One Room Challenge Week 4: Refinished Nightstands

This is kind of cheating because this is a project that was done a few weeks ago, but I’ve yet to post it here so I’m calling it the progress for week four of the Better Homes & Gardens One Room Challenge.

This part of our bedroom makeover brought on a lot of thoughts. Mainly because when creating my initial mood board I felt like I had been influenced a little too much by Chris Loves Julia, and took a few weeks to sit on it and let my inner design voice speak up through the noise of all the design I consume daily. In the end my vision changed quite a bit, but one thing remained the same. These black nightstands, which happen to be the exact nightstands Chris Loves Julia have in their master. I picked them not realizing that, but sometimes, what’s good is good and there is a reason so many people love it. Some things become mainstream because they are actually just good design, and I consider these to be one of them.

The only issue was that these nightstands were nearly $700 a piece, and that DID NOT fit into our refresh budget!

So, true to my style I began to scour Facebook marketplace in search of nightstands or side tables I could refinish to look like my inspiration nightstands. Weeks went by without success and finally one day these popped up.

A pair of vintage Ethan Allen nightstands with a shape super similar to my inspiration. I also liked that these had the fluted legs which I thought added to the vintage touch and lent themselves more towards my style. One of my instagram followers actually found another set on ebay and I couldn’t believe the price! I got mine for about $120 for both! The first step in the refinishing process was to use this deglosser to remove the shiny finish and degrease them. Next I used wood filler to fill the old hardware holes, and sanded down the drawer fronts and tops with my orbital sander so they were smooth and free of any scratches or rough surfaces.

Then I applied Sherwin Williams Extreme Bond Primer. I wanted to make sure that the paint would not only adhere, but would be super durable since our nightstands get a workout.

After two coats of primer I used my Rexbeti paint sprayer to spray on 2-3 coats of Sherwin Williams Emerald Urethane in Caviar (a beautiful black that’s just slightly chalky, gorgeous in a matte finish!). I love this paint because it doesn’t need a top coat (in fact you are told NOT to use a top coat because it will crack the paint!) and once you let it cure for the recommended 7 days it is hard, durable and very scratch resistant.

Spraying the paint gave me a ridiculously smooth, professional finish.
I let the paint cure for a few days before adding the hardware. To ensure proper placement I made a jig using a piece of scrap wood that was the same width as the flat part of the drawer fronts. I measured four inches over and made a drill guide using a drill bit that was just slightly smaller than my screws.

Then I attached these Hobby Lobby antique bronze metal ball knobs. I got them on a 50% off sale which made them very cheap! After they were fully cured I moved them inside and man, did they turn out pretty!