Pallet Coffee Table

It all started with a pile of pallets I picked up on the side of the road (say that five times fast)... I used the top two for this project because there were in the best condition and the same size. Didn't really have a plan when I started. Just wanted to make a coffee table for our game room. (Freckles was very helpful!)

I used white paint left over from my kitchen cabinets. I put one coat everywhere, I tried to get all the surfaces even if you wouldn't be able to see them since this is unfinished wood and felt kinda dirty... After painted I sanded to make it distressed and to make sure the areas you would touch when its done were smooth (the sides and the outside areas of the top).Then I stenciled these details and stripes in red, and sanded back over them.WEAR A MASK! Especially when sanding over paint, you will feel sick the next day if you don't, trust me.

I painted the bottom and sides of the other pallet with red paint I had left over from an accent wall. This paint was really cheap and took 4 coats to cover the wall but I love how it turned out here. The wood grain and even some numbers on the side show through the paint. Then I sanded it lightly again to look distressed.

For the top I sanded A LOT! I wanted it to be perfectly smooth. Then I put three coats of stain to make it pretty dark and three coats of sealant so I wouldn't have to stress about coasters. (Seems a little silly to insist on coasters to protect a pallet...) I also sealed over the red and white paint just to be safe.

The table needed to be about 20 inches tall so I got these 6 inch blocks cut at Home Depot from a 4x4 piece of pine (about $13). Then just sand and stain like the top of the table. Then I used wood glue and "L" brackets to attach the blocks. It gets a little tricky for the second pallet since the drill can't reach all the angles. I had to mark where all the brackets went, the drill them in to the pallet separately then put it together and drill into the blocks. 

The casters were the most expensive part (about $9 each at Home Depot). I like the industrial look they give it plus they have red wheels! They were shiny silver so I painted them the my trusty Rustoleum spray paint. 

I LOVE how it turned out! We had friends over last night and broke the table in with a football game, dinner, drinks and even a few cards games. It was perfect : )