How To: My Desk Makeover!

What you will need:

- Old desk
- Sanding blocks (2 medium & 1 fine)
- Wood Glue (Gorilla)
- Screws
- Screw driver
- Nails
- Hammer
- 1 liter Paint (White Pascol Water Based Enamel Gloss)
- Small paint brush
- Roller
- Paint tray

*Please note that for this particular desk I only took apart some sections of the drawers that were loose, the lid part, all handles, all legs, and replaced the base. Your desk may need more or less.

Step 1. First I took apart section by section (whole desk part, drawers parts, handles).

Step 2. I then sanded every side of every piece of the section I was working with first with the medium to roughen it up for the paint to stick, and finished with the fine so it was nice and smooth. (don't forget to sand the handles and legs if you are planning on reusing them)

Step 3. Then with the section I was working with I put a line of glue along one side, stuck the joining piece on and quickly hammered and/or screwed into place to keep secured. I wanted to use screws because it is the sturdiest option, and the glue just to really make sure. 

Step 4. Pour some paint into the tray, get some paint on the roller and away you go! I used the small paint brush first to get into the nooks and crannys, especially with the drawers. Let it dry, quick sand with the fine block, and give second coat.

Step 5. Put back together any remaining parts of the desk. For me my drawers were put together before I painted and my whole desk was still one. The handles, legs, and lid of the desk were painted before screwing back into place. This worked well for me with making the painting part quicker and easier.


Voila!


This took me 1 full day of taking apart, sanding, and first coat paint. Then a second night of second paint coat. And I also did a third paint coat another night. Then one night was quick putting it back together. So for me a total of 1 full day, and 3 short nights.



Good luck with YOUR project! Comment below what you are working on.

How To STOP Telemarketers From Calling

Telemarketer is the profession involving a person or computerised message calling in order to promote or sell you something. The reason why a lot of people do not like Telemarketers, and hence they have a bad name, is because they can be quite pushy, pesky, and almost always seem to call at the wrong time (sometimes innappropriate hours of the early morning or late night). 

If you are a Telemarketer please try not to take offence to this post. I am not trying to further bad mouth you and your profession (we all need to make money somehow), however I am giving some tips in how you can respect a person's wish to not be contacted anymore.



In other words.... Here are the SECRETS a Telemarketer will not tell you.




Step 1: Answer the phone.
Step 2: Speak with the Telemarketer, then say calmly and clearly, "Please put me on your do not call list" and stay on the phone until they've said, "Yes". 

This makes it clear and obvious to them that you are definitely not interested.

All of them CAN do this. There is an internal list, where it is as simple as them clicking a button. 

If you hang up they will call again. If you say you're busy and cant talk right now, they will call again. This happens because they are holding on to any chance that you may be interested. This is just how their job is. So you need to make it very clear and obvious that you are not interested at all, and do not want to be contacted again. Ever. 



(But also don't forget sometimes they are calling you to support a charity, or offering you a free service to see if you can get cheaper electricity with someone else, so don't always reject them straight away. Sometimes. Just sometimes, it may actually be something worth listening to.)



The main thing is do not get angry. Remember, they are a person too just like you and me. And they have a job, just like you and me. If you are nice to them then they will be a nice human being back. And if they are not then go up one further step and ask to speak with their manager.




 


Australia has a website, formed by the Australian Government, that you can register your numbers to help reduce telemarketers. Click here.

FYI Telstra acknowledges this process on their website, "Telstra supports the Do Not Call Register and respects our customers' right to privacy."



America has a website, formed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, that you can register your numbers to help reduce telemarketers. Click here. 







 

What's it like where you live? Comment below if you have this problem and how to solve it, or if you're lucky and live somewhere with laws against it.

How I asked my Bridal Party (Bridesmaids, Groomsmen, Ring Bearer, Flower Women)

Today was so much fun...
I was extremely excited as I have been working really hard on how I wanted to ask my bridal party.
I browsed the internet, and ofcourse good ol' Pinterest to get some inspiration, and this is what I came up with.

There are 4 girls in my bridal party. My sister is my Maid of Honor, and my fiancee's three sisters are bridesmaids.

I gave them each a box that on top of the lid said "I can't say I do without you" and when they flipped open the lid the other side said "Will you be my Maid of Honor/Bridesmaid?" Inside the box I layed down yellow shredded paper and sat on top a bar of chocolate, a lollypop ring, an information card with the bridesmaid's numbers and names (at the top I placed an image from Bridesmaids the movie because it's hilarious!), some "I promise" cards, and a minimergency kit which I added in items such as a packet of tissues, bandaids, hair pins, panadol, nailpolish, lipgloss, mirror, sewing kit, deodorant, TOM items, etc. They all absolutely loved it! They were so suprised, excited, happy and honored. Ofcourse they all said "Yes"! YAY!

I told them to close their eyes, handed them the box, said open, and watched the magic happen...

It feels so much more real and exciting now that I have my bridal party. It was such a relief to finally be able to tell them.

I love the even number of four bridesmaids, and in particular how it looks in photos with two on each side of the bride. And I prefer to have family as it's a lovely way to include everyone and will be great bonding time.

As for my two best friends (who unfortunately cannot be squeezed into the bridal party) I am asking them to be my "femmes de fleur" [flower women in french]. I am going to ask them with a boquet of flowers and a lovely poem I wrote - "There is something special I need to ask, And it involves the day I'll say "I do". I need my best friend by my side, And I want you to walk down the aisle too. (name), Will you be my Femmes de Fleur?" 

My fiancee and I both have a young nephew so we will be having two ring bearers. We asked them with a photobook that we turned into a little book about their job as ring bearer, including pictures of them, the bridal party, and ofcourse us. It's like a little story book where we ask them at the end. They loved it! Especially finding the photos hilarious. So cute! Cannot wait to see them in their little suits!

My fiancee asked his Dad to be Best Man, and my three brothers as Groomsmen. 
They were given a piece of paper that said "I (picture of a moustache) you. Will you be my Best Man/Groomsmen?" GET IT?! haha we love it! And so did they. In particular my future father-in-law was very chuffed from this unexpected honor. (I just know he is going to have an absolute blast planning the bucks night)

We asked my future mother-in-law if she would read out a prayer at the ceremony. We thought this would be a lovely way to include her, and even more fitting as she is religious. 


Hope this has given you some inspiration!