Upcycled Garden table from a bedframe

I don't like seeing good things go to waste and especially when it is solid, usable wood! I love wood and often eye-up any old wooden furniture that has been left out on the street setting my imagination to work as to what I can turn it into.

So when one of my flatmates was throwing out her old bed-frame I said "Noooooo!" and knew I could make something from all the planks...

I had no idea how to go about this project but I knew my "Daddy-mend-fix" would know and help me, so I took the wood back to my parent's and we set to work making a garden table.

Firstly we laid out the planks of wood to see what pieces we needed and what size to cut them.

Obviously the old phrase "measure twice, cut once" is always appropriate so that's what we did.

We measured out the plank, laid them out as we'd like them and then I set about to cutting them. I was quite excited to use some power tools but was vary careful to keep my hand and the workbench steady. Always make sure the cables are out of the way as well as your fingers! Also be careful not to breathe in any sawdust.

The rough plan was to use the two outer edged pieces (the longer ones in the 1st photo) and screw the planks along the lip. Then attach it to some old work bench horses my Dad had lying around in his garage.

We evenly spaced the other bed slats with slight gaps between them, as it will be an outdoor table so any rain needs to be able to drip through easily and not collect in the recesses which could cause rot.

We stabilised the planks at either end and in the middle, nailed them to the edge beams and cut the beams to size. We then screwed them to the old work bench horses. To finish off I sanded it down, painted the legs with outdoor paint and varnished the top a couple of times to protect it from the rain.

When we were constructing it, we made sure that it would be easy to take apart and transport for when I would be moving flats.

It was a great project and I loved making it with the help of my Dad, learning skills from him and creating a great garden table that I can enjoy in the yard.