Do It Yourself – Rustic Coffee Table

Let me start by saying we’re not furniture makers by any means, but I must say that this coffee table turned out exactly as I had envisioned.

Once again Mr. Charming took an idea and brought it to life.

The bulk of this table was finished in a weekend.  I’d say you could whip up one of these in 3 – 4 days.

It starts with a pile of pine boards.  You can choose how many or how wide you’d like them.

There are 4 (1” x 8”) boards on top and 3 wider (1” x 10”) boards for the bottom shelf.

We tried to use Pine for everything, although the 1 x 2 pieces were hard to find in pine so we used Poplar.  It’s best to keep all your wood uniform for the best staining results, although a true rustic table could be made from all sorts of reclaimed wood, so I didn’t worry about it.

To join the boards together we used metal strapping and then added a piece of plywood for stability.

Secure legs to the bottom of the table top with scrap pieces of  2 “x 2”.  Use wood glue and screws screwing into legs and table top.

We removed the middle strap to allow for a piece of plywood.  The plywood adds a ton of stability to the bottom.  You can sit on the table and not worry about it bowing. The plywood was glued with construction adhesive as well as screwed down.

Attach the pieces for the bottom shelf of the table the same way.  We didn’t use the strapping here, just plywood.  Cut out corners to fit the legs.

Once all your pieces are assembled it’s time to sand.

These pine boards were really rough and required a heavy grit sanding paper to begin with, moving to a finer grit for finishing.  I also tried to pick the boards that had the most interesting grain or knots.  Just be sure the knots are stable and wont fall out.

I’m not completely sure why I didn’t get a picture of the staining process except to say that I was so eager for this part that I jumped right in and realized afterwards. Minwax walnut stain and a satin finish were used for the entire table.  After the stain had dried I sanded everything down to achieve the worn and rustic look.  One coat of satin finish applied and then sanded down. A second coat was applied attain a smoother and more durable finish. It’s best to stain and finish before attaching the  shelf.  I also gave both table top and shelf a coat of Minwax Past Finishing Wax.  I want to ensure that any drops or water will bead up and not penetrate the surface.

Once the two pieces stained and finished, the supports for the bottom shelf were added to the legs.  Again scrap 2 x 2 pieces will do for this.  Add wheels and you’re done.

Here we have the before picture.   An older, hand-me-down table that while it was nice in it’s day, has been heavily used in the past few years.

And our new rustic table with basket storage.

In our house, that particular table will always be pushed further away, pulled closer, or moved to the other couch, and to prevent dragging marks on the carpet, the wheels were a definite must.

I just love all the knots in this pine, they add so much interest.

I’m a huge fan of lots of storage space, so I wanted to have some storage on this table.  I opted for baskets that will hold extra blankets, tv remotes, magazines and of course nail polish and laptops that seem to accumulate in this area. (Love my girls!)

I’ll wait a week before I tell Mr. Charming we need a matching end table.

Check out HomeEsthetics for more incredible, inexpensive, DIY coffee table ideas.