Painted Desk — Before and After

I got this desk for free!

I know, it doesn’t look like anything too special just yet — but it was EXACTLY what I was looking for, and I can already picture where this desk will fit in our new farmhouse…

Plus, I never turn down free wooden furniture!

Obviously, the previous owner didn’t know much about painting — or that it was preferable to remove the hardware {and the drawers} before diving in with two different colors of paint and a VERY heavy hand.

And while I usually don’t spend the time sanding anything, this desk needed it. BAD.

There were lots of raised areas, drips, brush strokes, rough edges, etc. But nothing my little palm sander and some very coarse sandpaper couldn’t handle.

FRUGAL TIP — if you buy full sheets of sandpaper, you can cut 4 smaller rectangles that fit a standard palm sander perfectly.

So, after I removed all the drawers {and numbered them so I knew where to put them back}…

…and removed all the old hardware…

…I started sanding.

It didn’t take long to make a noticeable difference, and the result was a much smoother surface. Totally worth it!

Now for the fun part — painting!

I pulled out my very professional and expensive painting supplies and got to work.

F.Y.I. paper plates and small plastic containers work wonderfully for smaller projects like this desk

Oh, and these 4″ foam rollers are my go-to choice every time I paint furniture, cabinet doors, or anything else that needs to be really smooth.  You can pick them up at any hardware store for MUCH cheaper than the full-size rollers.

After 3 coats of Behr flat paint in Swiss Coffee, a little distressing around the edges, and new brushed chrome drawer pulls {Martha Stewart’s line at Lowes}, I have a brand new office area!

Here’s the BEFORE:

{One more time…just for kicks!}

And the AFTER:

I’d say it turned out alright!

See more in-depth painting tips here.

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