Before & After: The Early Bird Gets The Hairpin Desk

Ashley Poskin
Ashley Poskin
Ashley traded the quiet life of a small town in a big house for the hustle and bustle of the Windy City. On any given day you might find her working on a freelance photo or blogging gig, wrangling her little darling, or walking Chuck the boxer.
published Mar 4, 2015
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Distressed wooden desk with three drawers and hairpin legs on a hardwood floor.
(Image credit: Ashley Poskin)

I found myself in the vicinity of my favorite thrift store just before the doors opened recently, and while I wasn’t hardcore enough to stand in the sub-zero cold with the other bargain hunters, I made it in early enough to find this lovely hairpin Frankenstein-ish desk.

(Image credit: Ashley Poskin)

I saw it in the back of the store and immediately scooped it up! I didn’t really have a need for (or a place to put) it, but I’ve never had the strength to pass up hairpin legs. The poor thing had this crazy shabby-antiquey treatment going on, the hairpin legs had been added at a later date —it was all over the place. I think it was having an identity crisis.

While I’m usually a traditionalist when it comes to original hairpins, this time I thought I’d branch out and hit them with a little color. I don’t usually do pastel anything, but that baby pink was calling my name! I wanted simple knobs and found some in brushed brass at the hardware store for $1.99, but then decided they were too dark and updated them with some metallic gold paint. I shelled out $15 for the desk and ended up putting $20 in paint and hardware into the makeover.