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You know those annoying people who do everything at once? Well, this coffee table has the same personality. It does it all. Coffee table, foot rest, glass holder, magazine rack, and storage unit. All the functions are separated. I don't like seeing stacks of magazines and books on the table so I provided a rack on the side. Rounded edges and a soft top offer a rest for weary feet, but since beverages and feet don't mix, I designed a protected shelf which wraps around the table and keeps your drinks out of harm's way. Finally, since I am a city apartment dweller and space is at a premium I can't afford to have any piece of furniture which does not double up as storage -- hence the removable top.
Additional features include casters, to make cleaning easier, and two mirrored sides which serve both to reduce the piece's visual mass, and to entertain any babies who might be crawling around. Occasionally when those babies grow older they might dump the entire contents of the coffee table on the floor, climb into it and turn it into a race car, creating mayhem. This function should be discouraged. It is, after all, just a coffee table.
(Thank you to Nathalie Schueller who took the beautiful pictures in this step)
Additional features include casters, to make cleaning easier, and two mirrored sides which serve both to reduce the piece's visual mass, and to entertain any babies who might be crawling around. Occasionally when those babies grow older they might dump the entire contents of the coffee table on the floor, climb into it and turn it into a race car, creating mayhem. This function should be discouraged. It is, after all, just a coffee table.
(Thank you to Nathalie Schueller who took the beautiful pictures in this step)
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Signing UpStep 1Materials and tools
I built this with MDF but if I were to redo it today I would choose my new favorite material with an ugly name: plyboo. This is a very strong, beautiful, ecological material and it's incredibly easy to sand and finish. Basically it is plywood made from bamboo, and although it's becoming more and more popular it isn't annoyingly trendy (yet). If you do choose plyboo, be warned: it is harder than regular plywood and it will break your screws unless you drill generous pilot holes first. If you use MDF, you will need to be very careful finishing it properly with several coats of polyurethane: MDF is very sensitive to moisture and will swell up where it gets wet.
When I made this a few years ago I covered the top (M) and shelf (L) with a soft rubber. It looked great but it didn't stand up to wear very well, especially after my kids got into the habit of gouging it with pencils. So I covered those pieces with some grey vinyl. You can see in the intro pictures it's holding up pretty well and has a nice soft feel when you put your glass down. In these plans I decided these pieces will NOT be covered, just stained and finished like the rest of the wood. Of course you can do as you wish, but you will have to make minor adjustments (in the width of the wood) if you want to cover them.
Materials (as shown in these drawings rather than my prototype):
3/4" thick lumber for pieces A B E F G H I & M. Pieces C & D are drawn 3/4" thick, but you could use 1/2" just as well (D would then need to be 1/4" longer than I specified). C & D are not visible from the outside, so you can use plain plywood instead of the better material you'll use for the visible pieces.
(4) casters. Get the type you can screw on, rather than the kind with the rod.
(2) 1/8" thick plexiglass mirrors (pieces J & K)
Glue for mirrors (not regular glue -- mirror glue will not damage the silver backing material)
(3 or 4) square rods or scrap pieces of 3/4" plywood. I just drew 3 of these, but you can put a fourth one in. These pieces serve to screw the sides together but also to hold up the lid (M).
(6) small metal brackets and (1) bigger angle (see picture)
Black stain for pieces B, L, M & part of E (you don't have to stain these pieces of course -- but I think they help make the table appear lighter, less like the big box it really is)
Polyurethane if you are using MDF -- Dutch oil works great with plyboo.
Tools (this is where you will see why I'm entering this contest):
You need a table saw -- which I don't have -- or you can get the lumberyard cut your pieces. They will only cut rectangles.
For A, E, I, L, and for B's rounded edge I only had a jig saw which did the trick, but a hand-held circular saw might work better for some of those cuts.
A drill with a 3/4" bit for the holes on M, and to make pilot holes for your screws.
A hand-held sander
Optional: clamps, or at least another pair of hands. A cordless screwdriver
I don't have this, but a router would be very handy for the edges. I used my sander instead, which was very boring and dusty work.
When I made this a few years ago I covered the top (M) and shelf (L) with a soft rubber. It looked great but it didn't stand up to wear very well, especially after my kids got into the habit of gouging it with pencils. So I covered those pieces with some grey vinyl. You can see in the intro pictures it's holding up pretty well and has a nice soft feel when you put your glass down. In these plans I decided these pieces will NOT be covered, just stained and finished like the rest of the wood. Of course you can do as you wish, but you will have to make minor adjustments (in the width of the wood) if you want to cover them.
Materials (as shown in these drawings rather than my prototype):
3/4" thick lumber for pieces A B E F G H I & M. Pieces C & D are drawn 3/4" thick, but you could use 1/2" just as well (D would then need to be 1/4" longer than I specified). C & D are not visible from the outside, so you can use plain plywood instead of the better material you'll use for the visible pieces.
(4) casters. Get the type you can screw on, rather than the kind with the rod.
(2) 1/8" thick plexiglass mirrors (pieces J & K)
Glue for mirrors (not regular glue -- mirror glue will not damage the silver backing material)
(3 or 4) square rods or scrap pieces of 3/4" plywood. I just drew 3 of these, but you can put a fourth one in. These pieces serve to screw the sides together but also to hold up the lid (M).
(6) small metal brackets and (1) bigger angle (see picture)
Black stain for pieces B, L, M & part of E (you don't have to stain these pieces of course -- but I think they help make the table appear lighter, less like the big box it really is)
Polyurethane if you are using MDF -- Dutch oil works great with plyboo.
Tools (this is where you will see why I'm entering this contest):
You need a table saw -- which I don't have -- or you can get the lumberyard cut your pieces. They will only cut rectangles.
For A, E, I, L, and for B's rounded edge I only had a jig saw which did the trick, but a hand-held circular saw might work better for some of those cuts.
A drill with a 3/4" bit for the holes on M, and to make pilot holes for your screws.
A hand-held sander
Optional: clamps, or at least another pair of hands. A cordless screwdriver
I don't have this, but a router would be very handy for the edges. I used my sander instead, which was very boring and dusty work.
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15
Jan 8, 2009. 8:46 PMjosefu0
says:
how about a table with a cup holder
Reply
51
Jan 9, 2009. 5:16 AM
belsey (author)
says:
belsey (author)
says:
Well, if you wanted to you could cut holes in the shelf so a cup would fit in there... not a bad idea actually, because it would hold the cup in place even if the table's pushed around!
Reply
15
Jan 10, 2009. 12:42 AMjosefu0
says:
thx wii type
Reply
3
Jan 3, 2009. 9:44 PMmg0930mg
says:
Amazing! I love this design. You have some awesome i'bles.
Reply
51
Jan 4, 2009. 6:34 AMbelsey (author)
says:
belsey (author)
says:
Thanks!
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