Pallet Coffee Table

Wood pallet projects were some of the first things that I started pinning on Pinterest back when I started two years ago. I loved all of the different things you could do with pallets that are usually free. I decided that I wanted to make a coffee table. It took me a while to find the right pallets. I usually see them in the trash so I collected for a while. I found two that were similar in size. One of them had more slats on the top then most so I thought that would be a good one for the top of the table. 

I made this table last summer when I was starting to rehab furniture. I don't have any process pictures but here is one before picture. I primed the coffee table the same time that I primed this dresser. When I am using oil based primer I like to do as much as possible while I have it out. I usually just throw the brush/roller away after using the primer.

I had to do some work before priming though. I borrowed a power washer and cleaned the two pallets off. Once Dry I sanded them. It was hard getting in all the cracks but I did that by hand and then used the power sander for the tops. Pallet wood is not in the best shape so it took a lot of sanding.

Priming was hard as well trying to get in all the cracks and crevices of the wood. I primarily used a foam brush for this step. After priming, I decided to use spray paint. I knew that although more expensive it would be a lot easier. My husband and I decided on orange. This was pretty much the first piece of furniture in our family room at the back of the house so we could pick anything we wanted.  I wanted something bright and bold so that's where orange came in. I bought six cans of spray paint. And it was sooo orange. After one can I decided that we got the wrong orange. It looked like a traffic cone. So I returned the other cans and bought a less bright orange. 

After painting my husband helped me to screw the two pallets together. It was very heavy after this step! We then added wheels that we bought at Ikea. They were $20 for four wheels. So with paint and the wheels this table was about $40 which is much less than buying a coffee table.

Finally, I coated the top and sides of the coffee table with polycrylic to protect the finish. And ta-da!  For $40 it is perfect for the space and unique which fits in with this quirky room. Well I don't know how unique pallet tables are according to Pinterest but they do become unique when you customize it to your space!