I happened to see a hanging table on a TV show, although that one was round, I thought that the unique shape of cypress would look a lot better. And I just happened to have one.

Step 1: Safety, Materials, and Tools

I used the appropriate safety items as needed. These included safety glasses, dust mask, and hearing protection.

Tools

Sanding Blocks
Cordless Drill
Drill Bits
Wood Carving Chisels
Hammer

Materials

Cypress Wood Blank
Agate
Minwax Polycrylic
Minwax Stain
JB Weld
Wood Filler
Rope

Step 2: Cypress Wood and Agate

Cypress

Is a soft light porous wood that grows in the South East area of the US. I acquired this blank about 20 years ago from Florida. I used to make Cypress Clocks from the blanks. I had this tucked away in the garage and quite frankly forgot about it.

Agate

Is a rock that always appealed to my eye. It can be found on Ebay and other online stores.

I decided to make the table after seeing one on the TV show Fixer Upper.

Rope

I bought the rope at a local craft store. It was called Jute, commonly called burlap in US.

Step 3: Sanding and Inserting the Piece of Agate

The blank was bought already cut. I started with 100 grit sandpaper and finished with 220 grit.

I thought this piece of agate looked like the center ring of a tree, so I inserted into the middle of the blank. My first attempt at carving was mildly successful. I used a stainable sandable wood filler for a few deep holes and cracks. That was a mistake! It was sandable but didn't take any stain at all. A little brown paint hid that. I had some JB Weld on hand and used it to glue the agate to the wood. I'm sure any type of epoxy glue would have worked.

Step 4: Drilling Holes

I used my cordless drill and a 1/2" drill bit to bore the holes. I traced the outline of a bucket to get the outline of a circle. And then eyeballed where I wanted to drill the 4 holes for the rope to come out of.

Step 5: Staining and Poly

If you never worked with cypress the first thing you learn while staining is there is no wiping it off. It absorbs the stain like a sponge. As fast as you wipe or brush it on it sucks it right into the wood.

I used a dark Minwax "Windsor Oak" stain.

I put on 5 coats of the Minwax polycrylic, which absorbed the first coat. I couldn't be happier using this product. It goes on quickly and dries quickly. And it's water and soap cleanup. I used a brush to apply it.

Notice in the second picture I mixed a small batch of a 2 part epoxy finish that had been lying around from the clock building days. It yellowed so badly that I decide to go with the polycrylic finish.