apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I like how that came out. I read the comments in the original post, and given my own experience*, I would tend to agree that it looked interesting before, but now you've personalized it and I think the effect is good.

*I bought an old pivot top table and "refinished" the base, it was a nightmare, and it's on my list of things to re-refinish. It had old chipped white paint, which I tried to peel and strip off with the same citri-strip, but it all wouldn't budge, so I decided to make the best of it with blue paint, which all wouldn't stick. With a lot of rubbing and sanding (similar to your "discovery" process), I got some fake barnyard-found blue and white "patina" that's making me very unhappy! I have since bought, I think, more proper tools to make the paint come off. I think I would much rather bare wood and some wax finish than anything. It's a shame I ruined it, really, though it wasn't in great shape (the top, which I also intend to repair, carefully, with a plan) to begin with.

Anyway, your project reminded me of mine, but yours came out nice and encourages me to try again. It's been over 3 years. I like the screenprinted image. Without it, I think it would look sort of ordinary, but still ok.

Great job. The finished product is really nice. Love the images.

Just an FYI for new DIYers:
Since the desk was to be painted (rather than stained) it could have been sanded instead of stripped. Much easier and no chemicals! Because the desk is simple (no tiny crevices or fancy carving), an electric palm sander can often get the job done much faster and with much less work.

Also, wood will NEVER look the same after it has been chemically stripped. The chemicals alter the wood somehow, and it is just not the same. Obviously if you're painting, it doesn't matter. But if you plan to stain the item, it is something to consider. Sometimes it is better to sand, if possible.

beautiful refinish!! one Q: you said :

burning the image to a screen, applying ink, and screening directly onto the surface.

could you explain a bit further?? how do you burn the image to a screen? what kind of screen?
sorry i sense it's a basic Q, but i've never done it.
if i learn this, there's all kinds of things i can do around here.......

I'm interested in learning more about the screen printing process as well...

Ashley
rainycitystyle.blogspot.com

I really liked the aged character of the before desk, and thought the white would have worked better with the (really great) blue chair. nice printing, though.

Another beautiful thing ruined - you really made sure you got rid of the charming original hardware and front detailing, didn't you? Next time, get some IKEA plywood junk and leave things with a soul to those who can see it.

wait, wait, wait....so he took that perfectly knocked-around white desk and painted it some weird blue color and then screenprinted it??? AND he removed the fantastic original hardware and replaced it with ugly drawer pulls from Home Depot?

i seriously don't get it.

also, why is there an armchair in front of it? it's seriously dwarfing the desk.

The end product is nice, but I liked it better before... more to taste, I guess. In fact, I liked it the most when it was all stripped down. Different strokes, as they say.

I liked it before too, but if it works better with his decor in it's new incarnation then more power to him. :)

i think it looks beautiful and stately. and i love the slight contrast of the chair's darker blue with the light blue of the desk, and the screenprint is wonderful!

i would have been very uncomfortable with the desk in its before phase; i need a nice smooth writing surface without bumps, chips or imperfections. i have a great deal of wood furniture in my home; about half is painted and half is not. in the end, it was whatever worked best for the piece, for the space, and for me - which is what makeovers of personal property should be about.

bromelia, can you explain your outrage over his choice to strip and paint? i would understand if he had been going around tagging furniture in museums with spray painted graffiti, but this seems like a marker of personal taste. i don't understand why that might be threatening.

STOP with the nastiness. If you haven't touched a piece, you can't really tell whether it can remain as is. A surface can look acceptable from afar or in a photo, but then ghave residue, or goop, or a rough bumpy surface that makes it impractible in its current state.

It's a shame. The before looked cool, and had a lot of character you can't buy. I like the thought of old shape mixed with something fun and more modern/eclectic (what i'm assuming you were going for with the unexpected screenprinting). However, I think the piece and you're end product would have been better served by maintaining the look of the original white desk. Then adding a more modern desk chair with it, like a 60's black and chrome chair. As well as a modern or eclectic lamp for the desk. Now that the desk has been changed, I would urge you to find another chair to go with it. Chair looks great, just not with that desk. The scale is way off, and not in a good/interesting way. It looks like a mistake. Good luck. You clearly have the energy and willingness for hard work. Maybe thinking more about the big picture of end product (look/accessories/placement/what goes with it) vs. what do i do with this single piece might save some work and have a more designed vibe.