How to Make a Pallet Herringbone Serving Tray in 20 Steps

I didn’t like the Ikea serving tray my wife bought so I built this awesome one. I liked the herringbone pattern and wanted to try it out.

Here is how I built it:

1. I cut a sheet of 3 ply to the size I wanted with a hand saw.
2. Next, I picked out some dark and light colored wood for the pattern. I wanted light and dark, light and dark, etc.
3. I measured and cut each piece to fit on the ply cut ply.
4. Gave the underside of each piece a rough sand with 60 grit sandpaper
5. Glue!! I didn’t use any nails because I wanted each piece of timber to look 100% itself. I glued the back and each side.
6. Glue!!! Again… it took a while because I didn’t have many clamps, so I had to wait for a few pieces to dry before moving on.
7. Sanding. 60 Grit with the orbital then 120 till smooth. This took a while.
8. Even though I cut all four sides on my table saw, I still had gaps, so I used glue and sawdust to fill the gaps then sanded again.
9. For some reason, I thought I should stain it before I put the sides on. Oops! When I put the sides on, I had some gaps.
10. Cut side pieces to fit.
11. Sand board edge to better fit side boards.
12. Attach sides.
13. Sand, again… 60 then 120 then 200.
14. Fill gaps between side boards base with glue and sawdust.
15. Sand again!!!! This time, it was hard with all the corners.
16. Stain with a light stain to keep the color of the wood bright.
17. Poly with a brush.
18. Sand with a 220 (I think) till it was smooth.
19. Poly again.
20. Add handles. I hadn’t decided what handles to use, so they came a few days later.
21. (BONUS) Share of Facebook and 1001 Pallets!
22. (BONUS) Get orders from my friends!