How to Antique a Desk in 4 Easy Steps

Congratulations to Kelly Kuert-Rowe, the winner of the $50 Walmart giftcard!
There are many ways to do this but today I want to show you How to Antique a Desk in 4 easy steps! You might remember this desk I painted with Glidden High Endurance after which I decoupaged some scrapbook circles here and there with good ol’ Mod Podge.

As many methods there are to antiquing there are also various mediums and paints to choose from.

I chose Modern Masters matte metallic in bronze which might seem odd, antiquing with a metallic. However metallics have an easy flow because of the resins inherent in the paint.

Plus I happened to have this on hand from the outdoor fountain and screen I painted I used matte metallic on.

Truth be told, I did try regular burnt umber acrylic paint mixed with a glaze as well as the metallic. Very similar colors but the metallic has tiny little shimmers in certain light without appearing obviously metallic.

How to Antique Desk in 4 Easy Steps

Materials List

• paint
• glaze medium
• soft clean cloths (tee shirts cut up work great)
• large brush *optional
• palette knife for mixing
• foam plate or other container

To get the right ratio of paint to glaze will depend upon the glaze used as well as the paint so try a few samples in an area that isn’t highly visible.

With the metallic paint I only needed 1 part to 3 parts glaze. You might think you’ll lose intensity of color as often happens with glazes, but not with this matte metallic.

Step 2 – Brush or wipe the paint/glaze mixture on the desk

Apply the mixture in the direction of the wood grain, if any, and work in smaller sections. While the glaze increases the open time – the time paint stays wet – you don’t want an area drying before you have a chance to work with it.

Step 3 – Remove part of paint/glaze mixture with soft damp towel

How much to remove? It’s a “by-eye” thing. Remove more at first until you get the look you want because you can always add more glaze.

Step 4 – Repeat Step 3, allow to dry and seal

Seriously, that’s it! Such a simple process to totally makeover nearly anything.

Before

After painting and decoupage

After antiquing and sealing

Even though I used a satin polyurethane for sealing there was a lot of sheen. Of course it’s more durable than a matte sealer but I wound up moving the desk from in front of the window so it has the nice antique look I wanted.

Look at how all the grain and chips now show up after antiquing.

Now the desk looks old but not neglected.

I intentionally added glaze to all the chips and divots in the desk to bring them out.

Each little knick now reminds me of my dad and brothers and brings me joy every day when I sit at the desk.

Antiquing is one of the easiest ways to update and refresh a piece of furniture while still maintaining the aged look.

Colleen

about Colleen