Small, chic desk for my classroom!

So there are going to be A LOT of changes this upcoming year in the way we teach reading and writing. So ultimately we are going to revamp all the kinder classrooms in a way. If anyone saw my class last year, you would have seen that my desk was an old kidney table that I shared with the kiddos at center time. I loved it but with this new stuff this year, we just can't let it stay that way. Four other teachers had the same thing and we all decided that we would get our own SMALL desks to grade at and hold our paperwork. No students allowed haha.

Needless to say, since May I have been craigslist hunting for a desk. I was so sad when I saw that all desks were like $50. I was mad because I wanted to spend as little as possible so that I could spend more on the stuff for the kiddos. I could NOT find a deal anywhere.

A few weeks ago I got lucky and found someone that was moving and had to get rid of everything. I got a little ugly turquoise desk for $15. I was soooo happy! Here is the transformation:

Necessities. Paint, FOAM brushes (more of that later), two grains of sand paper and scissors.

 

Before it was sooo ugly. Poorly painted and beaten up! It had large dried paint drips and worst of all, she obviously spilled soda down the back of it and let it dry. Disgusting.

I began sanding... the WORST part of any painting job. My arm was sore because I was cheap and refused to buy an electric sander. Bad decision.... must...stop..being...cheap.

 Side Note: Make sure you use a really fine sandpaper after the rough one because using foam brushes will show all the roughness and grain.

It annoyed me that the paint was so gooped up in the crevasses because that is the best part about wood pieces. People, PLEASE PAINT THINGS CORRECTLY. Poor desk.

Make sure to prime everything or it will chip! I use primer for plastic instead of wood because it adheres better and you NEVER get chips. Its an amazing tip I learned from my mommy!

I used a flat finish because I like the old timey look it gives things sometimes. Plus, if you are writing on a high-gloss painted desk, your paper will stick to it. If you want the glossy look, use a flat paint then go over it with polyurethane. Ta-da, no sticky shineyness.

You might think I am a weirdo; I paint furniture with foam brushes. If you have enough practice with it, you will probably love it as much as I do. If you hold it the right way, it gives it such a smooth look. NO MORE BRUSH STROKES!!! Not to mention, it gets into holes and edges amazingly. 

All done. I don't think this picture does the paint color justice. Its a greyish brown in person and here it just looks a little awkward and a weird light brown. I WILL be getting new handles but I haven't gotten around to it. I am going to find the perfect old timey black ones that will look great!

I love my desk. Its perfect to have my lamp, laptop and papers to be graded on! I can't wait to create my little teacher nook in my classroom... I go back to school on the 8th; I hope I have time for a blog about my classroom transformation. Love, love, love!