How to make your own timber sofa sleeve

What you’ll need…

TIMBER

• Claymark 184 x 19mm x 1.2m Premium Grade Dressed Pine cut into four 300mm-long pieces

MATERIALS

• Parfix 250ml PVA Wood Glue
• STAHL Handy Kit Nail Set 220pce
• Earl’s Multi-fill Ready To Use Filler 0.140kg Walnut
• Paint Partner 15 Piece Sandpaper Set
• Bondall Monocel Walnut Stain and Varnish 250ml

TOOLS

• Craftright 3m Tape Measure
• Craftright 12-piece Carpenters Pencil With Sharpener
• Craftright 80 x 300mm F Clamp
• Trojan 80z Claw Wood Hammer
• Ryobi One+ 18V Drill Kit
• Sutton Tools 76mm Multipurpose Holesaw
• Sutton Tools 32 - 152mm VA3 Viper Holesaw Arbor
• Paint Partner 38mm Synthetic Paint Brush

HOW TO

1. Make sure your 1.2m length of DAR pine is cut into equal 300mm-long pieces.
2. On one piece of pine, mark the centre of the cup hole, mark 100mm from the end, then measure halfway across (in our case that is 92mm from the side).
3. Position a scrap piece of timber under the pine while you drill so you don’t mark the table then clamp to a flat surface. Attach the 76mm holesaw to the arbor and the drill, place the arbor on the centre mark and drill the hole halfway through. Turn the pine over and finish drilling from the other side to ensure a clean cut.
4. Apply glue to one side and clamp it to another piece of pine, making sure the edges are lined up, then leave to dry.
5. Apply glue along the edges of the two remaining pieces and attach to the top piece, clamp, then leave to dry.
6. Tap nails through the sides and into the top piece to reinforce the joints.
7. Cover the nail holes with timber filler and leave to dry.
8. Sand all over, removing the excess timber filler and rounding over the edges and corners slightly.
9. Use a brush to apply the stain varnish, applying to the inside first, then the outside, catching any drips down the sides and leaving to dry before applying a second coat.
10. Put the sleeve on the sofa, place a drink in the holder and relax!