Hello!
This makeover is a good one, I’m actually pretty impressed at the transformation on this old vanity. I found this vanity over the summer for a steal of a deal (church sales are the BEST!). I believe this was originally made to be a vanity, and the makeup I found in some of the drawers would say the same. Even though vanities aren’t usually as popular as they used to be, this would also be a great desk! So desk, vanity, whichever one this is an impressive makeover!
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Painted Laminate
Overall this vanity desk was in good shape, and someone had recovered the top with a piece of laminate. The laminate was applied really well, no lifting so I decided to paint over it. YES, you can paint over laminate (here’s a video tutorial on how to do it).
I scuff sanded the laminate really well with my pad sander and 120 grit sandpaper. Then I cleaned it off really well and it was ready for paint!
Painting & Glazing
I painted the case in Driftwood Milk Paint. It’s the perfect medium shade of gray, and it has amazing coverage. I didn’t want it to be just gray though, so I pulled out my Winter White glaze and used that to give a more washed driftwood look.
All I did was applied it with a brush and then immediately wiped it back with a rag.
Only work a section at a time, because the glaze dries quick! I just wiped it back evenly until I liked the way it looked. You can also use a wet rag if you need it. And I even went back over it with my brush in a few spots to dry brush it a bit. This is just an extra step that gives it a little more depth than just gray. I wanted this vanity desk to be a showstopper!
See, it just gives the whole piece some dimension. I sealed the top with High Performance Topcoat to make the top a little more durable as a writing desk. Ready to see the whole thing put back together??
Ah, isn’t it lovely?! I sanded back the drawers to raw wood and so the grain would pop and gave them a light coat of Antique Oak stain. I sealed them with High Performance Topcoat in flat finish. I love the combination of this beautiful medium gray and wood stained drawers!
It’s just the perfect combo of wood and paint?! I love the contrast this vanity desk has.The color combo is neutral enough it could be used just about anywhere.
The hardware was all there, so it just got cleaned up and put back on.
I styled the piece with these raw grapevine wreaths – I love how simple they are, the perfect neutral accent.
Thanks for stopping in for this makeover! I’ll be back soon with more transformations that you can do yourself!
Until next time,
Jenni
Jenni,
I love the grapevine wreath shown in your driftwood vanity posts! I’ve never seen ones like that before. Where would I find one like yours?
Thanks!
Betsy
Hi Betsy! Aren’t those fun?! They are simple and eye catching. I found these at Joann Fabrics. They are very inexpensive, and I just added a buffalo check bow to give a little contrast!
Thank you! I wondered about those too, they are lovely!
Wow… that is beautiful! I love the close up pictures of your process. It made the finished product more of a surprise! What a gorgeous piece.
Thank you! I love how this piece came out!
I really like the wood and paint combo. I have a similar desk and would like to do something like it. What is your opinion on combining wood and paint on 3or4 pieces in one room? Should they all be the same paint color?
I love the wood and paint combo! No, I don’t even think the paint colors have to be the same. I think most of the GF Milk Paints coordinate really well together. As long as a few of the pieces are neutral (white, gray, black) you can add a few pops of color to mix it up as well!
I don’t often say “wow”, but WOW!
Thank you!! This was a favorite makeover of mine for sure!!