My White Midcentury Gold Leaf Edged Nightstands/Cabinets

Happy Monday!  Last Monday I showed you all some updates in my master bedroom including these nightstands.

A month ago a fellow furniture flipper who is "going out of business" emailed me with some photos of items she wanted to off load.  She said she had a pair of these midcentury cabinets, and I knew I had to get my hands on them.

They had such a great shape, and the fact that there were two meant they'd be awesome nightstands.  I did not intend for them to stay with me when I first bought them.

I had NO idea what I wanted to do with them, so I went perusing my "furniture ideas" pinterest board.  A while back I had pinned my buddy Brynne's AMAZING credenza makeover.  When I had first seen this piece on The Gathered Home, I sent the link immediately to a friend and said, "I must do this!"  We oohed and aahed over it and agreed that one day I needed to do this treatment to the right piece.  Check out her credenza...

And now you are probably drooling over the rest of the space, right?  If you haven't already visited Brynne, head on over.  Her blog is full of quirk and inspiration, just how I like it!

Anyhow, now onto how I did my midcentury cabinets.  I gave them a light sanding all over.  The top was laminate, so I sanded that a little bit more to give it more grip for primer.

I gave it three coats of Kilz Adhesion Primer.  You may find this excessive, but when working with a true white that I want a solid modern look for, I generally prefer to use several coats of primer followed by a couple coats of paint.  It creates more durability and gives a nice solid undercoat.

In this case I used General Finishes Snow White.  I love this white as it really is a fabulous true white- not too warm and not too cold.

Once the paint had dried, I applied Artisan Enhancements leaf sizing to the areas I wanted to leaf, and let it set for about 30 minutes.

After it had sat for 30 minutes, it was nice and tacky, perfect for applying the leaf.  I just used my roll of gold leaf (I got both this and the sizing from Catfish Studios- not listed on their site, but just email them to purchase!) and applied it to the tacky areas.  For a more in depth tutorial on gold leaf, click here.

Once I was done applying leafing where I wanted, I used Mod Podge to seal.

To protect the white areas, I applied General Finishes Natural Wax in satin.

And finally, to update the hardware and metal legs, I applied gold rub n' buff.

In the end, I loved them so much, and the rest, as they say, is history!

They are the perfect size and style, and I love that they have doors to hide away the junk!  Of course, Chris doesn't understand why he can't have a pile of random papers, receipts, and junk in plain sight.  His suggestion was for me to swap the sides we sleep on so that I don't see his nightstand first when I walk into the room.... Um, yeah, thanks anyhow Chris, but I like my solution better.  Doors.  Put your pile behind doors.

I love how this leafing catches the light.... pretty and shiny!

The feet and handles are not a exact match, but they look much cleaner now!

This side is Chris'.  Do you see a pile of junk?  Me neither!  Because it's behind the doors!  Out of sight and out of mind!

So what do you think?  Are you a fan of white and gold like Brynne and I are?  Well, I am off to dip my toes into the sand... Did I mention I am at the beach today?  My business partner, Sarah, and I are in Seabrook with our kiddos, taking some time to relax while our husbands hold down the forts, and happily make messes in plain sight without us there to nag them. ;)

Sharing here:
Inspire Me Monday, Inspiration Gallery, The Handmade Hangout, Inspire Me Please, Creativity Unleashed, Link Party Palooza
At some of my favorite blogs, including Shine Your Light)