Simple writing desk

This simple writing desk project is something any handy person can make in a weekend. This desk is the inspiration of a close friend. Our friend found what she would like to make at a local furniture store. She would also like to work alongside us in making this desk to give a personal touch to this gift. This isfor her daughter’s room. This would be her first year of college and would live at home while studying.

The room is just big enough for a dresser and bed with a small side table. The desk would need to have a mall footprint and be stable. The design she saw at the store was a bit on the light side. Because of this, the desk is unstable and prone to falling over. To make this as stable as our Farmhouse table we are using MDF (medium density fiberboard)

At the time I was making some inexpensive cabinets for another client. I had saved a bunch of cut-offs and I thought I would make the base from this material. The MDF comes 3/4′ thick. Three pieces create a 2 1/4″ thick board. The boards are basically 2×4’s when complete. When we assemble the frames they become quite heavy. This weight also makes the very solid.

The top is Aspen that our client provided for the project. She asked that the finish for the base to be white. this makes the desk feel light in the room. She applied the blue stain to the Top and finished with a semi-gloss poly.

The simple writing desk is a quick project that a handy person can make in a weekend or two. Material choice for this project was based on what is available around the shop. You can use other materials to build this desk.