Here is my completed surfboard night stand! I have wanted to do this project for a while, because a summer back I drove this surfboard all the way from my hometown in Newport Beach, CA. And this was the first time a well thought out idea had come to mind during the upcycle project. The table’s final resting place will be next to my bed.
INSPIRATION:
A lot of my inspiration comes from the modern surf style and industrial chic aesthetic. The modern surf aesthetic is not your typical Hawaiian theme, which is classically lily patterns, bamboo, a lot palm frown, and a tropical vibe. The aesthetic I was trying to go for captured the surfer-skater Southern Californian vibe.
Which is more gritty, but still put together in a relaxed fashion, and the two by fours emulate the piers and lifeguard towers look of my area. The L-bracket, large bolts, and piping were meant to emulate the industrial chic aesthetic, because overall I wanted the table to look simple and clean with a main focus being its function. The Industrial chic works as a small design element mixed in with the overall surfer style. I also took some inspiration from the upcycling old snowboards, skiis, and surfboards into everyday furniture to show off your extreme dedication to the sport.
DESIGN PROCESS:
My design progress was a complete loopy mess, because I wanted to go a more artistic route with my design loop. The entire upscale project was an iterative method of “what looked good”, “what is over my head”, and “how could I fix something together a little better”. At the beginning, I took a lot of trips to the local Boulder scrap yard and slowly started to implementing my ideas for what I was going to do. At first I had a completely different idea for the upcycle project.
The original idea was a blue-bird-bath-sink, but I had trouble narrowing down the aesthetic of it. The idea was to kind of copy one of the pinnacle pieces in Dada art, which was about an irrational and anti-cultural art movement. The art piece was made in 1917 by Marcel Duchamp called the Fountain. Moving forward, the idea fell apart due to some trouble nailing down the proper aesthetic and function of the specific piece in my previous post. Later, I pivoted to a more consciously thought out idea of making the surfboard night stand. So I collected this table from my closet and started building it using remnant supplies around my house, ITLL, and boulder scrap yard. I had method to my madness, which was to take each step in the building process evaluate the good, the bad, and the aesthetically pleasing. I do need to mention that I did almost break one of the saws in the ITLL, so extreme caution was taken during the last steps of my final product.
BUILDING THE NIGHTSTAND:
First part of the process was drilling the holes through the fiber glass surfboard, this was a little itchy and messy since I had to ramp the rpm to the max on my drill in order to keep the board from cracking. Next the board was bolted and fasten to two five foot long L-brackets, to act as the major support skeleton for the board and legs.
Next I drilled through the two by fours and fastened them to the L-brackets attached below the surf board.
Doing a quick comparison in my living room, I could tell that the legs were way too tall for being a coffee table or night stand. At this part of the building process I was nervous about using my own electric saw to cut the legs down, because I knew I couldn’t get a really accurate cut.
So, I went to the ITLL to get the properly tolerance cuts made. It was here that I almost destroyed the saw.
At this point in time I used an electric hand-drill to make the pipe slots, so the board could have greater stability and fit more into the industrial chic aesthetic. The earthquake stud (the metal strip in the middle of the board) was fastened into the center to help the structural integrity of the board, by not allowing too much deflection. The metal pipes fit into the slots, but there was some wiggle room so I had hot glue hold the pieces in place. Last I fastened another two by four to the bottom of the legs to add a little more stability and I thought it looked better.
Conclusion:
Overall I am very happy about how the table turned out. It covers the basic aesthetic of surfers and industrial chic that I was going for. I do have some future plans to add improvements on to the project, for example: like adding rubber or some sort of dampener in between the surfboard and L-brackets, adding felt to the bottom legs, staining the legs a dark brown, and painting the bolts and metal black to really capture the full industrial chic aesthetic. I believe this piece of furniture will really improve the general feel of my apartment, and captures the essences of upcycling.
48 Comments. Leave new
Looks terrific! Glad to see to your finished project!
This surfboard looks great as a nightstand/tv stand! However, my first thought was that it would work great as a bench as well since it’s so long! I don’t know if you’re a gamer or a movie enthusiast, but you could definitely add shelves underneath it to make it into an entertainment center. Overall, beautiful surf aesthetic!
The table looks great with the unfinished 2×4’s, maybe add some horizontal stabilizers at the bottom to make it more sturdy.
Liked to see where your inspiration came from. The differentiation from modern surfer to Hawaiian surfer was really helpful and interesting. I loved your design process, it was amazing. Have you thought about staining the wood to really make it pop/last longer?
Look really good! Consider finishing the wood. Some sanding, stain and varnish goes a long way.
That’s a great idea I have an old snowboard that I’m thinking of doing something similar. Do you think the surf board would make for a better bench than a night stand, or perhaps a shelf?
I like the idea and your aesthetic. You should consider hiding the bolts and maybe staining the wood to make it look more finished. I like how the board curves, it adds a lot of interest.
I didn’t really get to take see it up close, so i’ll take a look at your images when you post your final report. Did you put screws through the board itself? If you could figure out a way not too, this could be a really great way to turn a surf board into a table while you are not using it (especially helpful when living in a small apartment).
It looks rigid. I like that you didn’t spoil the surfboard. It feels/might look a little heavy , can you change the steel supports on it? I think Bamboo will look great as a support.
Interesting idea. Surfboards are pretty big, and it definitely seems big for a typical nightstand. I can see a skim board being an awesome alternative, since they are smaller and rounder. Good job!
Cool project it was good to know that its aesthetic deviates from the Hawaiian’s aesthetics. Nice work
Awesome use of a surfboard in Colorado. Not quite sure what purpose it could serve though.
Great reuse of your old surfboard. It looks pretty structurally sound, good job making a sturdy structure. Do you plan on adding a finish to it (paint?) It is also a very large piece, does it fit well as an end table? Great job.
Seems like you’ve managed to make good use of a surfboard in Colorado – not easy! Might look interesting with different colors too.
That’s a big nightstand, it looks really good though and if you have the room for it in your room, why not?
I wish that I could have this at my place. I guess since I don’t surf it wouldn’t be as applicable to me though. I really enjoy how legitimate it looks and it gives the feel of actually being in Hawaii!… or somewhere else someone would surf.
Interesting choice of materials – if you know of any other old surfboards in colorado let me know… I would suggest using a wood stain on the legs. I found it really improves the look of the wood with relatively little time invested.
Final design looks great–I think there’s potential to throw in some more steel bars either for additional support or for overall industrial chic aesthetic.
love the idea. I enjoy surfing and snowboarding and always try to find use for old boards especially to decorate my room
What’s the biggest wave you’ve surfed? I really like this project. I think the legs could have been angled instead of 90 degrees. This would add more to your aesthetic and match your surfboard better. Overall, I like it, I wish it was a bit higher off the floor.
Have you considered using it as a entry-way bench or a coffee table? Like others have mentioned, it seems long for a night stand. Could you cut it in half and use each half on either side of the bed, bringing the room together?
That looks so cool and useful! Have you considered any painting or decorations on the base and legs?
The surf board design is very cool. Maybe paint or finish the frame?
This will be so cool for parties! Your design loop was realistic and made me laugh. I like how you incorporated your California background to it. It turned out great!
Interesting table. Good to hear the distinction between the different surf aesthetics. Functionally, I would worry about setting anything too close to the edge. The curvature could lend itself to a chair back rest.
Using a surf board as a piece of furniture is an awesome idea. I’ve seen similar furniture ideas with snowboards (I’m from Colorado), so this is a cool contrast.
Good work honing in on a more specific surfer aesthetic! Have you thought about putting rubber on the bottom of the legs?
Yeah, I think I am going to add felt to the bottom and reinforce the sides with a x-cross bar.
That looks awesome! I like how you kept with the modern surfing aesthetic. Did you make drawings before you cut the wood? I could not see if you but rubber braces on the bottom to prevent scratching the floor, if there are none, I would recommend that.
I think its an interesting choice to drill completely through the surfboard in so many places. I imagine that the board itself is stiff enough you could attach it to the 2x4s in only four places, even using epoxy on the bottom of the board to secure it, and preserve the board’s surface on the top.
I like the idea, the aesthetic was pretty clear here. Some of your examples in the slides were really pleasing. It looks very industrial with the unfinished 2×2’s and metal brackets.
I appreciate the very realistic design loop! I really like the idea and design.
Good idea and use of the board. It may make a better coffee table or something as it is fairly long. I love the concept.
This is an awesome idea. The bolts sticking through the top surface of the table is an interesting choice.
Sturdy looking table, easy sourced parts, a bit rough in the finish, but that’s part of the aesthetic, cinderblock and 2×4 college style.
That’s a cool way to reuse a surfboard! Nice job of changing your design based on the understanding that drunk people would probably knocked over the bar stand. Do you think you’re gonna stain or decorate the wood legs somehow to match the aesthetic of the surfboard?
The final product turned out great! I would maybe finish the bottom so it goes well with the finish of the board.
I think that is it great that so much of this project was inspired by your childhood! Do you plan on the staining to change the overall color much, or for it to look about the same?
I like that you included your own personal interests in your design as well as describing your design process. Neat idea!
Could be like an end-of-bed table? Those are usually lower in height, and the length would work well there.
Definitely a relaxed appearance. Maybe add rails so stuff doesn’t slide off? Or countersink the bolt heads?
I think this would make a great coffee table in a living room as well! Do you plan on painting it or finishing all the things you wanted to do but couldn’t because of the weather?
Does the sloped profile of the board make things fall over or is it flat enough to keep things standing up?
Good thinking on the pipe bracing- I think it adds to the aesthetic you’re going for, and definitely adds functional support!
I like the idea. I also think it’s a bit long for a night stand though, but don’t let that keep you from using it in any other situation requiring a table though! I’d use it as a coffee table.
Looks really awesome, and provides quite a bit of table space to work with. Countersunk bolts might be nice to provide a flat surface.
table is my height =)
I really like it, I wonder if you could use it for a little bar.
Seems a bit long for a night stand- what would it look like to cut this in half and make it into two smaller stands? Could be cool if it was cut in the middle, and the cut ends went against the walls on either side of the bed so it looked like they were coming out of the walls.
Also, the uneven placement of the support bars makes the table seem a little rickety- might be nice to even them out.