Nav Social Menu

The Vanderveen House

Tips from accidental real estate investors

  • Start Here
    • About Us
    • Policies and Contact
  • Fix and Flip Houses
    • 1st House: Run down bungalow
    • 2nd House: New build
    • Flip House
    • 3rd house: Outdated split level
  • Buy and hold properties
    • Fourth house: New build raised bungalow
    • Rental House
    • Cabin in the Woods
  • DIY Projects
    • Craft Ideas
    • Furniture Makeovers
    • Woodworking
    • Outdoor Ideas
    • Gardening
Home » DIY Projects » Furniture Makeovers » Desk Makeover Using White Milk Paint

DIY Projects Furniture Makeovers

Desk Makeover Using White Milk Paint

I found this vintage french provincial desk at a yard sale quite a few months ago.  I just can’t help myself, whenever I see a piece of furniture at a yard sale, I have to rescue it. Especially if I know it’s a solid piece of furniture.

This desk was fairly dirty and had some surface mold on it. The original paint was scratched and dirty and quite yellow, but I thought it would look really nice with a coat of bright white milk paint. I’m going to show you how I transformed this yard sale find with white milk paint and other hardware store supplies.

French provincial desk makeover using general finishes milk paint snow white. French provincial furniture makeover

Supplies

  • Primer
  • White Milk paint
  • Paint brush
  • Foam roller
  • 220 grit sandpaper
  • Polycrylic
  • ORB spray paint

*This post contains affiliate links, which means I may get a small commission if you purchase anything through my links, at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting me and my blog!*

Clean and sand

To begin with, I removed all the desk hardware and took out the drawers. Then I cleaned the desk with vinegar and water and let it dry. I lightly sanded all the surfaces with 220 grit sandpaper to make sure the paint had something to stick to. If the surface is really shiny, there is a greater chance the paint will flake off.

French provincial desk makeover using white milk paint

One coat of primer

My plan was to use general finishes white milk paint. Usually you don’t have to prime with this type of paint. However, in my experience it’s difficult to get good coverage with white paint, and I generally have to do at least three coats of paint. So for this one I decided to just start with primer knowing I’d have to do multiple coats of paint anyways. If you choose to paint your furniture with a darker color, you probably don’t need to prime first.

French provincial desk makeover using white milk paint

White milk paint for the desk

After the coat of primer dried I painted three coats of General Finishes Snow White milk paint.  This is still the same paint that I used for  this dresser makeover for the girls’ bedroom, and this curbside dresser makeover. It’s a water-based paint that self levels and dries to a very durable finish.

general finishes milk paint desk makeover

[the_ad id=”5123″]

I brushed the paint on with a regular paint brush, then smoothed out any brush strokes with a foam roller. In between each coat of paint I did a light sand using 220 grit sandpaper. This knocks off any imperfections or brush marks that may be visible.

French provincial desk

Seal the top

Once the paint was all dry, I applied several coats of Minwax Polycrylic just to the top using a paint brush. Since this is meant to be a high use surface, I didn’t want to risk getting scratched or dents in the paint. I also think the polycrylic gives the top a nice shiny contrast against the rest of the desk.

General finishes snow white milk paint

[the_ad id=”5125″]General finishes snow white milk paint

Install the hardware

When I bought this dresser, one of the handles was missing. Rather than buy all new hardware for the desk, I was able to find an exact match on Etsy. I could have bought all new hardware, but I like to preserve the look of the vintage french provincial style. These handles are so pretty and I love to use them whenever possible.

French provincial dresser hardware

I did update the hardware with oil rubbed bronze spray paint, just to make sure they all had a consistent color.

General finishes milk paint french provincial desk makeover

White milk paint desk makeover

What do you think? I love how this one turned out. If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to update some furniture, milk paint is a great way to do it!

white french provincial desk makeover using general finishes snow white milk paint

French provincial desk makeover

Desk makeover using general finishes snow white milk paint

[the_ad id=”5125″]

Pin for later!

French provincial desk makeover using general finishes milk paint snow white. French provincial furniture makeover


7 Comments

Subscribe

Get the latest DIY ideas straight to your inbox!

Previous Post: « Five Tips For Designing Your Dream Kitchen
Next Post: Master Bedroom: One Room Challenge Week 1 »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Habiba says

    September 28, 2017 at 2:00 am

    Now I wonder how you managed to find the exact same hard ware for the dresser on etsy. I wouldn’t even know what word to use for the search. I really am glad you found it as I love the hardware. I visited a friends of mine recently who will retire and move into a much smaller home. She’ll gift me with lots of furniture in various states. Can’t wait to start working on them.

    Reply
  2. Melissa says

    September 28, 2017 at 2:32 pm

    What a gorgeous desk! I also love the hardware that you find on french provincial style pieces! Glad you used them. I’ve never used GF before but that’s such a pretty shade of white – it’s definitely on my to do list.

    Reply
  3. neelam says

    September 28, 2017 at 8:32 pm

    I love this transformation so much! This desk is exactly like one I had as a little girl! Bringing back all the memories for me 🙂
    xx
    Neelam

    Reply
  4. Lindsay says

    September 29, 2017 at 9:17 am

    It looks gorgeous – love that you kept the original pulls!

    Reply
  5. Yami says

    September 29, 2017 at 10:54 am

    You have done it again with another amazing transformation! I am a sucker for anything french provincial and white. This turned out beautiful!

    Reply
  6. Ola Broom says

    September 29, 2017 at 1:52 pm

    I’ve seen small desks many times. You have completely changed my perception on them! This looks outstanding! Nice work Jessica.

    Reply
  7. Lyne says

    September 29, 2017 at 3:53 pm

    Love love love how this came out

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome! We are Tony and Jessica Vanderveen, and are accidental real estate investors in Ontario. Find out how you too can create long term wealth, while maintaining your work life balance. Find out more...

Looking for something?

Sign up for email

Explore the Archives

Footer

You might also like

BEFORE & AFTER: An Easy Pink Furniture Makeover

quilted christmas stockings

How To Make Quilted Christmas Stockings From Baby Clothes: Part 2

How to make a faux marble top coffee table

How to Make Wall Hooks from Vintage Glass Knobs and Reclaimed Lumber

Ombre epoxy resin magnets with glitter

Copyright © 2022 · Divine theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2022 · Divine Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT