I built this pair of Shaker inspired nightstands to match a companion lingerie chest. The whole set is employed in a guest bedroom.

The legs, aprons and top are constructed from curly maple. The drawer fronts are birds eye maple, and the drawer sides and backs are crafted from spalted maple (white rot, but no zone lines.) The knobs are curly maple that were purchased from an online vendor.

Finish was water-based aniline dye topped with three light coats of clear satin wiping varnish.

I am nearing the end of a nice pile of curly maple I acquired some time ago from a local sawyer, and the last of the remaining stock will be used for a sofa/side table. I really enjoyed working with figured maple, but am looking forward to getting into a pile of cherry that I have been sitting on! I think my tools (and patience) will appreciate the much needed break from the rigors figured wood presents. . .

I have a friend who owns a sawmill in northeastern Wisconsin. He called me and asked if I was interested in a pile of curly maple that had recently made its way down the green chain.

“Yep, I’m definitely interested. . . I’ll be there in less than an hour!”

I am making a Shaker-style bedroom set out of the rough sawn lumber I picked up that day. The lingerie chest is the first piece I completed and nightstands are next.

I have used curly maple before, but have had issues finishing it in a way that did justice to the incredible figure of this wood. I did some searching on the Internet and was led to Lumberjocks and a “how-to” post about using water-based aniline dyes on figured maple by a member called “Trifern.” Thanks to Trifern and his instructional I finally achieved the finish I knew was waiting to come out of the curly maple.

The side panels, drawer fronts and legs are all solid curly maple and the top is birdseye maple. Knobs are curly maple and were ordered from an online supplier. Drawer sides and backs were crafted from poplar. The drawer bottoms and dust panels are 1/4” baltic birch plywood.

The design is not my own – I used plans.