How to Make a Small Coffee Table

Building a coffee table is a relatively easy woodworking project that may not even have to involve screws. There are plenty of adhesives on the market that can be used to keep the legs of the table attached to the top and ensure that the table remains sturdy. There are also plenty of options when it comes to the type of wood. It all depends on the type of finishing, if any, that you want on the coffee table and the color you want it to be. For this project, youll be using cedar to make a reddish table.

Instructions

1

Take one of the 28-inch-long planks and with a pencil, make a straight line across the 1 1/2-inch side of the wood 2 inches in from both ends. Draw another line 3 1/2 inches in from the first lines. Where the lines hit the edge of the 3 1/2-inch side of the plank, draw a straight line thats 2 inches long from where the first two lines hit the wider side. Connect the end points of the two new lines with a horizontal line. Do the same for the other end. Repeat this process with another piece of 28-inch long plank.

The lines will serve as the guides for cutting these chunks in order to fit the legs into these two pieces, heretofore called A.

2

Cut out the area inside the lines you drew using the handsaw and chisel. Sand to smooth out the rabbets, the sockets for the legs.

3

Glue together 10 of the 28-inch pieces, then on both ends glue the two A pieces and glue the last two 28-inch pieces on the outsides of the A pieces. Make sure that the rabbets face the same direction.

4

Clamp all 14 pieces together. Wipe off the excess glue and allow to dry.

5

Take off the clamps once the glue is dry. Sand the tops, sides and ends of the table.

6

Turn the table upside down so the rabbets are facing up. Put glue in the rabbets and fit each of the four 14-inch pieces into each of the rebates. Allow the glue to dry.

7

Apply one coat of polyurethane and allow to dry. Lightly sand then put on the second coat and allow to dry. Lightly sand again then put on the third coat and allow to dry.