February is the month for love.
And this petite nightstand definitely needed some. It was pretty beat up but loaded with charm. Time to make this pretty in Valentine pink!
The Box of Chocolates
Like Forrest Gump said, “Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get.” So true with this small piece that needed big repairs. Cupid must have used the top for arrow target practice. I used DAP® Plastic Wood to patch cracks and mold missing bits, including crafting an entirely new corner that was missing.
When I got this piece home, I discovered it had once been half of a desk or vanity that had been split into nightstands. (See my example of this at Unique Nightstands: From Trouble to Double.) As a result, the two sides weren’t a match made in heaven. That bugged me.
Things that bug me need to be fixed. So, I cut a piece of thin wood and glued it into place on the smooth side. Here it is, clamped and drying.
Then I carved a groove across the new panel to replicate the look of the other side. Once painted, this side would match the other side as best as possible.
The Flowers
You have to take time to smell the roses, but it took a while for this pink one to bloom. The dark wood stain screamed bleed-through given the light paint I planned to use. So I first applied a layer of Zinsser Bulls-Eye® shellac to seal the wood. Then I topped that with a coat of Zinsser BIN® primer.
Now it was time to try something new. I’ve seen other refinishers use paintable textured wallpaper on their pieces. Since I was trying to disguise the fact that the two sides were a bit different, I decided to draw the eye toward this floral-like design instead.
The minute I saw this little cutie, I pictured it in pink. So I applied two coats of Farmhouse® “Pink Lady” paint (followed by a protective topcoat of Minwax® Polycrylic). Sometimes gaps appear where painted wood doesn’t meet at seams. I fix this by using a paintable caulk to fill the gaps.
The Jewelry
Time for the razzle-dazzle! I added silver paint along the top edge for some bling to break up the continuous pink.
The garish tin knobs that came with the nightstand had to go. I replaced them with lovely crystal-style pulls — like diamonds for these drawers!
I freshened up the wood with Wise Owl® furniture salve and added some drawer liner reminiscent of the wallpaper design.
Roses are red, nightstands are pink…
This little sweetheart was fun to do and will be great eye candy for someone’s bedroom. Like the conversation hearts say: LUV IT!
Status: SOLD!
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