When you’re looking for a new furniture piece for your home, there are often some checkboxes these pieces have to tick. Perhaps there are some unique characteristics that you want in drawers or maybe you have to have turned legs. In our project, we wanted a sturdy desk that had drawer storage, but very minimal ornate details. We were going for very masculine and rustic looks so the more character the better. We found it in this sweet (but filthy) pine desk which was perfect for a Bayberry Rustic Desk Makeover. Here is the before:

Below is a list of supplies you’ll need to complete a similar project. 

• Fusion TSP Alternative + Wiping Cloths
• Fusion Mineral Paint “Bayberry”
• Fusion Beeswax
• Orbital sander and sanding pads
• Wood Filler
• Staalmeester Round One Brush

Prepping a vintage desk for painting

From the get-go, we knew this piece needed a deep cleaning. You can see by the original photo there were fingerprint marks and greasy buildup on the surface. Fusion TSP Alternative is perfect for breaking down residual grime and oils so we mixed a 50/50 solution of water with Fusion TSP and saturated our desk.

We paid extra particular attention to spots that aren’t flat and can collect even more dirt and grime. The turned points in the legs were extremely dirty, but after a few times cleaning the same spot, it was squeaky clean. 

Next we decided to give the piece a quick sand with our orbital sander. The top was already pre-sanded, so we went over it with 220 just to smooth it out. We also scuff-sanded the base and cleaned any dust with our Fusion TSP mix. 

We noticed some very deep grooves and gouging on the drawer fronts so we lightly filled them in with wood filler. After they were dry, we sanded them down smooth. We didn’t want to fill in too much of the markings since we are going for a rustic look so we only filled in the ones that were obvious and unnatural.

Handpainting with Fusion

One of our favourite things about Fusion Mineral Paint is how smooth the paint is. When it’s wet, it glides across your piece easily and as it self-levels and dries, your piece feels buttery soft. We love to use the Staalmeester synthetic brushes to apply Fusion because they don’t leave any marks or brushstrokes behind.

We used the Round One brush to get into our turned legs and to paint all our flat surfaces. These brushes are incredibly versatile and perfect for every piece. 

Bayberry Rustic Desk Makeover

You can choose to add as many coats as you’d like depending on coverage, but Bayberry is a rich, and deep olive green colour which means we were able to achieve full coverage in just two coats!

Bayberry is definitely one of those classic colours you can have in your home year-round. Whether is your base colour for your larger pieces or it’s sprinkled on accents around your home, Bayberry is just one of those colours you can continue to love throughout all the seasons. This is exactly why we chose it for this masculine, Bayberry Rustic Desk Makeover.

We changed out the hardware to a deep antique brass colour that almost looks bronze. Since we wanted to go for a rustic look, we thought a strong-coloured hardware would be beautiful against the backdrop of bayberry. 

You can use any kind of topcoat you like over Fusion Mineral Paint. The beauty of Fusion is that you really don’t need one, but you can choose to add one for extra durability or to accent with coloured waxes. We used Fusion Beeswax to rehydrate the dried-out wood top and it toned our wood beautifully.  

We’d love to see all the classic Bayberry projects you have in your home! Share your projects with us in the comments below!