As this kids have gotten older, they now need their own desks. As we’ve learned from friends with older kids, it’s best to have the kids’ desks out in the open where we can see what’s happening on screen.
I scoured Nextdoor and Craigslist for secretary desks b/c they’re narrow and can close up to hide the mess. Here’s a real antique beauty that sadly, was painted in a glossy white.
While pretty, and probably my preference to keep white, I need the boys to want to use these desks. So I let them choose their colors. This guy was chosen to be cyan. Of course, kid chose the brightest of these cyans, but we settled on a more muted color so that our house doesn’t look like Minecraft exploded everywhere.
I started with a single coat of Annie Sloan Louis Blue. That’s a very flat, one-dimensional look, though, so I mixed a very watery wash of equal parts Louis Blue, Napoleonic Blue and Old White. People keep asking if I’d film videos, but people, it’s hard enough painting and taking pictures! Videos would require, hair, make-up, cute clothes. No chance! I get my painting in between soccer games, football practices and conference calls. Who has time to get ready!? 🙂
Anyway…I digress…
The texture of a wash is like whole milk. Very watery, but still enough to provide some color.
After dipping the brush into the wash, I wipe most of the paint off onto a rag, then use broad, even strokes to apply the color. Then wipe off any excess on the piece with a rag.
You start to see the layered colors here. Then I took the famous Annie Sloan large round brush and started dabbing the brush all over the piece to get an even more layered effect.
2 layers of clear wax and voila…or as Kelly Bundy says “viola!”
I’m on the road right now, so don’t yet have a final photo of the desk in its new spot in the house, but will update this post when I’m home!
Up next…this beauty. Well, not this exact one, but one in green that I picked up on Craigslist. 🙂
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