DIY: Desk Skirt

I mentioned I got a really pretty desk for Mother's Day right?  Well here it is.

I really love it!  I do not love exposed cords.  In fact, my favorite feature of this desk is that the front pulls down to reveal the computer keyboard and lots of cubby space for my stuff so that the top stays nice and neat. Another awesome feature is the charging station hidden inside.  Now, instead of having 3 cell phones, an iPad, iPod and a Kindle all plugged in and hogging space on my kitchen counter...they can all be tucked inside.  Awesome!  But something had to be done about all those horrible looking cords.

For about $10, I created a very easy, no-sew desk skirt to rectify the cluttery cord situation.  

Materials needed:

iron

damp cloth

Stitch Witchery (or other iron-on adhesive) 

straight pins

pretty fabric cut to fit your desk plus a few inches extra for hemming

measuring tape

3M hanging stickers

To start I measured the width of the desk and added a few inches for good measure, then I headed out to JoAnn's for some fabric.  But!  On my way I saw a Hobby Lobby. I had never been to a Hobby Lobby before but had heard so much about it that I decided to go there instead. Whoa that store is big.  I spent quite some time wandering around with project ideas floating around in my head.  Loved it.  Anyway.  I bought my fabric (and maybe a few other items) and headed home.

To make the skirt, wash and dry the fabric then iron it.  Confession: I didn't pre-wash mine.  I was too excited to get going and I figured the chances of me ever washing this thing again were slim to none.  But you should wash it first, especially if you ever want to be able to wash it again later.  

Next I did my thing with the no-sew hemming.  That stuff is super easy to use.  All you need to do is fold a 1/2 inch of fabric over the tape then place a damp towel over it and press down with the hot iron for 10 seconds. Continue around both sides and the bottom.  You don't need to bother with the top because you won't see that when the skirt is hanging up.

Now lay out the fabric and pin in some pleats.  You just need to gather the fabric a bit in regular intervals and pin the fold with a straight pin.  Hard to explain but really simple to do.  As you can tell from this post, I don't sew but I just experimented until I liked what I had.

Ok, the skirt is done, time to hang it up!

To hang it, I just stuck some 3M sticker wall adhesives to the front top edge of the skirt.  One at each pleat.  I removed the backings and with the help of my lovely husband, stuck it to the back edge of my desk.  I wasn't sure if it would work but it's been holding strong for about two weeks now with no problems.

 

Not bad, huh?  No more ugly cords!  Now I just need to refinish that darn chair.....