Remember that half the joy of achievement is in the anticipation.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Blue Monday 9/14. & VTT 9/17--The old school desk

Happy Monday! It's time for Blue Monday again! Be sure to pay our hostess, Smiling Sally, a visit and see who else is sharing the blue's. I'm also going to share this for my Vintage Thingies Thursday which is hosted by Suzanne @ Colorado Lady.
Have a fantastic day everyone!

How I love our old vintage school desk. Twenty-two years ago my daughter's paternal grandfather gifted her with this desk. He used to be a school custodian and one day he was given the chore of clearing and disposing of items that had been locked in the storage rooms. He came upon many school desks that had been stored and forgotten. He found homes for as many as he could and my daughter was one of the lucky children to receive one. This desk has been well used and well loved. I often think of the secrets and wishes that may have been made by the children who sat here and I know of some wishes my own children have made....ahhh, if this desk could only speak and tell us her story. When Mr Cottage and I were newly married, I had to leave sweet desk behind and a family member left her out in the rain and to weather the elements. When we returned for her, she was in sad shape. The entire desk top had to be replaced. Thankfully Mr Cottage had a friend who was a carpenter who used the old desk top as a template. you can see the notches that were "copied" where the pens were to be laid and right in the middle of those notches is a place where the "ink well" would have been kept. I still have the ink well but we chose not to add the "hole" for fear that the kids would damage it or hurt themselves. Yes, this little desk is still used. My girls used it until they could no longer fit, and now my "soon to be" 10 year old uses it when he does his homework. It won't be long til he can no longer fit. Not to worry, the baby of the bunch uses the desk as well. Right now it's painted the blue the kids wanted but the younger ones are screaming for red. I wonder how it would look? LOL!
P.S. never mind those stains on the carpet. That's what happens when you let a toddler walk around with a sippy cup filled with grape juice. Oy! One day that nasty old carpet will be lifted and the 55 year old oak floors beneath, will be refinished. It's on the "list".



Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your day and have a fantastic week!

41 comments:

black eyed susans kitchen said...

This desk brings back some long forgotten memories...but I like it better in blue than the grey metal with chewing gum stuck underneath!

Candy said...

I think red would be great! I had a piece in my room growing up that was just the desk part, no attached chair. Wish I still had it. I'm glad your carpenter friend was able to redo the lid/top and the desk from long ago continues to make a history for its self.
Monday Blessings ;-)

SmilingSally said...

I love your blue desk, and more importantly, I love your attitude with children. Happy Blue Monday.

ellen b said...

What fun! I love these old school desks!
Oh and I'm waiting for the day the old carpet gets lifted at my house, too :0)

My name is Riet said...

That desk looks great in blue but if the next one wants red, why not give it a try. Have a nice day

Miranda said...

Thats a cute lil desk!

Mary Bergfeld said...

I love the desk and think it looks great in blue, but if they want red I say go for it. You'd have a ready made entry for Ruby Tuesday. The important thing is to keep it in the family. I hope you are having a wonderful day.

Diers Eve said...

What a lovely school desk!
Thanks for sharing. Happy Blue Monday,
Val

xinex said...

How lucky of you to get one of the vintage desks and that you were able to bring it back to its original state....Christine

Shy said...

I admired you for taking care of the desk,its still look good. nice blue for this monday meme

annies home said...

love this wonderful old school desk very classical and looks great in blue

Maria's Space said...

Awww...that desk is so cute.
I want one for each of my kids. Love the blue.
http://reesspace.blogspot.com/2009/09/blue-monday-water-jug.html

GARAGE SALE GAL said...

Nice blue desk and nice memories.
FYI: Take up the carpet NOW..you won't regret it :) We have hardwood floors to and when we bought the house 5 years ago..all the carpet went out the door. We have dogs and Grand daughter...and I've moved furniture and the looks are fine...I also have some area rugs.
Warmly,
Deb :)

jeanne said...

Hi Rechelle, the desk has a wonderful story and is a great color for kids. How lucky the desk was saved. It is a great vintage treasure. How sad that the top was weathered so badly. You really can't tell that it has a new top. Good job.

Happy blue Monday.

Hugs...Jeanne

Harbor Hon said...

I remember those desks! Our were gray metal but had beautiful burnished wood tops that opened just like that. Do you remember the ones that didn't open at all, just had a shelf underneath? Or the ones that had a basket under the seat? Those were the days. I miss them. Love your blue beauty. I think it would be ok to paint it apple red, then turn it back to blue after a few years. Experiment. xxoo

Darlene said...

That little desk is ADORABLE!! I always wonder what stories those old desks would tell too!

LV said...

That is the neatest blue desk. Mine was nothing like that when I was in school. I think most anyone would enjoy having one like this.

jen said...

Rechelle,

What a special desk and I love it blue!!

I have always wished the old things that I love to talk to me!!

xxxJen

rt said...

Wonderful school desk.

Kathi Fly said...

Wonderful little desk and love the blue color. Red would be cute too. I always loved sitting in the lift up desks. You could arrange all of your books and pencils so neatly inside the storage area. Nice story!

Old Time Cindy said...

Great desk and wonderful post.
Thanks for sharing!
Living it up at Lakewood,
Cindy

Postcardy said...

I was picturing an older wood desk until I saw the picture. I remember when I was in about second grade all the kids had to bring furniture polish to school to polish the wood tops. Your desk is the more "modern" kind I had when I moved to a different school.

Jingle said...

I have an obsession with vintage school desks. If it were up to me, we wouldn't be able to walk across my apartment because it would be jam packed with them! LOL! Yours is quite lovely!

Anne Fannie said...

What a cute desk! I think it would look so cute red! Or maybe you could paint it pink and show it again for Pink Saturday? LOL
Great memory of your kids grandfather!~Ann

★Carol★ said...

Love your little blue desk! My Mom still has my old desk like that, that I would play school with. My daughter also played school with it. Great post, and I hope you get to uncover those wood floors soon!
Happy VTT!

Coloradolady said...

Love your little desk, the color is great.

Have a great VTT and a wonderful weekend.

Jocelyn said...

Love your desk! And let me tell you, that we redid our oak floors 30 years ago, and it was the best decision we ever made! Even with toddlers. I LOVE my floors!

Jocelyn
http://justalittlesouthernhospitality.blogspot.com/

Angie said...

I love old desks like yours. I'll have to find one for my son to have when he is older.

marian said...

what a lovely post and a cute desk..i think it would look stunning painted red :)

ClassyChassy said...

It reminds me of the desks I used in school - except they were not blue - tan was the acceptable paint color on metal back then! Happy VTT!

The Raggedy Girl said...

I love the desk and also own an old one and when we do the Kid's room we are going to put it back in business and that is exciting for me. I love that yours has an attached chair, that is really nice.

The Raggedy Girl

Manuela@A Cultivated Nest said...

The desk is so cute! It looks nice blue, but red is my favorite color and I think it would awesome red!

Manuela

greenhoneyhive said...

I think your old school desk is the best and brightest piece I have seen in a long time..The color is amazing.

Fifi Flowers said...

WOW... that desk brings back memories!

ROSE VINE COTTAGE said...

What a treasure you have and the best thing is your kids get to use it, that makes it even more special!
Hugs~Kelly

Judi said...

Hi Rechelle
That desk is a very special one and isn't it something that so many young ones in the family have been able to do their homework on it. I think painting it red is a great idea. I haven't seen a desk that style.
thank you for sharing your story..
Judi

Witchcrafted Life said...

What a fabulous and cheerful desk! It instantly brought back a memory for me that I hadn't thought about in many years...

When I was growing up we somehow acquired an old (50s, if not earlier) metal desk (it was sort of a pale green meets grey hue) that we kept outside during the summer to draw/paint/write on. I have no idea where it came from or what happened to it once we grew up, but your post suddenly jogged memories of having a school desk that was similar in shape to this one, at home all year round.

Thank you very much for your recent comment, sweet dear, I hope your autumn is off to a marvelous start!
♥ Jessica

Sweet Cottage Dreams said...

LOVE the old desk. Like others have said, red would be cute...or even just a neutral like black or white.

Hardwood floors? Lucky YOU!

sweet post!

Becky

~Country Lady~ said...

Rechelle....where are you? I wanted to stop by again and tell you how much I enjoy your blog and appreciate you following my blog. I want to bestow upon you the "HONEST SCRAP" blog award that was shared with me. I'd like to get to know you better and hope you'll participate. Please visit my blog to learn about the award and somethings about me. Here's my link: http://athomewithacountrylady.blogspot.com/2009/09/my-first-blog-awardhonest-scrap-award.html

Blessing dear blog friend!

joyh82 said...

Wow that is so cute. I sure wouldn't fit in that anymore...lol
I had a couple old desks..I'll have to check to see if we still have them.

jeanne said...

Hi Rechelle, I was thinking of you so I thought I would drop by to see what you are up to. I see you haven't been posting so I hope all is well with you.

Wishing you a happy day.

Hugs, Jeanne