DIY Planked Wood Nightstands

Build these super easy and affordable DIY planked wood nightstands for any bedroom. customize them to fit your space and design.

One of the main reasons I love doing DIY projects is because you get to create something that is exactly the way you want it. And usually for a fraction of the cost. The measurements, the design and color of it, is all based on what you need for a particular space.

Enter, DIY planked wood nightstands.

These days it’s hard to find something affordable and brand new in a store that I seem to love. And since our house and rooms are smaller, I need smaller furniture.

Our guest bedroom has been in need of some new nightstands to replace the industrial stool nightstands. Those were kind of a happy accident that were temporary.

I needed a smaller, skinny nightstand that would fit perfectly on the sides of the bed. So I decided to just build my own.

Supplies Needed for DIY Wood Planked Nightstands

Affiliate links are provided below for your convenience.  For more information, see my full disclosure here.

Please note the wood listed below is for TWO nightstands. Also please keep in mind all wood is not the exact measurement as it is labeled. EX: the 1×4’s we bought are actually 1×3.5.

• 11 – 8ft 1×4’s (For the planked sides and the top)
• 3 – 8ft 2×2’s (For the structure)
• Saw
• Nailgun (or nails and hammer)
• 1.5 inch nails
• Sander
• Small Paint Brush
• Wood Stain (I used Minwax Provincial)

Instructions for DIY Planked Wood Nightstands

• I started by making all of my wood cuts with our miter saw.
  • For the 1×4’s, I cut 13.5 inch pieces. So each 8ft board will give you 7 – 13.5 inch pieces. Each side of the nightstands have 8 planks, and the tops have 4, so all together you will need 72 – 13.5 inch pieces. (Trust me, I know this sounds like A LOT, but since you are making the same size cuts it goes pretty fast.)
  • For the 2×2’s, I cut 29 inch pieces. So each 8ft board will give you 3 -29 inch pieces. Each nightstand will need 4 of these pieces for its structure, so all together you will need 8 – 29 inch pieces.

• Once all your wood is cut, you can start assembling the nightstands. Using my nail gun with 1.5 inch nails on the entire project, I started by taking 2 of the 29 inch – 2×2’s, and attached 8 of the 13.5 inch planks, leaving a small gap in between each board. I found it was easiest to attach the top board and then the bottom board first, then fill in the middle.

• Once all 8 of the planks were attached, I repeated the exact process again. This gave me two sides assembled. Then I laid out the two sides next to each other, as shown below. I started to attach the third and forth sides. With these sides that I nailed into the 2×2, and not the very edge where the 1×4 was. And again, started with the top and bottom planks, and filled in the middle.

• Once all four sides of the nightstands were completed, I attached 4 of the planks to the top. I spaced them out as well.  After each nightstand was complete, I went over the entire thing with my sander. This is too smooth our any rough edges.

• Lastly, I used Minwax Provincial as my wood stain. Since there are a lot of gaps, I used a small paintbrush to stain in between those, and an old rag to stain the rest. And after they sat outside all day to dry, that was that!

These DIY wood planked nightstands fit our guest bedroom space perfectly. They were super affordable and I love that I was able to customize them to the exact measurements I needed.

You can make them whatever size you need, and you can even use smaller or bigger planks. These ones measure 29.5 in tall x 13.5 in wide x 15 in deep. Which are perfect for a small space like in this room.

I just love that they bring in a warm wood tone to the room and go well with my design. They can even be painted later if my design changes.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this tutorial for my DIY planked wood nightstands! And if you decide to make them, please let me know if you have any questions at all!

Other DIY Projects

• Industrial Coffee Table
• Wooden Coffee Table Makeover
• Vintage Cedar Chest Makeover
• Guest Bedroom Armoire Makeover
• Crate Side Tables

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