Cartwheels and Pearls: Furniture

DIY Side Table

Due to a nice computer clean up, I lost a lot of pictures. I somehow had left these on my camera and was able to re import them onto my computer... but I lost all pictures before the first step so please just bear with me!

I started out with a whole bunch of pallets that I got for free at a local landscaping place. They were an awkward size but perfect for a size table.

I pulled apart several pallets with a hammer and crowbar. Brand new wood would work just as well!

I cut 6 pieces of wood 18" long and they were already about 3" wide. I lined them all up in an order I liked and attached them together with two pieces of wood that were 15 1/2 "

This is how the table top looked.

I cut 4 more pieces. Two 14" pieces and two 15 3/4"

I attached them around the base of the top to have something to attach the legs to.

Here's the finished look:

And incase you wanted to see the look my feet were rocking all summer:

I did have to add a TON of wood filler to the top and the legs because it's reclaimed so there were a bunch of holes and cracks.

The top wasn't totally flat since a few pieces were warped but I think it adds character!

Not all the pieces were the same type of wood but after it's stained, you can't tell!

Now that the top is done, it's time for a stain!

Here's a comparison of a used and a clean stain rag... whew that was a chore to clean!

I suggest testing your options FIRST! You can test either on a scrap piece or on the bottom. I ended up going with the dark brown one on the top left. It's Carver Tripp 9304 American Walnut but I doubt they still make it any more!

Here's my finished stained top!

I cut 8 pieces of wood 26" long.

I love the look of a dark stain with white so I went ahead and painted my legs white.

I screwed the legs to the top and glued the legs together.

Here's the finished piece!

6:54 PM
4 Comments

My Room Reveal!

Furniture

Please be patient as I tell you the exact history of my room.

My room has never been 100% "done." It's always been a mash of things.

When I was born, my parents painted my room baby blue and mint green for a girl. I was outraged growing up! And when my sister came along, it was just as bad. Two little girls in a boy like room. And it wasn't feminine or anything! No pretty white furniture just old leftover from everyone else.

When I was maybe 6 and my sister 3, we painted it purple. We chose "plum" and "lavender" if I remember correctly.

Around the time I was 12 and my sister was 9, we painted the top half lime green and my sister got a loft bed. That was it.

Until now.

We dismantled that sucker and are trying to sell it on Craigslist. We started rearranging and finally have some GREAT results!
We took this old book case that belonged to my mom's dad.

Yes that is a fish! It's a betta fish named Bubba.

Anyways, we bought 9 fabric boxes from Target and filled them with stuff like scarves, belts, and socks.

We put all our nice shoes on top of the book case.

My mom bought some curtains (Target of course!) and they really keep our room nice and dark!

We got some pink sheets from Target and covered our futon. It's SO convenient having the futon in our room for when friend's sleep over.

Here's my little corner of the room. We got new comforters at TJ Maxx and they fit perfectly in our room!

I hung up this old coat hook that used to hold our costumes in the basement when we were young. It's sat in the corner of my craft room until now! I couldn't get the screws into the wall all the way but you can't even tell. shhhh.

Between the book case and my bed is this old desk from my dad's dad (I think...) Anyways, we vowed to keep it clean and we now have a great workspace for homework! I also hung that bulletin board back up.

Yes, that is a Hello Kitty mini fridge! My sister got it for her birthday last year.

We got this chair from Office Max. It looks a LOT better in person! But I put it together all by myself! woo.

Oh and here's my sister's corner of the room. I attempted to make her bed for the picture... She may or may not also have a certain poster of a boy band coming in the mail soon! Shhhh!

Also a heads up, Amazon has really cheap posters! The shipping costs more than the actual poster. Although, the shipping and price combined, you can save up to $10 and they have a MUCH better selection than in stores!

8:00 AM
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My First Reapolsetry Attempt

Fabric

Well make that a success!

My parents some how ended up with this trunk from my grandpa. It's an absolutely gorgeous piece in great condition. But the top of it was horrible. I mean that fabric... those stains! She always used to set two brown pillows on top of it to cover up the fabric.

We just lifted the top part up and the cushion actually unscrewed fairly easy.

It was so simple and took me practically ten minutes to just stretch the fabric over it and staple! We were originally going to use the fabric to make a head board but my mom found this one at Salvation Army for around $20. It's not something I would have originally picked but it's definitely grown on me.