DIY dining table made of wood - by @chalilofee

The lovely @chalilofee has built herself a new dining table and we were very happy that our legs were used in the process. As nice as she is, we have her permission to publish this blog here as well, so that this great DIY project can inspire even more people.

So we won't beat around the bush any longer, let's get started!

With the DIY wooden dining table, I fulfilled a long-awaited dream. Of course, you can also buy or have such a table made, but that was just way too expensive for me and since I think that many of you might feel the same way, I wanted to share all my tips, experiences, and instructions with you. Because even though it is actually quite simple to make this table, there are still some things that can go wrong (as I found out *haha*)…

First of all, you need to ask yourself how big you want your table to be, because after that you choose the length of the tabletop. If you want a table for 6-8 seats like I do, then you need the tabletop to be 180cm – 200cm (mine is 200cm), for a 4-6 seat table it would be 120-140cm. The width depends on your taste; some like it wider, others narrower, while I find my table with a width of 82cm really optimal (but it also depends on the types of wood you want to use).

SHOPPING LIST HARDWARE STORE: DIY WOODEN DINING TABLE

• Protective tarp (to protect the other furniture from sawdust)
• Construction boards for the tabletop (in my case, it was 3 very wide boards and I had them cut to my measurements directly at the Bauhaus – just ask nicely 🙂 My first tip: Definitely take the leftover pieces from the cutting to later test the future table color on them)
• Narrow wooden boards (to attach the tabletop at the end. The measurements, etc., depend on your table size; it's best to lay everything out on the floor at Bauhaus for a trial and have these boards cut directly – Tip: make sure to leave some space at both ends as shown in the photo below)
• Wood screws to attach the tabletop (included in the delivery)
  Tip: the screws should not be longer than the two boards you want to screw together)
• Sandpaper for wood (from coarse to fine) and sanding machine

Tip:  Make sure to take a sander, otherwise it will simply take forever until you are done. Furthermore, I would also recommend a corner sander in addition to a regular sander, as you can shape the edges, the transitions, and the 'natural cracks' in the wood perfectly with it – maybe you can just borrow both from the hardware store or similar.

• 4-piece set HAIRPIN Legs table legs I think the table legs are one of the most important things about a beautiful dining table, right?! Since I really wanted something in Scandinavian design and high quality, the search was not that easy, but in the end, I found more than enough. 

My tip: Definitely order the table legs online at Natural Goods Berlin they are really amazing and especially available in many colors and shapes... just take a look there.

• And of course a cordless screwdriver to attach the screws

 

• ADDITIONAL directly from the Natural Goods Berlin team: if you want to additionally protect your floor, we have floor protectors for Hairpin Legs

THE ASSEMBLY OF THE DIY DINING TABLE

Step 1: Briefly sand the underside of the tabletops, it is sufficient to sand them roughly once.

Step 2: Push the undersides of the tabletops together and connect them with the small woods. My tip: First, 'test lay' all small woods and the future table legs before you screw the first panel tightly.

Step 3: Screw on the table legs (the screws for this were actually included with the table legs from Natural Goods Berlin by the way) 🙂

Step 4: Turn the table over and sand the tabletop nicely on the top and sides. My tip: To give the table a bit of shape, structure, or 'used look marks', you can also play around a bit with the corner sander, a planer, or similar on the table 😉

NOW COLOR COMES INTO PLAY

And this is the part where I am so desperate, you wouldn't believe it *haha*. My original thought was that I found the natural wood color so beautiful that I just wanted to make it a bit more "robust" against dirt, since it was after all a dining table. Thus, fate took its course…

 

After I applied a neutral finishing wax and saw that it was very "yellowish" afterwards, I preferred to do something else over it, but let me tell you this! After two layers of wax, you won't be able to do anything else over it quickly *AAAAAAWWW* :D. After 1000 packs of sandpaper and 500 oil, wax, glaze coats later, I finally have a color that fits my ideas and my furniture. Here again a huge thank you to the best, most patient, and helpful OBI employee of the year – if you are reading this, thank you for everything *haha*.

But for you, here comes my probably  most important tip of the day! Make sure to take one of the leftover pieces of your floorboards and really test the color of your choice beforehand! The colors look different on every wood, and a wrong coat can really cost a lot of time, money, and effort!

My absolute favorite in the end was the  antique wax from Liberon that I ordered via eBay. However, I applied it over two layers of "beech glaze" in the end, and I don’t know how it would have looked without it, but I think just as good 🙂

THE RESULT OF THE DIY DINING TABLE

And here you see my pride! I really love love love this table, and it has at least a value of 800 euros, but I only paid about 250 euros. The nice thing is, if something happens, I can always sand it down again and wax it again, and it shines again 🙂

If you have gotten a taste for it and want to know more, feel free to leave me a comment anytime so we can chat about it, and I would be thrilled to hear about your experiences 🙂

Have lots of fun and see you soon

Your Chalilofee