Desk Makeover Ideas. What to do with an old desk?


Looking for ideas on what to do with an old desk? Found an old thrifted office desk and looking for makeover ideas, I’ve got your covered. Here are some of the best desk makeover ideas I found. And I used one as my inspiration for my own desk makeover. Find out which……

What to do with an old desk?

My next project will be a makeover off this little writing desk I inherited from my in-laws. When I brought it in the house two years ago I asked you, my blog readers, for advice on to paint or not to paint. The lovers of all things natural wood won back then. But no longer. This table needs an update and I need it to become me.

writing desk makeover idea

With the proper lighting and with the help of a little Photoshop this desk looks quite ok. But in the real harsh light of daylight it looks quite awful. The luster has long gone an it just looks old, and sad and unloved.

Office Desk Makeover Ideas

The wood is dull, the varnish is tarnished. The veneer is peeling, there are holes and dings everywhere. And the top faux leather is coming off.

Desk Damage

As you can see a big nail has even been hammered into the top to hold the veneer down. So a makeover it is. To start I wanted to get a closer look on how things stand underneath that leather.

old desk makeover ideas

Luckily it peeled right off, leaving me with only a small edge of glue and paper to be removed. And I kind of like the rough wooden boards. Although the large number of nail holes are less enticing. So where to go next? I am still debating on that one.

The Best Writing Desk Makeover Ideas

To figure out what to do with my old desk I did a little research. I figured out how I could either repair or remove the veneer, what paint to use on such an old varnished desk and what style would both fit the desk and my own decorating style. Let me share a few of my favorite desk makeover ideas and how I think they could work for my old writing desk makeover.

Chippy desk style. Old writing desk makeover ideas
A Beach Cottage chippy painted desk

Maybe I should just paint it and distress it until it looks something likes this lovely shabby chic desk I spotted at A Beach Cottage. This would be the easiest and quickest way to go. The shabby chic style is not only very forgiving for imperfections, it kind of demands them. Just a quick, and imperfect layer of paint, and a little distressing gives your this look when you have an old office desk to start with.

Shabby Chic styled Table. Desk makeover ideas
Peeled paint shabby table via Rustic Crafts

Or should I even take the distressing a step further? I love the look of those ‘hardly painted anymore’ pieces. Maybe l could leave the bottom part more painted and distress the heck out of the table top after giving it a quick coat. These severely chippy painted desks are gorgeous. But I am not sure they are very easy to use. The chippy paint will continue to flake unless you put a finish over it. A desk like this will also be harder to keep clean. And for a writing desk this surface might be to rough.

Maybe the crispness of a beautiful fine layer of fresh paint, would be better?

Turqoise Painted Desk. Office desk makeover idea
Bright Turqoise Desk top from the Happy Home

Wouldn’t it be fun to bring such a bright turquoise color in my home. I love the bright beachy look it gives. But that old worn tabletop on my desk would never look so crisp. It would need something to disguise its imperfections. That is one of those things about giving old furniture a makeover. You have to work with the state of the piece. Every once in a while I would love to give an old piece a ‘ good as new’ look, but that hardly ever comes out right. When your base material is already old, damaged and imperfect, trying for a perfect finish is next to impossible. Finding a furniture style that makes the imperfections the star of the piece, or at least hides them in a good way is much better. Decorative paint effects can be perfect to hide something you want to be ignored.

Chevron painted table. Desk makeover ideas
Chevron painted table by Spunky Junky

I have to confess that as of yet I do not have any chevron in my house. Would this be the time to correct that? Chevron – or any pattern for that matter – is a home style fashion pattern. It comes in and out of style every few years. Just like stripes, herringbone pattern or buffalo check. It can be fun and a quick makeover to give a piece of furniture a makeover with an distinct pattern. It might get out of style fast though. And speaking about the chevron pattern….. I truly think the pattern is too modern for my old desk makeover. Maybe a more timeless pattern would work?

My craft room definitely has a bit of romantic style. A lace pattern could work well with that more feminine decorating style. I haven’t had much experience with stenciling yet. That might be a fun idea to try for this desk makeover.


Thing is…. I am moving away from the romantic and feminine vintage style. I am leaning more to a rustic and industrial vintage style. But not ready to give up on the idea of stenciling. Maybe a different stencil would work for my little old office desk makeover.

Rustic stenciled table top. Writing desk makeover ideas
Table top with lettering by Donna from Funky Junk Interiors

Donna is of course the queen of sign stenciling. And this tabletop comes with a full tutorial. Well with Donna’s help I should be able to pull it off, n’est-ce pas?

Of course when it comes to makeovering old furniture pieces I had to turn to the ever so lovely Miss Mustard Seed for inspiration. I am sure she would now exactly what to do with my old desk.

Secretary Desk Makeover. Office desk makeover ideas
Secretary Desk Makeover by Miss Mustard Seed

She gave her grandfather’s old desk a makeover with chalk paint. It made the old worn desk just come alive. This one is heavily distressed and aged with wax.

The next piece she painted combines two colors and a wooden top.

Two toned Desk Makeover. Office desk makeover ideas.
Two toned desk with dark top by Miss Mustard Seed
Top office desk makeover ideas

So what do you think? How would you make this old tattered table look beautiful again? Have you done a desk makeover that might be my source of inspiration? Found one somewhere that I should know about? Let me know because I am itching to start on this one, and I still haven’t figured out what I am going to do.

PS THIS IS HOW MY OLD OFFICE DESK MAKEOVER TURNED OUT!

Songbird | Website | + posts

Marianne Songbird is the founder of Songbird, where she hopes to inspire everyone to create a home they love, one DIY project at a time. She shares anything from craft ideas to home decor inspiration and from DIY projects to decorating hacks. Originally from the Netherlands Marianne and her husband Lex are currently renovating a 250-year-old farmhouse in Germany.

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16 Comments

  1. I would stain the top a with something fairly dark, maybe even some grain sack stripes or stenciled numbers??? And paint the bottom white with distressing… That would look awesome!
    Nice piece!
    Susan

    1. Marianne@Songbird says:

      Stripes, numbers. Hmmm good ideas. Thanks and keep them coming.

  2. I’m really in love with Funky Junk Interiors faux lettering. However, if your craft table gets used like mine does what was on the top wouldn’t matter as much as what was below as you would never see the top. After that I like Miss Mustard Seeds distressed look or even Beach Cottage’s chipped paint because they are all representative of the nd result of a workbench that is used a lot. Cherrie

  3. I am normally a huge fan of chippy paint…well, I am a fan. But that photo of the aqua and white, was equally as appealing to me… I agree, it is a nice piece and I await your decision. Thanks for sharing…

  4. Just make sure your surface (chippy vs smooth) works with how you use the desk. If you do a lot of writing, chippy would be a real pain.

  5. I like the idea of painting it and distressing it. I wonder if you could stencil something where the leather used to be? A pattern, but not chevron. Or maybe hand write a message in that space.

    Whatever you do, I know it will be gorgeous!

  6. Love the lines and hardware on this desk! A few options: turquoise and white; blackboard paint on top; signage or numbers on top. You have great style; therefore, I know whatever you decide it will look fabulous!

  7. Yikes! Too many choices!!!! Love, love, love Miss Mustard Seed’s desk AND Donna’s funky table AND Sarah’s gorgeous distressed whites… Aaah! Glad it’s you making the choice & not me. xox

  8. Hi Marianne, wow, so many choices, and I like a bit of all of them. Wanted to encourage you on the organizing and all the progress you are making. I have endlessly been organizing my sewing room. At first I organized items separately like thread, zippers, etc. then when it came to colored items…there were so many scrapbook, sewing items, etc. that I started separating them by color. so now I have pretty baskets and containers that have a label on them for pink, red, white, etc. What is good about that is when I want something…I know it by color…rather than wondering where I put it when I organized it. I’ve spent more time looking for things AFTER I organized them! hahaha…I need to make a master list of sorts to direct me where things are. I have 30 years of craft goodies…way too much. Anyhow I will be back to visit and encourage you on.
    blessings,
    Debbie

  9. Your desk is so gorgeous but difficult to know what to do with it. maybe you could pick your favourites andmake a mix of it. I liked the rough letters on the table top but if you choose that rough look you might need to change the handles and mountings. I can understand that its tempting to remove the veneer, specially when it tends to loose. I painted a washing desk that had chipping veneer. After I had painted it the veneer hasnt fallen off. But, I agree with you that it’s tempting, because there are no particular rounded corners so if you remove it, it’s not ruined and you can paint it. It wasn’t any help I guess 😉

  10. Hi, I love your desk. I would put a very light cream colored vinyl on the top space where the leather was and paint the desk the same cream color with a very light destressing. I would then paint the drawer fronts a pastel color or a color that goes with you room. It would look similar to the two colored desk by MIss Mustard Seed, escept the top around the vinyl would be the cream color.
    Barbara

  11. wow i would paint the inner part of the top leave the cool edges stained . paint the legs and drawer fronts and leave the framing stained as well. prob go with a darker stain light distressing on painted parts. good luck cool piece

  12. Lots of great ideas! I’m really not a fan of the chippy look, especially heavy chippy like the photo. But this is about YOU, not me. 🙂 I think it would look fabulous painted and with a stenciled or painted design on top. Check out Korrie’s creativity at Red Hen Home. She is incredibly talented also.

    Will look forward to your finished product!
    xo
    Pat

    1. Marianne@Songbird says:

      Thanks for the tip. Seems like everybody has their own fabulous ideas and I am still left making the decision myself 🙂

  13. I have just bought a desk with a similar top to it, and this is one of the pages i found in my googling of what to do with it. I really hope there is a blog post about whatever you decided to do!

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