Office Project: The desk!

I have no excuses.

It has taken me forever (well, at least a week) to blog about the desk—and for no good reason, other than that it has taken me that long to take and edit a few pictures.  But the time has come…

You can see my concept drawing for the desk here, and the technical drawings here.

It took me two trips to pick up all the pieces of the desk from the talented craftsmen at Sean’s Woodworking in Salt Lake City.   Have I mentioned that it’s NINE FEET wide??  Go big or go home, I say!

They would have been happy to bring it to me and install it for me—but that version is for people who have more money than time (that’s not me).  But never having installed cabinets before, I really didn’t know what I was up against!  So here’s a quick re-cap, if you’re interested.

Because I was going to be installing things myself, they built the upper cabinets with a cleat system, so they could be briefly hung on the wall on a 2x4 until I could screw the cabinets themselves into the wall.  This was a very good thing.  Otherwise, it would have taken a fair amount of juggling and weight-lifting to get everything up and level!

I carefully marked my studs, and first screwed the cleat for the bridge unit into them.  Then I discovered that the cleats for the bookshelves on either end did NOT transverse two studs!  That was not a happy moment, and that’s why the cleat is crooked in the picture!  I ended up using drywall anchors to secure one end of the cleat.

I prevailed on a neighbor to come help my husband and I lift the bridge unit up onto the cleat—it was heavy!  Then I screwed it into the wall.   The side pieces we could handle on our own!

I posted this “sneak peek” on Facebook the day we were installing it!

I ran into a few snags on the installation.  This desk is meant to be used for a computer, and so we needed holes for cables/cords to pass through.  When I picked the desk up, I was supposed to have them drilled—but we all forgot.  They assured me I could do it myself, but it was really NOT an easy project.

For example, drilling though the desk top involved drilling through TWO 3/4” pieces of wood, plus a 3/4” piece of MDF!  It took a good 20 minutes to get through all that.

…but at least I learned that the desk was sturdy!  Yep, I climbed on top of it.  And really—it was easier to do that part than the two holes that had to be drilled in the sides of the cabinets below!

But drilling the holes was only part of the solution—you see, there are DRAWERS under the counter top, and thus there was no where for the cords to go.

My solution was to knock off the back of one of the drawers, cut the drawer bottom down my 3 inches, and reattach the back of the drawer.  It was a little hard on the MDF…

…and trust me, it was emotionally difficult to break part of a brand-new and expensive desk!

Next problem was due to a bit of a miscommunication, I think.  I requested a pull-out shelf in the right-side cabinet for my printer.  They built me a drawer inside the cabinet:

The difference was that my printer wouldn’t fit in the drawer!  So I took it out to my table saw and sliced off the top three inches all around—thus creating my own shelf.

Not so pretty, maybe, but it worked!

So here’s a brief tour of my favorite features:

** My printer is tucked away, with space for paper as well!

** The CPU is also tucked away, but in a prettily vented cabinet (I got the idea to use decorative sheet metal from Meridian Road).

** I love the upper bridge.  I gave up on seeded glass (it was expensive).  The cabinets look like they open upward, but that’s only because of where the pulls are installed.  Upper hinges are VERY expensive, so this was a great cheat!

**  I love the corbels under the bookcases, but I will admit that they are not as eye-catching as I hoped they would be.  But I love them because Sheri from Sean’s Woodworking let me come to the shop and help paint and distress them (more on that another time).

So there you have it!  It is, without a doubt, the “most major” part of the whole “front-room-to-office” project.  There are still more things to be done in the room—a couple of furniture pieces to finish, and I’d like a rug—but we’re actually using that poor unloved front room now!

And I am happy to say that I actually like having the computer there.  It’s easier to keep track of what the children are doing, more convenient for me to use, and best of all…

…it’s pretty!

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P.S.  The Map Wall may be found here.

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This project has been featured at My Repurposed Life and Primitive & Proper.

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Linking up here:

	Elizabeth & Co.
Sisters of the Wild West	No Minimalist Here’s Open House Thursday
Friday Remodelaholic	2805
My Simple Home Life’s Simple Creations Friday	Miss Mustard Seed’s Furniture Feature Friday
Funky Junk’s Saturday Night Special	The DIY Show Off
Primitive & Proper	Thrifty Décor Chick
	My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Perfectly Imperfect	{Primp}
Simply Klassic Sundays	My Repurposed Life
From My Front Porch to Yours	It’s So Very Cheri
Cowgirl Up!	{aka} design

What I got !

I promised to show off what I got in exchange for my Divine Dining Table. I couldn't be happier!

Ta-da!

Isn't she pretty??



I used to have this little table in that spot:



It was fine, but I have since decided that I prefer color in my accessories rather than my furniture.



This new-to-me little desk has history! character! It has a slide-out writing surface!





Perfect for a lap-top!



My grandparents' trunk still fits neatly underneath.



I love the top folded back, but it can also close if wanted.





Actually, that part is a little tricky, as the original hinges are broken. I'm on a hunt for new ones, but I haven't had any luck yet.



Other than that, this little desk was in remarkably good shape. There were/are definitely some dings and scratches:



...but I used a little Walnut "Restore-a-Finish" on it, and while it isn't a magical ointment, it does do a pretty good job of hiding minor defects.



Here's one last pretty picture:





I'm so glad it's mine!

Library Table

Yes, it's true...I cheated on my furniture diet yet again. I was browsing through Deseret Industries (Utah's own "Goodwill") last week, and I happened upon THIS:

Seriously, what's a girl to do?? I love the look of old library tables...it had to come home with me.

One of the drawers even has a lock! There is no key, but...it's CUTE!


A year ago, when we got rid of my husband's monstrosity of a desk, I looked everywhere for one of these...not luck. Eventually he bought a used IKEA Gallant desk for our basement family room. I cherished the hope that once this one was refinished, he would let me swap his IKEA desk for this one.

No such luck!!
**That man does not understand the concept of "furniture fate"!**
(sob!)

I refinished this desk in my favorite Sherwin Williams Creamy white with a walnut-stained top. (That may have something to do with the fact that I am had half a gallon of paint on hand.)


I kept the original knobs, but stained them darker as well. It gives it more of a "furniture" kind of look, I think...less desk-ish.


I distressed the edges and then glazed the bottom with stain. I used it pretty heavily on the corners and edges where I did the most distressing.


I'm sorry these aren't very pretty pictures. It would not be an easy piece to move into the house!

Goodbye, dear desk...you will be missed!

What about you? Do you understand the concept of "furniture fate"??

Curliques & Bin Pulls

Oh, those gorgeous bin pulls. I just love 'em. They are generally so expensive, but I lucked out when I found these at Cripe Distributing: 25 oil-rubbed-bronze bin pulls for $14. I ordered them before I even knew what I wanted to do with them...but then I saw this desk at The Frosted Gardner:


Isn't it pretty? And wouldn't you know it, I just happened to have a similar desk just waiting for me to do something with it in the garage.

Alas, I didn't remember to take a "before" picture...yet again. It was a run-of-the-mill brown desk.

But now...


I like it much better! I found a quart of "oops" gray paint at Home Depot: $1, baby! Gotta love that.

The desk has this pretty "curlique" embellishment around the top. I flirted with the idea of filling it all in with wood-filler, until I took another look around the garage and saw this chair:


"Hmm..." I thought to myself. "Curlique on the desk. Curlique on the chair. Must be fate!"


So naturally the chair had to be painted the same as the desk. And of course all of the yucky gold pulls were replaced with beautiful bin pulls!


I glazed them both with black to make those curliques pop! Getting glaze in all those indentations is actually a whole lot easier than trying to paint them neatly! (Like I tried to do on this desk...don't look too closely!)


I love that the back of this desk is as pretty as the front. It doesn't have to sit next to a wall. The recessed panels on the sides and back are so pretty. In fact, even the knee space is pretty (not that anyone will be seeing that)!

Finally, more furniture!

I feel as if I have been having withdrawal pains...homeschooling has been VERY hard on my furniture refinishing! But I finished this cute little project this week, and that makes me feel better. This was a custom job for a sweet neighbor of mine. She wanted a cute desk to go in her daughter's bedroom, and wouldn't you know it...I happened to have one in my garage!

Of course, it wasn't that cute to begin with...

The top had definitely seen better days. And the hardware...bleeahhh.

But there was no denying it had cute details! I love the trim between the drawers, the pretty curved front, and the chunky turned legs.

Now the desk has been painted a high-gloss white. That did not turn out to be my favorite paint! It required *12 hours* between coats.

The glossier the paint, the more imperfections show up. I put two coats on it, but there were still too many flaws. I re-sanded it, re-primed it, and re-painted it. There's really nothing to do about it in the end--it's always going to be an old desk! But it looks much better now.


The hardware was all replaced to match another piece of furniture in the bedroom (you can catch a glimpse on the right, above). I love the pretty brushed silver handles. However, the holes definitely did NOT match up! Thank goodness for wood filler!


By now I'm sure it's full of crayons, coloring books, and other paraphernalia. My friend tells me her daughter loves it. She calls it her "homework!"