Category: DIY Furniture

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Vicki’s Vintage Door Table with Angle Iron Table Legs

Finding a gem of an antique can be thrilling. Finding the perfect place for it in your home can be the icing on top. Our angle iron table legs helped Vicki rework this amazing antique door into a table. It’s old enough that it was put together with wood alone…no screws or pins inside this door!

vintage door table with angle iron table legs

Here’s what Vicki said about the project:

[I used] a door from the 1800s put together with pegs no nails lightly sanded – I searched everywhere for legs for this looking for the perfect match and I think I found them! Thrilled with your product thank you so much for your quality workmanship. These legs are solid!

Thanks Vicki! We like that the door handle was left on. This certainly maintains the original state of the door and gives the table character. Vicki chose to use our angle iron table legs. They look great on this antique door. We offer a variety of metal legs to ensure you have the perfect option for your next project, whether it is a restoration or brand new construction, our hairpin legs and tapered angle iron legs will perfectly compliment your DIY table. All of our metal legs are made to order. After all, we build them to stand up to whatever you put them through. Like Vicki says, our legs are solid!

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Record Stand with Modern Furniture Legs

Hairpin legs were invented at the turn of the century but they have never gone out of style. Their simple durable construction keeps them going strong to this day. We love seeing what customers come up with when they make furniture with our hairpin legs. It is fun to see all the new designs and styles customers develop for themselves. But somehow it always seems appropriate for hairpin legs to be used with other timeless classics. Hairpin legs for a record shelf seems just perfect!

We love what the folks at Wicker Woodworks came up with. Combining hairpin legs and LPs just seem right. There is even a removable storage box for the 45s! This is certainly a basic design many of us could come up with for lots of storage options. Storage for records, books, or other items lends itself perfectly to hairpin leg furniture. With hairpin legs, it is easy to customize the storage unit for your personal needs. It can be tall or short, wide or narrow, close to the ground or higher up. We’ve got hairpin legs to suit any need.

We offer hairpin legs from 4″ – 30″ ensuring you get the height you’re looking for. They can be used in any configuration you’d like; providing the type of support you’re looking for. And no matter how you choose to use them, they are durable and long lasting so your furniture will last a lifetime. Send us a pic of your final project so we can see what you’ve come up with!

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Dallas’s Dining Room Set with Modern Furniture Legs

closeup dining room set with tapered angle iron legs

Looking for the perfect dining room set can be exhausting and expensive. Sometimes when you have something specific in mind, it can be difficult to find it. That’s why we recommend making it! Our modern furniture legs give you endless options for making the perfect furniture for your home. That way you’ll get exactly what you want. That’s just what happened to Dallas. Looking for the perfect dining room set wasn’t working out. But making it did! Here’s what Dallas said about the process:

We love our custom dining table! We looked everywhere for a table that had a nice balance between being slightly shabby while still a bit edgy, and just could not find what we were looking for. At least, not for thousands of dollars! When we stumbled upon Modern Legs, we were so inspired! We had my grandpa built the table top and bench, bolted in our Tapered Angle Iron Table Legs, and we are in love!

matching dining room set with tapered angle iron legsWe’re so glad the table came out perfectly. Now you have the right dining room set for you and the memory of making it with family! Our tapered angle iron legs are just as versatile as our hairpin legs. They are great on tables, benches, and much more. Making your own metal leg furniture by yourself or with the collaboration of family members creates rewarding results. Thanks for sharing, we love your new dining room set!

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Simple Hairpin Leg Runner Table

reclaimed scaffolding bench with hairpin legs

Hairpin legs are a great option for so many simple furniture projects. They are endlessly versatile. Sometimes it makes sense for the hairpin legs to take the back seat to your tabletop.

Their low profile makes them perfect to highlight the special tabletop you’ve been working on without hogging the show. But hairpin legs can also be one of the central players in your table; having them take the spotlight can be a fun change.

This runner table is a great example of the way hairpin legs can sit center stage. The folks at Bettzy in the UK make this fun runner table. This table is simple, elegant, and functional. It has a character of its own thanks to the identifying marks branded on from their former life as scaffolding. The small depth of the tabletop draws the eye to the hairpin legs more than a larger overshadowing tabletop. This is a great way to use hairpin legs as a main player in the table bringing its own style.

This versatility is part of what got us into the modern industrial table leg business. We just love seeing all the ways people think up to use these multitalented legs. We’re confident that you’ll find the perfect legs to pair with your tabletop whether they’re front and center or keeping a low profile underneath.

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Hairpin Legs Save a Mahogany Table

We’re believe that using what you already have is one of the best ways to make hairpin leg furniture. An old door, free pallets, or a yard sale find can all make amazing furniture. Elbow grease and a set of modern metal table legs make virtually any old wood into amazing furniture. Here is how Ryan saved a discarded coffee table and turned it into reclaimed furniture:

Someone was throwing out a trashed cafe table and I took it for the base. I decided to sand down the top and realized that it was solid mahogany. So I threw the hairpin legs on the table top to make a coffee table.

green dipped hairpin legsA piece of the original table he wasn’t even planning on using turned into a work of art! Finding a mahogany tabletop may sound improbable, but treasures like this abound. It is amazing what can be found when we keep our eyes peeled. Reclaimed wood can be used in its current state.

Sanding old wood or running it through a planer reveals the next layer that can look young and beautiful. Wire brushing old wood can keep its rough used appearance, it that appeals to you. Reclaimed wood can also be a raw material. Old tables and doors can be cut up or otherwise shaped to create a new tabletop. Your new tabletop can be left untreated if that’s your preference. It can also be oiled, waxed, clear coated, or painted for added appearance and protection. The possibilities are endless and we’re glad Ryan shared his story for inspiration. There are many treasures just waiting to be turned into hairpin leg furniture!

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Hairpin Legs: To Color or Not to Color?

green hairpin legs

Should I color my hairpin legs? It’s a question we’re often asked. For the most part, that answer depends on you. If you’re wondering about the durability of the hairpin legs, worry not. Our hair pin legs are made of thick durable steel. They do not need to be treated in any way and will still live long healthy lives supporting your furniture. But you are certainly welcome to add a finish if you want.

pine table with hairpin legsFinishing your hairpin legs will keep them looking just the way you want them, especially if you’re using them in a high moisture environment like the back porch. But treating hairpin legs does not necessarily mean coloring them. Treatments can be clear or otherwise maintain the original steel color of the legs. Adding color is one of the many ways hairpin legs can be treated. Coloring them protects the hairpin legs while simultaneously adding a new dimension to the furniture. Color can bring out otherwise hidden colors, add a new color to the environment, or act as a unifying agent.

We’ve seen customers match the color of their hairpin legs to a swath of color on the furniture’s tabletop, for example. But maybe you’re not ready to take the plunge and add a lot of color to your hairpin leg furniture. Ryan has the perfect solution – he colored only part of his hairpin legs! It’s a great solution. The color accent adds another facet to the furniture perfectly. Thanks for sharing Ryan! If you live anywhere near Burlinton, VT and you’d like to chat with Ryan about his furniture, drop him a note.

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How Easy is a Hairpin Leg Furniture Project?

carob tree coffee table with hairpin legs

Making a piece of hairpin leg furniture to suit your needs in your own home is endlessly rewarding. If the thought of making your own furniture seems overwhelming, you needn’t worry. It can be very easy and we’ll prove it! We engineered our hairpin legs to make sure it easy for you!

All you really need is the tabletop (benchtop, desktop, etc.), a set of hairpin legs, and a few screws to attach them. That’s it! Check out these simple yet elegant project customers have created. A tabletop can be quite easy to come by; many things make good tabletops.

The only requirement is that it is a solid surface. An old door, for example, is a great option. This can be anything from an old door at an antique store to a closet door your replacing in your home. One customer used an old wire reel for a hairpin leg table. You can use dimensional lumber from the hardware store. There’s something about combining wood with our hairpin legs that makes it into a beautiful table.

You don’t have to stick with our hairpin legs for that matter–any of our metal legs will do. We have a nice variety of hairpin legs from the original hairpin legs to our Just the Tip hairpin legs. But we also offer tapered angle iron legs and bench legs. Check out our many options to give you an idea what you want for your upcoming metal leg project! It really is that easy…modern furniture is all about simplicity!

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Michael’s Stools with Tapered Angle Iron Table Legs

Michael at Woodshed Production in Issaquah, WA has done it again! Here is another beautiful product – stools built with angle iron table legs. These stools are just beautiful. The variegated coloring of the wood is eye catching. The tapered angle iron legs are stable and bring a classic look. The long tapered angle of these legs is perfectly highlighted on a tall stool.

The addition of the cross bars on the legs makes a lot of sense. Not only do they add stability but it is nice to have the option to rest your feet on the crossbar of a stool. We offer our variety of styles and sizes of metal legs to be sure you can have the metal leg that is perfect for your project. The tapered angle iron legs Michael used for these stools are quite versatile.

Like our hairpin legs, the angle iron table legs work well on tables and desks as well as stools. We can build them in 4” – 30” heights to ensure there is a height that will fit your project. You may want a simple desk with just angle iron legs and a tabletop – perfect for the taller hairpin leg heights. Or if you’re looking to add smaller legs to a large-bodied desk, our shorter thicker table legs will work perfectly. Of course, if you don’t see the perfect style or size for you – just ask! We are always happy to entertain custom requests. Chances are we can come up with something that will work for you.

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Pallet Furniture Ideas with Hairpin Legs

pallet table with three rod hairpin legs

Pallets are a great source of wood. First of all, they are usually free for the taking. Ask around at your local stores if they have pallets to give away. Sometimes you’ll see piles of pallets out behind businesses – this is a good place to start when asking around for free pallets! Secondly, pallets often end up being thrown out so you’re saving them from being used once and heading to the dump. Finally, pallets are usually made of high quality wood. After all, they do have to support the weight of all they are carrying.

How much work does it take to turn pallets into furniture? That depends on the final look of your furniture. Pallet wood also offers a range of options for use. They can be used as-is or cleaned up to create finished wood. For the simplest usability, keep the pallet in its current shape, add additional slats to fill in any gaps in the surface, screw on a set of hairpin legs and, voila! You have a finished table!

You can take it a step further and deconstruct the pallets to make something more customized. Taking the pallet apart will give you raw stock to work with. Once taken apart, this wood can be kept as it is if you’re looking for a rough and rustic look for your finished product. If you want something more refined – no problem. Plane and sand for a finished wood product ready for a high-end piece of furniture. Then all you need is a set of hairpin legs to make yourself a beautiful piece of furniture! Pick out the hairpin legs that you want to go with your project. Screw them to the underside and you’ve got yourself an upcycled DIY table!

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Hairpin Legs and Alternative Materials

3 rod hairpin leg triangle table closeup

The most common building material we see used with our hairpin legs is wood. Do hairpin legs have to be used with wood? Absolutely not! Wood is a great option and many of us are comfortable with woodwork, but don’t be relegated to it. Other materials that make hairpin leg furniture as well!

Hairpin legs need to be attached to the underside of whatever piece of furniture you’re making. That could be a tabletop, desktop, bench, stool, bureau, etc. Typically, our metal furniture legs are screwed to the underside, but that doesn’t need to limit you either. All you need is a firm attachment so the piece of furniture will be sturdy and stable for all its intended uses.

Past customers have used materials such as melamine, glass, and even marble. Keith found the melamine table he made to be the perfect surface for his two young daughters to use for projects. Glass is a tabletop material we’ve seen used multiple times with our metal legs. You could top a wooden table with glass or make a wooden frame and let the glass itself be the tabletop. And Kristi had a great idea for a bedside table. She used adhesive to attach the hairpin legs to the underside of a large marble tile. There are lots of ways to utilize the materials you love with the hairpin legs they deserve!