Home » Decoupage » Furniture Makeover: Change Drawer Pulls | Paint | Decoupage With Fabric

Furniture Makeover: Change Drawer Pulls | Paint | Decoupage With Fabric

This is a complete furniture makeover including a change of drawer pulls from old to new and how to do that, painting the furniture, and then how to decoupage with fabric! It’s easier than you think. Changing the drawer pulls or knobs as part of a furniture makeover will give the furniture a whole new look. And of course fabric choices for decoupage on the furniture is endless. So let’s get to work.

how to change furniture hardware and add drawer knobs to a nightstand

 

I did it all on this nightstand from changing the drawer pulls, to paint, to decoupage. I share the whole makeover from beginning to end in this tutorial.
tres chic French fabric (2)

I was inspired by this pretty fabric I spotted at a local store a while back. I loved the colors and the design of the fabric. The name of the fabric is  Tres Chic Black/ Pink and it’s by Waverly.

I thought about putting the fabric on the drawers or the top but decided at the last minute that it would work best on the sides. That was my vision anyway.

furniture project before

This is the before of the nightstand. Cute shape but the nightstand had issues and those outdated drawer pulls had to go.

IMG_6690You can see the stained top has a lot of damage to it. That really isn’t a problem with a paint makeover because a little sanding with a power sander or sandpaper by hand will even out the roughness of the finish.

IMG_6707

And man was the nightstand dirty. I sanded the loose finish from the top of the nightstand then grabbed the shop vac to get rid of the cobwebs and dust balls. Then I washed it from top to bottom with Simple Green.

replacing hardware Petticoat Junktion

The first order of business was to drill new holes for the drawer knobs and fill the old pull holes with putty. I wanted the nightstand to have a modern up to date look so I decided to change the hardware style.

A big wood knob is much more up to date than the batwing pulls. I used this handy dandy hardware template thingy to mark for the new knob.

The template has different sets of holes for different size drawer pulls and the screw holes are measured center-to-center. The center-to-center of any drawer pull is the distance between the center of one screw hole to the center of the other.

The template also has a hole in the center which helped me a lot. I lined up the template with the original pull holes and marked the place for my new knob using the center hole!

drilling holes for hardware Petticoat Junktion

I used my power drill to make a new hole for the knob. The drill is one of my favorite power tools.

Elmers wood filler Petticoat Junktion project

Then I filled the old holes with Elmer’s Wood Filler. I usually let the first application of filler dry then add another layer because the wood filler shrinks as it dries. After the filler is set I sand it down so it’s flush with the wood. I sand it by hand because I have more control than using an electric sander.

Glidden Primer Petticoat Junktion project

Now for the secret of the paint. I primed the nightstand and I liked the look of the primer so much I just went with that. I was going to paint the piece pink but thought that might be overkill with the pink girly fabric. The primer is one of my favorite brands….Glidden. I always have the primer tinted at Home Depot to a gray color. Gray works great under any top coat. I like it much better than white primer.

how to decoupage fabric to furniture Petticoat Junktion

Moving on to the decoupage part of the post. I cut the “Tres Chic” fabric to the size of the sides of the nightstand.

how to change furniture hardware and decoupage furniture

I laid the fabric face down on plastic sheeting and covered it liberally with Mod-Podge using a foam brush.

painting a nightstand

I turned the nightstand on it’s side so I would be working on horizontal surface and applied the Mod Podge coated fabric. I rubbed the fabric from the center out with a soft cloth to remove all the bubbles….well…almost all.

How To Change Drawer Pulls As Part Of A Complete Furniture Makeover

Before the fabric was completely dry I trimmed off the excess with a razor. It might have been better to wait until it dried but I was afraid the overlap would adhere to the paint and pull it off.

decoupage furniture as part of a complete furniture transformation

When the fabric was dry I brushed on two coats of the Mod-Podge as a sealer. It dries clear so no worries! Did you know Mod-Podge can be used to seal any number of things? Seal paint, varnish, paper, etc.

Decoupage furniture project Petticoat Junktion

Now for the “new” knobs. I found a couple of unfinished wood knobs in my stash and simply painted them with black satin spray paint. And that was it! The old drawer pull holes are completely covered up with filler and wood and the new knobs give the nightstand a modern look.

How To Change Drawer Pulls As Part Of A Complete Furniture Makeover 1

The gray primer has a flat finish and I like it! What about you? Are you surprised that the nightstand looks totally different? It’s my favorite thing to do….make a piece of furniture unrecognizable from it’s original look!

Total furniture makeover with paint, new knobs, and fabric decoupage

Have you decoupaged anything? I like using paper to decoupage too. It works great if it’s not too thin, then it’s a bear. Voice of experience. One time I decoupaged gift wrap on bar stool legs. You can see it here…Paper Decoupage For Furniture. That’s it for today. Thanks for being here and see you tomorrow, Kathy

Author: Kathy Owen
Kathy Owen is the founder of the home decor blog Petticoat Junktion where she shares tutorials on painting furniture and upcycling thrifty finds into unique home décor. Her DIY projects have been featured on the Home Depot Blog, Plaid Crafts, Behr Designer Series, and in numerous magazines. Kathy’s newest website is HappyHomeDIY.com

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12 Comments

  1. Hey was the paint latex ? I am also planning to use the same technique but my furniture is latex painte. Please help

  2. I’m a little late with my response…sorry. This is so cute. Love the fabric touch. Your tips are so helpful too. I like the in-between emails too. They’re so helpful. Happy Thanksgiving.

  3. I don’t know why your Mod Podge wouldn’t dry, even in Florida. Make sure you do your project indoors or bring it indoors to dry where the humidity is low. Thanks for reading the blog and your sweet comment!

  4. I love your site and helpful tips. I live in Florida and when I used modpodge on anything it never dried. I stopped using it!!! Have they altered the formula keep this from happening. I thank you for any suggestions.
    From an older student and teacher, loretta

  5. Some useful tips in this for me, thank you Kathy. I would never have thought of putting fabric just on the sides but it works really well.