When I was a kid my grandmother (“Mama,” Polish for “mother,” because that’s just what I ended up calling her) got me a little antique desk from the church school across the street from her house. You know, the kind with the seat attached to the right-hand desk, metal legs, and a cherry-ish wood top. My mom painted it at least five times, changing the metal from the original silver to green, pink, beige, and probably a few other colors. It’s been sitting in my parent’s house for a while now just waiting for my son to use it, and this past weekend I finally got the urge to paint it. To be fair, my mom was one step ahead of me and sanded it before I got there to pick it up. She also gave it the second coat of chalkboard paint. So technically, this was our project.
Wondering how it turned out? Here is my mini-monster’s brand NEW big boy desk!!
Looks great! ...and fits our criteria for "non-kiddish looking!"
The metal parts are painted in Benjamin Moore’s Barren Plain (the same as the wall it sits on) and the desk and seat are chalkboard paint. I have yet to write on it, because…well, giving my 18 month old chalk indoors would be a really bad idea right now. Shudder. We’ll stick to crayons on paper (and in mouth) for a while.
Serious desks produce serious work.
I love it, and he does, too!
Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.
Paint It What I Tell You 
Just found your cute desk while looking for ideas to makeover an old metal desk of my own. Super cute.
Thanks, April! He is getting a lot of use out of it, but we are still working on appropriate use of chalk 🙂
–Jessica