Desks Part One

Can we all agree that Craigslist rocks.  I have not had much luck at thrift stores (too much junk) or consignment (too pricey) for upcycle projects, but Craigslist makes me happy.

So when I decided that I wanted a desk....

I found this one, which must be a pretty typical piece because I found an almost identical one from a different seller a month later (stay tuned).  Score!

The drawers worked great--the desk just needed some love.

I had never painted furniture before, but I had some super instructions from All Things Thrifty.



After cleaning and sanding the whole thing, I started with a base of Kilz primer, sprayed on in multiple coats.  It needs thin coats because it can pool when it sputters.

A blue desk?  Yes, please.  I went with Ocean Breeze spray paint from Krylon.  The nozzle works great.

After a few coats of the blue, I was ready to glaze to give it a weathered look.  When I went to buy glaze, I swore to the guy at the Home Depot paint counter that I wanted it tinted black, but he insisted that I wanted black paint instead to mix.  I guess he was right because I got the paint to mix in, and it works how it is supposed to--just paint some glaze on, and wipe it off with a rag.  Pretty much trial and error.  I love how the glaze looks with the scratches on the top of the desk.

I kept the hardware--just painted it black.

Too bad I didn't know I was going to have a blog when I did this, or I would have taken lots of pictures.  So you just get after: