I'm going to say right off the top that we didn't reinvent the wheel with this idea. But when my daughter sent a photo and asked if it was something we could make, my response was heck ya and we'll make them for the kids for Christmas! These stuffed animal zoos are an adorable DIY gift idea for that special handmade gift from the grandparents for birthdays or the holidays. They require just a few supplies and are not that difficult to make and I'll show you how.

DIY Stuffed Animal Zoo Gift Idea

My grandson's eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw two large wrapped gifts coming into his house for him and his sister. He was even more excited when he opened it and saw another wrapped gift inside. They got a handmade stuffed animal bought at a Christmas craft fair with Mommy.

The zoos were personalized and painted to match their room decor. My daughter is happy to finally have our grandson's pile of stuffed animals off his small toddler bed and corralled in one place that not only looks adorable but doesn't take up much space in his room.

The growth chart between the two zoos is another great DIY gift idea for grandparents to make. I made this easy stenciled yardstick growth chart shortly after our granddaughter was born. When our grandson was born almost four years ago I didn't know there were stencils for making these. His handpainted yardstick growth chart took longer to make.

Here is how we made the zoos

Starting with the lumber you will need to build the zoo (photo below based on making two zoos).

Please note the Instructions and Materials List are based on making one zoo.

Measurements for cutting lumber

3/4" Plywood Base = 1 @ 12" x 12"
2" x 2" Uprights = 4 @ 30"
1" x 4" Rails = 4 @ 12 3/4"
1" x 6" Trim = 4 @ 12 3/4"

Zoo base assembly

• Cut 3/4-inch plywood base 12" x 12".
• Cut four pieces of 2" x 2" lumber 30" long.
• Set a 2" x 2" upright on each corner and draw an outline with a pencil. 
• In the center of each outline drill pilot holes with a 3/32" drill bit on the base. 
• With a countersink bit drill in the pilot holes. This will be the underside of the zoo base.

• Working on its side, put a dab of wood glue on the bottom of the upright. 
• Screw #8 2 1/2" wood screw through the pilot holes into your 2" x 2" uprights, making sure it sits flush with the plywood (as pictured below). 
• Repeat on all four corners.

Attach bottom rails

Cut four pieces of 1" x 4" lumber 12 3/4" long. Apply wood glue at the contact points and nail them to the plywood base and corner uprights with a 1 1/4" brad nails.

Attach top rails

• Cut 4 pieces of 1" x 6" lumber 12 3/4" long. 
• Make a spacer with an offcut piece of 2" x 2" lumber cut 8 1/2" long (this is the measurement between the two uprights at the bottom). 

• To conceal the top of the uprights, place the top of the rail approximately two inches above the uprights (as pictured below).
• Working on its side, place spacer between the uprights as you work and clamp together to hold everything tight. Apply wood glue to contact points and nail your upper trim piece with brad nails just like you did on the bottom rail. 

Prepping Zoo for paint

Fill all the brad nail holes with wood filler. Once dry, sand the entire structure to get rid of any roughness in the wood with 120-grit sandpaper and a mouse sander.

Making them pretty with paint

The interior of the zoo is painted with pure white Behr latex paint that we had on hand. The exterior of one zoo is painted with Rustoleum Chalked paint in Coastal Blue and the other with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Antibes green. Both zoos received three coats of a clear matte top coat.

Bungee Cord Bar Installation

Make a jig for bungee cord zoo bars by cutting a piece of cardboard the width of the space between the uprights. Measure for three zoo bars spaced evenly and mark with a pencil.

Place a screw through a flange type washer (as pictured below) and partially screw it into the uprights at your marked points. Repeat until both the top and bottom on all four sides are installed.

On the top and starting at one end, wrap the bungee cord around the screw and tighten down the washer to secure it in place. Pull the cord down to the bottom while maintaining some tension, wrap around the bottom screw and tighten to secure.

Move to the next screw beside it, following the steps above, then work your way up to the top and over to the next screw and back down to the bottom, and so on. Cut the cord once that side is complete and repeat for the remaining sides.

Personalize the zoo

If you are lucky enough to have a scroll saw, you could make personalized wooden names but we don't so I placed a custom order on Etsy.

They are painted in contrasting colors that go with their room decor. They are attached to the top rail of the zoos with E6000 glue.

This green zoo is for our grandson.

And the coastal blue and coral zoo is for our granddaughter.

Isn't this just the cutest stuffed animal storage organization idea? I love how at only 12-inches square they don't take up a lot of room but at 30-inches high, they can hold a lot of soft toys.

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience so you can see what products I used or recommend to make this project. See my full disclosure policy.

For this project you will need:

Materials List

• 2" x 2" Lumber
• 1" x 4" Lumber
• 1" x 6" Lumber
• 3/4" Plywood
• 1 package (20') Bungee Cording
• Personalized Wood Name (found on Etsy)
• #8 1/2" Wood Screws
• #8 2 1/2" Wood Screws
• 3/32" Drill Bit
• Countersink Drill Bit
• 1 1/2" Brad Nails
• Flange Type Finishing Washers
• Wood Glue
• E6000 Glue
• 220 Grit Mouse Sander Pad
• Mouse Sander
• Pneumatic Brad Nailer
• Rustoleum Chalked Paint Coastal Blue
• Americana Multi-Surface Paint Shrimp
• Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Antibes
• Matte Clear Polycrylic Top Coat

I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.

Today I'm sharing a furniture makeover that took me right back to St. Vladimir Elementary School in the 1960s. I think I spent the first two years of school hiding under my bed each morning because all I wanted to do was stay home with Mom and help her cook and clean. Anybody who knows me is probably having a good belly laugh after reading that last sentence because my least favorite thing to do in life is to cook and clean.

Needless to say, while giving this vintage metal classroom desk a makeover, my mind was flooded with bittersweet memories. If only this desk could talk, judging by all the crayon and etched markings on the wood top. I'm not going to lie, I searched for my initials amongst the others. Wouldn't that have been a fabulous full circle moment!

Vintage Metal Classroom Desk Painted Aqua

Today is one of my favorite days of the month because it's Furniture Fixer Upper Day where five of my talented furniture upcycling friends and I come together to breath new life into six pieces of furniture. Links to all the makeovers are included at the bottom of this post.

For last month's challenge, I repurposed a Bombay TV Cabinet into a Hollywood Regency Bar. But this month it's all about a vintage metal school desk complete with inkwell. I remember using the inkwell for garbage or as a spitball target on adjacent desks.

More about that spitball target inkwell further down in this post.

Let's take a look at the school desk before the makeover...

I have to admit this was one of those furniture makeovers where I was flying by the seat of my pants. I was certain about only one thing, that it had to have a turquoise base. The rest evolved as I went along.

I've included a Materials List towards the bottom of this post. It contains affiliate links for your convenience so you can see what products I used or recommend to make this project. What that means is that if you click on one of the product links and make a purchase, I may receive a small portion of any sales at no additional cost to you, which supports the costs of running this site. See my full disclosure policy.

So here's how I did it...

Cleaned the base and sanded the wood

The base was in fairly decent shape and just needed a good clean and little sanding in spots. The desktop, on the other hand, needed to be sanded down to the raw wood to remove all the crayon and etched marks from years gone by. The slats had a bunch of stickers on them and the seat was worn from all those little butts squirming around.

Painted the base

The first thing that happened was the base of the desk got three coats of Aqua Rustoleum Painter's Touch Satin spray paint followed by a protective clear coat.

Stained the wood

The sanded wood was treated with Minwax Prestain Wood Conditioner before being stained with Minwax Wood Finish in the color Provincial. The conditioner penetrates the wood to get a uniform stain color.

 Or so I thought...

Yikes, I had two options; a) sand the pieces back to the natural wood again OR b) cover the blotchy wood. I chose the second option.

Created a chalkboard

At this point, I had no clue how I could make that blotchy stain look better and this is the point in the makeover where I was flying by the seat of my pants.

I decided to section off a portion of the top and create a chalkboard, reminiscent of an old slate used in classrooms back in the day.

I painted the chalkboard using a 4-inch foam roller and Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in the color Graphite. I much prefer using chalk paint over chalkboard paint because of the quick drying time between coats.

Tip: Any flat paint can be used to make a chalkboard.

Whitewashed the stain

Unfortunately, the chalkboard didn't conceal the blotchy stain and so I covered the chalkboard with paper and applied a wash of white over the stain using Dixie Belle Whitewash Glaze and an inexpensive chip brush.

I dipped the brush into some water first and then into the glaze and spread a thin layer over the stain, wiping the excess with a clean rag. Much happier with how it looked, now the chalkboard felt like it was missing something.

Added Grain Sack Stripes

I framed the chalkboard using a grain sack stripe stencil and turquoise acrylic craft paint, pouncing the paint on lightly.

I added some stripes to the center of the wooden seat as well.

Turned the inkwell into a pencil holder

Turning the inkwell into something useful, I created a pencil holder by recycling a tomato paste can. Using E6000 glue, I attached three L brackets around the lip of the can and let it cure overnight.

The tin can was spray painted with the same Aqua used on the base and attached to the underside of the desktop with small screws.

At the last minute, I decided to paint the ridge used for sticks of chalk or pencils with the same turquoise craft paint used on the stripes.

I have to say, despite tweaking this desk as I went along, I'm quite pleased with the results.

As promised here is the Materials list for the products used to transform this Vintage Metal Classroom Desk.

Materials List

Satin Aqua Rustoleum Painter's Touch Spray Paint
Clear Top Coat Rustoleum Spray
Prestain Wood Conditioner Minwax
Provincial Minwax Wood Finish
Whitewash Glaze Dixie Belle Paint Co.
Graphite Annie Sloan Chalk Paint
Turquoise Acrylic Craft Paint
Grain Sack Stripe Stencil (not an affiliate link)
Painter's Tape
E6000 Glue
1-inch L Brackets
Empty Tomato Paste Can

Items without links on the list can be found in The Interior Frugalista SHOP on Amazon.

I quite enjoy giving children's furniture a new life. I went all diva on a wooden Vintage Student Desk transformation. I also gave a mismatched Vintage Children's Table & Chair Set a fun chalkboard makeover. Wish I hadn't sold that one because my three-year-old grandson would love it right about now.

Have I inspired you to consider giving an old classroom desk a fresh new look? You don't come across these desks often but how fun would they be in a child's playroom. I see lots of "playing teacher" with one of these!

Now let's take a look at how my talented friend's in the Furniture Fixer Uppers group transformed these furniture pieces...

Press the links below to see the after photos and makeover tutorials...

1. Girl In The Garage
2. Confessions Of A Serial DIYer
3. Petticoat Junktion
4. Prodigal Pieces
5. Just The Woods
6. The Interior Frugalista (that's me)

I share my projects at these fabulous link parties.