Gray Desk/Workstation Makeover
Designing a 'Hipster' Workstation
My kids love when I say the word "Hipster"! They laugh and laugh when I refer to myself and use the word 'hipster'! :) Hey, you can still be a hipster at 40ish right? At least, I keep telling myself that! I can still deal with reality and realize that my definition of 'hipster' may not be my teenagers definition but they do think I'm funny, so bonus on that! So, how do you turn a plain piece of furniture into a 'hipster' workstation, do you ask? I can't wait to show you!
This week I have worked on filling our booth space @ Daisies & Olives. We are gearing up for Fall and of course our fun Halloween decor. I will show you a few of the things we finished this week. I am still working on some more decor that I will finish this week and get our space fully stocked for the month of October. I have also been working on refinishing a media cabinet (the infamous 'hipster' workstation) I bought at one of my favorite furniture resell shops. You may remember this cabinet in our last visit together, when I shared with you that it was about to get a makeover. What I love most about this piece is that it really could be used so many ways. You know how I love repurposing and restyling furniture? It could be a desk/computer cabinet, bar, small armoire, china hutch and I'm sure we could think of lots more uses as well. I made this cabinet over for the more practical use of a desk workspace. A standard chair can be used at the height of the lower shelf for the perfect desk. It also has some great storage and is a nice size without being totally overwelming. The best part is that you can close it up to hide any clutter you may get with a heavily used workspace. (Yes, I speak from experience here)
The cabinet had good structure but it did have some deep scratches that had to be repaired. The scratches are one of the reasons I decided to paint it and often why I paint a piece of good stained furniture. If I were going to restore it to leave it stained, it would require the entire piece to be sanded down to the bare wood, scratches and gouges filled and sanded, then the entire piece restained. It's a great deal of work to do this kind of restoration and...I also, I just like paint! The color I chose was a light gray. (I know, suprise, suprise!)
I replaced the single knob door hardware with industrial style pulls and then distressed it around the edges so that the white primer and wood grain showed through on the edges. I really like the look it gives the furniture and it adds character. Here is a look at the before and one of the deeper scratches. I didn't get an after shot of the fixed scratches but you will just have to trust me when I say that you could not even see them after they were filled, sanded and painted.
The original hardware was a little single round knob which was kind of pathetic. I found some great industrial pull handles and knew they would be great for this baby! Because the original single knob, obviously the door only had one hole. I had to drill a second hole for the new hardware. The original hole was recessed in the back so that the screw was flush with the door. Usually, Garrett will drill the extra holes, recess them with a special drill bit (don't ask me the name, but I know what it looks like). I had never done the recess part before, but since Garrett was at work and I really wanted to get the hardware on, I decided to give it a go. Now, I didn't even ask myself what if I mess up, I just got in there and tried it. It wasn't hard to do by any means, just new to me! I did it without any mistakes, which was a woo hoo moment! (It's the little things people!) I will show you my handywork in the next few pics. The next thing I did to spruce up this cabinet and make a versatile workspace station, was to add cork board to the inside of the doors and paint chalkboard paint on the other; giving this space some upgrades and useful versatility. The industrial handles, the corkboard, chalkboard and the gray color are all the 'hipster' parts to this makeover!
(A little disclaimer before I show you the pics):
I took these pics at the booth space and they are merchandised for the booth space rather than like a work station space. I ran out of time to properly style the piece and take pics at home before I had to meet my deadline of filling the booth space. (This happens a lot!) The pics are also a little shadowy but editing didn't help with this a bunch. So......they are cute pics, I just didn't want you to wonder why in the world I put "Boo" and Halloween pillows inside my desk station! :) Just for fun! You will also see pics of some of the new wooden serving trays, which I used the same industrial hardware from the desk workstation!
In other news, I've been working steadily on updating the blog, adding disclosure and privacy policies and updating pics and other little things that mostly go unnoticed, but are necessary. I also had some very exciting things happen with the blog that I wanted to share with you!
One of the main goals of this blog is to share my DIY experience, some creative craft ideas and painting tutorials. I love to design spaces and I really wanted to share that with people. I also wanted to meet more people who also share in those passions for decorating and DIY. For the last few years, I have been so inspired by other bloggers who also love to share their work and what inspires them. I feel like I've gotten to know some of these talented people through their blogs, even though we have never met face to face. Because of those connections, I felt the need to share with others too, which is what prompted me to start this blog; a year ago today, in fact! Woo Hoo! Happy Birthday!
It's been a great learning experience and one I am grateful for as well as meeting new people and filling a purpose. Along with that purpose, was to create an income for myself to provide for my family. (A girl's gotta eat!) Right now, my income is generated mainly through the items I resell or create for my booth space. But the ultimate goal is to create income generated through the blog by gaining advertisers and marketing products that I already use. Last week I applied to be an affiliate sponsor for "The Painted Fox" and I was accepted! YEAH! The reason I applied was to help promote their lovely home decor and share their incredible styles with you! Some of my blogger friends are featured on their website too!
I do receive a commission on any purchase a reader makes from the link on my Maison Designs Home page, by clicking that link, which directs you to their website. This is just one of the ways to 'monetize' a blog and I will only promote things on the blog that I feel are quality products or products I have used and have opinions on that I would like to share with you! Here is what "The Painted Fox" link looks like on the side bar underneath 'Marketplace Recommendations':
I feel so honored to be a part of "The Painted Fox" affiliate family! So it was a big deal for me and since then, my Pinterest page has kind of blown up. I had 40 new follows just yesterday afternoon, so I feel things are happening where I can reach a bigger audience; a blogger's dream! :) I obviously wouldn't be anywhere close to the goals for this blog if it wasn't for you! Therefore, I wanted to say a big heartfelt "Thank you" to you! (Imagine if you will a big tray of cupcakes that I would love to share, virtually of course!) :) You all are special to me and it is so humbling and touching that you come to this blog each week and care what I have to say! I hope I can inspire you to create and dream and to give you a funny story or quote that brightens your day!
Until next time......thanks again for all your support!
