She Stripped the Tops and Bases of These Pine Bedside Tables but Painted Everything Between
Orange-toned stain covered these two pine bedside tables from top to bottom, including the drawer fronts, molded bases, and round wood knobs. They were not a matching pair either: one had four drawers, while the narrower table had three.
Instagram creator @ontheflipside.kb kept those differences and changed how the wood itself was finished. She stripped the tops and bases, painted everything between them Soft Black, then replaced the wood knobs with brass hardware. The result combines exposed pine and paint on both pieces without trying to make their different shapes identical.
Orange-Stained Pine Covered Both Pieces
The original bedside tables shared the same orange pine finish, rounded tops, molded bases, and wood knobs, but their drawer layouts did not match. One had two small upper drawers over two wide drawers, while the narrower piece had three stacked drawers.
Rather than trying to alter those differences, the makeover kept both cabinet structures intact. The finish became the element that would connect them.
Stripper Lifted the Finish From the Tops
The existing coating was stripped from the surfaces that would remain wood. A scraper pulls the softened finish across the top, exposing a much lighter pine tone beneath the orange coating.
This step was limited to the top and base rather than the entire cabinet. The drawer fronts and sides were prepared for paint instead.
Sanding Took the Exposed Pine Back to Bare Wood
After stripping, the exposed sections were sanded to remove remaining finish and smooth the timber. The creator worked through 120, 180, and 240 grit on the top and base.
The cabinet bodies received a scuff sand rather than the same full stripping process because those surfaces would be primed and painted.
Soft Black Covered the Bodies
Primer prepared the cabinet bodies before paint was sprayed across the sides, drawer fronts, and trim. The creator used Soft Black by Wise Owl Paint, replacing the orange finish across most of each bedside table.
The tops were masked during this stage, preserving the stripped pine instead of carrying the dark finish across the entire piece.
Paint Wash Changed the Bare Pine
The stripped tops did not keep their raw post-sanding appearance. A paint wash was added before the exposed wood was sealed, toning the pine while leaving the grain, knots, and board lines visible.
The same treatment was used on the exposed bases, giving both pieces matching wood sections above and below their dark-painted bodies.
Brass Knobs Replaced the Wood Hardware
Round brass knobs replaced the original pine knobs on every drawer. Against Soft Black, the hardware stands apart from the drawer fronts instead of disappearing into the same finish.
The stripped top and base frame the painted cabinet from both ends, so the natural wood was not reduced to a single accent across the top.
Different Drawer Layouts Remained Part of the Pair
The wider bedside table still has its four-drawer arrangement, including the pair of small drawers across the top. Paint did not hide the molded drawer edges or alter the original proportions.
Soft Black now covers the main cabinet, while stripped pine remains visible across the top and molded base. Brass hardware adds the same third finish across both pieces.
Stripped Wood Breaks Up the Dark Finish
Placed together, the two bedside tables still have different widths and drawer configurations. What changed is the distribution of finishes: dark bodies sit between light pine tops and bases, with brass knobs repeated across every drawer.
Instead of choosing between stripping the furniture or painting it, this makeover uses both treatments on the same pieces. Would you have left the tops and bases as wood, or painted the bedside tables from top to bottom?
Image credits to instagram creator @ontheflipside.kb.