• Home
  • About
  • Disclosure and Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Browse

Stow&TellU

  • Home
  • DIY & Crafts
    • Craft Projects
    • Home Decor
    • Furniture
    • Storage and Space Saving
    • Holiday Ideas
    • Seasonal
    • LIghting
    • Rooms and Redesign
    • Garden & Outdoor
  • Daily Life
    • Recipes
    • Travel
    • Route 66
    • Perspective
  • Faux and Tell U
    • Faux Round-Ups
    • Faux Techniques and Projects
  • Resource Library
  • Freebies
Home » Faux and Tell U » Faux Techniques and Projects » Salvaged Wood Desk with Faux Leather Top and Bubble Wrap Plaster Texture

Salvaged Wood Desk with Faux Leather Top and Bubble Wrap Plaster Texture

March 4, 2013 By Amy 5 Comments

4 Mar
131 shares
  • Share
  • Email

salvaged wood desk with faux leather top and bubble wrap plaster texture

I have been going on for a while about a wood desk that I have been working on, and believe it or not, I wasn’t making it up. It’s finally DONE!! It needed lots of TLC, but doesn’t everybody? So with a touch of bubble wrap plaster texture on the drawer fronts, a new chalk paint finish and a faux leather desk top cover, this desk is ready for the world.

salvaged-wood-desk

 Faux leather top desk

salvaged-wood-desk-with-leather-top-bubble-wrap-plaster-textureSalvage or Garbage?

I found this desk curbside and waiting for the garbage man, “Hmm. What to do?” I thought to myself, and before I could think on it too long, I asked my friend’s son, Mikey, to help me load it in my truck and home it came= Salvage!!

repaired-desk-top

Upon closer examination, I found that the desk top had a crack in it and a little warpage. I was able to repair the crack and give it a heavy sanding to even out the top to make it work. I knew the top would still have to be covered somehow, because of the wood fill.

The finish also had a lot of wear and tear, so at this point I came to the conclusion that I would have to paint the desk rather than keep the wood finish. Shame, shame because I love this era of wood furniture in particular.

Supplies:

  • Chalk paint (I used DIY chalk paint recipe from I Heart Naptime)

(Paint color: Winter’s Day by Martha Stewart Living)

  • Regular paint in the same color (I didn’t put chalk paint over the plaster textured areas)
  • Craft paint for the accent color under chalk paint

(Color mix of Coffee Bean, Tree Bark, and a dab of Burnt Umber)

  • Craft paint and glaze for the accent color on the plaster textured areas

(Same colors as above mixed with glaze)

  • Paste Wax (I used Minwax Finishing Wax)
  • Clear coat finish for textures areas (I used MinWax Wipe-On Poly)
  • Paint brush
  • Clean cloths
  • 120 or higher sand paper
  • Leather or faux leather piece for desk top (measure +3-5 inches overlap per side)
  • Staple gun and staples (I used ¼” staples)

To see how to apply plaster texture to drawer fronts click here.

To see how to make bubble wrap plaster texture, click here.

apply-paint-worn-areas

Painting Desk Frame (drawer fronts not included in these steps)

  • I applied an accent color using craft paint, to the parts of the desk that I wanted to show through when complete. I focused on the areas that would have natural wear, such as edges and corners. Since this desk already had natural wear, this step was easy! I let accent paint dry over night.
  • Next I applied just a small amount of Vaseline to the accent areas. Once again, I focused on the naturally worn pattern, trying not to overkill on this step. Just a little dab will do ya!
  • To paint the desk, I used a diy chalk paint recipe from I Heart Naptime. This recipe worked out just great, and I couldn’t believe how easy it was to apply this paint. I let the first coat dry for 6 hours, then the second coat overnight.
  • Next I took sandpaper and gently sanded accent areas until I liked the results.
  • Finally I applied paste wax to the entire desk – EXCLUDING the desk top and textured drawer fronts

apply-glaze-to-plaster-texture

wipe-off-glaze

bubblewrap-plaster-texture-wood-desk

Applying Paint Glaze to Drawer fronts:

There are a few methods you can apply when painting and glazing on plaster texture. If you paint the plaster texture with out using primer first, the glaze will soak in more to the surface, but the plaster can soften a bit. If you apply primer over the plaster texture, you will have a better seal, but the glaze will take differently. I suggest trying both methods on scrap board to see which result you like better.

  • After plaster texture was fully dry, I applied 2 coats of primer, then 2 coats of paint, making sure to get the paint into all of the crevices. Let dry completely
  • Applied paint glaze mixture to the drawer fronts. Since the primer is such a good sealer, I had to water down the paint glaze a bunch, and let it dry for an hour or so on the plaster texture.
  • Then I gently rubbed it off with a damp cloth.
measure-cut-faux-leather

staple-under-lip-desk

faux-leather-desk-top

Cover Desk Top with (faux) Leather:

If you’ve ever written a letter on a leather top desk, then you know why they’re so coveted. The way the pen flows so smoothly onto the paper due to the cushioning from the leather, you won’t want to write on any other surface ever again…although, who knows how much longer pen and paper will be around, but as I digress, due to the slight damage on this desk top, I decided to cover it with faux leather, rather than leather (budget) and here is how I did it:

  • Once I had the desk frame complete, I measured and cut a piece of faux leather, allowing about 3-5 inches extra for overlap.
  • I flipped the desk over and laid desk top on faux leather piece
  • I started with four staples, one at the center point of each side, making sure to pull taut.
  • Next I started to staple on each side of the center staples working my way around doing about 5 or 6 staples on each side, and then doing the same to the other sides, making sure to pull fabric snug, working my way to the corners, finally folding and stapling the corners.
  • Lastly I trimmed off excess faux leather.

bubblewrap-plaster-texture-salavaged-wood-desk

salvaged-wood-desk-leather-top-bubble-wrap-plaster-texture

salvaged wood desk with faux leather top and bubble wrap plaster texture

I should call this one the “Plenty-o-TLC desk salvage”, but nevertheless, it’s not in a landfill. Tell me what you think?

131 shares
  • Share
  • Email

Filed Under: Faux Techniques and Projects Tagged With: PAINT and TEXTURE

« A Little Somethin’Somethin’ Coming Soon
St Patrick’s Day Shamrock Shaped Sugar Cookies – No Cookie Cutter Needed »

Comments

  1. Kevin O says

    March 4, 2013 at 11:02 pm

    I’m a fan of traditional natural looking wood. However, it would get boring if you only ever did that look. I think it’s good if you choose to jazz it up like you did above. Great Job!!

    Reply
  2. Brenda Brown says

    February 27, 2015 at 6:58 am

    Hi Amy, I think the job you did on this desk is great. It is so adorable. My husband and I have a desk that we are putting a faux leather top on and we have it stapled on all the sides. We are having difficulty getting the corners done, though. How did you fold/cut/glue/staple the corners so that they are not bulky, wrinkled or tucked? They look so great and we would love to have ours look like that but, so far, have not been able to figure it out. Do you have any advice or photos on how to finish the corners off? Many thanks and nice job!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. A Little Somethin’Somethin’ Coming Soon | Stow&TellU says:
    March 5, 2013 at 4:47 am

    […] This desk is now finished!!  Click here and see how it turned […]

    Reply
  2. 36 Amazing Paint DIYs | Guru Koala says:
    October 2, 2014 at 7:27 pm

    […] 8. Salvaged wood desk transformed with chalk paint, bubble wrap and faux leather Amy Ellis @ StowandTellU […]

    Reply
  3. Featuring Amy from StowandTellU - Restoration Redoux says:
    October 19, 2014 at 10:24 am

    […] This is the desk after I added the bubble wrap texture to the drawer fronts, […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Looking for Something

Hey! We’re Ken and Amy and we’re here to help you inexpensively turn your home into a cozier living space one DIY project at a time. Read more

Browse by Category

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
  • Home
  • About
  • Disclosure and Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Browse

Amazon Associates Disclosure

Stow and Tell U is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an associate, we earn from qualifying purchases designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Copyright

You’re welcome and encouraged to link to StowAndTellU.com or use a SINGLE image with a brief description and a visible link back to any post. Republishing posts in their entirety is prohibited. Please feel free to pin on Pinterest!

Disclaimer

We love sharing ideas and projects with you, however, we cannot guarantee everything will also work for you. As the reader, you assume any risks involved when completing projects seen on this site. We are not personally liable for projects that are completed based on the ideas and inspiration shared here.

Copyright © 2023 · Stow and Tell U

131 shares