About 2 years ago, I wrote a post on pallets. And now, finally, I can share the finished product with you! I've had my pallet headboard hanging for probably a year now, so its appearance on the blog is long overdue.
I had originally found a pallet in a dumpster on our street. A neighbor was doing renovations and apparently wasn't a pallet fan. I rescued it and considered making it my headboard, but it was just too small. I would have had to frame it out with wood and I'm not really handy like that. It temporarily became a shoe holder. Worked great, but now I have a bookcase in my closet for shoes, so that pallet is gone.
While leaving work one day last year, I noticed a pallet leaning against our dumpster. It was big and beautiful! It has subtle circular marks on it. I'm almost positive is held the 5 gallon buckets of soy sauce that we received. The slats of wood were close together, which made it pretty, but super heavy. After asking my chef if I could take it (and receiving a yes along with a very strange look), a co-worker helped me stuff it into my trunk. I'm still not sure how it fit, but I'm so thankful it did!
I cleaned it really well and sanded it until it was super smooth. I used a tack cloth to remove all the dust.
Then came the fun part. How to hang this insanely heavy pallet so it would be secure enough to sleep under. Handy mom to the rescue! She suggested anchoring a couple pieces of 2 x 4 into the wall. The pallet sat on top of them, and we screwed the pallet into the wood on the wall. It's really secure now and isn't going anywhere!
Now, without further ado, meet my (kind of new) headboard.
Darn sunny day...
In my old bedroom, the walls were a light celadon and the pallet stood out against them beautifully. When we moved, every single room in the new house was this beigey-tan color. I hate it in my bedroom, but the thought of painting is really unappealing right now, so beigey-tan it is!
In order to add a little something to the pallet to help it not blend into the walls, I stuck some vinyl wall decorations on. I considered painting the pallet, but this is not only easier, it's temporary. That way, whenever I paint my room, I can remove the birds and the pallet can go back to being beautiful plain wood. You can find similar ones here
or here
. There are so many styles of wall decals out there. You can pretty much find something to match any decor.
I love birds on a wire. In the top picture, the orange painting is one my mom did for me with the well-known quote from a Bob Marley song. The birds carried over into the tags and sign for my booth and into the header of my Etsy store. I'm slightly bird-obsessed, but only in decor. I'm not a big fan of actual birds...
You might have noticed that little string hanging inside the pallet. And if you didn't before, you probably do now! I hang lavender from that to dry. You can't see it unless you're standing to the side, but it makes my room smell pretty and peaceful! I love it. I should have hidden it before taking these pictures, but oh well!
So again, keep your eyes out for pallets! Just be sure to ask permission before taking any that you see around stores in case they reuse them. But if they're in dumpsters, they're fair game! Grab them and run! Then check out this post for more fun pallet ideas.
Update: An anonymous commenter (thank you, random citizen!) brought up a very good and important point that I forgot to mention. When you find a pallet, be sure to find the stamp on it. It will usually be in black ink and enclosed in a square or rectangle border. If the code contains "HT" your pallet was heat-treated, not chemically-treated, and is therefore safe to use. However, if the code contains "MB" the pallet was treated with the chemical methyl bromide, and is not safe to use. Thankfully, most pallets being made in the US now are heat-treated and safe to use! Just be sure to check first!
Linking up with Mod Mix Mondays and Inspire Me Monday and Green Willow Pond and Thrifty Thursday and Maison de Pax and BeBetsy and Coastal Charm and My Repurposed Life and Common Ground and French Country CottageUpdate: An anonymous commenter (thank you, random citizen!) brought up a very good and important point that I forgot to mention. When you find a pallet, be sure to find the stamp on it. It will usually be in black ink and enclosed in a square or rectangle border. If the code contains "HT" your pallet was heat-treated, not chemically-treated, and is therefore safe to use. However, if the code contains "MB" the pallet was treated with the chemical methyl bromide, and is not safe to use. Thankfully, most pallets being made in the US now are heat-treated and safe to use! Just be sure to check first!


I was featured on DIY Vintage Chic!


This is so cute. I love the little birds. And I spray my sheets down with a lavender spray but never thought to hide some. Great idea! Stop by my Friday's Five Features this week and link up this post (and others)! diy-vintage-chic.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteThank you Becca! I linked up and love your blog! I'm a new follower!
DeleteThanks Cathey! I just love this!
DeleteCongrats! You were featured on Friday’s Five Features over on DIY Vintage Chic. Stop by and grab yourself a button!
DeleteYay! Thanks Becca! I just added my button!
DeleteYAY! Thank you for sharing!!!!….I wanted to invite you back to share more at my linky party going on now. Add as many projects as you like. Hope to see you there…
ReplyDeletehttp://sweethaute.blogspot.com/2013/08/thursday-sweet-haute-share-linky-party_21.html
Christina at
SWEET HAUTE
Thursday SWEET HAUTE Share Linky Party
Happy to share! I linked up a couple more projects on your site. Thanks for hosting!
DeleteThis is awesome! I love the birds. Thank you for sharing at What We Accomplished Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteThank you Deborah! And thanks for hosting your linky party! It's fun to see everyone's projects!
DeleteOh I love your new headboard!! :) Happy Friday! xo Holly
ReplyDeleteThank you Holly! Hope you have a great weekend!
DeleteThis is such a great idea! I absolutely love the birds! Come link up at my party Craft Frenzy Friday @ http://craftdictator.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteThank you! I just linked up to your party!
DeleteThanks for linking up with us at Craft Frenzy Friday. We love you headboard. The birds are great! The gallery effect behind the bed is perfect. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeletehttp://craftdictator.blogspot.com and
http://obsessiveandcreative.blogspot.com
Thank you Rhonda!
Deleteyou should really look into the dangers of pallets, including what chemicals they are treated with and their past. You never really know where a pallet has been or what it has been used to transport. Pallets are home to many chemicals and molds, and I would never recommend them for "home-use".
ReplyDeleteThank you for your concern, but thankfully, not all pallets are treated with chemicals! I checked into the safety of using a pallet before hanging it up as my headboard. Pallets have a stamp (usually in black ink) on them, most often enclosed in a square. If the code includes HT, the pallet was heat treated, not chemically treated, and is therefore safe for use. If the code includes MB, it's been treated with chemicals, and shouldn't be used near food or skin, or at all in my personal opinion.
DeletePallet stamps
Thanks for stopping by!
That's beautiful! I love the birds... Also, the lavender idea is fab - I'm gonna go tuck some around my room right now! LOL.
ReplyDeleteHave a great week! Julia
Thank you Julia! I just hung some fresh lavender today and my room is already smelling wonderful! It's great as a natural room freshener!
DeleteLove, Love, Love your headboard and especially with the birds added. What a great idea to use stick ons...so you can change the look. I really love it and featured you today at Mod Mix Monday.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Nita! Not just for your kind words, but also for featuring my headboard! Have a great week!
DeleteI LOVE LOVE LOVE your headboard! The birds are wonderful! You did a fantastic job! I am pinning this now!
ReplyDeleteThank you Chelsea! Be sure to keep your eye out for pallets! Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteThis is such a great headboard. I have birds in every room so now I really want to copy you! I really like the way you styled your bedroom too!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Deonna! You should definitely add a bird pallet to your bedroom! Sounds like it would go perfectly!
Deleteoh my gosh, what a great headboard and feature wall.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
DeleteWe love this project and we are going to feature you on Craft Frenzy Friday! Come over Friday to http://craftdictator.blogspot.com or http://obsessiveandcreative.blogspot.com and check it out! We hope you will participate in this friday's link up also!! Also, make sure you grab a featured button!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Cara! I'm excited to be featured! And I'll grab my button too! Thank you again!
DeleteI have been seeing so many fabulous things done with pallets lately and I have seen them on the side of the road!! Maybe I should start collecting them! I absolutely love what you did with yours and the birds on a wire just finishes it off perfectly. Visiting from Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays and following you via Google+ and GFC!
ReplyDeleteThank you AnnMarie! You should definitely start collecting pallets! I wish I had room to store them for future projects. It breaks my heart a little every time I pass one by! Thanks for stopping by!
Deletesuch a cute project!! Love the bird decal
ReplyDeleteThank you Emily! I found the birds at Target. They have so many cute decals to choose from - it was hard to decide!
DeleteJust darling, Cathey! I'd love to get my hands on some pallets... I have so many ideas I want to try out. I love how you styled the wall above, too! Thank you for sharing at Brag About It this week.
ReplyDelete~ Megin of VMG206
Thank you Megin! I keep seeing them along the side of the road here on trash days - I wish I had room to store them all for future projects!
DeleteCool idea! And I love the birds on a wire theme. :)
ReplyDeleteKelly
Thank you Kelly!
DeleteI love this! I pinned!
ReplyDeleteGlad you like it! Thanks so much!
DeleteI absolutely love this!! So, so cute!
ReplyDelete-Bonnie @ Revolutionaries
www.revolutionariesblog.com
Thank you so much, Bonnie!
DeleteCathey, this is such a terrific idea and we love how you added the bird motif across the entire headboard.
ReplyDeleteYou've been FEATURED at BeBetsy on the BRAG ABOUT IT No. 20 http://bebetsy.com.
Our next party starts at midnight tonight so find something cool to BRAG ABOUT and link up. Oh, don't forget to get your featured badge too!
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Thank you so much for featuring my headboard! I've added my button :)
DeleteI loved this project, Cathey! You Were Featured TODAY on VMG206 ~ Brag About It Tuesday's Link Party from last week! Stop by and grab a Feature Button and Link something new; the party is LIVE Now. I’ve also pinned this to my Brag About It Features Board on Pinterest. I can’t wait to see what you’ve been working on this week!
ReplyDelete~ Megin of VMG206
http://www.vmg206.com/2013/09/BragAboutItLinkParty.html
what a great job on this, so imaginative and creative, love the birdies on the line!!
ReplyDeletereally good art have been done on this wooden pallet.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering how u got the pallets ready. Like cleaning etc. I'm always afraid of bringing bugs and such into the house
ReplyDeleteHi Grace! I have the same fear of bugs inside, so I scrubbed the pallet down with soapy water, sprayed it with a hose, and let it dry in the sun, before sanding it smooth. Thankfully I've had no bugs on it!!
ReplyDeleteThank you yeah lol I found these awesome branches in July and they r still sitting outside cause I just keep thinking "what if?" I'm definately going to keep an eye out for pallets
ReplyDeleteCathey this a beautiful headboard! When you sanded your pallet what did you use? Tool/sander or sand by hand with sand paper? My husband and I are looking into doing quite a few projects with pallets and wanted to know what worked best. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi! Can you help me to find the same stickers you used for your pallets on Internet please? Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteWas wondering where you ordered the bird decals from. .thank you :)
ReplyDeleteHey Cathy! Awesome idea and I can't wait to attempt this project. One question: how big does your bed have to be to fit this pallet? For example, I have a queen sized bed and I'm worried I won't find a pallet that is just right without me having to pull out the power tools.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this wonderful diy idea!