Tiers on my Table

Pottery Barn has a galvanized three tier table stand for $70. I thought it might be fun to make one out of those cookie tins that you can't throw away because you might use them for something. Here is the something.

Choose three tins; a small medium and large. We will only use the middle sized lid.

Buy a threaded rod ( I found mine in the hardware section of Home Depot). They come in a variety of diameters; I chose 3/8".  I cut mine 16" long with a hacksaw. Pick up 6 nuts and washers to fit.

While you're at it, go to the electrical department and pick up a piece of metal conduit (tube) that will slip over the threaded rod. It's cheap, in fact all of this stuff is cheap.

Cut a piece of copy paper the diameter of your largest tin and then fold in half both ways to find the center. Place it on the bottom of the tin. Drill a hole large enough to accommodate the threaded rod. You can use the same paper - just cut it smaller - to find the centers of the rest of the tins and the lid.

Thread one of the nuts and a washer an inch or so above one end of the rod. Add the lid (upside down) and then the largest tin. Add another washer, then screw on another nut. Screw down tightly. You may need a pair or two of pliers.

Slip the middle sized tin on to the rod to determine how high you wish it to be. In my case, it was 8 inches. Since my tubing wouldn't fit over the nuts, I cut the tube 7 inches long. You can use a hacksaw but I chose to use this tube cutter which makes a smooth even cut.

Place the tube on the rod, add a nut, washer and the middle sized tin. Add another washer and nut and again, screw down tightly.

Place the last two nuts and washers on the end of the rod. Measure from the top of the nut inside of the middle tin to the bottom of the new nuts and washers to determine the length of the next piece of tubing. Cut that piece of tubing to length. (Again, for me, it was 7 inches) Remove the new nuts and washers, slip on the tube, then add a nut and washer. Place the smallest tin over the washer and add the last washer and nut. All together now - screw down tightly.

Fill it with whatever you wish and place it in the center of your table. Cute huh?

In spite of the camera angle - the bottom tin is larger than the middle one.