My grandmother has the exact same desk, just like it! I used to do my homework on it

I love the patina on the original.

It's cute and the paper is fun for a kid, but I have to say I'm getting kind of tired of everyone putting patterned paper on wood furniture.

I can tell they put a lot of work into it but the paper looks kinda wrinkly.

I hate to add to the negative comments but I don't think the orangey stain was horrid. I like it.

Oh wow thank you for featuring our rolltop desk. To reply to some of the comments. As mentioned in the blog post, when I took the "after" pics of the desk I hadn't modpodged the paper down because I wasn't sure if that was the final look I wanted. So that would be why the paper is wrinkle. And the rolltop desk is only real wood on the top, which is why I couldn't stain it as planned. Thanks :)

Perhaps the color in the after pics doesn't do it justice. I had to read to find out which was before and which was after...

What a fun idea! Love those stripes. I have a desk like this and was wondering what to do with it. I like this solution. :)

I like it! I think it breathes new, youthful life into the desk. And I love the light gray color with the dark wood floors and the golden?/copper-ish? handles!

I wish the term "dated" would go away.

I love it- well done!

I think it's really cute and creative. The before was indeed horrid, orangey and dated.

I love the new look. I've encountered the "this isn't wood enough to refinish" issue with vintage pieces before too. Just because it's old, doesn't mean it's high quality.

Whether it's to our tastes or not, the point is that they recycled it into something they would enjoy, want. Great job! I'm sure the child you're giving it to will be delighted, especially since it was done especially by you for him.

I like the before.

I like that they didn't abandon it after realizing that the base wasn't solid wood - their end product looks nice. That's upcycling. I think maybe it belongs over on ReNest!

I think it looks great. I'm generally not a fan of wood - unless it's a wood floor.

I never say this but it looked better before. i am not a wood purist, but this looks lousy.

Wow, the leg area is so narrow. People were skinny back then, huh? ;o)

I think the after is cute, and perfect for a little girl with the peppermint striping. very sweet. I can see her keeping her trinkets in it.

Sorry, I think the after looks pretty blah.

That grey is awfully institutional looking.

I don't find the grey with the stripes to be very appealing, perhaps it is a different color in real life. The original looks quite nice but I can understand the appeal of a painted desk for a kid.

I also don't much like the color choices, the paint or the paper, in the after. Whether I would have like the before color would depend on what the light in the room made it look like, and what else was in the room to coordinate with.

If you want to paint something, paint it. Don't make excuses for it though. Many antiques are made with different wood species. If they are both nice wood, they can look great if both are left to show their own grain and color, for a two tone effect. As the author was dismayed when the lower section was stripped, I am guessing it was builder quality wood, not nicely grained hardwood like the top. This doesn't make it "fake," just lower quality. Often, when the stain to be used was an opaque stain, one that looks painted on rather than wiped on letting the wood grain show through, it is a dead giveaway that some or all of the wood is builder grader and not furniture grade wood. Even these can be stained to look good, though it might take a little mixing of stain colors, or using a more opaque stain, as on it originally.

I'm confused about the author's statements about the wood. On the site I clicked through to, it said the lower section was a different type of wood. If it was ugly wood, or plywood even, one could stain it, as the author wrote it probably would look fine if they had stained it. In response to coments above, the author says it wasn't real wood, which I don't get, as I've never been able to stain chipwood, MDF, other engineered wood products, or plastics.

Learn about wood. That way you have a clearer idea of what you are getting. If you are going to end up painting the whole thing anyway, you can save the stripping time.

It is hard to tell what this is from the descriptions and pictures, but I'm guessing it was some nice wood, likely maple, guessing from the original stain color, and some builder grade wood. As I don't think this piece would ever look good entirely painted, I'd have likely stained the nice parts, and painted the lesser wood with a darker colored milk paint, for a classic look, as I am not a fan of opaque stains.

This is another display of ruining a nice piece of furniture.

Sorry, but I loved the original... :)

aww Anita, it's for a 4 year old, that's a harsh remark.
It looks bright and I can imagine there will be colorful toys on it.

Looks fun, my daughter would absolutely love a desk like that! The after works much better in the surrounding decor than the orange version, and I like how the horizontal stripes of the paper mimic the lines of the desk top. What happened to the chair? Did it get revitalized too?