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The Dream is Free, The Hustle Sold Separately

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Old desk turned into two Night Stands!

June 22, 2016 by Bethany Sy

If you’ve been following our blog since 2011, you deserve an award for Most Loyal Reader Evah. (Dad you don’t count). And you also probably remember this little furniture transformation where we chopped a desk in half to make two identical night stands for our Master Bedroom:

Take an old desk and chop it in half to make two identical and unique night stands!

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They are the PERFECT height, and have served us well over the years. I love the detail and uniqueness… and the knowledge that they were repurposed. But that burnt orange color I chose (WHY?!) wasn’t doing them any favors.

Two night stands made from cutting a desk in half {Reality Daydream}

Since we’ve been making over our bedroom lately, I decided to give these little guys a makeover. I simply unscrewed and removed the tops, and painted them glossy white (this stuff). It went on pretty smooth, except one of the drawers developed this very weird crackly problem. This usually happens when the temperature in the garage is pretty cold… but not the case this time. So maybe there was some oily substance on there? I don’t know! If you know what causes this, please tell me!

Weird crackling happening when spray painting {Reality Daydream}

I could have scraped it off while the spray paint was still soft-ish… but to be honest, I didn’t really care that much. It’s not like we’re selling these. And I sort of love to embrace imperfections. Especially when it’s minor.

See? You can’t even tell!

Chop a desk in half for TWO IDENTICAL NIGHT STANDS! {Reality Daydream}

What was that? You’re loving those vintage copper pulls? ME TOO! I found them at a garage sale, and snagged them so fast. At the time I didn’t have a specific piece in mind to use them on. I just knew that I needed them in my life.

Vintage Copper Starburst Plate Knobs {Reality Daydream} #pulls #hardware #antiques

Since these are legit old-school bits of hardware, I cannot give you a direct source for where you can get the exact same thing… but I did do some research and found something similar here if you wanna have a look-see. They aren’t copper, but you could spray them with this miraculously genuine-looking copper paint.

Anywho!

I love the how the crisp glossy white of the night stands really makes that copper starburst pop. And the whole combo is neutral enough that they would go with just about anything!

Chop a desk in half for TWO IDENTICAL NIGHT STANDS! Such a cute and unique idea! {Reality Daydream}

Gah! Isn’t it dreamy? Everything is coming together beautifully, and I’m still SO head-over-heals for this DIY Headboard that I made in an afternoon. Channeling all the peacock vibes at the moment. And I can’t WAIT to show you the treatment that we’re giving that stark white wall behind the bed!

Master Bedroom Transformation by Reality Daydream #boho #eclectic #peacock

Click here to see what the bedroom used to look like, and what changes we’ve made so far! It feels good to be making our own bedroom a priority for once. It’s been the most neglected room in our house for a long time, and it’s finally TIME!

~Bethany

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you’re one that loves a good Before / After Furniture Transformation, be sure to check out our extensive collection of projects by clicking the image below!!

A TON of inspiring Before and After Furniture Transformations - by Reality Daydream

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Take apart an old desk to make two unique and IDENTICAL night stands! Finally a bedside table that's the perfect height! {Reality Daydream}

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About Bethany Sy

Nick and Bethany Sy are the creative free-spirits behind DIY/Lifestyle blog, Reality Daydream. They recently purchased a historic mansion and have been documenting the ups and downs of renovation and making this home their own... all while sharing tips and tutorials along the way! When they found themselves in the trenches of infertility, they started a journey that would prove to be their most important DIY project ever, and have 3 beautiful girls to show for it. <3

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Comments

  1. 12

    Athena says

    April 26, 2019 at 4:16 am

    I dont know if anyone ever told you why the paint cracked like that, but it is because you were painting too close to the object. If you hold the can further away it wont do that. But the night stands look amazing.

    Reply
  2. 13

    Becky Anderson Armour Pitruzze says

    February 27, 2017 at 7:11 pm

    I’m itching to know what you did with the “leftover” center piece.

    Reply
    • 14

      Beth @ Reality Daydream says

      March 1, 2017 at 3:50 pm

      I hate to disappoint you, but NOTHING got done with the center piece. 🙁 Wah WAH. It sat in our garage for several months, waiting for inspiration to strike. And when no inspiration struck, I was tired of looking at it and it got hauled to the burn pile. 🙁

      Reply
  3. 15

    Medina Grillo says

    July 2, 2016 at 2:02 pm

    I love the idea of cutting a desk in half to make two halves. Really clever and these ‘side tables; look great!

    Reply
  4. 16

    Ashley LM says

    June 24, 2016 at 11:39 am

    but how?! how did you chop?! this is an incredible idea, and they turned out beautiful!

    Reply
    • 17

      Beth @ Reality Daydream says

      June 24, 2016 at 2:36 pm

      LOL Ashley! That’s an understandable question. 🙂 I really wanted to take a chainsaw to it …because FUN! But Nick got all practical on me and we ended up disassembling it. After ripping off the top surface, it was pretty wobbly then without the stability of the top, so we were able to just pull it apart. There’s more info and pics on this old post: https://realitydaydream.com/few-dilemmas-addressed/

      Reply
      • 18

        Ashley LM says

        June 24, 2016 at 2:52 pm

        Oooh thanks! Super helpful – I was trying to figure out what kind of saw I needed to buy/borrow to make this happen. This is even better!

        Reply
  5. 19

    Carole of Garden Up Green says

    June 23, 2016 at 1:03 am

    You are so creative – fantastic project and I love all those details.

    Reply
  6. 20

    Lindsay Scalco says

    June 23, 2016 at 12:03 am

    I love those starbursts! They would look so good in my kitchen, or anywhere really. I love them.

    Reply
  7. 21

    Candace Caldwell says

    June 22, 2016 at 3:31 pm

    Those copper pulls look really nice with the headboard, they seem to bring out the orange in it. And I’ve been following your blog since either late 2010 or early 2011;)

    Reply
  8. 22

    Jasmin says

    June 22, 2016 at 3:28 pm

    Your master bedroom is coming together beautifully and could be straight out of a Urban Outfitters magazine. I love everything about this space. So eclectic, urban, and happy. I’m having a bit of master bedroom envy over here <3

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Awesome DIY Furniture Makeover Ideas: Genius Ways To Repurpose Old Furniture With Lots Of Tutorials – Dress&Designs says:
    November 13, 2019 at 9:04 am

    […] For the tutorial via Reality Daydream. […]

    Reply
  2. En Yaratıcı 25 Mobilya Üreticisi - Dekor says:
    September 21, 2019 at 9:15 am

    […] üzerinden realitydaydream.com […]

    Reply
  3. 105 Genius Repurposing Ideas Teach Us How To Turn Junk Into Treasure | Healthy Home Cleaners says:
    August 23, 2017 at 3:05 pm

    […] A desk, for example, can be transformation into not one but two separate pieces of furniture. If it’s a desk with a symmetrical design that has storage drawers or compartments on both sides, with a work area in between, you can just remove the central piece and use the two storage sections as separate nightstands. It’s something that we learned from realitydaydream. […]

    Reply

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We are Nick and Bethany! Welcome to our blog, Reality Daydream where we share our DIY adventures!

realitydaydream

Still can’t get over these shelves. 😍 These Still can’t get over these shelves. 😍

These Aksel Radius Floating Shelves by @shelfology are the perfect finishing touch to this wall in our kitchen. 🙌

#gifted #shelfology #radshelfie #floatingshelf #akselradius
I needed an instant-gratification project today fo I needed an instant-gratification project today for my well-being, and this little wooden stand was so fun and fast!

Details and links to everything in this pic in Stories!
If ya just need a slab of wood, grab a cutting boa If ya just need a slab of wood, grab a cutting board when you’re at Target or Walmart! They’re made of hard wood!

I used this cutting board to experiment and make some prototypes for a large-scale piece of art I’m doing for our church. It’s got me EXCITED!

Follow along for that project- happening soooon!

@dapproducts @dremel @jet.woodworking
You’ve all seen the video, but here’s some sti You’ve all seen the video, but here’s some still shots of the kitchen wall in all its glory!! 

The Aksel Radius Floating Shelves by @shelfology were the perfect finishing touch! 

Should I do a house tour of our main floor this week?!?! 🙌🌿

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View of our entryway of our historic mansion that we're slowly renovating and making our own.
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Attention: Almost any do-it-yourself project involves risk of some sort. Your tools, materials, and skills will vary, as will the conditions at your project site. Reality Daydream has made every effort to be complete and accurate in the instructions of the plans on this website. Reality Daydream will not assume any responsibility or liability for damages or losses sustained or incurred in the course of your project or in the use of the item you create. Always follow the manufacturer’s operating instructions in the use of tools, check and follow your local building codes, and observe all commonly accepted safety precautions.

 

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