Ugly Home Office Makeover – Part 5: The DIY File Cabinet Desk and How Chip Gaines’ Hair Inspired Me

Happy Sunday!

We all love Fixer Upper’s Chip and Joanna Gaines, right?

They’re sweet, authentic, wholesome, family focused, successful but humble.  Joanna is beautiful, talented and smart.  Chip is funny and pretty smart too 🙂 What’s not to love?

So what do Chip and Jo have to do with this week’s Ugly Home Office Makeover? 

READ ON to find out how their book – The Magnolia Story – and Chip’s hair – that’s right, Chip’s hair – inspired the color palette for my DIY File Cabinet Desk.

INSPIRATION

The plan for this week was to build a DIY File Cabinet Desk for my office.

This gorgeous desk built by Pam at Over The Big Moon was my inspiration for this week’s project. ??

The DIY File Cabinet project was a blast!.  It did take some unexpected turns with the color choices, but I couldn’t be happier with the results. ?

The Project

This week’s project was broken down into the following steps.

1. Purchase materials and supplies
2. Build the desktop
3. Attach legs to file cabinets
4. Paint the file cabinets

1 – PURCHASE MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

One of the big factors in shopping this week was the budget.  We have $355.36 remaining in the budget and several projects to go.  I’m starting to feel the pressure! ?

So for this week’s project, thrift was of the essence.

I turned to my OfferUp app to find file cabinets, and it didn’t let me down.  I found this pair on OfferUp for $50, made an offer of $40 and got them!  ?

Greg and I met up with the guy selling the cabinets – here you can see Samson doing a quick inspection for us.  They passed his inspection ?, so we took them home.

The main purchase for the desk besides the filing cabinets was wood for the desktop.

We browsed Home Depot and came up with tons of options, but were looking at a minimum of $50 to get what we needed.

That is, until Greg found a piece of pine plywood for $25 that was the perfect size.

We were able to get it cut down into two 82″ x 24″ pieces that could be stacked and screwed together to get the thickness I was wanting, which turned out to be 1 1/2″  Good job Greg! ?

From the beginning, I had really wanted a high top desk that would allow me to sit or stand when working, which meant we would need to add legs to the file cabinet.

The legs needed to be 9″ to get the desk to a height of 36″, but the budget couldn’t support the cost of 8 legs, which would have been between $30 and $50.

Necessity is the mother of a frugal shopper, or something like that, so we ended up buying 3 of these 36″ balusters and had them cut into 9″ pieces.   This cost a whopping $2.22 for 12 legs! (We only needed 8 legs but 12 gave us some test pieces, so why not for an extra 74 cents??)

For the leg mounting hardware, I turned to good ol’ Amazon and found these for $7.99 per kit.

I ordered 2 kits for a total of $15.98 and couldn’t have been happier with them!

There were a few other purchases at The Home Depot, including paint and stain (complete list at the end).

2 – BUILD THE DESKTOP

The first step in building the desk was to distress the desktop.   I wanted it to look old and weathered, so I chose these tools of destruction to start the job.

Here I am taking out all my pent up frustrations on the board while Sam holds the other one down for me – he’s such a good helper ?

I randomly tried different techniques.  Here, I’m hammering the teeth of a saw into the wood…

Which yielded these nice marks.

I used different sized drill bits to add some holes to the wood.

I tried anything I could think of to make this fresh pine look old.

Dragging the crowbar across the wood to create lines… hitting the wood with both sides of the hammer… banging the crowbar and screwdrivers into and across the wood with the hammer.

It was random and creative – and a TON OF FUN!

Next, it was time to stack and attach the boards to one another.

Each board is 3/4″ thick, so Greg used 1 1/4″ wood screws drilled into the underside of the bottom board to join the two boards.

All ready for the next step – sanding.

The stacked boards ended up having slight differences in size and angles on a couple of sides.

No worries, though!  I broke out the coarse grit sandpaper…

And my handy (pun intended ?) Dewalt palm sander to even the edges.

Then I switched to fine grit sandpaper to prepare the top for stain.

I sanded well all around the edges to take away some of the sharpness and give the wood a softer appearance.

Since I wanted a weathered look, I chose this Weathered Gray stain by Varathane.

I started by staining the underside of the desk top to try out the stain, since it didn’t need to be perfect – GOOD THING!

As soon as I started applying the stain, I could tell I didn’t like it – the color, or the way it went on.  It seemed more like paint than stain.

And it dried SO fast, I could barely wipe any off, even after only a couple of minutes.

In all fairness, I was outside, so there was a little wind and sun that probably contributed to the dry time.

This is what it looked like after one coat.  I hated it ?  Ugly, ugly, ugly.  It looks like splotchy painted wood.

After it was dry to the touch, I went ahead and rubbed on this Howard Feed-N-Wax wood polish to see what would happen.

 

I normally use Minwax satin polyurethane as a topcoat, but wanted a softer matte finish this time..

And this bottle was really cute. ?  And it had good reviews, so I figured it was worth a try.

Normally I would have waited a few hours, or even overnight, before applying any kind of topcoat.  You can see below that the polish lifted LOTS of stain, most likely because it was applied way too soon after staining.

This didn’t really bother me because I was more or less experimenting at this point.

Now it was time to tackle the top side of the desk – the side I DID care about.

First, I tried diluting the stain with lacquer thinner that I had on hand using a 1:1 ratio of stain and thinner.  I was hoping this would make it go on less “paint like” .

? Meh.  Still not what I had in mind.

Now it was time to get creative.  Before starting this project, I had considered using a “whitewash” technique, but decided against it.

Not thrilled with how things were going so far, I decided to revisit the idea.  

Normally, whitewashing means that you mix paint and water to dilute the paint, then apply to the surface.

For some reason unknown to me now, I decided to use undiluted paint.

I rubbed it into the wood, not even bothering to wipe it off (because another plan was brewing by now).  It dried REALLY fast, soaking right in to the wood.

Here’s the desktop after applying paint to the entire thing.  DEFINITELY not what I had in mind. ?

But thankfully I had this trusty coarse grit sanding block.

I went to town on the paint, working in the direction of the grain and applying very firm pressure.  It was quite the arm workout.

Getting closer…

I did a final sanding with the palm sander using fine grit paper to smooth everything out.

I went ahead and applied the Howard Feed-N-Wax, once again not giving the paint and stain more than 30 minutes of dry time, but this time it was intentional.

I wanted to lift some of the paint and stain to let the natural wood peak through.

Ahhh…. now this is what I had in mind.  Distressed, weathered and old (looking).

Love the sheen the Feed-n-Wax polish gives the wood!!  ??

After shifting gears several times, I was finally able to get the desktop finish to match my vision.

That’s the fun of DIY projects – if something doesn’t go as planned or you make a mistake, it gives you a chance to get creative and learn something new!

Next, it was on to the base of my desk – the file cabinets.

3 AND 4 – ADD LEGS AND PAINT THE FILE CABINETS

I had a REALLY tough time deciding what color to paint the file cabinets. Light? Dark?  A pop of color? Here they are, waiting patiently for my decision.

These file cabinets aren’t wood and they aren’t metal.  I’m not sure what they’re made of, but they feel almost like vinyl (??).

Anyway, I knew they needed a base of primer, so the first step was to spray on the primer.

[Yes, my drop cloth is a Pokemon sheet.  I have a Space Jam drop cloth too. This is what happens when your kiddos grow up ?]

While I sprayed the primer on the drawers, Greg worked on installing the hanger bolts into the legs.  He was the “leg man” on this project ?

The hanger bolts came with the leg mounting kit that I purchased on Amazon, which was a bonus!

These bolts are inserted into the legs. They allow you to screw the legs into the mounting plates that attach to the furniture.

We found this tutorial that explains how to install the bolts into table legs – so simple and VERY effective!

And here are the bottoms of the file cabinets with the mounting plates attached.

Next, Greg screwed the legs into the mounting plates.  Thankfully we bought those extra legs because one was cut too short and had to replaced. Backup materials = ?!

I got to work on priming the cabinets.

After getting everything primed, I still needed to figure out how and what color to paint the file cabinets.

I had originally thought I would spray paint them, but decided against it because:

• It was a windy day, and I had already ended up with approximately half the primer blowing back on me as I sprayed.  At least it seemed that way.
• I didn’t want to move the whole operation to the garage.
• Paint color selection is much more limited with spray paint.

So I opted to chalk paint the file cabinets using this DIY Chalk Paint recipe, which I’ve been using for several years, and LOVE ?!

One of the benefits of chalk painting is that you usually don’t need to prime.

In this case – because of the [undetermined] file cabinet material – I think it definitely helped to start with a primed surface.

But I still needed to decide on a color. 

This literally took me hours – I kept looking at the desk top, which was in my office at this point.

I had already collected a few books that I wanted to use to style my desk.

And then it hit me!

Unintentionally – or maybe subconsciously (??)…

The color scheme of my desk and DIY Shiplap Wall Hanging from last week was almost a color-for-color match to the cover of The Magnolia Story!  (Which, by the way, is amazing – highly recommend!)

Even the books that I had stacked were a blue that tied in with Chip’s jeans!

And then, there it was, right before my eyes… BLUE!

Blue would be the perfect complement to the desktop, and it would be a nice contrast to the SW Repose Gray wall color.

I went on a hunt for blues and landed on Benjamin Moore Gentleman’s Gray after reading this article.

Admittedly, it doesn’t look very gray.  

I loved the color – or at least how it looked on my screen – so off we went to Home Depot (again) to get a few sample pots mixed in Gentleman’s “Gray”.

I started with painting the drawers.

The first coat didn’t look impressive, but it never does with chalk paint.

The second coat, though, was a different story.  BIG difference!

I finished both coats on the drawers…

Then moved on to the cabinets.

Once the cabinets had dried, I removed the legs so I could paint them.

I had purchased this Rustoleum copper spray paint at the beginning of the project with dreams of adding copper accents to my office.  

 I just wasn’t sure how at the time.

After deciding on blue paint for the file cabinets, another thought hit me.  Continuing with The Magnolia Story color scheme… what last color was missing?

Why, the color of Chip Gaines’ hair!!  Isn’t his hair sort of a… copper-y color? Yes, I believe it is!  Thanks Chip ?

Here was my big chance to use the copper spray paint – for the legs and drawer pulls!  Yippee!

I used just one coat on the legs – don’t you love the way the grain of the wood still shows through the paint?? ?

Good golly, I’m in love with this paint!! ?

Now it was time to put the file cabinets back together and move them into my office.

Oh happy day!  And then – the moment of truth – we placed the desktop on the file cabinets.  Perfection!! ??

We decided not to attach the desktop to the file cabinets since the weight of the wood alone holds it in place.

I was a little concerned about how stable the desk would be resting on the file cabinets, especially with the addition of the legs, but it turned out to be quite stable.

[Disclaimer: If you have small children in the house, I would recommend using additional wall mounted brackets to secure the desktop to the wall.]

The final step was to add a couple of coats of wax to the file cabinets.  When chalk painting, wax is what gives the paint a soft matte sheen.

I always use this SC Johnson Paste Wax.  It’s inexpensive and works great, but it is STINK-Y!  Be sure to use in a well-ventilated area!

After waxing, I added the copper-painted drawer pulls. Since I literally just finished this today, I’ll wait until tomorrow to buff the wax but other than that…  I AM DONE!

And here she is… my very own DIY File Cabinet Desk ??

Goodness gracious, I’m a happy girl!

Chairs are on the shopping list – I’m hoping to find some I can refinish.  More to come on that in the next few weeks.

The Budget

If you’ve been following the series, you know that there is a $500 budget for the entire makeover.  After last week’s Shiplap Wall Hanging, I was left with $355.36 in the budget.

As with last week, I’ll skip the cost breakdown in this post.

The total spent for wood, balusters and mounting hardware for the legs, file cabinets, paint and stain was $129.16, which leaves $226.20 in the budget.

That does not include $29.99 for the cute copper lamp that I purchased from Target, which will be added to Week 9’s expenses.

[NOTE: The total spent doesn’t include tools or materials we had on hand, like stain and paint]

Materials Used

• (2) Filing Cabinets
• (1) large piece of pine plywood, cut down to 82″ x 24″
• (14) 1 1/4″ Wood Screws (for attaching desktop boards)
• (1) can of stain; I used Varathane Weathered Gray but wasn’t thrilled with it
• Lacquer Thinner or Mineral Spirits (optional; only used because of the issues with the stain)
• White paint (not much, maybe 3-4 oz?)
• Coarse Block sander
• (2) cans of Rustoleum Painter’s Touch 2X Primer (spray)
• (2) sample pots of Behr flat paint mixed in Benjamin Moore Gentleman’s Gray
• SC Johnson Paste Wax
• (1) Can Rustoleum Copper Metallic spray paint
• (1) Can Rustoleum Painter’s Touch 2X Matte Clear Coat (spray)
• Lots of old t-shirts/rags (lint free)

Tools Required

• Drill
• Orbital Palm Sander

What’s Next

This project was so much fun!  I love starting with a vision that evolves throughout the process, and that was definitely the case this week!  ?

• PART 1: Intro
• PART 2: Design Layout and Select Color Palette for Walls, Furniture and Accessories
• PART 3: Paint Walls
• PART 4: Install and Paint Shiplap Accent Wall
• PART 5: Build and Install Desk
• PART 6: Refinish “Printer Stand” Dresser
• PART 7: Build and Hang Industrial Shelving
• PART 8: Add Accessories and Wall Decor
• PART 9: Wrap-up and Big Reveal

The next project in the series is Refinishing the Printer Stand.  I anticipate that this will be one of the easier (and cheaper) projects, and I’m not too upset about it!

And now, it’s time to announce this week’s HOMPOW (Home Office Makeover Prize of the Week) winner.  

We had several great comments on last week’s blog, so I took all the names, tossed them in a pile and had my daughter draw one ?

And the winner is…

Thanks, Katie, for your sweet comment on last week’s post.  Send me your email address and I’ll get your $25 Home Goods e-Gift Card out right away!

For the upcoming week’s contest, just leave a comment below on anything in this post and YOU will qualify to win a…

$25 Magnolia Market Gift Card

(Winner announced next week in the Part 6 post)

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