Do-it-yourself sofa and pallets (pallets) step by step. Photo, master class

There is an opinion that only people who do not have enough money to buy new items in the store resort to making furniture from scrap materials.

However, through their efforts, interior designers have ensured that furniture made from the most common materials and construction waste is now at the peak of popularity.

Original sofas and armchairs, which can become the main decoration of the interior, are often made from wooden platforms - pallets. How can you make a sofa from pallets with your own hands?

These wooden platforms, called pallets or pallets, can be found at any hardware store.

They are cheap, which is why they are so often used to make furniture for the home and garden. No special skills are required to work with pallets.

The main thing is to figure out what kind of structure to build from them. Let's figure out how to create sofas from pallets with your own hands step by step.

Preparing pallets for work

First of all, you need to find the right pallets for the job. They are available in construction stores and at enterprises involved in the transportation of building materials.

If the pallets were not purchased in a store, then it is necessary to check whether the integrity of the structure is compromised, whether rusty nails are sticking out, and whether there are cracks on the boards.

If the pallets have already been used somewhere, they must be thoroughly cleaned. It is better to carry out this procedure outside.

You can first brush off dirt and dust with a broom or brush, and then you can wash the trays. If you have a hose for watering your garden, you can easily do this with it.

After this, the pallets must be sanded so that there are no snags or rough spots left on the boards.

To do this, you can use sandpaper, a special grinding machine or a brush attachment for a drill.

Selection and preparation of pallets

Two types of pallets circulate in domestic logistics chains:

Russian production . They have a size of 120x100x12 cm;
European production. Products with dimensions of 120x80x14.5 cm, except for Finnish ones - those 120x100x14.5 cm. Compliance with the European standard is confirmed by a mark: the letters “EUR” in an oval. Number of boards: top - 5 pcs., bottom - 3 pcs. So far this is the more preferable option, attracting with its high quality of assembly (fully automated lines are used) and good wood.

From an economic point of view, it is more rational to purchase used pallets. Many warehouses, shopping centers and other enterprises give them away for a nominal price. In this case, the products are carefully inspected and the least damaged ones are selected.

It makes sense to purchase new products only for pieces of furniture made from solid pallets. Then the cost of purchasing containers will be recouped by saving time on assembly. This group includes sofas, armchairs, and beds.

There are three types of used pallets:

highest _ The product has been used no more than 3 times, that is, it is practically new;
first . The product has gone through several cycles of use, but has no cracks or other damage and has not been repaired;
second . Repaired pallet, possibly with minor damage. The wood has already darkened slightly.

Pallets are prepared as follows:

remove or cut off protruding nails and other interfering elements. Such defects are especially often found on domestic products;
If the pallets have been used, they are cleaned. Minor contamination is removed with a grinder. If necessary, wash the pallet - nothing bad will happen to it. After washing, the product is dried in the sun.

When cleaning dry, the respiratory tract is protected with a respirator or at least a mask, and the eyes with goggles. Work is carried out outdoors or in a ventilated area. If the product is stained with paint, it is removed using a hair dryer: heated until it begins to bubble, then cleaned off with a spatula.

The pallet is sanded in one of the following ways:

manually : using a special grater on which sandpaper is fixed with screw clamps;
mechanized tool : a grinder or drill equipped with a special attachment.

If you receive a pallet with poorly processed boards, then before sanding they are planed with a manual or electric planer. The wood is treated with drying oil or another antiseptic.

The final stage is primer coating and painting.

The type of primer depends on the operating conditions:

the furniture is located outside (a garden sofa in the country or, for example, a shelving unit on an unglazed balcony): an acrylic primer is used, which has high moisture resistance;
indoors : oil primer.

The paint is selected accordingly: in the first case - facade, in the second - for interior work.

In terms of wood strength, domestic pallets are not inferior to imported analogues - they are also designed for a load of 1 ton. It’s just that European boards are better planed, so you have to tinker less with processing.

Required materials and tools

To quickly make a sofa from pallets with your own hands, you need to prepare all the necessary materials and tools in advance. In addition to square or rectangular pallets, you will need a saw or hacksaw.

To fasten wooden platforms, you can use angles, screws and nails; you also need a screwdriver, screwdriver and hammer.

Wooden boards will need to be coated with a primer and then varnish or wood paint. To do this, you will need to arm yourself with brushes and rollers.

In addition to all this, in order to make a sofa, you will need fittings, legs, furniture corners, a stapler, pillows and seats, or fabric with filling.

Making a simple sofa from pallets

In order to make a regular size sofa, you will need at least six pallets, but it is better to buy eight, in case some of them break during the process. One pallet should be disassembled into boards, which will help fasten the pallets together.
All pallets must be thoroughly cleaned and sanded.
You need to make a base out of four pallets. To do this, two wooden platforms must be laid face down on the floor and secured with corners and boards. In the same way, you need to connect two more pallets. The fifth pallet must be cut into two equal parts - it will serve as the back of the sofa.
Then you need to cover the pallets with a layer of primer and cover up cracks and irregularities.
After the primer has dried, you can coat the pallets with a layer of varnish or paint. After some time, you can apply another layer.
After the parts have dried, you can attach the legs to one of the pairs of pallets. If it is not possible to purchase them in a store, you can also make them yourself - from wooden blocks.
Then you can proceed to assembling the sofa. To do this, you first need to fasten two pairs of pallets together. It is very important to connect the parts well using self-tapping screws or special fasteners. You can also treat the joints with wood glue.
In order to make the back of a sofa from a sawn pallet, you need to use metal fasteners.
From the boards you can build armrests or shelves for storing various small items for the sofa.

The base for the sofa is ready, all that remains is to make the covering, or attach pillows, mattresses and seats purchased in advance at the store.

Manufacturing process

First you need to decide on the design of the future sofa. This could be a simple product like a bed or something more complex like a soft corner. Next you need to purchase these same pallets. They are ordered from furniture factories, where pallets are specially manufactured.

You can also get these structures by agreeing with the management of a grocery store where they have become unnecessary. As a last resort, you can make them yourself from boards.

Did you know? In the Ottoman Empire, the sofa was intended only for the Grand Vizier - the right hand of the Sultan.

Preparation of material

Pallets must be inspected for protruding nails or wood chips, and all protruding elements must be carefully removed. You also need to choose structures that do not have damage that could deteriorate their properties during use.

Pallets that have been previously used should be cleaned with a dry brush and rinsed with water from a hose. After the tray is cleaned and dried, it needs to be sanded. This is done using a grinding machine, a drill with a special attachment, or manually with sandpaper.

If future furniture is planned to be used outdoors (on a veranda, in a gazebo, etc.), the surface of the pallets should be coated with a primer intended for outdoor use - this will protect the product from moisture.

It will be useful for you to read about how to independently remove old paint from the walls and whitewash from the ceiling, how to make a plasterboard partition with a doorway, and also how to cover a wall with plasterboard.

Assembly

To make a standard sofa, six pallets are useful, but it is better to purchase eight - since during the work you may need to disassemble one of them to make transitional structures.

The approximate scheme for making a sofa is as follows:

Pallets are cleaned and sanded.
Two pallets are laid face down and fastened together with boards, and two more structures are connected in the same way.
Another pallet is carefully sawn into two identical parts - the back of the future sofa will be made from it. Did you know? The pallet in its current form was first tested in the USA in the 20s of the last century. The American industrialists of that time quickly realized that without this device it would be impossible to move their cargo with sufficient speed.
All cracks, irregularities and other defects are covered with a primer.
As the primer dries, the structures are covered with a layer of varnish and paint of the required color.
You can attach “legs” to the future sofa - these can be either wheels or blocks of wood.
Next, pairs of connected pallets are fastened together, usually with powerful self-tapping screws.
You need to screw the backrest to the future sofa using the same self-tapping screws.
With enough imagination, you can attach armrests, shelves, cabinets and other accessories to a new piece of furniture.

Important! After making the base, you can attach cladding parts in the form of mattresses, bolsters, and pillows to it. Such elements are prepared in advance or purchased separately

You can attach these things in place using an industrial stapler and hardware products.

Video: the process of making a sofa from pallets

Finish coating

Before the final covering of the sofa, you need to determine which color will harmonize with the new or existing furniture. The same applies to soft elements - pillows, mattresses. It is worth making sure in advance that the colors of the furniture elements are in harmony with each other.

We recommend reading about how to build a pool, bathhouse, toilet, cellar and veranda, as well as how to make a barbecue from stone, a pergola, a gazebo, gabions, a dry stream, a waterfall, a path from sawn wood and concrete with your own hands.

If the structures are covered only with varnish, then the pillows should repeat the harsh style of the base, and are made of burlap. Pallets can be painted in any color, while upholstering mattresses and pillows in matching colors.

Dark colors are more suitable for country house design or an estate garden, since pallets and pillows of a similar shade painted in this color are non-staining and look good against the backdrop of natural landscapes in gazebos. White designs look good in hallways with pillows of any color, and also look very interesting with a variety of bright prints.

Muted tones are perfect for the interiors of private houses and country houses. Firstly, with such colors you don’t need to wash the pillows too often, and secondly, dark textiles fit perfectly into the atmosphere of a twilight country house.

Corner sofa made of pallets

You can also make a corner sofa from six pallets. It is better to choose rectangular pallets measuring 120x80 centimeters.

They must be processed and cleaned according to all the rules, painted if desired, and then stacked three pallets on top of each other in one row in the corner of the room and secured. The backrest for such a corner sofa can be made from boards.

After this, you need to upholster the sofa, or attach thin mattresses and pillows purchased in the store to it.

Additional items

The finishing of the various elements of any sofa made from pallets is carried out in several stages. Some of them are sold at the lumber preparation stage. It is then that the individual parts are primed and painted or varnished. In addition, this type of work includes upholstery.

An integral part of the type of furniture under consideration are mattresses and pillows. These additional elements can be purchased ready-made or made independently. It is possible to order pillows and a mattress according to the size of a ready-made sofa.

It is important to remember that the thickness of the mattress should be at least 20 cm, which will make the use of the furniture as comfortable as possible. An equally important point will be the choice of fabric for finishing.

The best options would be natural and durable materials, which include:

suede leather;
velours;
chenille;
microfiber;
wear-resistant leatherettes.

Along with textiles, homemade sofas can be decorated with various decorative elements and even lighting. Don't forget about shelves, niches and drawers. You can find accessories for them in any specialized store.

Sofa made of pallets with drawers

The good thing about pallets is that there is space between the boards that can serve as storage for small items. But if you wish, you can make a complicated model of a sofa with drawers.

In order to make such a sofa from pallets with your own hands, you will also need six rectangular wooden structures. Three of them need to be disassembled into boards in advance. In addition you will need:

plywood sheets
drill
Bulgarian
jigsaw
screws
four wheels
drawer handles
primer
wood paint or varnish
brushes or roller
sandpaper
cushions and seats

First, all pallets must be prepared for work, cleaned and sanded.
The base of the sofa will consist of one pallet; wheels must be immediately attached to it. It is better to choose rollers in the store that have brakes.
The back will be made from the second pallet - for this, one side of the rectangle must be cut to 91 centimeters, and the other to 47.
The third pallet will be used to make armrests. It must be cut into two parts, the size of which should be 47X80 centimeters.
After this, it is necessary to fill the free space between the boards in the pallets to create continuous surfaces. To do this, you need to use boards from disassembled pallets. You can use glue to coat the joints.
Then you need to attach the back to the base. To do this you need to use screws or self-tapping screws.
Now you can attach the remaining two parts of the pallet to the sides of the sofa.
If there are gaps left somewhere, they can also be filled with boards.
Then the product can be coated with primer, varnish or paint and left until completely dry.

While the sofa is drying, you need to make two identical drawers. You can use sheets of plywood for this. Storage boxes should have sides of 35 and 38 centimeters.

The height should not exceed 10 centimeters.

If desired, the drawers can be painted and handles attached to them. The sofa on wheels is ready.

Making furniture for a personal plot

Furniture made from natural wood looks very organic against the backdrop of nature. If you plan to use it not under canopies, then the wood should first be varnished and dried so as not to rot.

What can be made from pallets at the dacha:

bench, sofa;
table, bedside table, stools;
swing, hanging bed;
racks;
dog house, aviary;
gazebo, shower;
hammock holder;
stairs;
children's play corner;
platform for the summer terrace;
fence, gate;
decorative well, flower bed.

garden furniture

A garden corner sofa and table will perfectly complement a relaxation area located in the open air. For an area with a barbecue, outdoor fireplace, barbecue, a low long sofa and the same table are suitable. The sofa will need ten to twelve pallets - two or three of them will be sawn to form the back. Seat height - about 25 cm. Pillows, bedspreads - optional. The table will turn out if you connect two to four units together, it will also be low. For taller furniture, the number of pallets is increased. A practical, comfortable garden bench, with seats on the sides and a high or low table in the center.

Garden swing

To make original swings for children and adults, you will need one or two Euro pallets and several meters of strong steel chain. The structure is suspended on a metal crossbar or frame. This is usually a swing with a backrest or in the form of a hanging bed with a mattress. The frame can also be made from parts of pallets, if additional stiffening ribs and a small canopy are made. Hanging playgrounds for children's games are sometimes attached to a similar structure. When making a swing, you should take into account how much weight it will withstand, but always with a “margin”.

Sun loungers

Making sun loungers from pallets is as easy as shelling pears. From two placed one on top of the other, the base is made, from another one - the back, and two “legs” are made under it. If desired, the backrest can be made movable and height adjustable. Afterwards the structure is painted and varnished. To make it soft, homemade pillows and mattresses are placed on top. There are usually several such devices made - according to the number of family members, so that everyone can relax comfortably after a working day at the dacha.

Vertical flower beds

Wooden Euro pallets with flowers planted in them are used to decorate summerhouses, apartment balconies, and the outer walls of private houses. This flower bed saves a lot of space. Depending on the planned size of the flowerbed, its production will require one or more pieces, special geotextiles, a furniture stapler, seedlings or flower seeds. Preferred for vertical planting are petunias, marigolds, herbs, strawberries, wild strawberries. The pallet is sanded and painted. The back, bottom, and side parts are covered with landscape fabric using a stapler. Then it turns over on its “back” and the soil mixture is poured inside. You can do it differently: do not cover the entire pallet with fabric, but arrange “pockets”. Then flowers are planted there, starting from the bottom row. After 10-15 days, the plants will take root sufficiently and the flower bed can be placed vertically.

Sofa from one pallet

A small sofa for a hallway or balcony can be made from just one rectangular pallet. In addition, you will need tools, blocks for the legs and a board for the back.

First you need to cut the pallet lengthwise in the middle.
One part of the pallet must be set aside, the other must be turned over and four legs made of beams must be installed on the side where the bases are fixed. For this it is better to use special corners.
Now you need to take the remaining half of the pallet and install the back of the sofa.
After this, you can cover the sofa with primer, water-repellent and varnish or paint. Don’t forget that you also need to process the board that will become the cover for the backrest.
After this, you need to use hinges to secure the cover for the back from the board.
All that remains is to fix the sofa against the wall and find suitable pillows or a mattress for it.

Where to get pallets and which ones to choose?

As you can see from the table, in addition to the quality of the material used, pallets differ only in length and weight, and even then to an insignificant extent. However, when creating furniture, experts still recommend using Euro samples, since they are easier and safer to work with.

To create furniture with your own hands, you need to take not entirely old structures and, of course, intact ones. First of all, you need to pay attention to the condition of the wood itself. So, it should have a pleasant wood color without blue. If the wood has a dark shade, then most likely the pallet was assembled from raw material and is of very low quality. Of course, it will not last long, and it is better to abandon it.

Buying pallets is not a problem

The service life of pallets for their intended purpose, that is, for transporting heavy cargo, is only 1 transportation cycle, but in general they can be used up to 3-5 times. Although, according to the rules, the pallet must be written off and disposed of after transportation. Simply put, they are thrown into a landfill. But in fact, such pallets can be bought at a very low price or even received for free and used to improve the interior.

On a note! Used pallets that have served their useful life can often be picked up, so to speak, “for pickup.” True, this “agreement” can only be achieved with small contractors - in large companies the write-off process is somewhat more complicated.

It is important to choose the right pallets

You can buy completely new pallets in stores, but sometimes this is pointless. And obviously no one wants to overpay extra money. So it’s easier to take already used, but intact and durable ones. They will be able to perform the functions of furniture elements for many, many years to come without losing their strength.

You can buy new pallets, but why pay more?

Also, to create furniture, it is better to take pallets of the same type. For example, the same euro. Diverse ones will differ not only in quality, but also in size. For one piece of furniture you need to use designs of the same type.

Making sofas from pallets

Sofas made from pallets should not only be beautiful, but also comfortable, so you need to pick up soft pillows or mattresses in the store. In addition, it is worth making sure that the base is in harmony with the soft details in color and texture.

For example, if the frame of the sofa is painted only with varnish, it is better to use pillows made of fabric that imitates burlap, white seats or checkered ones in a country style.

Pillows of different colors or bright prints will go well with a plain white or black sofa base.

It is also worth considering the features of the room for which the sofa is made. For example, for a dacha and country house it is better to choose dark pillows. This way you can wash them less often.

Upholstered seat design

When a comfortable corner or sofa for a kitchen made from wooden pallets is completed, it’s time to decorate, for which a variety of pillows or mattresses are used. Carefully selected textile accessories can radically change the appearance of furniture. When choosing them, they take into account where the device will be located (in the yard, on a covered terrace or in the house). Based on this, the final decision is made. Recommendations:

It is more advisable to use water-repellent furniture fabric for the soft seat of a sofa, for example, flock or jacquard.
Most often, the soft part is filled with crushed foam rubber or wear-resistant sheet polyurethane foam. If you need a particularly comfortable mattress, choose sheet latex foam for filling the sofa.
On thin mattresses, it is better to use non-removable covers (stitched through), on thicker models - with a zipper.

Where can I put a sofa made from pallets?

A sofa made of pallets is an excellent option for those who have a country house or cottage. This piece of furniture can be installed not only indoors, but also on the veranda or terrace.

In an apartment, such a soft corner can be organized on the balcony or, for example, in a recreation area where residents like to drink tea.

Sofas made from pallets will also look good in the hallway or living room. With cushions and seats, a pallet sofa can be the highlight of any room.

Design ideas

Depending on the style and purpose, you can make a variety of sofas from pallets. The most important rule for successful interior design is support. That is, there should not be only one such craft sofa. It must be supplemented with a table, shelves or some other parts from the same pallets.

Beautiful, stylish design and an atmosphere of comfort and warmth are important for everyone. After all, you want to feel as comfortable as possible at home. Contrary to popular belief, to create such an interior it is not at all necessary to have a large budget. Every year, designers are increasingly focusing on pieces of furniture that are made with their own hands. You can use wooden pallets for this. They are designed for transportation, but are increasingly being chosen to create a wide variety of furniture for the home.

Original sofas made from pallets

Creating sofas from pallets is a fascinating process that requires a person to use his imagination. Based on the characteristics of the room and the available materials, you can make unusual sofas that will surely cause a lot of admiration among your guests.

Step sofa

This piece of furniture can be built in a large room. The sofa can have the shape of a staircase consisting of several steps - the first sofa will consist of only one row of pallets, the second - of two, and the third - of three tiers. This sofa has enough space for all guests.

Sofa bed

Sometimes it happens that guests can stay all night. And in this case, a sofa bed will be very useful for them. The base of such an object must be large and wide so that a person can fit, but in this case the back can be made very low - about 15 centimeters.

Multifunctional sofa

Those who spend a lot of time on the sofa will probably like the idea of making a multifunctional piece of furniture.

Such a sofa should have a wide back, on which you can place books or a table lamp. In addition, the armrests should be wide.

You can attach a small tray to one of them to make it convenient to drink coffee in the morning. You can increase the storage space by folding the pallets with their backs facing inward.

Features, pros and cons

It is unlikely that such a piece of furniture will fit into an ordinary city apartment with a classic interior, but for a country house it will be a real find

It is worth considering in more detail how to make such a piece of furniture with your own hands, what to pay attention to, how to place and decorate it. Not everyone knows whether this idea is really so good and easy to implement

The main feature of such a sofa is that it is created from several wooden pallets, which are actually called “pallets” and are usually used to transport various goods (in large quantities), secured with special film or cords.

Using these pallets to create furniture products is a relatively new and very popular idea. With careful execution of the work, you can end up with a rather beautiful and unusual piece of furniture in a rustic style, which will not only become a useful part of the room, but will also stylishly complement its interior.

Of course, sofas made from pallets have their advantages and disadvantages, which can quite seriously influence the final decision about their existence in your apartment or country house. Let's take a closer look at the pros and cons of such a piece of furniture.

Advantages of sofas made from pallets:

Significant financial savings. It usually takes from four to ten or twelve pallets to make a sofa, depending on the size of the piece of furniture. The cost of one such wooden item is 70-100 rubles, so the total cost of the frame of such a sofa is within a thousand rubles.
Such pallets in a single copy have quite convenient sizes and structure. Quite wide wooden lintels are fixed at some distance from each other and secured with perpendicularly spaced bars, forming a pallet measuring 100 by 120 cm. It is very easy to create a spacious sofa from such products.
Attractive appearance. Sofas made from pallets vaguely resemble furniture in the loft style with light notes of rustic style, as well as Provence, marine - depending on the decor.
If it matches the size of the room, this sofa can very advantageously highlight the interior, giving it a more stylish and modern look.

This is where the advantages end. As it turns out, there are many more disadvantages of such sofas:

Lack of perfect cleanliness. Even brand new trays are often quite dirty, so cleaning them can take a long time.
Since pallets are made for industrial purposes and are not intended for furniture, they are not always level and neat. Often there are unevenly fastened jumpers, even protruding nails, which can easily injure you.

The cheapest pieces of wood that are not of the best quality are used to make pallets. In the absence of the necessary treatment, various parasites can easily appear in the structure: wood beetles or even termites.
A sofa made from pallets needs to be coated with special varnishes. The thing is that even if ideal smoothness is achieved by grinding the surface, after some time roughness and unevenness may reappear.
Difficulties in cleaning. A large amount of dust accumulates quite quickly under the structure itself and between its parts. To clean up, you have to come up with something, since some parts of the floor and sofa are difficult to reach.

Obviously, there are quite a few disadvantages to a piece of furniture made from wooden pallets, but do not become discouraged and give up, since absolutely each of them can be eliminated, thereby preventing possible problems in the future.

Pallet selection

Usually no one cares about the safety of pallets, so they are stored outside, where weather conditions, insects and mold quickly destroy the structure of the wood. When choosing material for your furniture, be attentive to its appearance and condition.

If the pan has darkened, this does not mean that it has deteriorated. Try scratching the affected area with a key or other object - if the dark layer is thin, it can be easily removed by sanding.

Choose pallets without cracks, with smoother and lighter boards.

Pallets differ in size, so the choice depends on the initial idea and the availability of material in a particular city.

What is needed to create such a sofa?

So, let's figure out what might be needed to work with such material for creating furniture as pallets? In addition to them, you will need to get hold of various tools, as well as buy fabric and soft padding or a mattress to decorate the finished product. Tools and materials for work:

saw, jigsaw and other sawing tools. It is easier to work with a jigsaw than with a saw;
Sander;
sandpaper;
a nail puller, and sometimes an ax, which will be needed to remove nails;
drill;
screwdriver;
self-tapping screws;
metal corners;
paint materials and brushes;
wood primer.

What tools are needed for the job?

Don’t forget about the means to protect your eyes and hands (gloves, safety glasses); you will also need a pencil, ruler, and tape measure. And in order to make the sofa easy to move, it is best to install legs under it on wheels, which you will also need to buy. However, you can get by with stationary legs. It would also be a good idea to get a construction stapler, which will help you secure the soft part to the sofa in the future.