Repurposed Card Catalog Into a Night Stand
I used hairpin legs that I removed from a bookcase to upcycle a card catalog and repurpose that card catalog into a night stand. And I’m loving how this repurposed card catalog night stand turned out!
So before the big move, which I talk about HERE. I tried to sell as much inventory as possible. One piece, this card catalog, that didn’t sell, I decided to keep and repurpose into a side table, end table or night stand. Where it went and how it was used depended on where other pieces would work in the new home.
It also turns out, that although, I/mom thought it would look good in one of the boys’ rooms as a night stand, neither of them wanted mom’s junk. They are both into modern features with black, minimal, clean simple lines and low profile beds! Since the boys didn’t want the upcycled night stand, I decided Matt and I could use it.
Before all is said and done, it might end up in the living room! We purchased a sectional for the new living room and I’m really not sure what I will be using as side tables next to the new sofa. So, who knows! This piece might make the rounds!
As I mentioned above, I took these hairpin legs off of a bookshelf before we moved. I had actually added them to the bookcase, but I knew I was going to sell the bookcase with or without the hairpin legs, so I took them off so I could use them on something else. I have added hairpin legs to A LOT of pieces over the years.
This set is 16″ long and just happened to be the right size to add to the card catalog to turn it into a night stand. I would say our bed is average height and I didn’t want the new night stands to be higher than the mattress, but I also didn’t want them to be too much lower. I honestly just lucked out and these were a good size, but if you are ordering yours for a project, then you definitely want to take the height of your over all piece into account when you pick what leg length to purchase.
This was probably the most time consuming part…finding screws the right length. I have a ton of random screws, even after leaving a ton or random screws from my old workshop with my dad! We are screwing these legs into the bottom of the card catalog which is not very thick. If the screws are too long, then the drawers won’t work and sometimes shorter ones also have smaller diameter heads to them. That’s a problem because the screw fits threw the hole in the hairpin legs and then you need to find washers.
What we ended up doing was using some black screws, that happened to all match, that were just a little bit too long. They just barely touch the bottom of the bottom drawers. But because I know we won’t actually use the drawers I decided that was fine! We really just need a spot for a clock and a charger. At the old house we didn’t even have drawers, just suitcases stacked, so having two usable drawers would be plenty for us.
If using the drawers was important I could have either found washers to use, or gone to the store for the right length of screw.
Do you use the drawers in your night stands? Tell me below in comments!
As you can see in the pictures, we also chose to pre-drill holes. We did this because the card catalog is dovetailed and we were going to be screwing in close to the edge of the piece. To help prevent splitting, we took a little time for this extra step. We did not measure when attaching the legs, just eyeballed putting the legs on evenly around the card catalog.
Yes, I need a lamp shade! It’s on my to do list because I have two of these vintage brass lamps. I love them and the old textured books on the repurposed card catalog together! I also want to mention our new bedding! In the first picture with the card catalog sitting on the floor, you might notice a hole in our comforter. That hole happened when we washed the comforter one time. It must have gotten wrapped around something! The old comforter was also heavily faded in spots. Our old master bedroom was all windows, so that comforter saw a lot of sun!
But other than that, the comforter was fine. So, while I was at Target I saw this duvet cover and thought it would match the grey sheets and bedskirt we already have. And I lucked out, it does match! And, I’m so glad I splurged a little and went with this duvet. I think it’s linen and I love the touch and just adding a few layers onto the bed it made our old comforter a little heavier which makes it feel more expensive and I like the weighted feel. Extra weight without purchasing a weighted blanket. This duvet cover also came with two pillow covers!
I also want to mention this glass sphere. It’s actually contains some of Matt’s dad’s ashes and I just love it!
Card Catalog
Hairpin Legs
Duvet Cover
Sheet Set
I’m sharing a corner shot of the sheet set I absolutely love! It has 2 elastic sections on each corner and it guarantees a nice fit and stay in place sheets!
Like repurposing? Checkout this fun repurposing project for Christmas! Trust me, I doubt you’ve ever seen someone do this before! See it HERE.
Like my style? Checkout my coffee table styling HERE.
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Such a cool idea. Love it. Another option for the screws would have been to use machine screws with nuts and bolts. Predrill the holes. Insert the screws from the inside and nuts on the outside. The drawers would clear the heads of the screws. Touch up the nuts with some black paint. Second option would be to glue a piece of wood wood/plywood to the bottom of the cabinet. Screw the legs on. Touch up the edges of the wood with black paint.
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