Refurbished Garage Sale Night Stands

Trash to Treasure: DIY Refurbished Garage Sale Night Stands

On the same garage sale trip I found my wooden bench , I found these two night stands for… you’ll never believe this… $5.00 each!!! What?? I know!  All I knew was that it had:

• great bones and would be a good trash to treasure project
• it didn’t smell
• there were no major scratches or dents
• and the lady was coo coo…

Just kidding about that last part but I seriously couldn’t believe that I walked away with three great pieces for $15.00.  Anywho, here is how I made my refurbished garage sale night stands.

Easy DIY Instructions

Time: About an Hour

Here is what you’ll need:

The materials list below contains some affiliate links of recommended products I use.

• Thrift store or garage sale night stands in need of some love
• Sander (I used both block and electric, but just block is fine)
• Paint
• Paint brush
• Hardware (optional)
• Screwdriver
• Clean cloth
• Time
• Read this to find out if you need primer
• Acrylic Glaze

1. The first thing I did was removed the hardware and sanded it.  I used a hand block sander for hard to reach areas, and used an electrical sander for the larger areas like the top and the shelf.
2. Next, I cleaned the sucker.  It obviously had not been cleaned in a long time, perhaps left lonely and unattended in a garage. There were caked on gooey stains, but nothing that couldn’t be easily removed.
3. Once they were clean and dry, I painted them with the left over paint I had from re-painting my guest room.  I used two coats. You can add a coat of polyurethane or clear acrylic spray. You can buy cans of the spray at any craft store or hardware store in the paint section.
4. Lastly, I had to order the new handles online because the average size these days is either 3” or 4”.  These were 3.5”.  If you’d rather not order new handles online, you can always putty the holes and drill new ones before you paint.  I screwed in my new hardware when they arrived in the mail.

Ways to Save

To save money, consider buying hardware secondhand at:

• Habitat for Humanity Restore (one of my faves)
• Local Thrift Stores
• Swap Meets
• Garage Sales
• Estate Sales
• or at Hobby Lobby (don’t forget your coupon)

Depending on the situation, sometimes it is cheaper to buy an entire piece of second hand furniture just for the hardware. You can always repurpose the rest.

Check out my trash to treasure guide for why you should buy furniture secondhand. It also includes a list of trash to treasure tips and project ideas.

Got Knobs? Here is an easy spray painting hack for updating knobs you already have:

Here are some more after pictures.

Like it? Pin it!

I would love it if you shared this project on Pinterest! Thank you in advance.

Update: I originally shared this post on November 20, 2012. I STILL have these night stands today in my master bedroom!