A Punch of Red

After painting the desk my next project was to use some punchy colors to jazz up some of J and I's furniture. The record holder was a piece that I got from my grandfather's house. I hope he would approve. Once my peers who I showed the pictures too, told me painted wood just seemed like a trajedy. Little does he know, it's all the rage and retails for hundreds on sites like Etsy.com.

 The first thing I did with these piece was to prime them. I didn't waste time on sanding anything, I just bought a binding primer and went to town. I used a large paint brush and completed 2 coats. By the time I'd finished with the primer, I was over the paint brush and switched to a roller, leaving the brushes for touch up jobs and hard to reach places. 

After examining the coffee table, I determined it was too hard to get in between the metal detailing on the side. I left the center portion of the piece exposed, so that the true wood was visable. J and I also polished all the brass and changed out the knobs on each piece to match.

Ta da! The finished project! We let it dry outside for a few hours and then brought them inside and placed them on grocery bags to finish drying. It had been quite dewy outside and I didn't want the pieces to warp. The only issue I had was that the drawers didn't quite fit back into the record keeper/ side table. I've been working on sanding them so they fit better, but it's still tight.

Returning the Visit

 We decided to take a quick trip down to Atlanta. It was Lexa's birthday a couple of weeks ago. Her husband, Tristan had emailed me to come down and surprise her in Atlanta. Jason and I were on board and even tried out Norfolk's newest airline, Southwest. We were both slammed at work, so magically, the flight left at 6:50 after work on Friday and we returned about 1:30 on Sunday. Once we arrived in Atlanta we embarked on the scariest cab ride I've ever been on with a fellow Greek. The guy talked non-stop and seemed to think it was necessary to make eye contact with Jason in the backseat while driving. Terrifying. Once we arrived at Erin and Walker's house we partically pulled into the driveway. I could see there was some frusteration at the house, as the party seemed to be upset that an unknown car was parking in their driveway. Erin quickly ushered Lexa inside and Jason and I paid the cabbie and snagged our luggage. I had Jason walk inside first, thinking that Lexa wouldn't recognize him immediately and then I peaked my head out from behind him.

Lexa was surprised to say the least and super excited! She didn't have a clue! That night we got to see Dusty and his roommate, Lauren, Caleb and even my sister Elise in addition to Erin, Walker, Lexa and Tristan. It was quite the reunion, as we haven't all been together since January! We enjoyed the rest of the night sitting on the porch and talking, catching up. Elise spent the night too.

The next morning, Elise took us on a mini-tour of Atlanta. She had moved to the area 9 days prior and wanted to show up her new diggs in Buckhead. We grabbed brunch in between the Highlands and Buckhead at a place called The Flying Biscuit. The food was great. I remembered how much I miss Southern cooking.

Elise's apartment was adorable. She has no pictures on the wall yet, but has at least her furniture together and is working on the details. She showered and changed and we returned to Erin's for a Low Country Boil. Jason had never experienced a Low Country Boil, so I was excited for him to interrupt his game of corn hole and have a taste!

We never made it out the entire weekend, save brunch Sunday morning. It was perfect. I loved catching up with friends and even 1 family member and having everyone get to know Jason better as well. I can't wait for the next time we are all able to gather. Jason and I might be planning a return trip to Atlanta sooner than we thought. We absolutely loved the city and were shocked to see all the tree lined streets in the highlands amidst over 5 million people. Atlanta knows how to retain its Southern charm and still get down to business.

A Visitor from Georgia

 This weekend was a blast! One of my best friends from Savannah came into town. She lives in Atlanta now and is a very successful sale rep for a ergonomic office furniture company. EEB and I are probably two of the most unlikely people you'd expect to be friends. I'm ultra conservative, and she tends to be a little more open minded. However, she's got the purest and most loyal heart of anyone you'll ever met.

This weekend was her first trip to visit me in Virginia Beach. We recently got Southwest airlines at the ORF. She flew in about 3:30 on Tuesday and my incredible boyfriend took the day off work and picked her up at the airport. They entertained themselves walking around Chicks Beach and stopping in at the Green Parrot for a bit before I got home from work.

We quickly got ready and headed out to Mermaid Winery. You may remember from before, but Mermaid's is Norfolk's very own urban winery. The service was slow, the trains were loud and had the food and company not been good, we would've been off to a bad start. After apps and a wine flight, we headed to Little Bar Bistro's Empire for dinner. Empire boasts amazing tapas dishes and a fun eclectic atmosphere. EEB told us a few ghost stories and we discussed the paranormal. Both J and EEB are believers, but I've never had an experience, so I'm not a believer yet.

Friday, I had to work from 8 to 5. It was a stressful day, so I was happy to have EEB waiting for me when I got home! We checked out Surf Rider off Great Neck for a little seafood. They had an amazing lobster special for $14.99 of which J took advantage. EEB had shrimp and I chowed down on some Mahi Mahi. After Surf Rider's we headed to Chicks for Virginia Beach's famous Orange Crush. We were only there briefly. I was tired and couldn't stop yawning from a long day at work and EEB wasn't complaining about spending a little quality time on the couch at home either. We headed back to Chick's Beach.

Saturday we ventured out to Doc Taylor's, another beach favorite. The brunch is wonderful and cheap and worth the wait. Or perhaps, you're just so hungry by the time you get seated and order, anything tastes good! I had crab benedict and  it was to die for! After brunch we walked 5 blocks to WRV, a local surf shop. I figured we were at the beach, so why not take her to a surf shore? There we went a little crazy. I bought 2 new pairs of flip flops -- one Sanuks and the other Rainbows -- a WRV teeshirt and St. Christopher's charm. St. Christopher is said to be the Saint of Travel. Surfers around the area promote this Saint to stay safe while they tackle the waves. For EEB, it meant safe travel home because she's scared of flying. After hitting the shop, we took a stroll on the boardwalk and Atlantic Avenue just to play tourist for a bit. Eventually we ended up at 22nd Raw Bar for a quick drink and later on at Harpoon Larry's for a quick snack.

We returned to Chick's Beach tired from being out in the sun and ready for a restful evening. Our friends Pat and Leanne, joined by my roommate Whiney and her boyfriend Will all readily agreed to dine with EEB, J and I at Zia Marie's. Zia's is a little Italian place about a stone's throw away from our house. The food is great and not overly priced. The atmosphere is loud and friendly.

We turned in early again, and we well rested for Sunday morning brunch at Waffletown (which also happens to be on UPromise) before heading to the Norfolk airport to say goodbye. It was so good to see her! I'm looking forward to not waiting 8 months to see my friends again. As I get older, I realize the importance of keeping the people in your life who are important to you close.

Puerto Lago

I never quite finished blogging about my trip to Ecuador. I'd like to share with you our experience in Puerto Largo. It was absolutely breath taking! Located right outside Otavalo, the lodge boasted llamas, a wonderful restaurant and views of the water. 

Jason and I spent the day walking through churches and markets in Otavalo and bargaining with the locals. At night we dined in the hotel's restaurant. It was wonderful. The weather was so strange. During the night it was cool, but would get very hot during the day. It was a lesson in bringing layers. 

Trash to Treasure: Part II

Here's the final product! We even bought a chair for $10 at the Thrift store and painted it to match!

The bottom picture is set up at Jason's house for his new desk!

This was a fun project, but cost about $100 for all the primer, paint, handles and twine. The desk was saved and therefore free. After scouring Virginia Beach antique stores for the perfect chair, we ended up finding one at the first thrift store we entered.

Our next project are jars for the kitchen with chalk labels. I cannot wait!

From Trash to Treasure

My roommates and I have a witty relationship with our landlord. We like to pick on each other and have fun. When I came home on Saturday, Tim was cleaning out the shed behind our house. Finally! I thought. . . I could move my bike from the entrance into the shed. He had a ton of junk pulled out of the shed and was just dumping it into the trash. Among all the trash was a beat up old desk.



When Tim told me he was going to trash this, I asked if I could have it. He looked at me like I was crazy. but agreed. The desk, as pictured, was extremely beat up, had tons of spider webs on it and truly looked like trash. But I saw a vision. Plus J has such a rinky little cheap looking desk in his room, I thought this might be perfect. I went out and bought primer, eggshell colored spray paint, and a finish. I had a nautical theme in mind. I envisioned a ropey looking handle and navy and white striped contact paper. The inspiration for the pulls came directly from Anthropologie. However at $14 a pop, I opted to make my own pulls. I purchased twine for about $3 and 9 pulls off an online site for under $3 each. The spray paint was roughly $4 per can. I've already gone through 1 can of primer (I actually needed 2), 6 cans of eggshell and purchased 4 more cans, plus 2 cans of finisher. Oh, and a sandpaper block, which was about $4 too. This puts me at about $96 for the project.


I made J do all the sanding and I taped the drawers and applied the primer. Primer made all the difference. The places where I didn't prime the paint didn't stick so well. . .

Right now it's still a work in progress. I'm waiting for the handles to come in so I can work on applying the twine and the desk needs another coat of paint. Stay tuned for more pictures!

Mermaid Winery, Norfolk, VA

I heard about the Mermaid Winery by chance. My beau's sister was hosting an event there and helping with the marketing. Norfolk had it's own urban winery. I couldn't be more delighted. Now I just needed a victim to drag along. My parents came in town and brought my sister. Bingo. Elise volunteered to join me in Norfolk after our visit to the Chrysler museum on Sunday afternoon.

I was delighted to find a wine flight and a cheese pairings -- one for white wine, one for red. As we tasted our five 1oz pours and munched on fruit and cheese, I took in the surroundings. There was a fabulous outdoor area for some of the cooler summer evenings. Inside was large with an industrial flare. Elise and I sat at the bar. Everything was so open, I could even see into the kitchen. Unlike most winery,  you had to pay for your tastings here, which was fine. I really didn't expect anything less from Ghent.

I will be back to this venue. I love a good wine bar and this combines a winery with a wine bar in some sense of the world. I'd like to find out more about their wine club as well. At $45 to $75 a month for a few bottles of wine, I wasn't sold yet. It would have to rival my go to party wine, Generation Green. I encourage you stop by and give it a whirl. The food is just as good as the wine!