An Old-School Wood Desk Makeover

While I won’t ever pretend to be an official DIY blogger, I am really starting to love sharing some of the projects that I am working on in my home.  I’m still working in my daughter’s bedroom, so thanks for sticking with me.  Today’s project is an old-school wood desk makeover.  It’s amazing what a little bit of paint can do to transform a piece of furniture!

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So, apparently this cute desk has been in my family for some time.   It was originally my uncle’s desk from when he was a child.  It eventually ended up with my parents, who then refinished it and used it in my bedroom.  I don’t remember using it as a desk, but I vaguely remember my aquarium sitting on it for a year. (That was before I realized I was not a fish lover!)

When I got married, my parents graciously let me take it with me along with some other furniture from my room.  It came with us to our first apartment and then to our first home.  When we moved into our current home, we decided not to bring it with us.  🙁  I knew I wanted to keep it though and use it later once our kids were older and could use it.  Since space is tight in our home, my grandmother graciously stored it for us for the past few years.

This summer, I decided it was time for the desk to makes its way to our home.  Our daughter was moving into her own room, about to start kindergarten, and I wanted her to have a little work space in her room.

The desk is old, but the wood finish was still in great shape.  I just wasn’t a fan of the look, so I knew this was the perfect time to try my hand at painting furniture.  Now that I’ve done one piece myself, I’m hooked and want to paint everything!  🙂

Here’s what it looked like when I started out.

Here’s what I used for this wood desk makeover:

• sandpaper
• paint brush
• primer
• paint
• polyacrylic
• liquid deglosser (link to similar item)
• metallic spray paint

Step 1: Prepare for paint

After removing all the hardware, I started by roughing up the wood surface with sandpaper.  I didn’t need to wash it beforehand because it was in great condition and very clean already.

I used a rough grit sandpaper because that’s all that I had on hand.  The wood surface was very smooth to start so I wanted to make sure I removed some of the gloss.  I wiped it down with a damp cloth to remove any of the dust.  (Yes, I did this project indoors and, yes, that is the Christmas tree in the background!)   🙂

Step 2: Prime

I primed the desk with a thin coat of Kilz (we typically buy ours from Wal-Mart).  The priming went very quickly and was practically dry by the time I was finished.  Easy breezy!

Step 3:  Paint 

The paint went on beautifully and was pretty quick as well.  I was slower painting the legs because I did not want any drips.  Although Behr Marquee paint has a one-coat hide guarantee, I opted for two coats, just to be sure.  I knew this piece would get a lot of use, so I didn’t want to take a chance.

Step 4:  Seal It

I used a couple of coats of Minwax polyacrylic to seal the entire piece, sanding lightly in between coats as recommended.  I happened to finish up the second coat right before we were heading out of town, so it sat for a few days.  This ensured it was completely dry before moving it back into the room.  I didn’t want to take chances since I knew it would get some abuse by my daughter!

Step 5: Freshen up the hardware

I looked into replacing the hardware altogether, but what I really liked was pricey (almost $50 for hardware alone!).  I may end up replacing it later, but I decided to paint it for now.  I’d never painted hardware before, so I wasn’t quite sure how it would work.

I used the deglosser to prep the surface and then used some Rust-oleum metallic paint to give it an updated look.  It was very easy, but it looks totally different!  I’m still on the fence about whether to replace the hardware down the road.  Part of me likes the look of the traditional hardware, but with the modern finish.  We shall see.

I am so pleased with this old-school wood desk makeover!  Even though I always loved the style of the desk, I could not get excited about the wood finish.  I love the light and bright aqua color so much that I want to use it in other spaces.  I lined the drawers with some contact paper from Dollar Tree and now I’m even more giddy!

It’s been a few weeks since I finished this project and I’ve been really impressed with how well it’s held up so far.  Unlike me, my daughter actually uses the desk and I haven’t seen any chipping.  Now that I know it’s not nearly as intimidating as I thought, I’m so excited to tackle some other furniture projects.  I hope you’ll follow along with me!  🙂

If you’d like to follow along with my daughter’s bedroom makeover, you can catch them here:

• The Easiest DIY Window Valance
• DIY Antique Chair Makeover (for under $10)
• A Custom DIY Picture Frame
• DIY Headband Holder Tutorial
• How to Transform an Old & Outdated Lamp
• 7 Things You Must Do to Prepare a Room for Painting
• A Bright & Colorful Lavender Girl Room Reveal

Have you ever painted furniture?

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