DIY Cutting Boards from Scrap Wood

How to make your own cutting boards using scrap wood you already have in your stash to repurpose in your kitchen or give away as homemade gifts.

We’re big fans of leftovers at our house… be it paint, project scraps, or last night’s dinner. (Yay for no cooking!)

One thing we never have a shortage of around here is scrap wood.  Whether it’s a dining table top, window trim, or built-ins, the scrap stockpile tends to grow, and we hate to see it all go to waste.

This time around, we had some leftover butcher block from a countertop project we’re doing. (It’s from a secret renovation that I’m sharing all about later this week, and it’s SO good I can’t stand it!!!)

But this piece of wood was too good to toss.  So we decided to whip up a few DIY cutting boards, which is great for repurposing all kinds of wood you might already have in your stash.

I’m sharing it alongside some blogger friends for a Back to Basics Blog Hop.

If you’ve ever been intimidated by power tools or wanted some good beginner-level DIY project ideas, this series has so many good ones to help you learn. (There are more basic projects you can try at the end of this post.)

If you’re visiting from Jenna at Rain on a Tin Roof, welcome!!

If you have some good scrap wood lying around or you happen to stumble upon some leftover butcher block at the Habitat for Humanity Restore, here’s how to get some use out of it.

DIY Cutting Boards from Scrap Wood

(Some affiliate links are provided below. Full disclosure here.)

Supplies Used:

• Scrap wood (Make sure to choose a hardwood for this project like maple, pecan, walnut, teak, or cherry.)
• Circular saw
• Jigsaw (optional – if you’re on a more intermediate DIY level and want to test your skills)
• Sandpaper sheets in medium, fine, and ultra fine grits (this variety pack has them all)
• Mouse/palm sander with sanding pads (optional – you don’t have to have one, but it makes the process go faster than sanding by hand)
• Mineral oil and clean, dry rag (You can find it at any pharmacy.)
• A template cut in the shape you want for your board (You can draw and cut one out with poster board or card board or even use a cutting board you already have to replicate it.)

The Steps:

1. Trace your template onto your wood scrap with a pencil first.

2. Then cut with your circular saw on the lines you just drew.  (We used only this saw for several years before ever investing in another saw.  If you’re just starting out with home improvement projects, this one is good for beginners… nothing fancy.  Just straight lines.)

3. If you want to add a handle or round the corners on your cutting board, guide a jigsaw along your pencil lines.

4. Then sand, sand, sand until your board is super smooth. Start with using your medium grit sandpaper first, then fine grit, and ultra fine grit to make your wood feel like butt-ah.

5. Brush away the sanding dust (or use a tack cloth if you prefer) and apply mineral oil liberally with a dry rag.  You’ll see the wood change color as the oil soaks into the wood so it appears deeper and the grain variation looks more pronounced.

Whatever you do, don’t apply stain or polyurethane since neither of those are food safe.  Mineral oil is safe to come in contact with food you’ll cut on the wood surface.

Then enjoy!

I loooooove throwing together charcuterie boards in the spring and summer when we tend to entertain a lot (that’s what happens when you have a pool in your backyard), so I’m stoked to use these as we have friends over.  Yummy snackage!

By the way, if you ever need to put together a rockstar charcuterie board, throw in at least 1 of each category, and you’ve got a crowd pleaser:

• Sharp cheese
• Mild cheese
• Cured meat
• Crackers (or pretzels, pita chips, etc.)
• Fruit (grapes, blackberries, and strawberries are great)
• Nuts (have fun with flavors like wasabi cashews or BBQ spiced peanuts)
• Olives
• Mustard
• Honey

It’s the perfect balance of savory, salty, sweet, spicy, tangy, chewy, and crunchy so everyone’s happy, and it’s totally addictive.

Woah! What happened? I forgot this wasn’t a food blog. My bad. (Wannabe, non-chef over here.)

If you want more basic DIY ideas, you can see all of the rest of them in the hop here (apparently more than one of us had charcuterie on the brain):

Flatware Chest Makeover from Rain on a Tin Roof

DIY Charcuterie Board from House by Hoff

DIY Crock or Pottery from Thrift Store Canisters from So Much Better with Age

DIY Wood Planter from The Turquoise Home

Coffee Table to Bench Makeover from The Happy Housie

DIY Cutting Boards from Scrap Wood from Bless’er House

If you want to save this post for later, you can pin it here:

The post DIY Cutting Boards from Scrap Wood appeared first on Bless'er House.