The story behind this desk has changed from the following:
"It was my (John's) grandfather's desk. I used it in college and would love to restore it for the kids to use."
to...
"I got it from a buddy in college. It was broken then, too. Anything you do it it can only improve it. Have at it."
So, I have'd at it.
I went online and found the same make and model typewriter desk - Jackson something or other: "Built Like a Stone Wall". The ghostly hinges inside were intened to support a fold open tray upon which one's typerwriter would sit. When not in use, the tray would fold to a diagonal, hiding the typewriter in a hidden tray inside.
Perfect for a laptop in a family of computer game officionados - or at least one - Naomi. Though, Both she and Sophy enjoyed crafting and painting.
But they had no real space to do it. They had a tiny table with undersized chairs, and the supplies scattered here and there across the living room and the house.
Wouldn't it be great if my dear friend, Tania, lived in a world in which there was one designated area for crafts and computer games that, when in use, enchanted and organized the kids and, when dormant, was an attractive storage console for the living room?
Wouldn't it be even better if it had inlaid wallpaper on the drawers (leftover from the fireplace accent wall), repainted surfaces, repaired tray for computer, rods and containters on side to hold crayons and paint brushes, oil-rubbed bronze knobs and pulls, and perhaps a collage of family photos printed in sepis tones hidden underneath the desktop to be revealed only when the desk is open and being used for campy fun family activities?!?!?!
Yes, I thought that would be better, too.
How To:
1. The rods:
A Lowe's find intended to go on magnetic surfaces. Some double sided sticky pads and poof, they attached to the side without any screws that would impede the movement of the drawers adjacent to them.
The purple containers have a lip that hooks easily on the small rod. Only $1 each! I wish they came in white, brown, or clear to do with the desk's color scheme. For about $7 each, there were kitchen containers in white and stainless steel. Not cheap enough and no stainless amongst my oil-rubbed bronze finishes. They can also be washed easily in the dishwasher.
2. Paint:
Simple enough. Sand until rough to touch and dull to shine. One coat of primer. Two coats of color paint. We used the leftover trim paint fromt he living room. I wanted to keep the piece light since it would have so much volume and scale in the space.
3. Repairing the tray:
Tinkering around with a piece of cardboard at first helped me determine the correct alignment for the hinges to fold and unfold appropriately.
I used screws and washers: Where the hinge attaches to the inside wall, I used screws that had thread on the tip and were smooth toward the head. Threads secured into wall and smooth part was frictionless where the hinges pivoted. Washers kept everything from bumping and scarping the wood.
Attaching the tray to the hinges:
Flat tipped screw and a nut did the trick. However, I wish there was a cap to put over the nut to smooth out the look. Oh well.
Tray material:
Another steal. Instead of using a nice wood, or even paint-grad birch plywood, I used MDF (medium density fiberboard) and painted it to match. It's cheap and durab;e to begin with. But I saw a scrap at Lowe's that was close to the right size and they gave it to me for free since it was such a small piece of leftover material. They even cut it for me, though I hit it with a jigsaw later for measurement corrections.
FYI: A Jigsaw is a great DIY starter power tool. It easy to handle, light, and is pretty versatile. I think mine was only $30 or so.
4. Countertop dilemma:
I wanted to use an epoxy coat, which it the stuff that gives wooden bars a water-proof, glass-like finish. Turns out it needs to go on bare wood. Darn. The wood was too damaged and ugly not to paint, and it wouldn't go on a painted surface. Double darn. And we couldn't do a whole new counter top because a section needed to unfold from the rest of the countertop.
Wallpaper to match the inlay on the drawers, you say?
Would have been brilliant if we had wnough leftover and another $200 to splurgle on another double roll. Ouch. It was also washable, which would have been perfect for a painting station.
Triple darn.
A little chocolate colored paint did the trick, and gave Tania the hits of chocolate she was craving.
5. The luscious legs:
Left 'em the same weathered self they already were. It's showed where it's been. The feet of a stranger trying to tell us where he's been, but mute. They were beautiful. And they spoke to the dark bronze finish.
6. The family collage:
We had some leftover sample wallpaper that made for a scrapbook background. Remaining wallpaper paste and an exacto suffice application. I had Tania email me family photos and I used my Mac to retouch and sepia tint them. Printed them on my printer. Deco Paged them onto the wallpaper background. Follow the instruction on the deco page you get from Michael's. Use a sponge brush.
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