Facebook Marketplace Flip: Vanity

It’s been a minute since I’ve posted anything over here and I do apologize for that. We’ve had a few house projects, my kids have both started school, and I’ve taken on some volunteer projects! But that being said, I can’t wait to show you my latest Facebook Marketplace flip, my daughter’s vanity.

Facebook Find

I’m always on Marketplace looking for the next piece to curate for our home. Often, I find some really good deals on things. It makes my husband cringe though because they almost always need work. A few months ago, I found this writing desk for $25, and only about a half an our from my house. Perfect Facebook Marketplace Flip!

It was covered in paint. That means this piece could go one of two ways. Either the wood underneath was really damaged and they painted to get more life out of it, or they just wanted to make it look more modern. This kind of project has a bit of a risk to it. But for $25 it was worth it.

The Flipping Process:

Lucky for me, they used the wrong paint. This stuff would for the most part come right off. We used a scraper for 80% of the project. Then we sanded the rest of the paint off, and took it down a little bit more. There were sections, like the desk top and the small drawer fronts that had a bit of damage.

Once the wood was exposed, we wiped it down and my dad helped me stain it to match the other pieces that are already in our house. He is great at staining and enjoys it, where I’m a bit more nervous. Plus he loves a good project and this is half of where I get it from. My mom loves to refinish so she chipped in with some elbow grease as well. I also took out some of the vertical wooden pieces that were for storing letters. This is where my daughters mirror will sit. We didn’t bother to patch the screw holes here. I may even make them wider to fit cables if it works out with the main drawer.

The Finishing Details

The hardware on the piece was okay. One of the screws was stuck in the drawer so I took that out with some pliers. Then my husband grabbed his drill and made the holes a bit larger so that I could fit in some ceramic nobs that I had left over from two other pieces.

Here’s an Affiliate Link to find the Knobs that I used.

I’ll show you a look at our basement later but we used a peel and stick wall paper on an accent wall. We have loads of small pieces left over. My husband surprised all of us by lining the drawers with the left over paper and it just makes my daughter feel so special.

Why a Vanity for Toddler?

Some people in my close circle have said why not call it a desk? Why does a toddler need a vanity? She loves to use pretend makeup toys (wooden and plastic). I bought her makeup brushes because it’s a calming sensory experience for her. And now that her hair is growing out, this is a special place for her to store her accessories and express herself. I’ll brush her hair here and we’ll pick out what she wants to wear for the day. We put the emphasis on imagination, freedom of choice and expression. I also want to set up a desk for each of my kiddos but not in their rooms. That will be a future project.

My sweet neighbor included my daughter on the invite to her wedding shower. They had her pick the next door prize winner and she pick out our own entry. I let her pick what prize we took home. I was eyeing the yoga mat but she picked the makeup mirror. She liked that it lights up. So the vanity became the perfect place for this mirror to live. Now we just have to find the perfect chair for her. Our current option is too low.

What do you think of this Facebook Marketplace Flip?