Create your own garden furniture on pallets: 5 DIY tutorials

For the sake ofeconomy or for the pleasure of making things with your hands, have you ever thought about it? create the different elements of your garden furniture with wooden pallets?

To help you, here 5 DIY tutorials.

Some are very simple and accessible even to DIY beginners. Others are a little more elaborate and will take longer to complete. So you have the choice!

Corner sofa

A corner sofa invites conviviality and discussion.

You can also use the side as a chaise longue and lie down to enjoy your outdoor space.

Phases 1

Set up 3 pallets on the ground to create an L, then place a second row of pallets on top.

You can adjust the number of pallet rows depending on the seating height you want to achieve.

Optional: For better stability you can fasten the pallets to each other with nails or screws.

Phases 2

Take 3 pallets to create the folder and install them as shown in the diagram.

Phases 3

Nail or screw the pallets that act as a backrest to those of the seat.
This will prevent the folding paddles from tipping backwards.

It's finished!

Sofa with armrests

This tutorial allows you to make a straight, i.e. classic, sofa.

This sofa is fancier than the previous one, so it requires a little more work to make.
It has armrests that improve comfort and give a more refined and opulent look to the furniture.
The backrest system is also different from the previous model. Instead of placing a full pallet on the backrest, this time the backrest rests directly on the seat pallets. Therefore, this sofa takes up less space in depth.

Phases 1

Take a pallet and cut it widthwise, just after the second wooden blocks.

Repeat this with a second palette.

Phases 2

Place one of the half pallets from step 1 next to a full pallet.

Repeat the operation to obtain two rows of pallets in height.

Optional: For better stability you can fasten the pallets to each other with nails or screws.

Phases 3

To make the armrests you will need 4 pieces of wood. This can be a fence post that you cut, or you can stack several cubes from pallets by attaching them together.
Test the armrest height that best suits you to determine the dimensions of these elements.
They will be placed vertically at the 4 corners of the sofa.

At the two ends of the sofa, on top of the pieces of wood, place two planks recovered from a pallet.

Place a wooden board between the two armrests, creating support for the backrest. A pallet board won't be big enough. Buy a board at the store or connect multiple pallet slats together.

Nail or screw the armrest elements together.
Secure them to the pallets with nails or screws inserted at an angle.

Phases 4

Get a palette. Unhook the upper planks, keeping the end guides.
Cut the boards in half widthwise.

Steps 5

Place the obtained elements against the table placed between the two armrests.

Nail or screw them.

It's finished!

Variant: armchair

Perhaps it surprises you that I used a palette and a half for the duration of the previous creation? This provides enough space between the armrests to accommodate up to 3 people.

You can make a variant with a single pallet, thus obtaining a very large armchair.

With this version you can choose between stacking two pallets for the seat or a single pallet and casters to easily move the chair.

Deckchair

Let's continue to create your DIY garden furniture with a deck chair that will allow you to enjoy the summer sun.

Phases 1

Stack two pallets to create the deck chair seat.

Optional: For better stability you can fasten the pallets to each other with nails or screws.

Phases 2

Take a third pallet and cut the top planks widthwise flush with the second wood blocks.

Remove the bottom center panel and set it aside.

Remove the remaining bottom boards and nail or screw them to the sides of the pallet.

Phases 3

Think about the backrest angle you want to achieve.

Take the cutting board set aside and cut it in half. Use the two resulting pieces to create the legs between the top of the backrest and the floor. Trim them if necessary.

Cut the side rails obliquely to the correct size so that they can rest on the ground.

Phases 4

Nail or screw the boards that serve as the backrest legs and secure the backrest to the seat pallets.

It's finished!

Simple low table

Here is a very simple and at the same time very practical creation on a terrace: a coffee table.

Phases 1

Place a first pallet on the ground and stack others until you obtain the desired height for the table.

And it's already finished!

Optional: For better stability you can fasten the pallets to each other with nails or screws.

Optional step 2

If you need to move this coffee table regularly, you can attach the casters to the 4 corners of the lower pallet.

Elaborate coffee table

The previous creation is a very simple coffee table, but its problem is that there are gaps between the shelves, which is not always practical when placing glasses.

Here is another model, a little more elaborate, that eliminates this problem.

Phases 1

Take 2 pallets and unhook the boards except those at the ends.

Phases 2

On one of the pallets, arrange the previously extracted boards so that they are almost edge to edge (leave a slight space for the wood to expand).

If necessary, cut one of the boards lengthwise so that it fits properly.

Phases 3

Nail or screw the boards.

Phases 4

Below this palette, add one or more others until you reach the desired height of the coffee table.

It's finished!

Optional: For better stability you can fasten the pallets to each other with nails or screws.

If you need to move this coffee table regularly, you can attach the casters to the 4 corners of the bottom pallet as in the previous tutorial.

More tips

Pallet dimensions

In these tutorials I based myself on EPAL Europe palettesone of the most popular models in France, measuring 1.2 x 0.8 meters.

Other pallet models can be used, just adjust the plans slightly.

Treatment

In most cases, these pallets have been subjected to a high temperature treatment (HT symbol on the pallet). Its purpose is to eliminate insects potentially present in the wood and fungi.

This is not a treatment for long-term outdoor resistance (nothing like the very high temperature «THT» treatment used for some decking boards).

Therefore I advise you to do soapply a protective product for external wood to protect your furniture from insects and bad weather.

Where to find pallets

You can ask shops or on construction sites to collect pallets.

Otherwise you can buyer :

Finishes and cushions

For a better finish and better comfort, I recommend you do this sand the pallets to remove splinters.

You can, instead or additionally, decorate the seats with cushions like in my examples.