DIY Bedroom Desk for Two From Ready Made Cabinets

When my son was old enough, we turned my office into his bedroom. As a result I needed a new location for my computer and a place for my wife to work on her crafts. We decided to build a two person desk on one wall in our bedroom.

Supplies

For this project we wanted to keep it simple and flexible, yet give it a custom look to resemble quality built in cabinetry. We utilized unfinished cabinets from Lowes for our foundation topping the cabinets with Birch plywood for the counter tops. For the project we used the following:

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(3) Three drawer unfinished wood cabinets

A set of matching side panels for each cabinet

(1) sheet Birch plywood

Wood screws

Wood glue

Quart of paint

Quart of Red Mahogany Stain

Glaze

Qt Clear Satin Finish

Panel Saw

Two desk chairs

This project is adaptable for anyone to use so the measurements are simple. Desk height is generally 30". Cabinets with the top are 36". To address this I cut the base area off of each cabinet with a circular saw. A panel square is great for drawing your cut lines. These cabinets do not come with a finished side panel so we had to purchase sides for each one. They too needed to be cut the same length. Once cut everything was sanded to remove rough edges. The side panels were glued to the cabinets and held in place with blue tape to keep secure till the adhesive dried.

We wanted a sophisticated look. Paint with a glaze was decided upon. The top would be a red mahogany stain with a satin finish. That would blend nicely with our decor. We used a buttery yellow satin paint for the base. This was followed up with a mocha glaze. Once dried everything was clear coated with a satin finish to help protect the paint. The cabinets were placed in their destination to allow room for the top to be manufactured.

The top was going to be rather long. We allocated 30" for each desk chair. The cabinets were 18" each. Overall the desk would be approximately 9 1/2 feet and about 24" deep. To save time and labor I had Lowes cut my sheet of plywood for the top at their location. If you aren't aware, Lowes and Home Depot can make cuts on large wood for a fee. Generally they make the first two cuts for free. Now I had two more manageable pieces of wood to handle. I wanted to center the spot where the top would be joined so I cut each board at 57". I then ran glue along the two ends I was going join and and pushed them together. I cut a piece of scrap slightly smaller then the open top of the middle drawer cabinet and used it as a mending plate to join the two halves together. I covered it with glue, set it the middle of the two boards and drove several wood screws into it. I let it dry over night and then flipped it over to expose the top. I added a piece of inexpensive poplar trim wood to the front edge with glue and finish nails. Everything was lightly sanded and then dusted. I followed this up with Red Mahogany stain applied with a brush. I wiped off the excess and let it dry. Nail holes were filled. Water based satin poly finish was then applied. I sanded between each coat. Three coats were applied.

Assembly was easy. We measured the base cabinets so they were evenly placed. The cabinets were just pushed back against the wall. We did not want to permanently attach the cabinet. The countertop was carried in and centered on the top of the cabinets, setting the mending board in the top of the middle cabinet. My younger son is my constant helper and he assembled the desk chairs for us.

I hope you enjoyed this Instructable. If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave them in the comments section. Thanks!