I received this French Provincial nightstand from a friend after asking for one on Facebook. It had been in a kids room and came with f-bomb graffiti in one of the drawers. The top had a small divot in it. Other than that it was in great shape AND it had 2 drawers.
TIP If you are looking for a specific piece of furniture post pictures of what you are looking for and ask if anyone has one like it. If you have a budget in mind that can be helpful to include. You never know when the perfect piece is sitting in someone’s attic waiting for you.
I started by cleaning the piece inside and out. I then used wood filler to fill in the divot on the tabletop. I sanded the top to get it as smooth as possible. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better. I attached the hardware to a cardboard box and spray painted the pulls gold. I spray painted the drawers gold inside and out. I painted the main part of the piece with an exterior semi-gloss paint called clover. Clover was the same color I painted my dresser (from a different bedroom set, but also in the French Provincial style). Once the drawers were dry, I painted the front panel in the same green, carefully keeping the edges gold. I also painted the raised decorative piece in a similar gold using acrylic craft paint. It’s not the same gold, but close enough.
TIP Painting different pieces of furniture with the same color can make mismatched pieces seem more like a cohesive set. If you don’t want a matchy-matchy look, you can use the same color as the main color on one piece and an accent color on another.
I loved the bright green version of this piece. However, when I redid my dresser to tone it down this piece didn’t look right in the room. I painted the main part of the piece in Annie Sloan’s Paris Gray chalk paint. I had to touch up the edges of gold decorative element. I used Annie Sloan’s Amsterdam green mixed with water to lightly cover the front of the drawers. Once the paint had dried for over a day, I finished the piece with clear wax. I rubbed hard in some places to give it a worn look.
I like the contrast of the gray and green. The piece still looks fancy, but it’s toned down and feels more relaxed.
