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Nightstand Valet Docking Station

This easy DIY docking station holds your phone, Apple Watch and more on your nightstand while charging. 

Today is Day 2 of easy to make DIY gifts! In case you missed it, this week I am partnering with Kreg Tools to share 3 easy DIY wood gifts you can make in just an hour!

I have already shared a DIY sliding letter board and today is this cool nightstand valet. 

You may want to go ahead and make at least two, you’ll probably want to keep the first one!

This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

Bedside table organized with all the electronics charging on a wood valet.

What is a Nightstand Valet?

A valet is a way to collect all the things that you carry on you. Just think of all the things you empty on your nightstand at the end of the day. The wood valet is there to keep them from being a mess.

If someone you know (*wink wink* your husband) has a pile of cords on their bedside, they need a valet. Instead of cords getting tangled trying to charge all the things on their nightstand, they will be out of the way and organized. And it looks much prettier.

Close up of the nightstand valet docking station.

I planned on giving this DIY docking station to my husband, but between my phone, Apple Watch, and bluetooth earbuds, my nightstand is a mess of cords too.

And I really love how organized my nightstand looks now. 

DIY charging station on the nightstand with phone, watch and bluetooth earbuds charging.

I guess I will be making another nightstand organizer for him as well. Good thing this one was so fun and easy to put together. It was built completely out of 1×4 & 1×1 scraps. And the build was so quick and fun!

You can customize your own nightstand valet anyway you want. The one I made holds a normal sized phone (it you have a really big one you will want to adjust), 2 watches (1 with a charger), and bluetooth headphones (or other small electronic).

Sketchup drawing of the nightstand valet with measurements on it.

How to Make a Nightstand Charging Station

Tools & Materials

Recommended Tools:

Supplies:

  • (1) 28″ long 1×4 board
  • (1) 7″ long 1×1 board
  • (6) 1 1/4” Kreg pocket hole screws
  • Wood glue
  • Sandpaper
  • Stain or paint

Cut List

Cut out the pieces according to the easy-to-read cut table in the PDF plans.

Button to buy the PDF printable plans for the nightstand valet.

STEP 1- Build the Front

Cut the front boards from the 1×4 so they are 9″ long with a 15 degree angle on one of the ends.

The front of the boards is the long side and the top is the non-angled side. 

Cutting the board for the front of the charging station with the miter saw.

Set your Kreg pocket hole jig to drill pocket holes for 3/4″ thick material. Drill pocket holes in the back of one of the front boards so you can attach it to the other front board along the side. 

For the top pocket hole, make sure it is 1″ down from the top so that it does not get in the way of the cutout for the watch holder. 

Drilling pocket holes in to the side of a board.

Add wood glue to the inside edge of one of the front boards. Clamp it next to the other board with the face clamp.

Make sure that the angled edge lines up along the bottom of both boards. Secure with 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws. 

Glueing the two front boards together for the face of the docking station.

STEP 2- Create Charging Areas on the Front

Measure and mark the center points for the holes according to the diagram in the plans. Remember the bottom is the angled cut. 

The top hole will be the end of the watch opening. If you want to make your nightstand valet only hold 1 watch, you can make it shallower and that will allow more room for a larger phone. 

The points on the bottom will be where the charging cords come through. If you have a larger phone you may want to move these to be centered under it better.

Drill a 3/4″ hole in the top hole with the mark at the center.

To finish off the area to hole your watch, draw a line from the top and bottom of the 3/4″ hole to the side of the charging station. Cut along the lines with a jigsaw. 

Drilling and cutting out the notch to make a section to hold the apple watch charger on the valet.

Drill 1/2″ holes at the bottom marks. This size worked great for larger charging cords made for Apple products.

It’s probably a good idea to double check that your charging cord is not bigger than 1/2″. Adjust if necessary. 

Drilling holes to bring the charging cables to the front of the nightstand charging station.

If you want to add a watch charging cord to the valet, drill a hole in the center of the watch area. For the Apple Watch charging cable I used a 1 1/8″ Forestner bit.

Make the hole deep enough to hold the charger, but make sure to leave it a little bit proud. Otherwise the watch will not be able to make contact with the charging pad.

Use a chisel or knife to dig out a channel for the cord to sit. You want the cord going into the opening toward the center of the valet, that way it will not be in the way when you want to slide your watches on the stand. 

Making a Apple Watch charging port on the nightstand valet.

STEP 3- Attach the Base

Sand the front of the charging station now to make it easier. After you add the other elements it will be harder to get in between them all.

Cut the base of the valet from a 1×4. Cut it 7″ long and then cut one side off at a 15 degree angle. 

You can easily cut this on a sliding miter saw or a table saw. But if you do not have either, you could also cut (2) 1x4s to 3 1/2″ long with a 15 degree angle on one end. Then connect the two boards with a pocket hole or two (just like you did for the front of the valet). 

Cutting the base of the docking station with a table saw.

Drill pocket holes in the bottom of the base piece. The bottom is the longer edge. 

Drilling pocket holes in the base piece.

Line the angled edge of the base up with the bottom. Since the bottom of the valet front is also angled, it should line up nicely creating a flat bottom. 

Attach with wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws. 

Attaching the base of the wood valet with pocket hole screws.

STEP 4- Attach Phone Ledge

From the 1×1 board, cut 1 piece that is 1 1/2″ long, 1 at 1 1/4″ long and 1 at 2 3/4″ long. This will allow 1/2″ room for the charging cord, adjust if needed.

The 1 1/4″ piece is for the side with the watch holder and the 2 3/4″ piece is the center. 

Glue the boards to the front of the valet just above the holes for the charging cords. Space them so they are 1/4″ in from the sides and 1/2″ between the boards. 

Glueing the ledge to hold the phone and earbuds on the charging station.

Finish off your new valet charging station with another lights sanding. Then seal or paint it with your favorite finish. 

To attach the Apple Watch charging pad, make sure the paint/stain is dry than attach with glue.

I tried a command strip, but it would not stick to the wood (my finish might not have been dry enough). I may try glueing the command strip inside first to make it so the charger can be removed if needed. 

To further contain your cords, add a couple cord clips on the back of the valet. 

DIY wood valet that holds an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods with an Apple Watch charger built in.

Don’t forget to grab the printable PDF plans here!

Printable mini plans include:

  • Recommended Tools
  • Shopping/materials list
  • Easy to read cut list table
  • X-ray view with measurements
  • Step-by-step instructions
  • BONUS: 3D SketchUp file

You did it!

Now your new nightstand charging station is ready to be wrapped up for Christmas, unless you plan to give it to yourself like I am 😉 

Wouldn’t you agree it looks pretty awesome on my nightstand?

DIY nightstand docking station on the nightstand next to a bed.

And now I am off to make one more easy DIY gift for you! Come back on Friday for more DIY Christmas gifts you can build.

DIY wood valet that holds an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods with an Apple Watch charger built in.

DIY Valet Docking Station

Yield: 1
Active Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy
Estimated Cost: $10

Organize all the things you need to charge with this easy to build nightstand valet. The wood valet is the perfect docking station for your phone, watch and earbuds.

Materials

  • (1) 28″ long 1×4 board
  • (1) 7″ long 1×1 board
  • (6) 1 1/4” Kreg pocket hole screws
  • Wood glue
  • Sandpaper
  • Stain or paint

Tools

  • Kreg jig
  • Miter saw
  • Jig saw
  • Drill
  • Measuring tape
  • Kreg face clamp
  • Kreg corner clamp
  • Square
  • Chisel or knife

Instructions

  1. From the 1x4 cut 2 pieces 9" long with a 15 degree angle on one end.
  2. Add pocket holes to the back (the shorter side) of one side of one of the boards. Position them so they will not get in the way of the holes and cuts needed later.
  3. Secure the two pieces together with wood glue and pocket hole screws.
  4. Measure and mark the points below to drill holes.Sketchup drawing showing the center points for drilling the holes.
  5. For the top hole, drill a 3/4" wide hole with the marked point at the center.
  6. Draw a line from the side to the edges of the hole. Cut along them with a jig saw to create a channel.
  7. Drill 1/2" wide holes on both of the lower marks for the charging cables. Adjust if needed for your cables.
  8. To add a built in watch charger, drill a 1 1/8" wide hole deep enough for the charger to sit into.
  9. Carve out a channel for the cord to come through.
  10. From the 1x4 cut the back piece 7" long with a 15 degree angle along on side.
  11. Add pocket hole screws to the bottom (the long side) of the base pointing toward the angled edge.
  12. Attach the base to the back of the front boards so it is flush on the bottom with the angled part of the front.
  13. Cut a 1 1/2", 1 1/4" and 2 3/4" piece from the 1x1 board. Glue them to the front of the docking station just above the holes drilled for charging cords.Leave a 1/2" gap between the boards for the cords.
  14. Sand and paint/stain the valet. Secure your cords to the back of it with cable clips if desired.

Did you make this project?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

-Kati with picture of blog author Kati

Thank you to Kreg Tools for sponsoring this post. I only recommend products that I use and love and all opinions are 100% my own. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

Two pictures of the nightstand valet charging station with word overlay.

Google Web Story: DIY Nightstand Charging Station

Nancy

Saturday 2nd of September 2023

Can you show what the back looks like?

Tom

Tuesday 13th of December 2022

What finish did you use on the valet?

Kati Farrer

Wednesday 21st of December 2022

simple finish by maker brand on alder wood.

Tom

Saturday 10th of December 2022

Use hot melt glue to attach the Apple watch charger

Kurt

Sunday 21st of November 2021

Great tutorial. I’ll probably make some modifications for my situation, but the drawings and photographs were extremely helpful in seeing the entire process and visualizing any areas where I may want to make tweaks, etc. Thank you!

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