Monday, February 15, 2016

Building Lessons: Pallet Coffee Table

I have been building furniture for more than a dozen years now, and I have learned a lot over the years, but I have discovered I still have plenty to learn.

And so, while building this special order coffee table I learned: 1.) Screwing a bunch of random pallet 2x4's together does take quite a bit longer than one may think (like 3 or 4 times longer) 2.) Building a large coffee table by joining wood together takes much more time than one may think and 3.) DO NOT quote someone a price for something until you build it, especially if it is the first time you are building the item.
pallets, coffee table, 2x4 furniture, reclaimed wood, building, salvaged, rustic decor, Minwax,http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html

The results were worth the lessons and I loved the finished product.  
pallets, reclaimed wood, coffee table, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
I cut pallet pieces to 46" and then hubby (who did a lot of the muscle work for me this time), screwed each board to the other in 4 places.  One outside board shows the screws.
pallet table, salvaged wood, reclaimed, build it, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
We built the legs  (cut to 13") the same way, but used just two screws in them.
pallets, coffee table, reclaimed wood, salvaged, 2x4 furniture, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
The bottom shelf was added by cutting out a channel for it on the table saw.  Hubby did this while I stood by with a fire extinguisher because of the pallet nails that were hitting the saw blade. I used barn wood for the bottom shelf.
pallets, build it, coffee table, reclaimed wood, salvaged, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
After a few hours of sanding (and one very sore shoulder), I finished the beautiful wood with Minwax polyacrylic.
pallets, coffee table, build it, Minwax, reclaimed, rustic, decor, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
If I were selling this table at a show or in my booth, I would charge 3 or 4 times more than I did for the special order (I believe in standing by word and charging what I said it would cost before I realized the time it would take to build).  My sweet special orderee paid me more than I charged here, which I appreciated.  
pallets, coffee table, build it, 2x4 furniture, salvaged, build it, woodworking, http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2016/02/building-lessons-pallet-coffee-table.html
I do love the table and want to make another one...now to convince my heavy laborer (husband) to help again. (Looks pretty happy in my home, huh?)

PS--if you want more pallet ideas, consider buying my book HERE!

12 comments:

  1. wow what a special table....love the personality it adds!!! GREAT project!

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  2. Very unique. I did something similar with scrap portions of 2 x 4's. I stacked & glued a number of pieces together & did this 4 times to make legs, then used longer pieces to make my son a bench for his deck. Good way to use up scrap wood.

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  3. Just wondering...what would the price be on this piece?

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  4. That looks great, nice and sturdy and I bet it is heavy.

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  5. ♥♥♥ the coffee table, it is so unique!

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  6. I really love it! I can only imagine how heavy but it has sort of a masculine urban twist to it.

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  7. I love your table!! It looks awesome in your living room.

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, I really appreciate your kind words!