When we first found this desk and the matching highboy that went with it, I immediately knew how I wanted to paint it. This is rare. I usually have to live with a piece for several days before I know what direction I want to go. The faux column motif on either side of the drawers were VERY similar to the Empire dresser I finished several months ago and kept. And I LOVED the finished I achieved with that one, so I knew I wanted to do the same thing with these!
First step was to strip the top and drawer fronts. They had a layer of yellowing and crackling varnish, which was removed and then sanded smooth. We did not stain these (since the wood was already dark and beautiful), just gave them a good conditioning and a couple coats of wipe-on poly.
For the body, I painted a thick, artistic coat of Aubusson, then a light wash of Duck Egg, then using 320 grit sanding block, sanded away, so the end result is like your favorite pair of denim. This is a very time consuming and labor intensive process, since too much sanding will remove paint where you don’t want to, and too little won’t expose the underneath color. Can I also just say how pleased I am with how these pictures turned out? They capture perfectly the true color of the blues and the satin finish of that warm wood!
The pulls were SUCH a process. They had hideous knobs before with huge modern backplates that hid 2 more holes (probably from original hardware). So since using a single-post knob was out of the question, we had to try to find a pull that had the same post length as the original holes. After much searching, we found one at Hobby Lobby, but it was oil-rubbed bronze. SO wrong for the look I wanted. I decided to just spray them with a couple coats of Rustoleum white gloss paint. Now, they look almost like shells from the beach, don’t they?
Simple, neutral desk vignette…
A cute lady came by on Friday of VMD, loved both this desk and the matching highboy, but wasn’t sure she was ready to commit. She came back the next day, confessing that she dreamt about them and decided she couldn’t live without them! Ha! 🙂 Love it when that happens.
My favorite part about this finish is the layered, worn look. I would love to this this technique used with different colors, so let me know if you try it out! What is your favorite part?
LOVE this application! It is just beautiful and takes my breath away. Great job!
What a fantastic result, denim is coming back big time and you have created it perfectly on this piece of furniture. It looks fabulous.
Lee
SO unique, I love it!
I LOVE this piece!! Just found you at the City Farmhouse Link Party…so happy I did! Gorgeous! I’m pinning this! ~Sonya
Yet another stunning piece, I love the contrast of the colors! Pinned 🙂 Thanks for sharing at The Makers!
I love this desk! It reminds me of a cowboy in denim and leather chaps! A perfect combination of masculine and sexy! Great transformation!
I was at VMD too (One Blue Branch) hands down you had some of the top work there. Absolutely stunningly beautiful. My daughter and I made our way back 3 times just to enjoy looking at your pieces.
Very unusual desk. I love the color combos you painted. Very nice.
Fantastic work!
Greetings from Germany
Uwe
That desk couldn’t possibly be any prettier! You did an amazing job!