go, no such luck. I have to say I was pretty impressed with the finished product.
For the longest time I have wanted to refinish old furniture. Most of our furniture was bought second hand or was given to us second or third hand, and it's all in great shape but I like to make it our own, but didn't have the space to do it.

Yesterday Paul and I went to the farmers market, and were walking to get a coffee before catching the bus, and I realized I am bored. When I am not working I get anxious cause I need something to keep me busy and my mind occupied. Paul tells me I need to take up a hobby, which I totally agree with. I use to have lots of hobbies I would do but lost interest over time. So it dawned on me, that I finally had the space to refinish all those pieces I have wanted to do, and lucky for me there is a hardware store right down the street from our place.

Paul looked at me nervously, and asked what exactly I was planning on refinishing. We got this coffee table that is just plane pine and needs a little life and I would like it to match the rest of our stuff. That was going to be my first project I told him.

Paul: I was thinking a hobby more along the lines of knitting or crocheting, maybe my Mom could teach you..

Me: Sure maybe in the winter but right now I wanted to do this.

So I made my way to the hardware store, talked to the cute little old man about what I wanted to do, he told me what I would needed and I was ready to go! I realized on my way home I forgot the directions, oh well I could just wing it.

Once I got in I noticed we had this pine shelf my uncle made for my Mom and we use it as a key holder, I decided maybe I should do a test run before I take on a big project like the coffee table.Out on the front porch I got all set up and started sanding down the finish on the little shelf, then started staining based in the directions I had in my head and on the can. I knew the longer I kept it on the darker it would get. Great! I wanted a dark Mahogany Red finish, I tried to wait ten or fifteen minutes but I just couldn't I wanted to see the effect, I rubbed off the excess and checked it out. I think I put on like three coats before I came close to the finish I wanted.It's not perfect but I did learn from my mistakes so once I get my Mouse Sander, Oh, yes, I asked Paul for one for my birthday. That's when I will start my big refinishing projects. MWAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!