A Chicken Coop Coffee Table

Upcycling isn't something that I do very often. Usually, I paint a piece of furniture to give it a fresh makeover and call it a day. Taking something and repurposing it into a new piece with a different purpose is a talent that I'm still developing. When I saw a chicken coop/crate for sale at Morgantown Market however, I was inspired to give it a go.

Chicken crates lend themselves to lots of different uses. A precursory scroll through Pinterest will give you lots of ideas.

I held onto my chicken coop until I could wrap my head around what it would take to make it into a table. It took a good solid month or two until I started working on it.

My first step was to add a new bottom because the original bottom was fragile and wouldn't support any sort of feet that would be need to be installed.

I got a thick piece of plywood and screwed it into the bottom and gently sanded the edges smooth.

I started off with caster wheels for feet but they didn't raise the coop to a height that was suitable for a coffee table. I was suck for an idea until I remembered that the Home Depot carried furniture legs! I had bought bun feet before for my Paris Grey chest of drawers.

I turned to Home Depot again and got myself four legs that were 9 inches tall.

Each one had a screw sticking out of the top.

I measured where I wanted the legs to go and drilled a hole where they would be screwed in.

Add some dabs of wood glue...

screw them in...

...wipe away the excess...

and voila!

Once the glue had dried overnight, I took everything outside and mixed up my favorite stain - a 50/50 blend of Miss Mustard Seed's Typewriter and Curio.

Here's the Curio going in.

The Typewriter was next.

Then mix!

I took 1/4 cup of each color and mixed the powders together, giving me 1/2 cup of powder total. Then, I added 1 cup of water and mixed it all up. The trick to using MMS Milk Paint as a stain is to water it down so it gives you color without covering up the wood grain.

Here's that formula again:

1/4 cup Curio

1/4 cup Typewriter

1 cup Water

The coop took a while to stain. It was difficult painting all of the spindles and reaching the interior. If you're inspired to tackle a project like this, just have it in your head that it may take a little bit to stain. You can't be in a rush when you do this type of project.

Immediately, I was in love with the results.

The grain on the legs was popping out perfectly.

To reach the inside, I opened the gate and rotated it to reach around. I may or may not have stuck my head inside to see what I was doing. Let's just say that my neighbors had a good show that afternoon!

My favorite part was watching the bottom being covered. It was like a chocolate wash!

After staining, I allowed it to sit in the sun for a good hour to make sure everything was dry.

Just as I had hoped, the original label was still visible!

To hydrate and revive all of the thirsty wood, and to enrich my stain, I used Miss Mustard Seed's Hemp Oil on the entire piece.

The results were immediate.

After some cure time and staging, my chicken coop coffee table was all ready to go!

My local glass shop cut a piece of tempered glass with rounded edges for me so it had a level surface to place cups of coffee and good reading books down.

I couldn't resist placing my print of Shiloh the Cow above it. He matches the farmhouse theme perfectly. Plus, he's adorable.

For some added ambiance, I took some twinkle lights and draped them inside. How sweet are they?

Can't you imagine turning the lights off and watching a movie by the glow of your chicken coop table?

I also made a video of the process, which you can watch here.

I hope you feel inspired to tackle a repurposing project of your own! This chicken coop table is for sale, so if you're interested, contact me for details at eighthundredfurniture@gmail.com.