Mr. Frugalista, a.k.a. furniture buyer has a keen eye for finding great furniture pieces for me to makeover. But last year when he came home with just the top of a small Mid-Century Modern cabinet with no legs I gave him the "what in the heck were you thinking?" look and "where the heck are the legs?" Into the I have no idea what I'm going to do with this pile it went and life moved on.

Small Mid Century Modern Cabinet Now Curvy Metallic Night Stand

Fast forward a few months and he came home with a package of four cabriole legs that he picked up for a song. Into the Leg Pile, they went.

Last week while working on another makeover I noticed the legs resting upside down on the top of my paint cabinet. A few minutes later while walking to the laundry sink to clean paint brushes my eyes glanced over at the now very dusty legless cabinet. DING DING DING


...and a Metallic Night Stand with curvy cabriole legs was born. Once the legs were attached to the base, it gave the cabinet a completely different look.


The cabinet had some wear and tear so I filled the damaged spots with Dynamic Dyna Patch. Wanting the knobs on this piece to be like the jewelry on the little black dress, I removed the original hardware and filled the holes with wooden dowels and filler.


To ensure a good bond with the paint and to avoid tannin bleed from the red stain on the legs, I primed everything with a coat of Zinsser Bulls Eye 123 Primer.


In 2015 the good folks at Modern Masters sent me their Matte Metallic Platinum Silver Semi-Opaque paint to try on my Vintage Art Deco Waterfall Vanity makeover. Having some leftovers I decided it would be the perfect paint to add glam to this curvy nightstand.


I applied the first two coats with a small foam roller and wasn't happy with the results. It was looking like a hammered metal patina and I wanted a smooth as a baby's bottom finish. Using 220 grit sandpaper, I sanded the paint smooth and removed the dust with a tack cloth.

Tips for painting with metallics

• For semi-opaque metallic paint, like I used, it will take three coats minimum.
• Stir the paint well before painting and often during. The paint has real metal particles, pearlescent pigments along with traditional color pigments and they need to be blended well.
• Prime with an acrylic primer or low sheen acrylic paint close to the metallic paint color. In my case, I could have primed with a light or medium gray paint color but because I used a white primer, it took four coats to get complete coverage.
• Use a good quality synthetic bristle paint brush.
• Or roll with a 1/2-inch synthetic nap roller (hence the reason I wasn't getting good results using a foam roller). Be sure to rinse and dry brush first to remove loose lint.
• Apply the paint in long even brush strokes (I painted from end to end).
• Work with a wet edge to eliminate roller edge or brush marks.
• Don't go over the same spot twice while the paint is drying.
• I found by dipping the tips of my brush in water (damp not soaking wet) and then into the paint on my final coat, eliminated any visible brush strokes.
• Allow the paint to dry a minimum of 24-hours before applying a protective top coat.
• Be mindful that topcoats can dull the metallic shimmer. It's best to use one specifically for metallic finishes. I used Modern Masters Top Coat in a satin finish.

I always like to line the drawers on my pieces and had this pretty silver metallic contact paper leftover from the Antique Scalloped Tilt Top Table. I should note that the drawers on this little cabinet have dovetail joints - they don't make them like that anymore.


I found the center of each drawer front and using a 1/16-inch bit I drilled a pilot hole for each knob. Next, I used a drill bit the same size as the screws that came with the new knobs and finished drilling the holes. I don't remember when or where I purchased these pretty turquoise ceramic flower bloom knobs but I had just two in my stash. It's like they were waiting for this particular makeover.


I found the gold stem on the knobs too stark against the metallic silver, making the piece feel unbalanced. I rubbed Metallic Gold Gilding Wax along the top and bottom edges and that was the perfect finishing touch.


I love pairing silver and gold with a pop of color like turquoise. I have to say these colors would look fabulous in our master bedroom. To sell or not to sell, that is the question?


You'd never know that under this sexy curvaceous metallic nightstand is a discarded legless mid-century cabinet.


You'll find this project shared at these fabulous LINK PARTIES.