Thrifted Desk Makeover

A few months ago, our search for a small desk for my daughter's room finally ended - and it was totally worth it. We found this cute little desk at a Goodwill nearby for $25. I first talked about it here.

It was still in pretty good shape minus a broken handle and some water stains on top. But those can be fixed easily. So, I brought it home and got busy cleaning it. {Think lots of cobwebs and dust.}

I took the drawers out and cleaned every inch. I used Dawn dishsoap and warm water to clean this desk because it was mostly surface dirty - no greasy stains or anything too hard. Then, I let it dry out.

When it was time to sand, I used a handheld electric sander for the big, flat pieces like the top and sides. And for the details and smaller pieces and corners, I used sandpaper - a pretty rough grit because the finish was kind of thick. Sand until smooth. Then, use tacky cloth (buy at Lowe's in the paint aisle) to remove any leftover dust from sanding.

Finally, it was time to paint. The Sherwin-Williams guy told me to use a foam roller for a smoother finish on the paint, so I did. I used a foam brush and/or regular paint brush to get into the details. It turned out really well.

I rubbed the dry finish with furniture wax by Minwax. It helps protect the surface and gives it a smooth finish.

Add the knobs and some drawer liners and you're done! I'm planning to buy a piece of glass for the desk top so that it will not be marked on or scratched.

Tools I used for this project:
Orbital Sander - 50% off right now!
Tack Cloth
Sandpaper
Foam Roller
Any Paintbrush
Minwax Finishing Paste
Sherwin-Williams "Gris"

*Some of these are affiliate links. Others I just wanted to pass along to you. All opinions are my own.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thrifting {a sneak peek}

Now that the kids are back to school, I've been able to hit a couple of thrift stores without running the risk of having to buy more and more children's books {we have a million of them} or being begged to 'look at the toys' or having to take someone potty. I hit a Goodwill I don't visit often because it's not on my usual route and was very pleasantly surprised when I found this hidden gem...

I've been on the hunt for a desk for my oldest daughter's room and just hadn't found the right one...until now. I almost settled for lesser ones, but I'm so glad my husband talked me out of them. This little beauty was only $25. I'm tickled to death!! She will be gorgeous when I get through with her. A little cleaning, a little sanding, some paint {maybe paper too?} and some new knobs and she'll be better than new!

What color would you paint her? I'm kinda fond of light gray. Any suggestions? I want it to be a color that will survive an almost 10 year old girl's ever-changing tastes. I hope this will last her a few years or more!

Stay tuned!

Thanks for stopping by!


6a90944e9f031f32f3fcdee688767e13338fafe7fa2389984d

Thrifty Finds + a Couple Tips for Thrifting

I love going to my local thrift stores! We have several around here that price their stuff fairly cheap. I don't find something everytime I go but sometimes you just have to walk out empty handed. These are a couple of my tips for thrifting...

 

1) Go in with a plan or a list. (Or at least an idea of the type of things you are looking for.)

If you go in just to look around you're likely going to come out with stuff you don't really need or have any idea what to do with it. Don't get me wrong, I love to go and 'just look', but more often than not, I'll end up buying stuff I don't have a place for.

2) Just because it's cheap doesn't mean you should buy it. There are a LOT of great deals out there especially at yard sales, but seriously, remember that this treasure you're looking at is someone else's junk. Some of my friends yard sale and find great things to resell on ebay and they make money doing that. If you're going to do that, make sure you have a plan and a place for it all so that you don't become a hoarder. Get it, list it and get rid of it. Using the ebay app for iPhone is great here. You can look up whatever item you're hoping to sell (before you buy it) and find out what it's going for on ebay. This will give you a great idea of whether it's worth it to buy it or not.

3) It's okay to walk away. When you're at yard sales, it's sometimes awkward to walk away empty handed. Get over it. (I still feel awkward.) Just because the person is standing there staring at you browsing at their junk doesn't mean you have to buy it. I'm not a yard sale pro by any means, but I hope to do more of it this year. My friends are great yard salers!

 

These are a few of my recent finds by thrifting!

What rules to do you go by for thrifting? Are you an impromptu buyer?

Happy Yard Saleing this weekend!
Follow Life is Sew Daily on Facebook to get more updates and links to the blog posts! Thank you kindly.

I'm sharing this with some of these parties!