Not every project works out the way you planned and things go wrong when you’re knee deep in the middle of it sometimes. Unfortunately that’s the story for my recent nightstand refinishing project. It took a little longer than I wanted, and I may have thrown a tantrum or 2, but in the end, I’m very happy with the finished result. And that’s what’s important.
Here’s a picture of the nightstands previously. A year and a half ago, I found them at a local second hand shop that I adore for only $40 a piece. They’re extremely well built, provide tons of storage, and I just love the detail and design of them.
I convinced myself they were gray, but they definitely had a hint of green in them that I chose to ignore. If you want to know my feelings about paint colors, and how the same color can look so many different shades, refer to my post about why Choosing Paint Colors Will Make You Lose it.
(Also see more about my original master bedroom makeover here)
I knew I wanted to paint my nightstands white and I’ve read a lot about Annie Sloan’s chalk paint and decided this was the perfect project for it. This paint markets that no sanding is required and you can simply paint directly on top of almost any surface to give it a flat paint finish. The clear wax coat goes on at the end to help protect and prolong the finish.
Annie Sloan offers 2 white options – old white and pure white. I chose old white for two reasons: 1) I’d seen a few pieces of furniture online painted in old white that looked awesome, and 2) the new duvet cover I recently purchased is not entirely a crisp white, so I figured old white would match it the best. [Spoiler alert – I was WRONG.]
I used an inexpensive paint brush and a foam roller for coverage on most of the nightstand.
I removed the drawers & hardware and began painting the first coat of old white on a piece of cardboard in my carpeted hallway. I like to live on the edge, ok?
I used a couple cheap, smaller paint brushes for the detailed parts on the drawer fronts.
I was very tempted to leave the crevases the gray color because it gave it a nice antique look, but decided against it. I think either way is beautiful, but the solid white is more me.
I painted a second coat of old white and was already loving the result. I couldn’t wait to get them back in the bedroom.
Except…as soon as I drug them back in my room…I hated them. Yes, you read that correctly. I was so upset at how YELLOW they looked in my room. In the hallway by themselves, they looked completely white and awesome. In my room next to my bed? They were definitely yellow. I wasted NO time and immediately grabbed some pure white paint from the garage to further prove to myself how yellow they really were. Check this out:
See the difference? The “old white” aka yellow was not going to cut it for me. So using all the same steps mentioned above, I painted the nightstand AGAIN. This time in Valspar white, which only cost me $14 for the quart, instead of $30. Luckily (if you can even call it that), I had only painted one of the nightstands before I realized I didn’t like it.
And here is how it turned out after the Valspar white.
I still used the Annie Sloan soft wax to protect it. I used a rag and rubbed a generous amount all over the nightstand and let it dry for 2 days.
And here’s the finished product!
While I’m at it, I figured I’d share what’s inside as well. I use my nightstand for jewelry storage and found the ice cube tray idea on Pinterest a couple years ago. I absolutely love how it separates and stores all of my earrings.
No “fancy” storage in the rest, just random necklaces, watches and such.
Again, here’s the before:
And the after!
Comment and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you guys!