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A nightstand is the perfect scale for learning real furniture construction: mortise-and-tenon legs, a web frame, and a fitted drawer — all in a piece small enough that mistakes are cheap.
The drawer is the exam. A drawer that slides sweetly with a consistent reveal all round is the difference between furniture and a box with a hole in it. Fit it to the opening you actually built, not to the number in the cut list.
Build two. They take barely more time than one, and nightstands look strange alone.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| Cherry, 8/4, for legs≈ about 11 ft of 3/4" × 6" board | 4 board feet |
| Cherry, 4/4, for case, top and drawer front≈ about 27 ft of 3/4" × 6" board | 10 board feet |
| Poplar or maple, 4/4, for drawer sides and backSecondary wood for drawer sides is traditional and sensible. Nobody sees them, and they're cheaper and more stable.≈ about 8 ft of 3/4" × 6" board | 3 board feet |
| Plywood, 1/4", drawer bottom and case back | 0.25 sheet |
| Drawer pull (brass or turned wood) | 1 each |
| Wood glue | 8 oz |
| Clear interior finish (hardwax oil or wipe-on poly) | 12 oz |
| Paste waxWax on the runners is what makes a wooden drawer glide instead of grind. | 2 oz |
A board foot is a volume, not a length: 144 cubic inches, or a piece 1″ thick by 12″ wide by 12″ long. The “≈” note beside each row shows roughly how much 3/4″ × 6″ board that works out to.
Overall cost: $$$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| LegsCherryTapered on the two inside faces only, starting below the apron. Tapering all four faces makes the leg look spindly. | 4 | 1 3/4" × 1 3/4" × 25" |
| Side apronsCherry | 2 | 3/4" × 4" × 13" |
| Back apronCherry | 1 | 3/4" × 4" × 15" |
| Front rails (above and below drawer)Cherry | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 15" |
| Drawer runnersPoplar | 2 | 3/4" × 1" × 13" |
| TopCherryOverhangs 1" all round. Attach with buttons or figure-8s so it can move. | 1 | 3/4" × 18" × 20" |
| Drawer frontCherryCut to fit YOUR actual opening. Never to this number. | 1 | 3/4" × 4 1/2" × 14 1/2" |
| Drawer sidesPoplar | 2 | 1/2" × 4 1/2" × 13" |
| Drawer backPoplar | 1 | 1/2" × 4" × 14 1/2" |
| Drawer bottomPlywood | 1 | 1/4" × 12 3/4" × 14" |
Buy 10 boards at 8 ft.
2 boards
1 board
1 board
1 board
1 board
1 board
1 board
1 board
1 board
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →
Mill four legs to 1-3/4" square, 25" long.
Taper only the two inside faces, starting just below where the apron lands, down to about 1" at the foot. Tapering the outside faces too makes the leg look weak and the case look like it's on stilts. Two faces. Always.
Mortise the legs for the aprons — 1/4" wide, 3" tall, 1" deep, set back 1/4" from the outside face.
Cut matching tenons on the aprons. Dry fit the whole case. It should stand square with hand pressure and no clamps.
The drawer opening means there's no front apron — instead, two narrow rails (above and below the drawer) join the front legs.
Join them with stub tenons or dovetails into the leg tops. This is the weakest point in the case, so don't skimp: a well-cut joint here keeps the front from racking.
Glue the two side assemblies (leg-apron-leg) first. Cure. Then join them with the back apron and the two front rails.
Two stages, not one. A four-sided glue-up with eight mortise-and-tenon joints closing at once is more than you can manage before the glue grabs.
Check for square and for wind — the case must sit flat on all four feet.
Glue and screw a runner to each side apron, level with the bottom front rail. The drawer rides on these.
They must be level with each other and parallel. A twisted pair of runners means a drawer that binds diagonally, and you'll never diagnose it.
Measure your actual drawer opening. Not the cut list. Every case ends up a hair different from the drawing, and a drawer built to the drawing won't fit the case you built.
Dovetail (or rabbet-and-screw, honestly, if this is your first) the sides to the front and back. Groove for the plywood bottom, and let the bottom float — no glue.
Build it a whisker oversized. You want to *plane* it to fit.
Push it in. It won't go, or it'll be tight. Look for the shiny rub marks, take a shaving off that spot with a block plane, try again.
Repeat until it slides smoothly with a consistent reveal all around — aim for about 1/32" gap at the top and sides.
This is fussy, iterative, and completely worth it. A drawer that glides is a small daily pleasure for the next thirty years.
Wax the runners and the drawer's bottom edges when you're done.
Attach the top with wooden buttons or figure-8 fasteners — an 18" cherry top moves, and screwing it down rigidly will split it.
Sand to 220. Cherry blotches under stain, so don't stain it. Shellac or hardwax oil, and let sunlight do the rest — cherry darkens dramatically over the first year into a deep reddish brown that no stain can imitate.
Now build the second one.
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