foxy boxy.

this week's project-that-should-have-taken-a-day-but-ended-up-taking-way-longer: a recipe box.

it all started way back when with my sister-in-law's bridal shower. we had all the guests fill out a recipe card to give to the bride-to-be, but we had no way to corral them so that she would actually be able to use them in her new kitchen. a scrapbook seemed like a hassle (both to make and to use as a recipe book) and all the recipe boxes i found in stores were ugly, unfinished, and/or too big for the recipe cards we had.

fast forward a few weeks, i found the perfect box on eBay. it was the right size, had a classic look about it, and $9 later it was in my house. but it needed some love. this thing was kind of ugly, and it stank like a chain-smoking grandma. so on the same weekend that i made-over my kitchen stool, this guy got some love too in the form of sanding and staining and sitting out in the sun to hopefully quench the stench.  

in all its original stinky glory.

after i stained it, it sat in the basement to get good and dry before a final clear coat or two. and then it sat there for a good long time while i did other things like dishes and laundry and i went to Europe and i hosted a Mother's Day barbecue and i completely forgot about the recipe box in the basement that i was supposed to be re-finishing.

i rediscovered the half-finished box a week or so ago, and figured i needed to get on that already. instead of just throwing on some clear polyeurethane and calling it good, i decided to paint the inside to make it just a little more happy, and to hopefully ensure that the grandma-smoke-stank would not make a reappearance. and also to prove to the hubs that yes i really was actually going to eventually going to do something with those random paint samples i picked up on clearance at the Depot for like 50 cents a piece. i picked a color. i pulled my hair back so it wouldnt be in the way. and i went to work.

and then i still managed to paint the end of my ponytail a lovely shade of celery sticks. because i am just that talented. and prone to waving my hands about in the air at random like a crazy person, whether or not i happen to be holding a paintbrush.

**related sidenote**

the next day i went to see about getting a haircut, and i seriously contemplated telling her to just 'take off all the green' and see what i ended up with. i ended up not getting a haircut at all, so my plan was foiled. **end sidenote**

so what i'm trying to say here is that the box turned out really well, if i do say so myself. it was the first time i have ever chosen to stain something, since i am normally inclined to paint all the things, and i'm a little bit proud of myself. so check it out! BAM! from icky-nasty-stinky to tall-short-dark-and-handsome!

and the inside? crisp and clean as a celery stick!

i'm finally going to be able to gift this really belated bridal shower gift to my sister-in-law at her bachelorette party this weekend. probably one of the lamest bachelorette presents in recent history, but i dont even care because this thing is awesome. and also because we'll be at the beach. aaalllll weekend! that's right. be jealous. and have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend of your own because YAY for long weekends!

(and also YAY for all the service men and women who have given their lives over the years so that we can enjoy our freedoms and beaches and long weekends!)