Fom a Second Hand Desk To a Zebra

I love to give new life to old things. Furniture just isn't built the same as it once was, and when I found this desk I knew it was meant for better things. I brought it home, dragged it into the garage, and stood over it, trying to visualize just what it could look like. When my daughter arrived off the school bus, she took one look at it and said "I want a zebra desk! That will look so cool in my room!" I wasn't planning on keeping it for her - but I had to admit it would be pretty cool with a zebra pattern. We agreed that if I fixed up the desk for her room, she would have to get rid of several items. "Deal!" she said. I was just glad to get one bag of stuffed animals and some other unused things out of the house. 

I did a quick web search for pattern ideas. I already had an idea of how I wanted to create the zebra print, but I wanted a little reference, like how big and wide each stripe should be, and to copy the randomness of an actual zebra's stripe.

I started by sanding it down, with a fine grit sandpaper, just to take off the dirt and oil from years of use. It also reduced the varnish layers so that paint would stick well.

 I painted the top with one coat of Kilz stain blocker. This helps cover the brown stain. Then I applied two coats of white eggshell finish latex paint. With a Sharpie, I drew the zebra striped freehand from my web search examples. I wanted tehm to be larger to make a bigger impact and so I wouldn't have to paint itty-bitty ones. Then I filled in each stripe with black satin finish latex paint. I did two coats of black on each stripe, making sure to keep the edges sharp. That's what gives it the authentic look.

 The drawers were more fun! Since this was for a girl's room, I wanted to add the pink as an accent and to offset the bold black. I painted teh inside of each drawer with two coats of bubblegum pink latex paint that I had left from painting her room. I used duck tape across the front of each drawer, lining it up but keeping the pattern offset just a bit. This is my favorite part! 

I removed the drawer pulls before I applied the duck tape - I spray painted them pink and let dry before reattaching to the drawer fronts. The pink from the inside of the drawers just peeks out, and gives the pattern a bit more definition.

 For teh sides and base, I used a glitter black paint that made a nice finish and detail to the rest of the desk. The back was not going to show, but I did the panels in white since I had just enough paint. I hate to save small amounts of paint if I don't have to!

 Here is the finished look. Next is to find the right chair to match - pink? Or black?
I am really proud of how this DIY project came out, but I'm already on the lookout for another that I can do MY way.