I purchased this desk off of Facebook Marketplace a couple weeks ago. The price was originally $55 but when my husband went to pick it up, the top portion had fallen off and the owner dropped the price to $35.
I still thought it had a lot of potential and got to work trying to give it a second life.
Because of the amount of work needed, it will definitely be a two-part blog series.
This is part one:
This is the top part of the desk. I removed the old veneer then reattached it to the base.
The veneer was coming off in a lot of places and needed to be glued down. I collected every size clamp we had in our garage to tackle this job
I also got out my wood glue syringes. They are a must have when working with veneer.
They are easy to use. Simply fill the syringe with glue, put on blunt needle and then inject away.
It gets into all the hard-to-reach areas which is key for a better bond.
I wasn’t kidding about the clamps!
There are two small doors on the desk that have beautiful detailing. One was in great shape and the other not so much. I had to work really hard but, in the end, I was able to save it!
The veneer on the drawers could not be saved.
Some of it came off easily, but the rest was stuck on pretty good.
I used a wet paper towel to help loosen the glue.
The veneer started coming off a little at a time. I repeated the same process until it was all off.
The wood underneath was in good shape and sanded nicely.
When I removed the veneer, the raised molding came off. I saved it so I could put it back on.
There were some chips in the veneer that I had to fill.
I used DRYDEK spackling. After it dried, I sanded it smooth.
I used wood glue and a small paintbrush to put the molding back on the drawers.
When I paint it, this detail will really stand out.
This is as far as I got after several days of resuscitation! I am getting excited about the finished product! Watch for Ladies French Writing Desk Revamp: Part Two!