Black and White Bedside Tables – The Colour Guide

The white bedside table is the most common search, the black one is the one we sell most, and grey is historically correct. The colour of the bedside table is the first thing you see on waking and the last before you switch off the lamp, and it has to go with headboard, bed linen, wall and floor all at once. In this article we go through black bedside tables, the white bedside table and grey variants, explain what each colour does to the bedroom, how to choose to suit the bed and how we relacquer old bedside tables so that the finish lasts. You will find everything about bedside tables in general in the bedside table guide.

White bedside table: bright, but not against a white wall

White makes a small bedroom larger and a dark one brighter, and it is the right choice when the bed is dark and the room needs air. The drawback: white shows everything, coffee rings, fingerprints, lacquer that has yellowed in the sun. White against a white wall and white bed linen also becomes nothing. Choose a broken, warm white with a satin-matt finish and give the table brass knobs or a dark top so that it gains contour. For Gustavian bedside tables, a greyish white is historically correct. The white wooden bedside table is also often searched for as "white wood bedside table"; you will find the background on the material in wooden bedside tables.

Black bedside table: calm and contour

Black is our signature and the safest choice in the bedroom. A black bedside table gives the bed a frame, hides signs of wear, lets the form speak and ties the room together if the headboard or lamp also has something black. Against pale walls and pale bed linen it becomes a graphic accent, against dark walls a calm tone-on-tone effect in which only the brass shines. In the bedroom choose satin-matt, never high gloss, and preferably an off-black with a touch of brown or green for softness. Examples: the black and white bedside tables in the Louis XVI style (€890 per pair) and the black and white bedside tables in the Gustavian Haupt style (€980 per pair). You will find the same considerations for larger pieces in black chest of drawers.

Grey bedside table: the Gustavian original

Pearl grey is the colour in which Gustavian furniture was painted in the 18th century, and it still works best in bright, calm bedrooms with linen and a wooden floor. Grey is forgiving and ages beautifully. The danger is that it becomes tame: grey table, grey wall, grey bed linen. Give it a warm wall or brass fittings. Which tones are right is described in Gustavian chests of drawers.

Two colours on one table: black and white

A bedside table in two colours, a black carcase with a white top or white drawer fronts with a black frame, combines the light of white at the bed with the contour of black. This is how we often redesign Louis XVI and Gustavian bedside tables. The rule: the dark colour takes the form, legs and frame, and the pale colour takes the surfaces. The other way round, the table becomes top-heavy.

How to choose the colour to suit the bed

• Dark headboard in wood or velvet: a white or grey bedside table, which lightens.
• Pale or white bed: a black bedside table for contour or wood for warmth.
• Divan bed without a headboard: a black chest of drawers as a bedside table; it gives the bed a frame. See bedside chest of drawers.
• Coloured walls in green or blue: black or wood. Grey looks dirty next to colour.
• White walls, white bed linen: anything but white.

How we relacquer a bedside table

A bedside table takes more punishment than a chest of drawers: a glass of water, coffee, a hand feeling for the lamp switch in the dark. The finish has to withstand that. We sand off the old finish, repair veneer, prime, sand between coats and spray-lacquer in several thin layers, so that the finish becomes hard and even and can be wiped with a damp cloth. The fittings are removed and restored, and the drawer is adjusted so that it runs quietly. How a redesign proceeds is described in the process of a redesigned piece of furniture. You will find all current bedside tables in the category Chests of drawers and bedside tables, and the choice of colour for chests of drawers in white, blue and colourful chests of drawers.

Black bedside tables with gold and brass

Black and brass is the classic combination at the bed. Brass knobs or gold edges add accents and go with lamp bases, picture frames and the bed frame. They ensure that a black table never looks flat. This applies especially to Gustavian and Louis XVI forms, in which mouldings and fluted legs are meant to stand out. If you want to transfer the principle to larger pieces, you will find it described in black chest of drawers.

Frequently asked questions

Should the bedside tables be the same colour as the chest of drawers?

Not necessarily, but from the same family: black and grey go together, and so do black and white. Three different colours in the same bedroom look restless.

Does a white bedside table yellow?

Old oil-based white lacquer yellows in the dark and in the sun. Modern water-based lacquer hardly does. Even so, choose a broken white from the start, and the change will not be noticeable.

Can I paint my bedside table myself?

Yes, if it has already been painted: sand, prime, two coats. Veneered wood needs more preparation and the spray gun for an even finish. A bedside table is small enough to make a good first project.