Vintage Desk Makeover Nightmare

Better late than never I suppose....but here goes my FIRST vintage desk makeover nightmare:

Once upon a time I saw a beautiful heavy desk at a steal and it was too good to pass.....so I thought

I knew it was not nearly in perfect condition, but that was the job I set myself up for. I had no idea... Just look at this peeled veneer:

That was not easy to work with....I just have to be thankful that the wood was in overall good condition and not rotted or anything beyond repair! There was a drawer that didn't fit in well enough without leaving a gap so, little did I know, I had my work cut out for me. 

I decided to get rid of the drawer all together and add a cute shutter (just in case someone has a PC!) I thought it was a great idea and I luckily I have a handy man around the house. I sure needed the help! Nonetheless I was on my own for most of it....imagine my dismay when I realized just how much veneer I had to scrape off and after sanding the top we did not see the beautiful grain I imagined. The scraping was tedious:

Then the "best" part was having to add new trim after painting and unsuccessfully attempting to camouflage flaw. Let's just say the existing trim had it's day and desk was very much loved. Apparently by a cat with the scratch marks I found during inspection (sorry, I didn't take a photo of that)

Anyway, low and behold with lots of TLC and elbow grease my vintage desk makeover went from rags to riches (at least I like to think so) And drum roll please.....here she is all made up:

Yep, there is the added trim around the bottom end of the top drawers (I found the right size just by luck) and there is more trim around the desk top (to hide the self adhesive wood panels I added to the top) So the desk has sort of an inlayed appearance.....not due to a mistake but as Bob Ross likes to say "a happy little accident." I posted this on line and it sold before the paint dried! Within a day *poof* gone like magic! 

Note: I must be a glutton for punishment but it felt so nice to see this come together and reused instead of thrown into a landfill! That being said, I am at it again....and the surprises keep coming! 

Here is another similar makeover that wasn't so hard but this desk wasn't as heavy. I decided adding wood to the bottom would give it a nice pedestal appearance. The drawers were in mint condition. I just didn't like how they were unsteady but that's how it was built. Here is the before and after:

It took a little longer to sell. Unfortunately, I  had one potential buyer come take a look and decided it wasn't sturdy enough. Ouch. I hope that was it!  The next customer went for looks and fell in love instantly. Just look at that natural wood grain on the top! I love it and I would not stress the sort of flimsy drawers.  It has to be my favorite by far. Of course, I am on to the next and it is a lot harder than I thought. Guess it comes with the territory.....I cannot wait to show you what I did to my third makeover and what lessons I have learned. Hopefully I can save someone from making the same mistakes I did. Obviously Google, YouTube or Pinterest couldn't help. Stay tuned :)