Sewing Desk Makeover (A tutorial, too!)

My Goodness, I have been a bad little crafty girl. I have been making things, but not sharing them here. Naughty, Naughty! I would like to be better at that but it's hard because I often get sucked into the internet and do not do what I even came to do. I'll probably start sharing things, working backwards or somewhat randomly. But for now, I really wanted to share my most recent project, and my first real DIY....

My Lovely New Desk:

Isn't she pretty?!  She certainly is now, but definitely didn't look like this when I got it.

Before:

Pretty beat up, right? The desk was missing some hardware (one drawer pull, as you can see), was missing some of the trim, and was pretty scratched up. But I saw potential. And for $10, I was willing to try.

When I went to Goodwill a few weeks ago, I wasn't even looking (much) for furniture--I was actually there to drop off clothes we had sitting around--but I figured I may as well look to see if there were any good deals on any storage items I could use. I saw this and thought: "That would make a good sewing desk."  So I brought it home (which was an ADVENTURE in itself, let me tell ya), and pondered the possibilities and what I wanted to do with it.

I knew I wanted it Pink, but my friend Samantha suggested Black drawers, and I thought that sounded interesting but couldn't picture it. So I  drew a general desk shape and colored it on my computer and tested a few ideas, and decided that the black drawers WOULD be nice. I originally drew it with black hardware on the bottom drawers (I had already bought the pink knobs for the top so had included them in drawings), but Shaun asked about white. So I changed the design and it looked nice. So I guess you could say that even though I did all the work, this project was a collaboration. :)

Here is the process, if you were curious or wanted to do something similar.

Step 1: I Removed the Hardware. (Not Pictured, but it is as easy as taking a screwdriver and unscrewing it.) I also removed the trim from the inside since it was missing it on one side. I contemplated getting something like some molding medallions to replace it/even out the  space, but after I took off the other trim, I decided it didn't really NEED it, so let it be.

Step 2: I Gave it a sanding. How much you need to sand it depends on a few factors such as how beat up it is, what you're going to be doing with it (paint/stain, etc).  I sanded the surface scratches away, and decided that some of the gouges gave it charm so didn't worry about those other than to sand the sharp edges. (If your piece has gouges and it bothers you, you can always use wood putty before sanding to fill it. I chose not to take extra steps.) And the spray paint I used was Paint + Primer in one (I used Krylon's ColorMaster), so I didn't need to prime--so I only sanded enough to smooth surface scratches and to remove the shiny varnish top layer.

Step 3: Next, I painted the Drawers. 

Step 4: Now it's time to paint the desk! Once you have drop cloth/painting station set up, don a mask--highly recommended-it's one thing to paint small drawers without one where you can escape the fumes a few minutes later, but not a whole piece of furniture. Now, shake that paint like a Polaroid Picture and follow directions on the can to paint your piece. This part look a long time over a couple days.

Step 5: Relax on the couch after a hard day's painting. You earned it.

[Hubby wanted a picture because he thought I looked cute, but hey, now that my lounging is a documented step, may as well include it. ;)]

Step 6: I cleaned and pained my hardware. Originally, I wanted to replace ALL the hardware and make it more modern, but I could not find hardware that fit the mount screw holes since this desk used non-standard mount distance of 2.5" and standard is 3"--which I learned from spending way too much time looking in Home Depot and online and only coming up with 3"--and since I didn't want to have to extra steps of wood putty, etc., AND I had already painted my drawers, I said "FIIINE, I'll use the existing..." But not without cleaning it first. It was NASTY.

To clean it, I soaked it in Apple Cider Vinegar (but white vinegar would work too,  I just didn't have any on hand) for a couple hours and then took an old toothbrush to it to scrub off the remaining tarnish/dirt. This picture shows before-ish (but still after soaking) and after cleaning. That alone made a huge difference, but it still needed a face-lift. Enter white spray paint.

Step 7: Replace Hardware and put drawers back, and TADA! New Desk is complete.

Before and After:

What a huge difference! It's not perfect (but you have to look for the imperfections), but I am really pleased with the result-a great new sewing desk for me. For my VERY First DIY like this, I am very proud of myself and the result. Now... to rearrange things so I have a place to put said desk...

And just in case you were wondering, this does NOT have to be too expensive. Here's a break down of what I spent, not counting sand paper since that can be used for other projects:

-6 cans of Pink Spray Paint: $27.44 (One can was bought at Michaels a week or so before the project, $5.99 after 40% off coupon, all the rest were bought from Fred Meyer for $4.29 each.)
-1 can Black spray paint: $3.99 (On sale at Fred Meyer, normally $4.29)
-1 can White spray paint: $3.99 (On sale at Fred Meyer, normally $4.29)
-3 Pink "Crystal" knobs on top drawers: $1.50 (on clearance at Michaels for $0.50/each--this actually worked out well because I had seen them for several months at $1.50 each and never bought them because I didn't have a use for them, but the day I was there, they had EXACTLY 3 left. FATE!)
-Desk itself: $10
Total Project Cost: $46.92  Not bad for a total revamp and for something that I love and suits me well!


Hopefully you're feeling inspired! I'd love to hear if you're taking on any DIY projects, too. Thanks for stopping by!

Fall Centerpieces for Under $15

At the end of September, hubby and I renewed our vows for our 5th wedding anniversary (a bit early). We had a very casual, picnic-style renewal, but I still wanted to make it look nice, and we decided on a theme of "Autumn" and got plates, cups, etc. in fall colors.

I also had an idea to make some centerpieces that fit the theme, but didn't want to spend a lot of money. Luckily, I didn't have to. I made these centerpieces for less than $15 total for all 4 of them.

So how did I do it?

The vases are bottles from our recycling bin: Free
The ribbon was $0.50 each so x2: $1.00
Acrylic paint was on sale at Michaels for 6/$2, so I got 6 since you can always use paints: $2.00
Vase fill rocks were also on sale at Michaels, for about $1.25/bag and I got three of them, so: $3.75.
And the flowers/leaves were at the dollar store, and I got 8 of them to make sure the 4 vases were filled nicely, so $8.
Total for 4 centerpieces: $14.75

I knew I wanted to add some color to the vases themselves, so experimented with things like polka dots, stripes, etc., but didn't like the way it looked because then the colored rocks couldn't be seen very well, but there were ridges on the bottle, so I painted those in a pattern and really liked it. When that was dry, I connected the colored ribbons at the ends and crisscrossed them to create the multiple pattern, and then tied a bow and glued it down with a bit of hot glue. Add the rocks and the leaves, et voila! Easy, pretty center pieces that get a lot of attention. I currently have one vase on my desk work as Thanksgiving decorations and people love it-and usually comment that it looks way more expensive than it was. Hooray. :)

Skully Glasses

I recently decided that I should make at least one project a week to keep improving my crafty skills, especially the sewing. So this week, I decided to make a glasses cover for my sunglasses, an idea from Sew What! Bags by Lexie Barnes. This is a great that gives general ideas and measurements for various types of bags-tote bags, small things, etc.

So I made this glasses case for my sunglasses:

That plaid lining is actually from my favorite pair of PJs that ripped over Christmas in a way that was too jagged to repair, so I decided to keep it to be harvested/re-purposed for small projects. It's a great way to get practice fabric, and in this case, it is so soft, it's perfect to protect glasses from getting scratched.

This was a super quick and easy project to make, but I think I mis-measured my sunglasses and therefore made the case a bit smaller than I would have liked by roughly half an inch. It was very cozy around the sunglasses.  But that's OK, that what these projects are for-to learn and improve and be able to adapt.  I think I will make another one soon and make it  bigger so it can have some wiggle room.  Other than that, I think it's cute and I like it.

Recycled and Repurposed Desk Storage

Oh, my, my. I have been a VERY naughty blogger and have not been keeping up on updates. Well, time to fix that! You'll see a lot of posts in rapid fire as I get caught up. Ready? Here we go! Post 3...

You ever feel like you have more pens/scissors/insert desk item here than you have places to put them? I have that feeling all the time.

I have seen some inspiration to turn TP rolls into decorative pen holders, which I may do at some point still (I have plenty of them saved), but I needed a more immediate solution.

Alas, recycling comes to the rescue. I re-purposed a can for decorative storage by adding fun themed paper (from my scraps, so it is extra recycled) and voila, instant help for my craft-stuff-everywhere problem. :)