What is a floating nightstand?

What is a floating nightstand?

A floating nightstand is a bedside table with no legs, mounted directly to the wall. This style of nightstand saves floor space and provides clean, simple lines. It is a great choice for minimalist décor styles like Scandinavian or wabi-sabi, or those with sleek lines like Mid-century Modern or Industrial. A wall-mounted nightstand is also great if you simply have little space.

Floating nightstands come in many styles, from a simple shelf, to a box, to a drawer or a combination of open and closed storage. A nightstand with a drawer or sliding doors will provide dust-free storage for your belongings.

One of the great things about a wall-mounted nightstand is that it is height-adjustable. Some people like tall, fluffy, luxurious beds. Others prefer low platform beds with simple lines. Whatever your preference, you can attach your floating nightstand to the wall at a height that works best for you.

How to hide cords with a floating nightstand

Nearly all of us have essential electronics we keep at our bedsides: a reading lamp, our laptops, or our phone that we charge at night. With all these cords, how can you keep your space looking clean and uncluttered? An electrician can easily install an outlet directly above or below your floating nightstand, run cords behind the wall or, if your nightstand has a drawer, install an outlet directly into the back of the drawer.

For those with a smaller budget or the need for a more temporary solution, there are several tricks for hiding your cords. If your floating nightstand has a drawer, you can place a power strip inside the drawer and run its cord out the back. This way, you can hide all your electronics in the drawer while they are charging. You can easily paint your power cord or wrap it in fabric to match the color of your walls. Another easy fix is to use Command™ hooks to lift cords up off the floor and run them behind the bed. Alternating the direction of the hooks will ensure that your cords are held securely.

If an unsightly outlet already exists underneath your floating nightstand and cannot be relocated, you can place something underneath for camouflage, such as a plant, a basket full of blankets, or a stack of books.

Accessorizing your floating nightstand

Your nightstand is the place where you need to place all your essentials at night, so to keep the surface available, keep your accessories simple. For lighting, choose a lamp with a small base, or opt for a wall sconce or a simple hanging bulb above your nightstand. Underneath, a floor lamp with up-lighting can create a cozy atmosphere.

On top, choose decorative items with thin profiles to save space. Try a tall vase with silk orchids or dried reeds. Find a lovely decorative bowl or box with a lid to store all the small bedside essentials, like lip balm, eyeglass cleaning supplies, a memory stick, or earrings. Pretty bottles of lotion, perfume, or room freshener can look lovely on your nightstand. And, of course, it’s a great place to display a couple of your favorite books.

Not just for the bedroom

A floating side table is great anywhere you need a space-saving surface for your things. In your entryway, it can be a convenient place to put your keys, purse, mail, or anything else you need to be able to grab on your way out the door. Next to the shower, a floating nightstand can hold your towel, glasses, jewelry, or items you need to keep dry but close by. A floating nightstand could also be pretty and functional in a stairwell, to add interest and to provide a place to collect things that need to be taken up or down the stairs. In a vanity area, it can provide extra storage and an extra surface. Indeed, two or three floating nightstands with drawers, mounted side by side, would make the perfect vanity table, with room underneath for a chair or stool.

Creative ways to add storage

What if you need additional storage in your bedside area? The most obvious way to add storage is to accessorize with decorative boxes or baskets. Baskets are easy to cut and can be lovely camouflage for all your electronics, with a hole cut in the back for cords. Hollow out attractive, vintage books and use them to store small items, electronics, or even to hide something big like a router.

Installing picture ledges above or below your floating nightstand can give you extra surface space for your things. A pegboard installed behind your floating nightstand will allow you to hang jewelry, glasses, scarves, or your purse, as well as letting you easily hang favorite photos. If you have framed wall art above your nightstand, add hinges to one side of the picture frame and install small hooks in the wall behind it to easily hide jewelry storage.

Underneath your floating nightstand is an excellent opportunity for storage since there are no legs to get in the way. Store linens in a beautiful basket. Stack graduated boxes to keep your papers, pens, and notebooks beautifully organized. For a cool, vintage vibe, an old suitcase or two underneath also make perfect storage.

Could you make your own?

In its simplest form, a floating nightstand is just a shelf or a box, making it an easy DIY project. Mounting the nightstand securely to the wall would be the most difficult step. You do not want your nightstand to fall or to damage your wall, so finding reliable instructions and following them to a T would be of the utmost importance. All in all, however, when you add up all the supplies and tools for building, sanding, staining or painting, and mounting your floating nightstand, it may be more economical to just purchase one of Barn Walls’ many decorative and practical options that complement our wide selection of headboards and other furniture. Our floating nightstands are beautifully made and ready to mount, with easy to follow instructions, which also saves you time.

Let us know how we can help you create the kind of space you want.