Looking for an inexpensive way to add beautiful storage to your home? This DIY Pallet Wood Trunk is the perfect project!
After a year of looking at the messy wires, cords and equipment needed for our internet, we finally had enough and decided to get these covered up! My ideal solution would have been a large, beautiful basket but the price of those was ~$100-$150 and since I needed 2 (one for each end of the bookcase) that just wasn't a feasible option. So we decided to build a pallet wood trunk and I love the way it turned out!
S U P P L I E S :
- 25 pallet boards at least 36" in length and 4" in width. (Pallet board sizing can be extremely inconsistent so it's a good idea to have extra available).
- 2" finishing nails and a finishing gun
- 1 piece of 3/4" MDF or plywood for the bottom of the trunk.
- 2" finishing screws (optional for reinforcement of the bottom)
- Trunk Hardware (optional)
P R O C E S S :
Measure your space. We wanted to fill the space beneath our bookcase and allow for extra storage in addition to hiding all of our wires and messy cords. The trunk built in the tutorial is 36"W x 19"D x 19"H.
Select Pallet Wood. As I stated earlier, pallet wood sizing is inconsistent so it's a good idea to have extra on hand. Most businesses will give away pallets for free but since we needed such a large quantity for our ceilings, we decided to purchase the pallet wood already unassembled. I found a local supplier on Facebook Marketplace and the boards were ~$0.10 each so it was definitely work it to avoid the extra work!
Cut pallet wood into 13 9" pieces. These pieces will be the verticals used on the trunk (3 for each of the front, top and back panels and 2 for each of the side panels).
TO CONSTRUCT THE TOP, BACK AND SIDE PANELS:
Use a square to frame up the top 36" in length by starting with 2 verticals (one on each end).
Nail the horizontal cross pieces that are 36" in length to the verticals. The horizontal pieces should extend to the end of the verticals so that the edges match up.
Add the center vertical to finish off the panel.
Repeat the same process for the remaining 2 panels. The front, back and top panels are all constructed in the same way.
TO CONSTRUCT THE SIDE PANELS:
Use the same basic process to construct the side panels with one exception! The edges of the horizontal cross pieces should extend ~2" shorter than the edge of the vertical to allow room when attaching the panels. I've added a picture here to clarify how the panels attach and the difference in length of the horizontal cross pieces on the front panel versus the side panel.
ATTACH PANELS:
Attach the front panel to a side, then the back panel to a side using nails and a nail gun. Then attach both sections together. The top is designed to be placed on top of the trunk. We didn't use any hinges to keep the cost down but those are certainly an option! The design of the top can be modified for the hinge requirements.
ATTACH BOTTOM:
Measure the bottom of the trunk and cut a piece of 3/4" MDF or plywood. We had extra MDF on hand from another project so that's what we used for the bottom. Once measured, attach the MDF with nails. You can also use 2" screws to secure the bottom if you plan to store heavy items inside.
We added Vintage Style Trunk Hasps to dress up the front but that's totally optional.
And that's it!! If you'd like to see a video tutorial on the process, click here for the video on our YouTube Channel. Be sure to Like & Follow to see more videos!
I'd love to see your projects!! Tag me on social media!!
