Read the sequence from the top before cutting, painting, or moving pieces.
DIYing may save us money, but that doesn’t mean that’s low-cost! Sometimes there are things worth paying for, sometimes there are things worth building, and sometimes there are things that you can’t buy so you *have* to Handmade! Our guest today had the well fitted furniture in mind for her command center, but it wasn’t something she’d seen in stores. No problem, Carrie was ready to Handmade a perfectly sized pallet table for her little corner, for under $10:
like a jewelry organizer
a large outdoor flag decoration
use pallet wood to add character to an accent wall
or the ceiling
or a backsplash, too!
And if you’re really feeling the pallet thing, you can even build a deck!
Start direct with a little table like Carrie is going to show you, and branch out from there! Give Carrie a warm Bekob welcome:
How to Build a Pallet Table
by Carrie from Curb to Refurb
Hello all you lovely Bekob fans. I’m Carrie, the voice and Handmade-er over at Curb to Refurb. I feel like I should share a little about myself being that I’m new. (It’s like a blind date, except that I’m in my pajama pants and not wearing makeup).
My husband and I live in a not so fabulous 1960’s home with our 3 children, 2 dogs and a cat. We live in a constant state of “fixing up” around here. Had we loved avocado green siding and pink bathtubs, this house would have been well fitted!
My absolute go-to thing to do is mosey through thrift stores and scour estate sales for that well fitted treasure. I’ve gotten pretty darn good at turning old junk into something striking and useful while maintaining a very tight modest-cost. Our motto is don’t buy it: D-I-Y it! My go-to project to date is a cheese box I transformed into a shelf for $2.
When it came time to fix the kitchen eye sore we called the command center, I knew we were going to build a table – of sorts. In my head, I had an option of what I wanted. Problem was, I have never seen a table like my option in a store. Problem No 2 – I had about $10 to make this happen. Keeping in true Curb to Refurb style, we hopped in the truck and went on a pallet hunt! We also stopped by Home Depot and picked up a few supplies.
I tried to sketch a picture of my vision so my hubby and I would be on the same page, but my scribbles only left him scratching his head and mumbling something like, “I’m not a carpenter, ya know.” Winging it was our best bet. I picked up six of these 2×2 Douglas Fir posts. They are 3 feet tall. Four were used as legs, one was used for the shelf and the other served as a backup.
We started by pulling apart the pallet. I say “we” but in reality my hubby took charge. He then cut the pallet wood to the length of the table. Our table is 20 1/2 inches long. Then we screwed the boards to the legs using basic wood screws.
We attached boards to the legs, and then added the pallet wood to make the tabletop. These boards were cut to 8 1/2 inches long. My hubby pre-drilled holes just to prevent the pallet wood from splitting when turning the screws. We secured each board with four screws. (A little overkill? I think so.)
Remember the extra leg I bought? We cut it in half to form the bottom shelf. We just screwed them in to the legs and simply added more pallet wood.
Don’t worry about the legs! Once you screw in the boards to form the shelf, the legs will straighten.
The bottom boards remain the same length as the top – 8 1/2 inches. They were attached using the same -overkill city – method as the top.
Excuse the terrible dark photo and filthy baseboard. I was just checking out how it would look in its new home.
I then took the table outside and gave it a once over with the hand sander and a coat of Minwax Provential stain.
It turned out exactly how I envisioned.
We now have a cute little command center and a custom table to hold notepads – and of course – succulents!
This little table was so straightforward to build and the best part, it cost about $10.
I hope you all were inspired to make your own pallet table. You could create any size that fits your space, in any color, or you can try adding casters to the legs or a cute knob to the front. Just imagine the possibilities!
Thanks Bekob, and remember, don’t buy it: D-I-Y it!
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Carrie, thank you so much for sharing!
Bekob, head over to Curb to Refurb to see more from Carrie, like this great shelf and solid light in her bathroom makeover.
