DIY Mini Pallets
What you'll need: Popsicle sticks, paint, hot glue.
I love, love, love, pallet wood. So when I found DIY pallet wood coasters I knew I had to give these bad girls a shot.
I bought a pack of popsicle sticks in the craft section at Walmart. When I got home I realized the sticks were too skinny, so I glue two together and they ended up being perfect. I avoided the round edge popsicle sticks because I didn't want to spend an hour cutting the ends off... and knowing me they'd be completely uneven and the whole project would be a wash.
The sticks were a pretty light color. Too light for my liking. So I decided to try soaking the popsicle sticks in black coffee, a method I've seen online. I let them soak for about an hour, but I could barely notice a difference. It may have stained the wood better if I left them in over night, but I was working on borrowed time since my son only takes about a two hour nap, and that's on a good day. Anyways, total bust.
Coffee stain attempt
I've seen some people use an actual stainer with this project, but I didn't feel like getting a chemical high, so I decided to stick with some basic Apple Barrel and Folk Art paints. I used two colors to give the wood a stained look. A basic black from Apple Barrel and a color by Folk Art called 671 Peridot. The Peridot has a metallic, almost gold/green base. I applied the Peridot first, then brushed on the black (while Peridot wasn't quite dry) to give the wood a more rustic look. I was hesitant to use a metallic paint but the combination of the two turned out much better than I had anticipated.
After the pop sticks dried, I lined up the base of the pallet. Six sticks total. I used four sticks for the base and hot glued one on each side. After the base set, I hot glued another six on top to make the pallet complete.
I haven't used the mini pallets as coasters yet. They've mostly been keeping my candles company...
- S