A thrifty mum has explained how she created her own garden bar on the cheap by finding freebies on Facebook Marketplace.
In total, Rachel Jones, 25, spent just £30 on her project - saving her around £150 compared to buying one brand new.
Ms Jones, who lives in Preston, Lancashire, was able to source the pallets for the main structure of her bar for free on Facebook.
She then spent just £30 on other supplies from B&Q to put it together, such as cladding, nails and tins of paint.
The DIY enthusiast was inspired to make the bar while on her maternity leave after seeing a man post about building a garden room for his daughter on Facebook.
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In total, it took her just two days to put it together.
Ms Jones told LatestDeals.co.uk : “I really wanted a bar and love pallet furniture, so I thought I would make one and give it a go as I’m off on maternity leave at the moment.”
“I keep seeing pallet sofas and I love the wood effect and those colours are very in right now so I chose those as they’re my favourite.
“‘I fixed the pallets together, then measured all of the cladding and cut it to the correct length for each side.
“Then I nailed the cladding on and applied three layers of paint. I’m not that handy at DIY, so I mis-measured a couple of pieces to begin with.
“The lime stripe I painted on was probably the trickiest part as I had to keep the tape straight, but I love it now!”
Outdoor bars are proving extremely popular but they can set you back hundreds of pounds if you don’t shop around.
One of the cheapest we could find was a rattan version that cost £199 from Aldi - but this sold out almost instantly when it went on sale earlier this week.
B&M also sold a pop-up garden bar for £200 back in 2019 but it’s not clear if this is still on sale.
Of course, you should always make sure you’re well prepared if you’re thinking about building your own bar and be confident that you can do the project.
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, said: “Wooden garden bars can easily set you back a couple of hundred pounds, so Rachel has done very well to make her own.
“Don’t forget to sand down rough or sharp edges, and if you have a large surface area to cover, consider getting some spray paint to speed up the process.”
