Sunday, February 5, 2012

refinished vintage desk

Let me tell you I was way ahead of myself thinking refinishing furniture was quick and easy and fun.  Who would have known?  No DIYer complains about the work.  They just praise how much they love building and refinishing furniture, and the end results always look amazing.

This is a big project (well ... big for me).  I put in a good 8 hours sanding, painting, and staining, and repeated 1-2-3 in some areas.  Can you believe it, 8 hours?!?  I don't think I will do any project of this scale any time soon.  My arms are so sore from all the sanding and painting.  And I got a huge chunk on paint on the top of my hair arrrgh.  What most challenging was finding a good vintage furniture piece.  I can't get myself to wake up early to go to swapmeet so I scouted high and low online.  I missed about 5 deals before scoring this one from Craigslist, barely 5 mins away from my home for $40.  Drum roll please ...

Before: What a gem!  I knew it had so much potential!


After: I was debating whether to go with a wood finish or a shabby chic white.  I couldn't decide, so why not have the best of both worlds!?!


For this project I used:
  • Electric sander (for large surfaces)
  • Sand paper (for small surfaces)
  • Valspar paint in Dove White (Liz Marie introduced me to this lovely white--the perfect white for everything.  Thank you Liz!)  I used this white on my door makeover here too!
  • Minwax wood stain in Bombay Mahogany
  • Paint roller
  • Small foam brush


Here are some of the in progress pictures:




The finished look: Taaa daaa









Posted by at 11:06 AM
Labels:

71 comments:

  1. Oh you did a fabulous job. It looks amazing. Love the two tones. Hugs, Marty

    ReplyDelete

  2. I love the colors of this! You did a great job!!

    ReplyDelete

  3. Love how it turned out! Nice job. Your newest follower.

    Holly

    ReplyDelete

  5. Fabulous transformation, I love the two different tones you used they look great together.

    ReplyDelete

  7. This is so pretty! Great transformation. The darker stain on the legs just make this piece what it is!! Would be delighted for you to share this at Mop it Up Mondays: http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/2012/02/mop-it-up-mondays-party-2.html

    {HUGS},
    kristi (your newest follower)

    ReplyDelete

  8. What a great piece! You are so right! I just started painting furniture, and it always takes me 3x as long as I planned! But it's so worth it in the end. Came by via Sundays Best party.

    ReplyDelete

  9. My it turned out really awesome! I wanna do my nightstands like that but the weather is not helping! Too much rain and so windy...

    ReplyDelete

  10. That desk looks so sweet! :) It turned out beautifully!

    ReplyDelete

  11. My my my! (do you get that a lot) ;) This is amazing! It's so chic and it turned out beautifully! :)

    ReplyDelete

  12. Wow, this looks amazing! It's so perfectly clean, simple and chic looking! Even though it sounded like a lot of work, it turned out great!

    ReplyDelete

  13. Great Job! We refinish front door, back doors, garage doors etc. here in Houston, TX. We can strip and have in back to hanging within a few hours. Visit our site and see our video. It may help you find better products that will save you sanding time. www.APrettyDoor.com

    ReplyDelete

  14. Wow, this looks amazing. Great post. I am looking forward to seeing you at My Dream Canvas.

    ReplyDelete

  15. Ahhh-MAZING!!! I love this desk transformation!!! You did a beautiful job!!!

    ReplyDelete

  16. Ahhh-MAZING!!! I love this desk transformation!!! You did a beautiful job!!!

    ReplyDelete

  17. What a pretty new life you've given that piece! Beautiful job.

    ReplyDelete

  18. SHARP!! That is one awesome piece of furniture. What an awesome update!

    Found you at Creatively Living
    Visiting from Well Rounded, leahkoenig.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

  19. Great looking piece! I love to redo furniture too... although 8 hours is "good" for me (Im just learning)... I would love your feedback from a fellow craigslist/refurb blogger!

    http://littlehouseinthebigd.blogspot.com/p/projects.html

    ReplyDelete

  20. Love this! I just picked up a similar desk, thanks for the inspiration.

    Rachel
    delishvida.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

  21. Just beautiful! I love the two tone, really wonderful job!

    ReplyDelete

  22. Love this! I really like the contrasting colors. Great job!

    ReplyDelete

  23. yowza! what a great find!! I admire your willingness to put in the time. I love buying cheap furniture and redoing it, except I hate the whole redoing it process!! :)

    ReplyDelete

  24. so beautiful!!!!
    You should join me for handmade 52 http://raisingoranges.blogspot.com/2012/02/handmade-52-5.html

    ReplyDelete

  26. I love the look of that desk...love the contrast...great job!!

    ReplyDelete

  27. I love EVERYTHING about it! Amazing work!!! I am a professional painter and I hate refinishing furniture so I feel ya' :)

    ReplyDelete

  29. Wow this is beautiful! I'm so jealous of that stain colour! I just stained something yesterday hoping for a deep brown and I got a medium tone. Bombay mahogany's the way to go!
    Nancy
    alifedesigned.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

  30. Great job I love the look of this

    ReplyDelete

  31. Well it was well worth the work! What a fantastic piece!! (be sure to leave a link back to my party)

    ReplyDelete

  32. Oh my gosh! I love this desk! Love the colors you chose and of course it is such a great style, you did a great job!

    ReplyDelete

  33. oh i am in LOVE with that!!!! i am new to your blog and off to look around- i like what i see so far! :)

    ReplyDelete

  34. Just wonderful, I'm going to be a new follower too.

    ReplyDelete

  35. I love it. You did a great job.

    ReplyDelete

  36. Ohhhhhh....it is just lovely! I LOVE LOVE LOVE a good furniture redo and you brought this hidden treasure back to life! Great job! Thanks for stopping by and sharing at our party! Come and follow me on my blog - this weekend I will be starting my own linky party and I would love for you to come!
    Stacey of Embracing Change

    ReplyDelete

  37. This is as stunning as a desk can get! Love it! A silly question - did you use a primer before paining?

    ReplyDelete

  38. I Love this! We are hosting our first Kitchen Fun and Crafty link party this Friday (the 10th) and would love for you to share this! We will open it tonight to start linking up. Feel free to stop by and grab a party button! http://kitchenfunwithmy3sons.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete

  39. hiya , great transformation , love the dark wood with the off white s tfs linky following you and camd by form the vintage farmhouse x
    xmaggiex

    ReplyDelete

  40. This turned out fabulously! Great job!!
    Thanks for linking up to this week's Catch a Glimpse party! I will be featuring this tomorrow. :)

    ReplyDelete

  41. It really turn not beautiful, and you did a great job. One would not believe the transformation until they see it. So Pretty. Thanks for sharing your creative inspiration at Sunday's Best Par.tay!

    ReplyDelete

  42. So happy you were able to link up with Mop It Up Mondays!! Thanks for stopping by! I'm still in awe of this piece!!
    {HUGS},
    kristi

    ReplyDelete

  43. looks awesome! i did a vintage sewing machine desk a few months back in a "white" called shiloh, which is my version of the perfect white! :) the first photo in this post is the desk: http://jedandivy.blogspot.com/2012/02/master-bedroom-cover-those-tv-cords.html

    ReplyDelete

  44. Wow! What a difference a bit of paint makes! I love how your desk turned out!

    ~Angela

    ReplyDelete

  45. Your desk is gorgeous. I love it. Terrific job.
    Ruth

    ReplyDelete

  46. Your vintage dresser redo came out stunning! Love everything you did and now I must find something just like it! Thank you for sharing this at my simply creations link party!

    ReplyDelete

  47. Oh my friend...do you ever, ever stop making awesome things?? I hope not...absolutely, breahtakingly stunning. I am starting to expect that from you anyway. :)

    ReplyDelete

  48. Wowsers! I really truly love this desk. You did an awesome job. how have I not been to your blog before? I am now following!

    ReplyDelete

  49. Oh my! That stain is perfect. I'm about to stain a table top and I love that color! Thanks for the inspiration!!

    Hope you'll come link this up at our first ever linky party!
    http://classyclutter.blogspot.com/2012/02/spotlight-saturday-1-our-first-linky.html

    Mallory @ Classy Clutter

    ReplyDelete

  50. Looks great, so chic! Wish I had something like that as my vanity.

    ReplyDelete

  51. That is a beautiful transformation! I love how it turned out. (Did you get the paint out of your hair? I hate when that happens!)
    :)

    ReplyDelete

  52. This desk is so pretty and sophisticated...so elegant. I love the way the wood, brass and paint play off one another.

    ReplyDelete

  53. Beautiful job! Thanks for the paint warning - I will be re-painting all of the furniture in our bedroom. Little nervous now! lol Thanks so much for linking up to The Creative Spark. I will be featuring this today. Happy Sunday!
    Jenn :)

    ReplyDelete

  54. This is beautiful and well worth the time you invested! Thanks for sharing at my party! I'll be sharing it tonight on the Sunday Spotlight!

    ReplyDelete

  55. It is beautiful! I have been looking for a desk about this size for so long, I love what you did with it!

    ReplyDelete

  56. Absolutely lovely. I like the combo white/wood. Gives it a lot of depth. Thanks so much for linking up to I Made It! Monday. Can't wait to see what you have this next week.

    ReplyDelete

  57. Great job on the desk!! Thanks for linking up!


    XO, Aimee

    ReplyDelete

  58. What a beautiful transformation! Would love it if you came by and linked up to my Manic Monday Linky Party!
    -Melissa
    http://serendipityandspice.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

  59. Featured this tonight!

    --Katie
    @ Creatively Living

    ReplyDelete

  60. What a great job you created in this transformation-I'm your newest follower-stop by for a visit!

    ReplyDelete

  61. I featured you on The Sasse Life facebook page. AMAZING job!

    http://www.facebook.com/thesasselife

    ReplyDelete

  62. Thanks so much for sharing and linking up this week!

    ReplyDelete

  63. So you can deliver it to my house when....?
    I love it and gave it a feature tonight!

    ReplyDelete

  64. Love it girlfriend!!!! yay for Dove White!!! You did such an amazing job!!! It looks beautiful!

    Thanks for sharing this with me!!!
    Liz Marie

    ReplyDelete

  65. This desk is gorgeous. We loved having you link up to our “Strut Your Stuff Saturday!” We hope to see you back next Saturday with more fun ideas! -The Sisters

    ReplyDelete

  66. I've featured your beautiful desk makeover for Functional Friday!

    Thanks so much for stopping by to link up!

    ~Angela

    ReplyDelete

  67. Big thanks to everyone who stopped by and left sweet comments on this project. Wow I can't believe my first furniture project got such warm support! I will try to do more of this if I can. Love you all! My

    ReplyDelete

  68. Hi! I pinned this on Pinterest, posted on fb, and featured at Creative DIYers Club. Please feel free to grab the feature button :) and thank you for joining Creative Bloggers' Party & Hop :)

    ReplyDelete

  69. Love the desk!
    your newest follower,
    www.HeatherlyLoves.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

  70. Love it! It was totally worth all the hard work! Well done!
    Allison

    ReplyDelete

  71. CUTE desk! I bought one that I plan to re-do and I'll be using this as inspiration!

    I'll be writing about it on my blog tomorrow and showing your desk along with a few others. Check it out!

    Katie
    SomethingToBeFound.com

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)