DIY project - Refinishing a Bedside Table

Last summer I scored this cute little 3 drawer dresser at a yard sale for $10. It was completely unfinished just waiting to be redone! I was originally thinking I was going to paint it or just add some polyurethane. I wasn't sure so I just left it as-is for a while. I had been using it in my upstairs guest room as a bedside table.



Later in the summer I found an even more perfect table for the guest room so I decided to refinish this one and use it as my bedside table.

All our bedroom furniture is Mahogany so I decided on the Red Mahogany wood stain. The stain says that you get the desired color in one coat, but I ended up doing three so it would be darker and would more closely match my furniture. 

The next step was the Polyurethane. I applied 3 coats of this, which was the recommended application on the can. I waited a day between each application.

  

 

Heres what it looked like after I applied the final coat of polyurethane.

 

 

 

Lastly I added some Mercury Glass Knobs from Anthropologie. The dresser came with wooden knobs but I wanted to make it a little more special. Turns out they were the perfect finishing touch!

  

 

 

 

All in all this was a pretty easy project, it was just time consuming between all the stain and polyurethane applications.  The dresser has moved to its new home in my bedroom and I'm loving it there!

 

Details:

 

Mercury Glass Melon Knob

Varathane Semi Gloss Polyurethane

Varathane Red Mahogany Wood Stain

  

Laura Geller Baked Stackable Macaroons

You had me at macaroons! This is a holiday set of macaroon inspired baked products from Laura Geller featuring highlighters, eyeshadows and blushes.

 

 

 

 

I'm going to go ahead and say it. The packaging is adorable! I'll admit it drew me in! I do have a few of Laura's other baked products which are amazing and I had been wanting to try her blushes and highlighters for a while so this was a no-brainer.

 

 

The set comes with 3 highlighters, 3 eyeshadows and 3 blushes.  These are all new shades that aren't sold individually at this point.

Each item is 0.06 oz in size. That might not sound like alot but these are actually a fairly generous size for a mini product. They are the same size as her Baked Highlighters which retail for $24.

 

First up is the highligters. Colors are: Honey Lavender, Toasted Coconut & Dulce de Leche.

 

 

 

he highlighters did not disappoint.  They're not showing up as vibrant in the picture as they did in person. They are smooth, silky and had great pigmentation.  They all have a shimmer finish that give you a nice glow.  Its not too much to the point where you're looking like a disco ball.

 

Next up is the eyeshadows. Colors are: Orange Blossom, Mocha Latte & Chestnut.

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately these were disappointing.  Orange Blossom was very flaky. Chestnut was better but not great. I do like Mocha Latte. It is the most matte of the bunch and it had the best color payoff.

 

Lastly, the blushes. Colors are: Gingerbread, Lychee Rose & Oasis Violet.

 

 

 

 

  

Like the highlighters, the blushes are another win.  Great texture and pigmentation. Lychee Rose and Oasis Violet are my favorites and have made it into my everyday rotation.  Gingerbread isn't my favorite color.  I feel its too dark to be a blush on me. I may try it as a bronzer.



All in all I think this is a great set and a good value. The only miss for me was the eyeshadows.  I haven't tried any other Laura Geller eyeshadows but to me these shades weren't up to par with her other baked products.

I believe this set was first launched on QVC but is now available on the Ulta website for $49. It says that this is an "online only" exclusive. It was launched for Holiday 2013 so I'm not sure how much longer it will be available.  I'd suggest picking it up now if you are interested before its gone!