DIY Distressed Dresser

For the past couple of weeks, I have been working on repainting and updating the look of an old dresser that was sitting in storage. If you ever had a chance to step foot in my room, you would see that I clearly need more storage space. My closet is filled with so many clothes, that most of them over flow into my room. I was currently using these plastic storage bins for under garments, socks, leggings, and bathing suits. Those compartments were also so over loaded that I had a separate hamper for anything that could not fit.
I bought paint about a year ago, and procrastinated up until this point. I don't know what I was thinking because the color I chose was purple. It looked awful! At first I didn't want to use it, but I had no choice. My Fiance helped me sand the drawer, and helped me take off the original knobs.

Before I started doing any painting, I used a damp cloth to clean the dressers. I also took all the drawers out and made sure to look for any damaged areas. I'm not very handy, so I asked my fiance to help fix any of the areas that needed work.

I saw on pinterest that many DIY'ers use wallpaper to help spruce up the drawers. I saw a really cool textured wallpaper and decided to add it. There were no directions on the packaging, so I had to wing putting the wall paper onto the dresser. What I ended up doing was taking a towel and soaking the sticky side of the wall paper. Then I took a damp cloth and wiped the area I wanted to add the wall paper. I applied the wall paper, and took the same damp cloth, and wiped over the wallpaper and dresser in order to get rid of any air bubbles.


I waited at least 3 days before painting the dresser because I wanted to make sure that the wallpaper was completely dry. I didn't want to risk the wallpaper coming off. When I started painting the dresser, I really couldn't get over how purple the shelf looked. I hated the shade. Again, I still don't know what I was thinking when I bought the shelf. It was so purple, like Barney purple. So what I decided to do was contrast the purple with another color. I managed to get extra gray paint from my sister, and decided to give the shelf a more distressed look.

How to get a distressed look:
I made sure that the pain was completely dry. In this case, the color that I wanted to show underneath was the purple. I then took VASELINE, and put in in the areas that I felt would become distressed or worn out over time. I put the gray pain on the side panels of the dresser, and put in on the borders of the dresser. I let the pain dry for 24 hours, then took a damp rag and wiped the areas I had put Vaseline. This was such a simple procedure, and it really made my drawer looked naturally distressed.
 
When the paint dried, I was still completely unhappy with how the paint looked. It was such an ugly purple, and such a light gray. I wanted a more antique look. So I went back to home depot. While I was in the paint isle, I found a nice stain that I thought would give the dresser a more antique look. I also decided I would buy some polyurethane because I wanted to protect the wood from any damage.


I really thought after I stained and sealed the dresser, I would be done with this project. But then, Teddy reminded me that I needed to get knobs for the dresser. Luckily Teddy had an old dresser he used, and he was able to give me the knobs.



I really was happy with the way the dresser turned out, and I am now finally able to get rid of all the extra hampers in my room!!

Real Simple Alfredo Fettuccine Recipe

This week I decided I would try to make Alfredo Sauce from scratch. I decided to do this meal because my fiance is a very picky eater. He does not like seafood or pork. He also does not like many Asian, Italian, or Indian dishes. I picked Alfredo sauce because he hates tomato sauce! Honesty, I really don't know why I'm even bothering to learn new meals because I really think he would be happy with chicken and veggies every single night.

I looked all week for different recipes online, and decided to go with this recipe. Click the link to see the actual measurements for the ingredients. The recipe called for butter, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and pepper. I seasoned the chicken with Italian seasoning, and mixed it in a pan with butter and garlic. Lastly, I put all the ingredients together with fettuccine!

Teddy seemed pretty happy with the meal!

Is it true what they say, the fastest way to a man's heart is through his stomach?

A week ago, a co-worker asked me if I knew how to cook. I replied that I only know how to cook mac and cheese and nacho dip. Everything else I make is out of a box... She then proceeded to say, "Well do you want your fiance to have someone else cook for him?"

So I decided I need to learn to cook. I only have 6 months left until I get married! So, I will learn to cook one new meal, at least once a week. Last week I chose to make two dishes for the Super Bowl Party that I was attending. The two dishes I chose to make were, Sliders and Pigs in a blanket. I know you are probably thinking, LAME. But I wanted to start small, and then gradually move to harder dishes.

Sliders recipe
3 lbs of ground turkey
Montreal Steak Seasoning (the one with less sodium)
Worcestershire Sauce
Spinach
Tomato
Battered red onion
Provolone and American Cheese

Pigs in a Blanket Recipe1 box of Puff pastry
2 Packs of Little tiny hot dogs

Knowing your limits..

Last week was a busy busy time at work. I think I put over 60 hours last week. Usually I can handle about 36-48 hours. I think the reason I had a breaking point was because I was trying to fit in my Insanity work outs at the end of the day. Even when I was super exhausted, I would push through. Well on Monday, I woke up feeling nauseated, feverish, and exhausted. I tried to push myself to work, but I could barely keep my head up. I finally reached my breaking point. No amount of coffee or food could make me feel better. My body needed sleep. I left work early, and slept until dinner time. Had a bite to eat, and then I slept till the following morning. It is so crazy how sleep can change the way you feel. I woke up feeling like brand new. I have since then stopped insanity, and am contemplating beginning again. I do like the ease of working out at home. But I think with the way things are at work right now, I can't fit 6 days a week of work outs if I'm working 5 12 hour days. Maybe I should go back to cross fit, and just begin running on the tread mill again... We will see.. The good news is I lost 5 pounds of just working out with insanity and eating well for 2 weeks.

Here is a cute picture of my sister's pug named Mason. He just finished chewing up his bed. Isn't he just adorable!!!

Exhausting couple of days...

OMG! The past couple of days have been crazy. I have worked worked 4 12-13 hour shifts in a row. I am beyond exhausted. But despite being exhausted, I really enjoyed being at work. I kind of wish I was there right now... only a little.
I am still keeping on track with my insanity work outs! I am super proud of myself, and I am starting to see progress. I am officially 5.2 pounds down. I'm starting to see abs forming.. Its nice. Last night was day 9. Pure cardio workout after a 13 hours shift is so hard! I was barely hanging on after the warm up. But I pushed through. I do feel myself getting stronger. I can't wait to see my results on the fit test next week. On Monday, I had to skip work out for day 9 because I arrived home around 9:45ish, and had to be back to work around 6:30am the next morning. I'm debating if I should work out twice today to make up for my work our lost on Monday? Or if I should forget about not being able to work out? Oh what to do...
The past two nights I have been eating the same meal. I made a chicken sandwich, and ate it with veggies.I marinated my chicken with the Garlic, Herb, and Wine marinade from Grill Mates. Click here if you want to use the same marinade. This is by far the best marinade I've had. I grilled my chicken breast, and added spinach in my pita. To add a little spice, I put some Sriracha sauce in the sandwich. It was so delicious... Talking about it makes me hungry. So I guess I'll make breakfast and just rest on my lovely day off!!

Fun couple of days..

     Yesterday, me and a group of friends from where I worked decided to go on a 2 hour pirate boat cruise across the Potomac. It was so much fun. Also, the weather was perfect. They had a nice DJ playing music, and he even played the Backstreet Boys for me as the last song!!! If you ever get a chance to go to the boomerang pirate ship cruise, I would highly recommend it!

     I was concerned about dieting the day of the cruise, so what I did was I ate really clean all morning. I also opted not to eat any of my snacks (yogurt and banana) because I anticipated drinking beer. When I weighed myself in the morning, I was impressed that I only gained less than 1 pound! The only thing I did wrong that night was that I did not drink enough water. I was so dehydrated this morning!! The insanity work out for day 4 was a recovery (Thank God). However, it still wasn't easy. Flexibility and yoga are not my strong suits.

      Today was the pure cardio workout. After the workout, I could not get up for 10-15 mins. I was so exhausted! That workout is intense. I didn't realize that he wasn't going to cue us to take a 30 second water break! This by far was probably the hardest work out we have had! After the workout, I was starving!!! I marinated my chicken breast with another Grill mate spice packet called Garlic, Herb, and Wine. Click here to see the packet! I added spinach salad with asian sesame dressing, quinoa, and some veggies. I don't know if it was the work out, or if I was really hungry, but I ate that meal like it was my last. It was so good.

Tomorrow is a big day for where a work because tomorrow is when we go live. Wish us luck!! #MC2 lol

Last day of teaching..

     Today was my last day of teaching the new computer system in our hospital. I have been teaching the new computer system since the end of May. Although the classes were some what challenging, I will really miss it. Mostly, I will miss all the people I met and have worked with these past few months. Saturday is when the computer system will go live. I am just hoping things will run smoothly. We will just have to wait and see...

     Insanity update: OMG! I was so sore today. It did not help that at work, I was constantly on my feet. Then, when I did the work out for day 3, my calf muscles felt like they were going to fall off. I hope to God that tomorrow will be a better day for working out. On a good note, I weighed myself today, and I am down 4.3lbs! YAY!

     For dinner, I decided to marinade my chicken with a tomato, garlic, and basil marinade from Grill Mates. Click here if you want to see what the packet looks like. I ate it with quinoa and salad. The marinade really made the chicken taste so much better. I marinaded the chicken over night so that I could have more flavor. I really recommend this marinade!