Removing Damaged Leather From a Desk

Patricia
by Patricia
4 Materials
I purchased this desk at an online auction. There was some damage throughout on the wood veneer. But the biggest drawback was the damaged leather top. I was hoping to recondition the leather or perhaps paint over it, but in the end the damage was too severe, so I decided it had to be removed.
This is a large executive size desk and at first I had buyer’s remorse thinking about how heavy it was going to be to move it. However, it turns out it is in three pieces: the top rests on two pedestal bases. The desk has solid construction, but it’s much more manageable to move around in pieces!
Initially I thought I would replace the leather with a new piece. But after doing some research and pricing out the leather, I decided it would be better to just remove the leather and paint the top. Starting in a corner, I used a paint scraper to loosen the leather.
Once I had enough loosened to grab onto, I began pulling back the leather with one hand while using the paint scraper to release stubborn spots of adhesive.
I took the top outside to finish working on the project. I was dog sitting at the time, and little TJ was extremely curious about what I was going to do next.
I used an orbital sander to remove the remaining residue.
The border of leather area was chiseled out, so I filled that in with wood filler and sanded it smooth.
I painted the top white and then taped it off and added a grey border.
I reassembled the desk and then applied soft clear wax.
I painted the base in French Linen and painted the trim in Old White.
I added a distressed and worn finish to the drawers.
I added a worn finish to the outer border on the desk top.
Below is a front view of the desk.
And finally the back view.
If you liked this project then I'd love for you to stop by my blog and see what other projects I'm working on!
Suggested materials:
  • Chalk Paint and Soft Clear Wax (Annie Sloan)
  • Painters Tape
  • Paint scraper
See all materials
Patricia
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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  3 questions
  • Jeannie Jeannie on Sep 19, 2016
    Just one coat of the Annie Sloan paint? What kind of wax ? How do u apply it? I really love the final result.
  • Reaam Reaam on Sep 20, 2016
    It is amazing. Which paint did you use? Do you also use primer?
  • Norma Bryson Norma Bryson on Mar 13, 2017
    Did you leather lie flat? The table I have is bumped up in the middle. I didn't know if it came that way or if it happened over time. It was free and would like to save it.
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3 of 135 comments
  • Chr13055367 Chr13055367 on Oct 20, 2016
    I have one of these old desks .. I was going to Sell it .. But so Impressed I'l do the same! Thank you 😊
    • Patricia Patricia on Oct 20, 2016
      Thank you Christinamariaangel! It was lovely to hear that my project gave you some inspiration.
  • Teri | T. Moore Home Teri | T. Moore Home on Apr 03, 2019

    I have a super similar desk and I just painted over the leather but I've been considering removing it in order to install a piece of marble. Now I'm wondering if the wood under the leather looks as good as yours did. Thank you so much! I'm going to test it out.

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