Goodwill Haul

I kicked off my holiday weekend by perusing through my local Goodwill store. I always seem to find something special whenever I go there. Plus, it's fun to sift through the shelves and see what other people have donated. 

On this particular trip, I struck gold! I found several books that have been sitting on my reading list for months! Here's what I got:

Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral by Kris Radish (Definitely my next beach read!)
Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio
Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Brand new hardcover copy. How cool is that?!?)
The Emperor's Children by Claire Messud
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir by Kao Kalia Yang
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

Oh so many books and oh so little time....

What's in My Mug?

Happy Monday, readers!

I hope you all had a marvelous 4th of July weekend that was both fun and rejuvenating.

I chose to start my week off right by making a cup of one of my favorite teas ever! My tea of choice is from the Downton Abbey collection, which you can find here. In case some of you don't know, I'm an absolute nut when it comes to Downton Abbey! It's by far my favorite TV show, and if you haven't seen it, please close this tab and go watch it immediately (I will not be offended)! The flavor that I'm drinking today is the English Rose Tea. It's a floral tea that has a little sweetness to it, even without adding sugar. Some of the ingredients are: Nigerian hibiscus, rosehip peels, and apples. The packaging says that it's inspired by traditional British desserts and can be enjoyed either hot or cold. I chose to drink it hot from my Pooh Bear mug that I found at the Disney Store.

I really like this tea. It's light, fruity, and smells like you just wandered into a rose garden! Also, the packaging is lovely, featuring the gorgeous Crawley sisters in their evening finest. It's definitely something that I will save to display later. I would recommend this one highly for any tea drinker or fan of the show!

Cheers to a brand new week!

Bookshelf Progress Report

Hello everyone!

Before stain

This is the first of, what I assume will be many, #shelfies (get it?) that I plan on sharing with you all. My bookshelf that we started around Easter time is almost done! Last night I finished up some sanding and put all of the wood putty into the nail holes. Tonight I'll be applying the stain!

My current book storage method involves milk crates and cardboard boxes, all of which are tucked away underneath my bed. I'm pumped to finally have an opportunity to display my collection on a bookshelf instead of stowing them away out of sight!

Stain sample

The shelf is custom built to fit a specific wall in my bedroom; it's 6' tall and about 32" wide. The wood that we chose to use is oak. Right now, the running joke within is family is that they hope I don't move too many times in the future, because this puppy is HEAVY! I chose a Teak color for the stain, and we will be using a Clear Satin varnish for the finish.

Ready for varnish!

The best part is that my Grandfather made the shelf himself. It was great to get to work with him on the design and to help with some of the actual construction along the way. He and I have always had a special relationship, so I love that I'll have something to remember him by for years to come. 

I will post pictures of the finished shelf when it's ready to go!