• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Start at Home Decor
  • New? Start here
  • Home
  • Projects
    • Building
    • Before and After
    • Decorating
    • DIY
    • Furniture
    • Holiday Decorating & Crafts
    • Tutorials
    • About Me
  • Custom Built Home
  • Remodeled Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Newsletter
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • New? Start here
  • Home
  • Projects
    • Building
    • Before and After
    • Decorating
    • DIY
    • Furniture
    • Holiday Decorating & Crafts
    • Tutorials
    • About Me
  • Custom Built Home
  • Remodeled Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Newsletter
×
Home

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Apr 4, 2023 · Modified: Aug 19, 2024 by Brooke Larsen · This post may contain affiliate links · 8 Comments

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Restore your vintage desk to its former glory with a DIY desk makeover.

When you find an old piece of furniture that still has a lot of life left, don't throw it out. Instead, try refinishing. Restoring your solid wood desk to its glory days will prolong its use and save additional cost of replacement. See how this old desk makeover can be easily transformed into a masterpiece.

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Refinishing an Old Wooden Desk

When this desk first arrived it was obvious it had seen better days. Though in relative good condition, there was a missing desk leg and multiple deep scratches and dings along the surface. Luckily, the missing piece was found in a desk drawer. Whether you find it at a thrift store or yard sales, desks like this are a perfect choice for DIY projects. Affiliate links below.

Desk before

Supplies for a DIY Desk Makeover

  • Paint stripper
  • Putty knife
  • Mask
  • Sandpaper
  • Sander
  • Wood filler, if needed
  • Paint color
  • Paint brush
  • Paint tray
  • Rags
  • New hardware
  • Stain
  • Finishing coat

Favorite Tools Here

Prep Work for DIY Desk Makeover

The first thing to do when you have your piece is to complete all of the prep work. This is often the hardest and most time consuming process of the whole thing. Don't get deterred! Beautiful things come to those who are willing to work.

Sad little desk

Strip

The first step with renovating this desk is to remove stain and get it down to the natural wood. When removing any finish down to the wood, I have found it easiest to use a paint stripper. Using paint stripper can take a lot of time, but your furniture will be cleaner and easier to apply your paint or finish.

Apply stripper to the desk area that will be stained. Allow the paint stripper to sit for approximately 15 minutes before scraping off finish with your putty knife. For more information on using a paint stripper, head over here.

Sand

When you have scraped off your finish, use a sander on the entire desk to get a smooth finish. Make sure to use a clean cloth to remove all wood particles.

Use Wood Filler

Most of the scratches came out of this desk after the initial sanding. After you have sanded, you should be able to see if there are any deep scratches that didn't come out. For those areas it is a good idea to apply some type of wood filler on your solid wood furniture.

Sand Again

Use fine grit sandpaper for one more sanding after you have used wood filler. Make sure your desk is dust free and clean before moving on to the next step.

I am happy that I was able to salvage so much of this wood because the grain is so rich and beautiful.

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Painting Your Desk

I opted to use both paint and stain on this DIY desk makeover.

Prime

Because I am using paint and stain, the first step is to apply primer on the body of the desk where it is getting painted. For tips on using primer, take a peek at this post.

Paint

When the primer is dry, the next step is to add paint. Though you can choose to use different colors, I opted for natural wood tones to balance each other. This desk is painted with a custom mixed cream paint color.

Use long brush strokes to apply a fresh coat of paint. Wait for your first coat to dry before adding a second coat. You may need multiple coats of paint depending on the quality of your paint. Take a look at this painting furniture post for ideas on what type of paint to use for refinishing.

Because I also painted the letter dividers in the top of the desk, I had to stain that part of the desk area first.

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Stain

The next step for this DIY desk makeover is to stain your wood. I opted to put stain on the drawer fronts and the folding desk area where this desk will see the most use. Stain has a better longevity for high traffic areas compared to paint.

I chose a dark stain for this piece and used Minwax's Early American wood stain. This dark stain is beautiful and is not too dark to pick up the wood grain texture. Follow instructions on your can of stain for application and directions.

Deciding how dark you would like your wood to be can be determined by how many coats of stain you apply.

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Desk Finishes

You will want to apply some final finishes after your desk is painted and stained. A protective topcoat is a must for any amount of longevity with furniture makeovers.

Topcoats

I covered the wood portion of the desk with a topcoat application of a Spar Urethane in semi-gloss. Then, I used a glaze on the painted part of the desk and sealed it with a Spar Urethane in satin. Give your topcoats ample time to dry before moving your furniture anywhere.

The contrast of the dark color wood with the light shelving is just beautiful.

Beautiful drop down desk

Add Hardware

The final step is to replace the old hardware with something new and updated. While you can reuse the original hardware, I find that it is not as convenient and often takes a good deal of cleaning and restoration to get it to optimal function especially if it is covered in rust.

Do yourself a favor and swap out the hardware for something more functional and stylish. Check out our beginner's guide for installing hardware here.

Easy DIY Desk Makeover for the Refinishing Enthusiast

Why Refinish Furniture?

  • Save extra cost from buying furniture that is new
  • Old furniture tends to be better built than current furniture unless it is custom made or very high quality
  • You can add a custom look to the furniture to fit your space
  • Retain furniture value longer
  • Learn a new skill or develop a hobby

Farmhouse DIY Desk Makeover

This DIY desk makeover is the perfect project for transforming an old piece of furniture, instead of throwing it out. And I just love the vintage farmhouse style of the furniture. What a great project for all of you refinishing enthusiasts out there!

If you are looking for more inspiration on DIY farmhouse furniture, why not try one of these ideas restoring and painting a curio cabinet? Curio cabinets are ideal for storage in the kitchen, entry or a bathroom. You can also use them for displaying dishes or home decor.

Update an old curio

Or this easy DIY farmhouse sofa table with a pallet top? It's perfect for an entry way or decorating behind a sofa in a living room.

Now that the desk is complete don't forget to add some supplies to keep it organized. See more ideas here and even more here

Happy DIYing!

Brooke

« How to Create an Ombre Look with Spray Paint
How to Make Custom DIY Farmhouse Rustic Wood Signs »
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

About Brooke Larsen

Hello Friends! I love anything DIY and home decorator! On my blog I hope you will find home inspo. Whether it is for your next DIY project or home decor. If I can do it, anyone can!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tone says

    June 02, 2015 at 6:40 am

    Oh wow! That is just lovely! It is amazing that you got to keep the wood! It looks so new and fresh! Great job:) And a great piece of furniture:)

    Reply
  2. Gilly Morrison says

    June 02, 2015 at 8:49 am

    This is amazing! I always love it when people can restore original wood, especially the two tone look! Gorgeous!

    Reply
  3. Two PlusCute says

    June 02, 2015 at 6:10 pm

    Very well done!
    It was pretty beaten up but now it is gorgeous.

    Reply
  4. Marie Blackburn says

    June 02, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    You did a fabulous job on this makeover Brooke! The wood is gorgeous and so worth staining rather than painting.

    Reply
  5. upwithfurniture.com says

    June 03, 2015 at 4:36 pm

    This is beautiful. I love the colour you chose for the wood. I think it was a good idea to paint the mail slots as they would be difficult to sand and strip.

    Reply
  6. Kimberly Lewis says

    June 07, 2015 at 7:24 pm

    I absolutely love this! Thanks for sharing it with us. Pinned and tweeted. I hope to see you tomorrow night at 7 pm. We can't wait to party with you! Lou Lou Girls

    Reply
  7. Sharon @ Elizabeth & Co. says

    June 09, 2015 at 12:48 pm

    A really stunning piece! Love the wood and paint combination. Thanks so much for sharing. Featured you at Be Inspired this morning.

    Reply
  8. Kristine at The Painted Hive says

    June 12, 2015 at 11:04 am

    That wood is gorgeous! And I adore the custom cream: it has a really lovely earthiness.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hi I am Brooke I am an avid DIY-er and home decorator! I share home inspo and all of my DIY projects with step-by-step directions. I sprinkle in a few recipes to help out all of us busy moms too. If I can do it, so can you!

More about me →

Popular

  • living room pouf
    10 Creative Pouf Ideas to Style in Your Home
  • 14th birthday party
    Perfect Summer Birthday Party Ideas for Your 14-Year-Old’s Birthday Bash
  • clean rugs
    How to Deep Clean Your Rugs Like a Pro
  • front yard planters
    12 Beautiful Porch Planter Ideas to Elevate Your Curb Appeal
  • New? Start here
  • Home
  • Projects
  • Custom Built Home
  • Remodeled Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Newsletter

Copyright © 2025 Start at Home Decor on the Seasoned Pro Theme

  • 27
2561 shares