Favorite Things Friday

Hello friends!

I am sure that you were waiting with baited breath for my second edition of Favorite Things Friday! I LOVE Fridays with all of their goodness and especially because they're Friday Follow days!

Favorite Thing One: This week the winner goes to....

THIS project:

The idea came from my friend Brooke who got it from this awesome lady...I think. That was all awhile ago and I'm just now getting around to it, but it's super fun and super cute wherever it came from. They did it with picture frames (brilliant) but I got crazy and used a set of drawers. I have loathed that piece of furniture for years now.... BUT after this project it has all changed. It now has a prime spot in my home and receives much love. This project changes things, people.

Honestly, when I first painted this thing I had hopes of it being a beautiful accent piece in my home... little did I know that it would be NEON blue and blind eyes if stared at too long. It needed to go.

Basically, this is to make things look Shabby Chic. AKA beautiful, in my book. Because

seriously, look at that color. NOT beautiful. This is to make it look old, worn,

distressed, and loved over many years. So you take some candle wax and

rub it over the areas that would have got most banged up over the years. The wax

prevents the paint from really sticking and makes it easy to

get off with sandpaper.

I'm nearly 100% certain that I did not do this step right. But hey, it works. It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful, huh Nester lovers?

Step Two: Paint your piece whatever color your little heart desires. Let it dry, then take some sandpaper and rub on the areas where you had put the wax and it will come right off leaving the color you had underneath.

Step Three: After re-applying wax to your sanded areas again, paint your final coat (you can do 2 or 3, whichever works best for you) and let it dry. Then, take some sandpaper and re-sand around your choice areas; it can be as much or as little as you want to get the look you want.

Step Four: Admire and adore your new work of art.

Step Five: Fall in love with the fun knobs you found at Hobby Lobby to take the place of the previous ugly one.

On to Favorite Thing Two:

This was inspired by this post by a New York Times columnist. I think it might be something in the water of the blogosphere, but there are a lot of people talking on the discussion of what were the most influential books in there life. And it got me thinking: What books have shaped me? All the other blogs excluded major religious texts, so I followed along the same lines and thought of books outside of the bible for me.

I love this topic. I am a voracious reader. Any others out there? At any given moment in time I am reading at least 2, if not 3, books. Currently, it's The Power of One, Hinds' Feet on High Places, and The Far Pavillions. Normally there is at least one super interesting non-fiction in the mix, but these are my three for now.

Books have always shaped my life. Early on it started with being tucked into bed by my dad throughout elementary school and reading Nancy Drew mysteries together. I was even on the Battle of the Books team in 5th grade and we won for our county! I wear that badge of honor with pride.

Next it was seeing the worlds created through the eyes of C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia series and Roald Dahl in the BFG and having those help shape my imagination and creativity. Here is my well-worn and loved copy of the BFG... favorite book of my younger years... that I still own... and is next of my list of books to read. Again.

Then books became a way to open my eyes and new ways of thinking and I found them as a means of education. Biggies were God's Politics by Jim Collins; incredible, incredible book. Then, I am such a history nerd that any work by David McCullough that helps teach me about history steals my heart. And lastly, Not on Our Watch by Don Cheadle opened my eyes to the world. I love books.

Favorite thing number Three:

When L walked into the kitchen last night (after a week of leftovers and me not cooking) and exclaimed with such glee and joy: We're having REAL food tonight?!? It smells SO good!

You gotta love him.