Secretary Desk Makeover | Redo It Yourself Inspirations : Secretary Desk Makeover

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Secretary Desk Makeover





What a curbside treasure! 



As I stopped to pick up the top portion of this desk, a lady came out of her garage with the legs and said that her father was so happy that this former treasure was getting restored. He gave up on repairing it.  



There was a good reason why it kept falling apart. 





The corner supports were made of pressed fiberboard. Like paper, it will continue to rip and come apart with any amount of stress on it. The desk and legs are made of hardwood and the weight pulled on the corners.





All of the glue attempts obviously failed. 






So using one of the corner pieces as a pattern, I made a new set out of pine wood. 





Reconstructing the legs onto the table with the wood supports was easy. 




Quite sturdy now, the desk was ready for its makeover. 




I cleaned all of the surfaces. 





Removed the drawer. Then wrapped up and taped the areas I didn't want to paint.  The burlwood deserved to be shown off. So using plastic food wrap and painters' tape, I enclosed and taped it to keep as is. 






Then I spray painted all of the other surfaces, including the back of the desk. 








The interior sported its original finish for a desk top area. 


















The long legs have pretty "cat paws".











I made sure to tape off the sliding desktop supports to keep them wood tone as well. 




Doing so, added a little more character and contrast to the front. 







My "Miss Rose" chair goes well with it. 




It's a stunning desk in person. 




Have you found a trash to treasure piece?  If so, what are your plans for it? I'd love to hear about it! 



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Bonnie @ Our Secondhand House











66 comments:

  1. I love roll-topped desks. This one is gorgeous now! I remember we had an old one when I was a child. I used to sit and play on it. You did a great job! I'm glad I found you on Pretty Pintastic Party! Maybe you'd want to link up on my Friday PrideDay Pinterest Party at Momndaughtersavings.com. That would be great!

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  2. That's lovely! Your attention to detail when redoing pieces is amazing.

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  3. I love the color combo, and those legs are just gorgeous! Great to see Miss Rose has a new friend! :)

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  4. WOW, That turned out great. The two tone is stunning on this peice. Have a great day.

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  5. Wow! What an increfible make over! So sad that it was in pieces for so long. If you're looking for another place to share your projects, I would love to have you stop by Etcetorize and join our Make it Monday party. It's open now (we love thrifty finds).

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  6. Stunning- yet another amazing refinished piece!! Thank you for linking up at Snickerdoodle Sunday- hope to see you again later this week!


    Sarah (Sadie Seasongoods)

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  7. Thank you for the visit and the invite, Tamara! I look forward to it :)

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  8. I look forward to it Sarah :) Thank you!

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  9. Beautiful! I love that you didn't paint the front part. The contrast in colors nice.

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  10. What a transformation! I love it so much. I like that you didn't paint it all black! Thank you for sharing this project on Show Me Saturday!

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  11. Wow looks amazing! Looks brand new!

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  12. Wow! I have restored one piece and it didn't come out near as beautiful - but I love, love, love that you saved the burlwood! My office furniture are all antiques I've picked up here and there and all have burlwood!

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  13. Wow, beautiful. I did something similar, not quite so grand, but meaningful. We had my husband's Aunt Emmy's nightstand for years and finally redid it for our daughter: http://lovemydiyhome.com/antique-night-stand-re-do/ It is rewarding to see a piece salvaged.

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  14. The two tone contrast worked for this piece.
    Thanks so much, Lindsay :)

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  15. That must be an impressive collection, Kate! Burlwood is intriguing. Especially when carved, it's so attractive. (expensive too)
    Thank you!

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  16. Wow! That is a great restore job. That desk turned out wonderful. Thanks so much for linking up with Merry Monday! :)

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  17. I love what you have done with this desk! I often see desks at estate sales and would love to buy and restore one if I had the room for it!

    Thanks for linking up at the Talented Tuesday Link Party :-)

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  18. Hello from Home Matters link up. You did a fantastic job making over that desk. It seriously looks like new.

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  19. I'm so glad you visited! Thank you, Danielle!

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  20. That's my problem now; room. The garage can hold so much. I can't gather redos anymore. So now I'm trying to redo only what we need and what others want done, the rest will be for sale. Thank you for stopping in, Nat! :)

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  21. I'm so happy you chose to show off the beautiful burl wood by contrasting with paint. That is genuinely a gorgeous redo. Well done.

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  22. This is absolutely gorgeous! So glad you rescued and restored this desk. It is much happier now!

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  23. Kristina @ My Own Home BlogOctober 30, 2014 at 9:01 AM

    What a great transformation! I love the little cat paw feet on it :) Thanks for linking up with Talented Tuesday link party!

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  24. Oh my, this is beautiful...excellent work! Thanks for sharing your creativity with the Thursday Blog Hop!

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  25. Marie@The Interior FrugalistaOctober 30, 2014 at 5:02 PM

    Hi Robin, just wanted to let you know that I'm featuring your gorgeous secretary at the DIY Sunday Showcase Party this weekend. I just love your work!

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  26. Gah! This turned out awesome! I just wish I could find fun furniture like this to restore. I never seem to have much luck! You did a great job! Visiting from Family Fun Friday. Would love for you to stop by my blog sometime. I am currently hosting a giveaway, you should enter! http://www.interiorfun.com/2014/10/how-to-organize-closet-that-little-kids.html

    Happy to have found your blog!

    -Lindze

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  27. Looks awesome!
    www.therobinsnestdesigns.com

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  28. You did a beautiful job. I'm so pleased you kept the gorgeous burl wood. It is stunning. Ann Marie @ Iris Abbey www.irisabbey.com

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  29. Lovely secretary! I love how you take something so damaged and unloved and transform it into a piece of beauty!

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  30. Ooh, this turned out beautifully. I love this piece. Thanks so much for sharing this over at The Southern Special.

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  31. Hello sweet lady! This looks incredible. Pinned. We appreciate you taking the time to party with us. We hope to see you on Monday at 7 pm. We love partying with you! http://loulougirls.blogspot.com/

    Happy Saturday! Lou Lou Girls

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  32. Wow, it looks beautiful!! I love secretarys. Thanks for sharing at On Display Thursday, come again!

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  33. So pretty! I love the two-tone look - it's so shiny and fresh! Thanks for linking up to the #homematters linky party! We hope to see you again this coming Wednesday!

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  34. What a beautiful transformations! You are being featured at the Home Matters Linky Party on Wednesday! Hope to see you link up more of your exciting posts with us.

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  35. WOW! I love how the black really makes the grain of the desk pop! So beautiful. Thank you so much for linking up at Come Along Ponds last week!

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  36. This came out great. I will be featuring this tomorrow at Tuesday with a Twist on my blog, come by for a peek. Thanks for sharing and have a great week.

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  37. Wow, Robin! This is gorgeous. You should send a picture to the lady who gave it to you. She and her Dad won't believe the difference!

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  38. I'm so glad you see what I saw. It makes the work so much more worthwhile.
    Thank you so much, Ann :)

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  39. The legs are so long and the feet are so pretty.
    I'm so glad you stopped by, Kristina. Thank you!

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  40. You're such a doll! Thank you so very much, Marie! :)

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  41. So happy to visit you as well, thanks so much, Lindze! I hope you have a chance to do a furniture flip that you want. Let us know, please; would love to see it!

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  42. Thank you, Ann Marie! I'll stop by to visit you as well!

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  43. Thank you, Millie! :)
    Some of them are challenging, but I'm determined. Wait till you see the 1901 horseless carriage car. Oh boy, this one is going to take a while! Some use a 13HP motor, but I am going with an 18HP. :D

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  44. Thank you for visiting and having me :)

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  45. I'm so glad you stopped by :)
    Thank you so much, Kristen!

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  46. Thank you so much for the feature, Bonnie! I'm thrilled to add your badge :)

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  47. I knew the contrast would work for this. Thank you, Megan! :)

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  48. Eeek! So thrilled to have your featured post! Thank you so much Debra! :)

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  49. They might want it back! :)
    That is a thought... I could show up with it.
    Thank you, Carrie.

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  50. Sherry ThecharmofhomeNovember 5, 2014 at 10:14 PM

    Great makeover! Thanks for sharing!
    Sherry

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  51. So happy you rescued that beautiful desk, it would have been sinful to go to the dump. You did an awesome job of restoring it.
    Have a wonderful weekend.

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  52. I love bringing curbsides to life. Thank you so much for your kind comment, Marigene. Have a nice weekend!

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  53. Thanks for coming to my last Fabulous Friday Party, the secretary make over came out beautiful, hope to see you this Friday, Thanks Maria

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