Adding Legs to a Nightstand
Check out this different way of adding legs to a nightstand, so you can add bun feet or your favorite type of legs to any piece of furniture.
Get more furniture makeover ideas here!
And then we found these lovely Ethan Allen night tables. I just had to get them! They were in such good shape and were quality made with solid wood. The price tag was even just right.
I honestly planned to give them a fresh coat of paint and replace the hardware. That was it. But after stalking an amazing blog I realized I needed to give these a bigger makeover.
Carrie at Thirty Eighth Street has an awesome system for adding legs to furniture and I just had to try it. Seriously. Go check out her blog! It is full of all things pretty!
How to Add Legs to a Nightstand
We grabbed some furniture legs that have slowly started accumulating in the garage and some leftover plywood from another project.
I am all about getting a good deal all the way around and using what we have on hand. The back legs and leg plates were also leftover from another project.
Supplies Used For Adding Legs to a Nightstand
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- Wood Legs with Screws
- Furniture Leg Plates
- Blocks of Wood
- 2 1/2″ Long Wood Screws
- 3/4″ – 1″ Thick Plywood
- Nail Gun or Screws
- Power Drill
- Drill Bit Set
Before we dive in, this method of adding legs to a nightstand works best if there is a box on the bottom of your furniture, with not much space to attach anything to.
It also works great if there is a 3 sided box on the bottom of the nightstands. (Like if the back of the box under the nightstand is open.)
Cut Plywood To Size
First, we flipped the nightstand upside down so it was sitting on its top. We measured the length and width of the bottom of the nightstand and took an inch off of each of those measurements.
(You could also make them the same size as the nightstands)
Then we cut 1″ thick plywood to those measurements. This is the new base for each nightstand. And then we sanded all of the edges so we wouldn’t get any splinters while working with the wood.
Learn about the best sanders for furniture here!
Attach Legs To Plywood
Next, we measured out where we wanted to put the front and back legs. Then we used our power drill to drill pilot holes in each of those places.
For the back legs, we used a 1/16″ drill bit and pre-drilled holes into the back legs as well and the plywood.
For the front legs we used a 1/4″ drill bit that was the same size as the screw on each of the front legs.
Then we placed a leg brace over the hole and pre-drilled the four corners where we screwed it onto the new plywood base.
To attach the back legs we flipped the plywood over and screwed a 2 1/2″ screw through the plywood and into the leg. We made sure it lined up straight before tightening it completely.
Attach Plywood With Legs to Bottom Of Nightstand
Once all of the legs were attached, we nailed the plywood base to the nightstand with 1 3/4″ brad nails and a nail gun. That’s all there is to it! Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
Now the nightstands have an updated high-end look while making each nightstand taller.
We’ve listed all the best wood legs to add to furniture here to help you choose for your painting project.
Then I painted both nightstands with white homemade chalk paint and distressed the edges to create a farmhouse look. Learn more about distressing furniture techniques here!
The old drawer pulls were replaced with updated silver knobs to finish off the transformation.
More Before And After Makeovers
Click any of these “before” photos below to view the “after” of that makeover.
The best part is that these bedside tables were updated and brought back to life by changing just a few things. And now they will serve well in their new home for many more years to come.
You just can’t find this high-quality solid wood build in stores anymore!
More Adding Legs to Furniture Tutorials
- Adding Legs to a Cedar Chest
- How to Easily Add Legs to Dressers
- How to Add Feet to a Dresser
- DIY Dresser with Hairpin Legs
- How to Add Legs to a Cabinet
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