How to create lovely legs
When it comes to colour, this project is all about going hard or going home! Inspired by the colourful decoration of The Memphis Group, an Italian design and architecture set of the 80s, the look is back with this easy furniture revamp. We all know a credenza’s best assets are its legs, so show them off by turning your dining room piece into a work of art.
Gather your supplies
• Selection of raw timber furniture legs, bun feet and decorative finials, to suit
• 3/8" vertical leg plates with screws (1 per leg)
• 3/8" 63mm furniture studs or hanger bolts (1 per leg)
• Credenza of your choice (we used an assembled flat pack by Kaboodle)
You’ll also need
Handsaw (optional); fine-grit sandpaper; large drop sheet; face mask; Dulux Duramax spray paint in assorted colours of your choice; long bamboo skewers or similar; painter’s tape (optional); drill and bits; SikaBond TechGrip High Strength Multipurpose Polyurethane Glue or similar; wood screws; pliers; selfadhesive round felt surface protectors
Here's how
Step 1 Decide on finished length of legs and make stacked arrangements of raw timber components to suit your measurements. Trim components to size using handsaw, if necessary. Lightly sand each component using sandpaper. Wipe away dust. You may wish to use a numbering system and a pencil to mark each component, and mark each with the colour you’d like to paint it, so you can recompile the order of legs later.
STEP 2 Spread out drop sheet in a well-ventilated area. Wearing face mask, insert a skewer or similar into centre hole of first timber component. Hold skewer and spraypaint component in the colour of your choice. Balance skewer between 2 level surfaces and leave to dry, then apply a second coat. Repeat Step 2 to continue painting all components.
STEP 3 Where you’re painting a long leg or finial, you might wish to apply paint in bands of different colours. To do this, paint them a neutral base colour, let dry, then apply painter’s tape to mask off adjoining sections (use plastic bags taped in place to protect the rest of the component). Spray on contrasting colour, let dry, then peel away tape and discard plastic bags to reveal a neat paint job. Repeat for as many sections as you wish to paint. Leave all components to dry thoroughly.
Step 4 To assemble legs, recompile stacked arrangements as in Step 1. Working 1 leg at a time, place component that will sit on the floor on a level work surface. Apply glue, then place next component on top in a centred position. Wipe away drips of glue with a rag. To increase strength of leg assembly, predrill and screw components together. Continue stacking components, fixing with glue and screws as required. Leave to dry. Repeat for all other legs.
Tip To help you line each component up, insert a skewer in the centre hole and thread each following component on top.
Step 5 Using pliers, screw furniture stud into centre hole of last component. (If no hole exists, predrill a centred hole, then screw in the stud.) The top of the leg should be flush with where the thread on the stud changes. Repeat to attach studs to all legs. You want leg lengths (including furniture studs) as accurate as possible. If the legs later need adjusting, come back to this step and adjust positioning of the stud.
Step 6 Have a helper assist you to lay the credenza underside face up on a soft surface. Mark leg positions, predrill and attach leg plates to underside using screws provided. Position the first four legs to take the weight of the credenza, then scatter the others between as desired. Attach felt surface protectors to end of each leg.
Step 7 Have a helper assist you to flip and place the credenza in final position. To level it, turn legs right or left to adjust. You have a few
millimetres to adjust legs up or down.
