My New Desk with a Regency Update

ByMelissa Riker Updated

desk makeover

A while back I shared with you my new home office.  I had been using an old dining table (that I made over with contact paper!) as my desk but to be completely honest it wasn’t really working for me.  I needed storage-and lots of it.  I barely had room to work in the office because the desktop was always covered in, well…stuff.

Office Makeover

So when my next door neighbor offered to sell me her awesome desk for only $50 I jumped at the chance. This thing is big.  And heavy.  Oh so heavy.  So it sat in my garage for two week while I figured out what to do with it.  It had a really nice ivory color with a distressed finish and I knew that it wouldn’t work in my office which is very crisp whites and metallics.  My husband spent days trying to talk me out of painting it but I knew it had to be done.  Honestly, if I could have found a place downstairs for it I would have left it the way it was, the finish was actually very similar to the buffet-turned-media stand we recently painted.

desk before

But when it came down to it I have one room in this house that is my retreat just for me and if this desk was going into my office I wanted to give it a touch of the Hollywood Regency style I’ve been obsessed with lately. I decided to paint the desk with white lacquer spray paint (Valspar) to get that super shiny finish common in Regency pieces.  I had never used lacquer paint before and to be honest I didn’t love it.  It was very difficult to get a good finish without drips and the fumes-good gracious the fumes!  It was worth it, and I only used two cans to finish the entire desk.

A large white and brown desk with a few decor items on top

I love the glossy finish in the bright white.  It makes the wood top “pop” and blends perfectly with the rest of my office decor. The best part of this little makeover however were the new drawer pulls I found on eBay, they really put the finishing touch of the desk!

desk hardware

I paid $18 for six pulls shipped-awesome deal, right?! I’m so beyond pleased with the change in the office and all that storage I now have so I can at least {attempt} to stay organized!! What do you think? Would you have left the desk as it was or do you like the change?

Desk Update Collage

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21 Comments

  1. How gorgeous and wonderful that looks in your office. If you are anything like me, there can never be enough storage areas in a desk!

    Reply

  3. Love the finish and those super awesome pulls your scored on eBay!! Your new to you desk looks right at home in your office!

    Reply

  8. I have this exact desk!! It’s from the Christopher Lowell collection from Office Depot. We bought 4 pieces. It looks great in white! If even get around to the second floors, maybe we’ll try paint too 😉 Do ya love it? It’s got so much storage. Hope you enjoy it hun.

    Reply

  12. We used to have 2 desks exactly like those. They’re Christopher Lowell from Office Depot. We sold them when we moved, though, because our new house had built-in desks in the loft. I do still have the filing cabinet, though. If I ever decide to get rid of it, I’ll be sure to let you know first!

    And you are right, that desk is HEAVY!

    Love how you transformed it. And the pulls are amazing.

    I’ve been crushing on Hollywood Regency, too. So want a Hollywood Regency chandelier.

    Reply

    1. Thanks Amy! I could live Hollywood Regency lately but my husband isn’t quite the convert I am!

      Reply

  13. It is totally fabulous. I love it. What a great piece and perfect in your room. I host a weekly party called Inspire Me. It will be live Monday evening. I would love for you to add me to your party list and link up. http://www.astrollthrulife.net Hope to see you there, Hugs, Marty

    Reply

  14. It looks amazing! And heavy. A lot of space is needed in the office, you did the right thing by buying this desk. I have a similar one and drawers are a lifesaver when you need to clean your cluttered desk. Which is quite often in my situation.

    Reply

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