DIY - A Simple Office Desk - Remodelando la Casa

It was about a year ago that I shared with you the news about my daughter getting to be a campaign director and having to manage her very own office.

It was really good news for her and us, knowing she was at the beginning of a wonderful experience. The not-so-good news... It was hard for her to work in an empty office! And the campaign funds for office furnishings were almost non-existent or delegated to donations.

As soon as she asked me for help with making this space more functional, I went there and this is the view as soon as I opened the door:

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yellow walls and white chairs office space

Those yellow walls were a big eye sore, but there was nothing I could do about them. They had to stay. 😳

I took pictures and measurements of the entire space and started to work on some very low-budget projects to create a nice and comfortable work environment.

The first project I tackled was this HUGE Dry Erase Calendar Board, that was installed on that big, left wall.

I shared complete details about that calendar right HERE. Hey, it covered a good amount of that yellow! ;)

I also built a shelf to store office necessities, and three desks and decorated this entire space.

But, I was a bad blogger all last year. I didn't share those other projects or the end result of this office.

The thing is, I wasn't expecting this job. I did it and then, I immediately started work on my master bathroom makeover and of course, I had no time to edit pics, write a post or create plans for the work done here. Well, not until now...

Today, I'm sharing with you the plans for a very simple office desk.

The plan and dimensions below are for a very long, skinny desk or table. I built two of this and one extra that was only half its length -without the middle leg support.

I used rough 2 X 2 material I already had on hand. It was a bit of a pain to use that material, it wasn't straight and I had to do lots of sanding. I recommend you use select pine boards instead.

These are the dimensions I used:

Supplies for one 96" long desk:

6 - 2x2x6 select pine boards
2 - 2x2x8 select pine boards
2 - 1x3x10 select pine boards
1 - 3/4" plywood board 24x96 -half sheet.
measuring tape and pencil
miter saw
pocket hole jig
pocket hole right angle clamp
sander
wood glue
edge banding
iron
2 1/2" pocket hole screws & 3/4" pocket hole screws
2 1/2" wood screws

Directions:

Use the miter saw to cut your 2x2s or desk base material.

RYOBI Miter Saw

Set the pocket hole jig to make the holes for 2 1/2" screws. Make them strategically so they get hidden and there's no need to finish them.

The next step for me was to sand all those 2x2s smooth.

THE COUNTERTOP

Since I built two long desks, I used a single sheet of plywood cut in the center lengthwise.
The rough sides on a half sheet of plywood were finished with edge banding. Ironing it and then, trimming the excess.

| Edge Banding Trimmer |

THE FINISH

The desktops were finished with two coats of Behr Simply white -Satin - The base got one coat of Rust-oleum charcoal.

ASSEMBLING

The first pieces to be assembled were the legs. - Three frames that I put together at home, stacked them in my car, and brought them to my daughter's office to complete the installation.

Once in the office, the lower and top center supports were attached to the legs.

Followed by the long skirt boards.

Then, the desktop was laid on the floor -upside down- and the base was laid atop it and attached with 3/4" screws driven from the pocket holes on the skirt.

Here's a little peek while working on set.