Mid Century Modern Nightstand Plans

Mid Century Modern Nightstand Plans – And if you like this bedside design, I plan to build an entire modern bedroom to match it in a full build series here.

Clean lines and a warm poplar color make this my favorite combination! You can easily mix and match this nightstand with any dresser or bed as the style here is simple and clean.

Mid Century Modern Nightstand Plans

My favorite part of these nightstands is the fact that they provide a lot of storage space in the large drawers.

Natural Wood Nightstands

In fact, in our previous house, we didn’t have room for a dresser in the bedroom, so we just used our nightstands as little “dressers” and it worked great!

So if you are ready to see how you can build yourself a DIY modern nightstand, I have a video, details and ideas below 🙂

I made the entire matching room out of poplar and it gives it a really modern feel.

I was able to build two large nightstands and a bed for about $200 (100 board feet of rough sawn) in poplar in 2018 (it would cost more than that now haha).

Mid Century Modern Nightstands — Bourbon Moth Woodworking Co

I buy raw wood from a local lumber yard because it’s cheaper. I put it down myself, but you can build it with standard plywood (spruce, pine, or even cabinet plywood) for about the same price.

I cut four “legs” and four pieces and a top for my two nightstands from 2x2s. You can buy pre-cut 2x2s or make your own 2x2s using this tutorial.

To put the two frames together, I used this dowel jig to drill holes into the frame pieces and glue them together with wood glue and wood dowels.

I have a quick video here showing how to use a simple cookie cutter, but if you want to skip the dowels, you can certainly use hole punches and screws instead.

Nightstand With Drawers

Once I have the two frames put together, it’s now time to add the panels. For this, I glued (or pocket-hole screws if you prefer) two pieces of 1×8 together to make a panel about 15″ long and 14″ wide.

Typical 1x8s are 7 ¼″ wide, so gluing two together will be 14 ½″ wide…so cut these once glued. OR, please use ¾″ plywood and cut to size.

.Drill ¾″ pocket holes along the two long edges and attach as shown using 1 ¼″ pocket hole screws.

Now that the two side panels are assembled, next we need to put them together. I cut three more 2x2s to glue the sides together to frame the nightstand as a whole.

Diy Nightstand Plans You Can Build This Weekend

2×2 will be in the top front corner, top back corner, and back bottom corner.

Just like the side frames, I attached them with wood glue and dowels. But of course, you can use pocket holes and screws if you want.

Using a router and a rebate bit, I cut a small notch (about ⅛″ deep) around the top edge of the frame.

This is completely optional and serves no purpose other than I just think it’s cool haha. It makes it look like there is a “lift” or something between the frame and the top.

Diy Retro Side Table

I used the same method to create the “gap” between the frame and the top on the DIY keyboard stand, too!

I want it to be exactly the same size as the top of the frame – so there is no overhang. Putting two 1×10s together gives you a width of 18 ½”. So to get the right size, I just cut it after the glue dried.

I sand and glue the top panel on top of the night frame. The top should sit flat on all sides.

While writing this I found out that this is not the correct way to attach the tops due to the wood placement issue.

Diy Nightstand (step By Step Plans)

That said, I’ve had these nightstands for almost four years now, three moves, and spent one summer in a non-weatherproof storage shed while we built our house.

It has no problems with wood moving, breaking, or splitting. We still use them every day and they are as good as the day I wrote them. So, take it for what it’s worth.

I built two chests for each nightstand for this out of plywood scraps and used poplar for the front to match the rest of the stuff. You can see how I pack the boxes in this post.

For my drawer boxes, I cut some scrap plywood about 6″ wide. But you can also use 1×6 boards for this instead.

Diy Mid Century Modern Nightstand

Then, I put them in the dead of night on the box slides. This comprehensive guide to building and installing crates will help 🙂

Once everything was lined up, I cut two pieces of poplar for the drawer fronts and screwed these into the inside of the drawer leaving a ⅛″ gap on all sides for clearance.

I used Watco Danish Oil natural color. I wanted to see the natural color of the poplar, but wanted something that would dry “clean” and still not feel oily even after it dried.

I added some modern fishing pulls to complete this build. I use these long pulls on these nightstands.

Diy Matching Mid Century Modern Bedroom Set

NOTE: If both drawers of this nightstand are opened at the same time, it may be overwhelmed due to weight distribution. It is recommended to copy it to the wall after it is finished.

I love the contrast here in the tree. I know some people don’t like poplar, but I really like the look.

I like to leave it in the sun to darken it a bit after the oil. You know the tree “turns brown” in the sun? It does… it’s crazy how much darker you can get from just the sun.

The plans for the modern bed I built to match can be found here. And ideas for modern dressing to match these bedside tables can be found here.

Nightstand Plans — Lincoln St. Woodworks

If you enjoyed this modern DIY project, and want to follow all the latest projects, videos and ideas, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter!

And if you want to save this for later, don’t forget to post it or share it on your favorite social channel! This week’s project is a DIY Mid-Century Modern White Oak bedside table/nightstand. The box front has a laser etched pattern that really brightens things up. Have fun!

Two night stays for our room has been on my list for a long time. Actually, I’ve been without a nightstand on my side of the bed for about four years now, which is ridiculous. How did the speech go? The children have no shoes. Well, in my case, the carpenter’s wife has a crappy IKEA bedside table.

Anyway, I had some White Oak left over from the Arts and Crafts Dining Chairs I wrote about a while back, and it was almost exactly how much I needed for a couple of these. Since most of the stock I bought for that project was 8/4, that meant I had a lot of measuring and adjusting to do, which is what you’ve seen me do up until this point.

Diy Metal Base Night Stand

If you want to build this project, I would recommend using some 1×8 hardwoods, you will save yourself a lot.

Once I had my pieces down to ¾” thick, I cut them to rough size on the table saw, being sure to leave a little extra size for the final cut later.

With my pieces in their rough dimensions, I placed them in the panels, making sure they stayed nice and flat.

After the glue dried, I flattened the panels in the planer, making the two halves of the panels even. Since the panels are narrow, you should be able to get away with this on a 13″ design.

End Table Makeover: Part Two — 5 O’clock Design Co

Once the panels were planed flat, I ran them through the drum sander to remove any tool or hidden marks, and began sanding the panels. These types of projects are really where Sander shines, as hand sanding all these panels would have taken a long time.

While I’m sanding, let’s talk about one of this week’s video sponsors, Acme Tools. My drum sander, the Supermax 19-38, is supplied by my friends at Acme Tools, and I highly encourage you to check them out if you’re thinking of buying any power tools or other items for your shop. Acme Tools has been serving the contractor, woodworker and DIYer since 1948 with a wide selection of tools and equipment from all major manufacturers. To learn more, check out the link in the video description below.

After sanding, I made a square in one corner of each of the panels in the yard. This square end will ride against the table saw wall when cutting the bevels in the next step.

Next, I set my table saw to 45 degrees and cut a bevel edge on each of the panels, fitting the square edge to the wall. At this point, I want to try as few panels as possible because I want to have plenty of room for the final cut.

Easy And Chic Diy Nightstand Ideas You Can Build Anika’s Diy Life

With a 45 degree bevel cut on one

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