We love using pallets to make things and fortunately, we have a stockpile in the workshop to play with. And when I say play, I mean it. Using pallets to make things often involves trying to find the right pieces that will fit together nicely. It’s a bit like building a puzzle. Some planks are warped, some are thin, some are fat and others are broken and really badly damaged. But each one tells a story and when you find the right pieces, they can be magically transformed into a HOME shelf. or even a little bathroom cupboard inspired by Unicorn SPiT. So when my bestie asked me to make her a pallet headboard, I was over the moon. Yay, I can build a puzzle again!! But I wanted to up the stakes a little and make it a bit more special. This is my bestie after all ;-)
We have another stockpile in our workshop. I call this one “things that need to be repurposed” and in there we have this lonely room divider panel. We picked the room divider up for a steal and used two of the panels to add a feature to our bedroom. The third panel has been waiting quietly for its time to shine.
Isn’t that scrollwork just beautiful?
How To Make a Pallet Headboard With a Room Divider
The panel is a bit tall for a headboard. Unless of course you’re a Princess and have one of those beds that needs a ladder to get into. My bestie prefers taking a flying leap into bed ;-)
So the panel needed to be cut down to size using my trusty jigsaw.
That’s better :D
Time to put the pallet puzzle pieces together
Digging through the pallet stockpile I managed to find pieces that were all the same thickness and reasonably straight. The shape of the panel called for a staggered look in my humble opinion. The hubby, on the other hand, went a bit mad ;-) and suggested I round off the top of the pallets too. Uummmmmm nope, I’ve mastered the jigsaw only to the point where I can cut straight lines and maybe a small unintentional squiggle. A matching curve on either side is a bit beyond my skill level right now. Save the pallet off cuts to make this glam green handbag planter.
The cut pallets got a good sanding to get rid of all the yuckiness and to remove any splinters. One of the pieces had a funny stain so that one got replaced. That’s the other thing about pallets. It’s only when you start sanding them that you get to see their real story. And this one’s story looked a bit dark and weird. Once everything was nice and smooth, the pallets were wiped down with a mixture of water, vinegar, and bleach.
Pallets can be thirsty buggers and sometimes, depending on the wood, you can get bleed through. To prevent those dreaded bleed-through spots and to seal the wood, the best thing to use is a shellac-based primer.
I took the lazy easy way out and only used the primer to paint the pallets. Hey, the color-matched the room divider beautifully ;-) All I had to do was dry brush some of our rusty nail muti over the top and edges to make it look worn and add a bit of detail.
Putting the pallet headboard together
To join the pallets and room divider together I used a metal tension bracing strip. I have absolutely no idea why we have this in our garage, but apparently, it’s used to brace roof trusses. Go figure, we’ve never built a roof in our lives but it was there and it works like a charm. Just cut it to the right length and screw it on the back of the pallet headboard.
You can also use this neat skewer trick to join the pallets and room divider together.
The room divider and pallet headboard are hung with French cleats. I learned that neat trick from Marie at Interior Frugalista. She’s a master at making things work.
What do you think, should I have listened to hubby and tried to round the edges? Hint: Please say no ;-) I still have the leftover bit of the room divider to play with. Maybe I can make a bedside table for my bestie? In the meantime, an overturned bucket does the trick.
And that scrollwork in the divider seems to make the whole thing look softer somehow.
If you like the idea of marrying a room divider with some pallets, would you mind pinning this one. Maybe we can start a trend ;-)
Have you tried making a pallet headboard? How did you do it?
Oh before I forget, if you don’t want to go to the trouble of finding some of the materials we used, we’ve got you covered. Disclosure: Clicking on the links below, means we may receive a commission from Amazon. But don’t worry it won’t come out of your pocket, and it helps us come up with more crafty ideas to share with you ;-)
Wishing you a truly blessed and love-filled week, until next time.
Last update on 2026-04-15 / Source Amazon Affiliates
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