Vintage School Desk Makeover

Give an old wooden desk a new look with some paint and stain!

With all the flurry of the holiday decorating and tutorials, I feel like it’s been a while since we’ve had a simple furniture makeover. This vintage school desk that I found at my local antique mall was just begging me to love it, restore it, and find a place for it.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

So I did.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

It started a little rough… not terrible, but splattered with paint and ink in a few places.

give an old wooden desk with paint spray and stains a makeover

All I did was sand it well and give it a good coat of a Fusion Mineral Paint’s hemp oil and beeswax.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

I love how it restored the luster without making it shiny or greasy.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

I have a lot of options for where to use this in my house (wouldn’t it make an adorable bedside table?!), but if you follow me on Instagram, you know that the corner of the dining room has won the honor.

Since we are homeschooling, this is the perfect place to contain my kindergartner and his school books.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

I just love the details like the tilting desktop…

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

And the “1” stamped into the back.

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

I love to restore vintage pieces, and this one was a real pleasure. The kindergartener loves it, too. I even got him to happily finish his (long overdue) Christmas thank you notes in it.

Vintage School Desk (thank you)

I’m excited to show you how my dining room is coming together, too. More on that coming soon! In the meantime, what do you think? Do you like the natural look? I considered staining it so it would be more brown and less yellow, but I think the natural wood is just “right” for this piece…

Vintage School Desk (low front)

At least for now. 😉

pin it image

adorable restored vintage school desk | maisondepax.com

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7 Comments

  1. The desk looks great. A good job. I am so glad that you got it and brought it back to life for someone to cherish for a long time.

  2. I like the desk how it is. I just bought one from a friend, sight unseen. Depending on the condition and style I may end up painting it. Yours is the nicest one I’ve seen.

  3. I love how you restored this, Rachel. And since you are homeschooling your little guy it is so useful for your house! I think you made the right decision with the hemp oil and skipping the stain.

  4. I also have an old one that is long overdue for a makeover or at least a refresh. Thanks for reminding me. You did a fantastic job on this one, it looks fresh and clean and the grain of the wood shines through beautifully.

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