Fairy Tale Furniture - 1930's Secretary Desk

Happy snow storm! I mean, Oh Darn! Haha! As the snow moves in I finally get to sit and take a break. Well sorta, I still have a boyfriend and needy cat that require my attention. I believe a snow storm serves a reminder that we all need to just sit back and relax once and a while. Mother nature is now granting us, (hmmm, some of us.. sorry folks) a day of TLC. So I decided to catch you up on this exhausting but yet unique piece I have been working on. It's a 1930's Secretary's Desk. When I first laid my eyes on it I thought ... "Did this just appear from a fairly tale?" I swear it was something Cinderella would use to store her belongings. Mermaid Skeleton key and all! So, I had to have it. Boy oh boy I didn't realize the work I had coming to me! It didn't look like it was in such bad shape but it need more TLC than I thought. Here take a look for yourself...

Beauty right!? Well, there were layers and layers of paint and poly on this beauty and oh yeah dust and grime! Piece by piece I took this Secretary's desk apart. Shelves came out, doors came off, and hardware was stripped. It took hours with a belt sander and my little mouse (for cramped areas, or corners). Most pieces just need a good wipe down but there was way too much dust left on this desk. So instead I took my hand held vacuum and cleaned the dust and dirt that covered the desk.

 There were a few spots that needed some repair before I could attempt to go further and paint. So I took out the wood glue and clamps and patched up the cracks and crevices to restore the former glory. With all the spots that needed fixing I had to let it sit and dry overnight just to sand down the spots AGAIN the next day.

 

Then I finally got to paint! YAHOOOOO! I wanted to create a vintage distressed look since it fit the piece so.  I first used a primer and then I chose a sky blue (which I wanted to show as the base color)and over that a nice light grey. The inside I decided to keep all blue for a simple but yet elegant look. This is where painters tape came in.

Since this piece was so old I wasn't able to get all new hardware. But it also wasn't in bad shape. I scraped off some of the old paint and (Thank You Nicole Curtis!!!!!) used an old crock pot to remove the rest of it. I used a little metallic spray paint to restore a new look to the hardware. So now as I put the shelves back in, doors back on, and hardware screw on I only had one last step left... distressing the outside. This process actually sounds pretty simple but it was a lot of hard work and a lot of time. I had to allow ample drying time after every coat that I had applied. So after this snow storm passes and all the snow melts... ha ha OK well I guess when its cleared up... I will get back to the studio and finish the most exciting part of this whole project! Check back to see the final piece all done and looking beautiful again!