Ideas for Painting a Desk

Computer and Cookbook Corner Desk

• A boring garage sale desk becomes a kitchen command center with a little paint. Sand the finish to roughen it so new paint will stick. For a distressed look, rub a small candle along the edges and corners to protect those areas from paint. A medium or dark color desk gets one coat of primer and two even coats of seafoam, pale turquoise or buttercream glossy paint everywhere but the top surface of the desk. Once the paint has dried completely, sand the edges and corners with fine-grade sandpaper to remove the wax and reveal the old paint underneath. With two coats of faded gray chalkboard paint, the desk top becomes a built-in doodle pad for grocery lists and recipes. Tape the edges of the desk top with painter's tape while you work to keep the desk color and the chalkboard paint separate. Drawer pulls that look like bent spoons and forks are a culinary touch for a kitchen corner.

Circus Desk for the Short Set

• Little people need desks to keep all their important projects and papers organized. Hunt in church thrift sales and secondhand furniture stores for a small, solidly made desk on legs that can be cut down. A period reproduction or narrow roll-top will come with character already built in. After sanding the piece, paint it a crayon color for high energy. Lipstick red or lime green in a pink and white room is fun. Bright purple or buttercup yellow will pop in a pale blue or dove gray room. If the desk has a hutch or compartments, paint the insides a contrasting color to invite treasures. A child-height stool or chair and a balloon lamp make this desk an official -- but fun -- home office.

Practical Hideaway Office Desk

• A couple of repainted file cabinets and a slab of wood turn a closet into a work room that's out of sight with the door closed. Coordinating the paint colors of the entire alcove will make it seem more spacious than it really is. Paint the walls, ceiling and inside doors the same light color -- a pale apricot or a white tinted with mossy green. Pegboards hung on the doors and floating shelves on the back wall over the desk get the same paint job so they blend in. In the yard or in a well-ventilated space, spray-paint the used file cabinets with a satin-finish metal paint in the same shade as the walls or slightly deeper. Stain and lacquer the wooden slab for a note of elegance. Good task lighting is essential in a closet office space.