DIY Desk for Working at Home {Quarantine Project}

Hi friends!  It's been a minute, right?  I hope this is finding you well amidst the current pandemic.  Sorry about the email with those old posts yesterday.  I reactivated my blog and it sent out an unexpected email.   My family has, fortunately, able to remain home the past several weeks.  What that has also meant is that everyone is also working from home.  We only had one functioning desk which meant the dining room quickly got turned into an office.  So that motivated me to build this desk that I've had on my radar for quite some time...the Fancy X desk by Ana White.

I had built it's cousin, the "Fancy X Farmhouse Table" last year while waiting on making progress on my kitchen.   I got hung up on the cross-braces because the cuts didn't fit, but after finishing this build I went back and added them in.  I will have to share that soon.  I really had nothing to lose in trying this build.  So I placed my pick-up order for lumber and got to work following the tutorial.

I did end up needing about 3 more pieces of 2x4 than the plans called for, but it's a beautiful, substantial desk for not a lot of money.  Especially considering the pre-made ones that I had my eye on were closer to $300.  I used basic 2x4's and 2x6's labeled 'whitewood' from the box store.

After the build, I sanded to remove the ink marks and any rough edges.  I wanted the color to be close to the finish of the Tarva night stands I stained several years ago. I started by using a base stain of Minwax Provincial .  Then used a wash of watered down white paint as a glaze, but all in all, it came out pretty good.  I used a Varathane matte sealer and applied three coats to the top.

It's currently in use in my family room. We moved the original glass top desk upstairs to a new office, and this one is now used thru out the week for schoolwork.  And it's large enough that I can comfortably sit next to my son to work and help him without it feeling crowded.

I couldn't help but to get a few beauty shots below of a setup I'm hoping to have for it in the future.  It will eventually go to its permanent home in a new office downstairs, but the functionality it provides NOW is just what we needed!  If I end up wanting (or needing) to keep it as the school desk here permanently, I will probably build another one a little smaller to fit better in the space.
(For reference, this desk is 6' long and 2' deep.)

Hope you all are taking care and staying safe!

Desk Plans: Ana White/Fancy X Desk

Base Stain: Minwax Provincial

Whitewash: White paint mixed with water, but I would try this in the future for an easier application

Polyurethane: Varathane matte finish polyurethane

Art: Cavallini Bird Print Calendar repurposed with Ikea Ribba frames

**Amazon affiliate links allow me to make a small commission if you use them to purchase supplies, but at no charge to you!**

Read More