Antique Secretary Desk in Lamp White

Antique Serving Cart

Follow along to see how this antique cart was given a fun farmhouse finish.

I purchased this sweet antique wheeled cart and as soon as I brought it home my youngest daughter asked for it for Christmas as a plant stand in her new apartment. When asked what colors she saw it in, she instantly said white and dark stain.

As with all my pieces, especially the old antiques that have seen years of wear and use I scrub them thoroughly. You can in the still photo and the video just how much grime and dirt comes off.

Next I removed the bottom shelf for easier stripping and staining. Both flat surfaces were stripped with paint stripper then power sanded smooth. The corners on the top surface with the raised edges required hand sanding to get into the tight corners.

Once the sanding was complete and the whole piece wiped down again to remove any sanding dust it was time to stain. I chose my go to Homestead House's stain and finishing oil all in one in the color cappuccino. See a farmhouse h…

A great customer brought me her paternal grandmother's secretary desk. It is deeply sentimental but she wanted to update the color to fit in her mainly white home.

It was in very good condition requiring just a good wipe with simply green and a wet cloth to be sure nothing interfered with the paint adhesion after the hardware was removed. There was a water ring on the top that was sanded smooth then shellac sprayed to seal the area. A few repairs were made including brad nailing the back securely on and a few wood filler areas added.

Fusion Mineral Paint in lamp white was chosen, it is a white with grey undertones. (above shows coat #2 going over the first coat)

I applied 2 coats and found odd red dote bleeding thru, hello Zinsser shellac. This blocks all bleed thru so once sprayed on and left to dry I was then able to add a final coat of lamp white.

To add some definition, the edges were distressed minimally and had Homestead House salad bowl finish rubbed on them to seal and deepen the wood color, Fusion Mineral Paint black wax was added to the crevices, edges and around the hardware to look aged rather then freshly painted.

Fusion Mineral Paint clear wax was rubbed on the desk top and the shelf top to give added durability for treasures to be displayed.

The inside was wiped with hemp oil to rehydrate the wood and add some shine.

The hardware was cleaned with metal polish bringing the sparkle back and replaced.