TV Stand Upcycle: From Knotty to Nightstand

Received: a free knotty pine TV stand.

It was a little too rustic for my taste and pretty outdated in style. Plus, old TV stands like this are not in high demand since the advent of flat screen TVs. What are in high demand are nightstands. Time to grab my circular saw…

Step One: Reimagining

I removed the drawers and detached the spinning TV turntable. Then I lopped off the top of the unit. Now you can see how this has potential to become a nightstand. Next, I gave the remaining parts a good cleaning.

Step Two: Restructuring

After I removed the pivot from its underside, the old turntable became the new top for the nightstand. Once centered and leveled, I screwed the new top to the base. I also filled the screw holes for the old drawer pulls with wood filler as I’d be adding new hardware with different spacing later.

Step Three: Redesigning

Now it was a simple matter of sanding and painting the piece. I scuff-sanded with 220-grit and then applied two coats of Farmhouse® paint in “Old Navy.” No primer was necessary since I was going with a dark hue. Then I added a topcoat of Minwax® Polycrylic for protection.

Step Four: Redecorating

I added new sleek handles in place of the old rusty ones. I used my nifty new hardware jig which makes accurate placement so much easier. You set the width of the new handle and how far down from the drawer top you want it to be and then simply drill through the guide holes.

Finally, I added some dramatic drawer liner to give the interior some bling. I also used candlewax on the drawer slides for smooth gliding.