From Junk to Funk: Kid’s Desk

Now that the weather’s warm, it seems that ’tis the season to dump your old furniture by the side of the road. What others may judge an eyesore, I register as a bonanza! So many eclectic pieces – so many trips to the hardware store. With a little “spit and polish” many of these items can be restored to “better-than-new” status.

By: Jodi

My neighbour’s children have long since grown up and moved out of the house, and a recent purge revealed this little desk. Sturdily built, it had a lot of potential, but it was covered in stickers and candle wax and the paint was dull and marked. I employed some elbow grease and a bit of sandpaper, slapped on some paint, and it looked great! If this helps inspire my kid to want to do his homework, all the better.

Materials and Tools:

– sandpaper

– sander (if you have one, or just use elbow grease)

– scraper (to remove candle wax, etc.)

– Tremclad paint (I just find this paint great for wiping clean)

– paint brush/sponges (those sponge-brush things on a stick)

– small paint roller

– painter’s tape

Tutorial:

1) Scrape any pieces of wax, flappy stickers, etc. off the surface (and, in my case, inside the drawer) of your desk.

2) Lightly sand the complete surface. Helps the paint to stick much better. Then wipe it down so you’re not getting paint chips/dust in your paint.

3) Paint the entire surface! As I painted the shelves a different colour, I had to use painter’s tape, after the white dried, so that I could then paint the black.

I used the roller to paint the side of the desk, but found I got the smoothest coverage from the sponge brushes.