Hi, my honeys! I keep telling myself I'm going to start doing more simple DIY crafts, and then I see something and get a bug up my tush about making a big thing! LOL! This was exactly the case with these gorgeous travertine stone nesting coffee tables I saw on CB2's website! I knew I had to have them, but I checked the price and they sadly were out of my budget. This is not to say they aren't worth their price. I just simply couldn't afford them. However, I texted my dad right away and said, "Do you think I could DIY these," and he so kindly said "yes, of course you can!"
Here are the inspo tables priced at $379, $399, and $429 each at CB2.
And here’s how mine turned out for under $200:
I'll spare you the long story, but I come from a line of carpenters! My grandfather was a high school wood shop teacher and my dad learned everything from him! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would become interested and oddly good at building things, but here we are and I'm pretty dang pumped about it! I'm not gonna lie, though, I doubted myself at the start of this project, but I swear I will NEVER do that again, because I really surprised myself with how well these tables came out!
Now, let's get to the tables. I am going to list all of the supplies I used, give you detailed instructions in this blog post, and tell you the mistakes I made so you don't make them should you choose to tackle this project! This honestly is a pretty straightforward project as far as DIY's go, so don't doubt yourself, just follow my instructions and go for it!
Supplies:
Larger table top: This comes already as a square which is ideal for this project.
Smaller table top: Grab one piece of this and have a friendly Home Depot employee cut it for you, so you basically have a square. I can't find the link for the smaller square, but it's all the way down the trim aisle next to the round table tops they have and measures 17 1/4 inches by 4 feet. Just ask them to cut it down to 17 1/4 inches to make a square.
Table Base Wood for the large top: You want this one to be shorter. I had the Home Depot employee cut this down into four 15'' pieces. Make sure you choose a piece that isn't warped or heavily knotted.
Table Base Wood for the smaller top: You want this one to be shorter. I had the Home Depot employee cut this down into four 18'' pieces. Make sure you choose a piece that isn't warped or heavily knotted.
Trim to go around each table and slats for the bases: To be on the safe side, I would grab six of these 8 ft slats.
(5 or 6 cans) White Spray Paint:
(2 Cans) Stone Textured Spray Paint:
Spray Paint Sprayer: I cannot live without this. Saves you from finger arthritis and it sprays a more even coat!
Countersink bits: These are to make your screws go in below the surface of your table so you can fill them in with wood putty.
Impact driver: This is the one I have.
3 inch wood screws: These usually have a star bit hole at the top of them, but if you buy a box of them, they'll come with the exact start bit you need.
Miter Saw: Here's the one I have. Love it because it's safe and easy to use.
Wood Glue:
Caulk:
Brad Nailer: Here's the one I have. It's the lightest cordless one I could find.
1" Brad Nails:
1 1/4" Brad Nails:
1 1/2" Brad Nails:
(1) 2 x 4 x 8 board:
Bricks or something heavy to add to your table bases as a counterweight
Painters tape
Wood Filler
Any clear coat spray paint
Instructions:
1) Have your fav Home Depot employee cut four 15" pieces out of your first 1 x 10 x 6 board and have them cut your 1 x 10 x 6 board into four 18" pieces for your table bases. Then, have them cut your smaller table top into two equal pieces so you have a square table top.
2) Now, create the two boxes to serve as the bases for your tables. Start by using a line of wood glue on the long edge of your 15" piece, and take another 15" piece and butt it up against the side where you glued to make an L shape. Once you've done that, you want to use your brad nailer to nail them together. Use the 1" brad nails for this step. Repeat this process with two of your 18" pieces, so you will have two L shapes.
3) Then, add one more piece to each of your L's on the outside to make U shapes with your wood glue and nail gun.
4) Take your remaining 15" piece and 18" piece and cut your 2x4x8 board into 8 chunks as wide as each board. 1 x 10's are roughly 9 1/4 inches wide but measure to be sure. Then, glue one chunk at the top and bottom of each of your two remaining boards and the bottom boards of the U shapes. Let them dry for about an hour or so.
5) Then, slide your last piece in with the 2 x4 chunks glued on them and nail them in with 1 1/2" brad nails. You will then have two completed boxes! You will need to add some weight to these boxes so I would suggest using a couple of bricks, or cutting some more 2 x 4 chunks and gluing them into the inside of your bases. Whatever you use, make sure it's tightly packed so it doesn't shift around in there when you move the tables around. I would say add enough weight where they're heavy, but obviously you still want to be able to lift them to move them, so keep that in mind!
6) Next, cut your slats for the bases. For mine, I used four slats across the front and back, so you will need 8 slats that are 15" long, and 8 slats that are 18" long.
7) Now, it's spray paint time! I like to paint all of my pieces before assembling so I can get into all the nooks and crannies. Do a few light coats of your white spray paint (I used a satin finish) until you don't see any wood tone poking through on your tabletops, slat pieces, and table bases. Don't forget to flip your table tops over and spray paint the undersides white too!
8) Once completely dry, cut two of your table edge trim pieces for each table top to size and nail them in flush with the top edge of your table tops with 1 1/2" brad nails. This will give the illusion of a thicker table top without adding the weight of two table tops. I made the mistake of glueing two table tops together, which made my tops too heavy.
9) Then, measure your width across the two remaining table top edges and cut and nail in your last two pieces of trim on your table tops.
10) Spray a couple light coats of your white spray paint to the edges of your tables.
11) Now, with your 1 1/4" brad nails, nail in your slats to the fronts and backs of your table bases. I started by nailing one on each side all the way to the edge of the base and then just measured how far apart the two in the center had to be.
12) Once all of your slats are nailed in, it's time to screw in your table tops to your bases. With your painter's tape and a tape measure, center your table bases on the tops and tape around the base so you know where it hits. Do the exact same thing to the top and bottom of the tape tops. Then, set your table tops onto the bases and line up where it should go based off your tape. Make a note of where your 2 x 4 chunks are on the bases.
13) Now take your counter sink bit with your impact driver on low and drill four holes roughly an 1 1/4 in where your 2 x 4 chunks should be. Then take your wood screws and screw them in with your drill and star bit. Set the drill to high and put them straight in with some pressure behind the drill.
14) Now, wood fill and caulk any cracks, nail holes, screw holes, and seams throughout your tables.
15) Allow for it to dry, then paint another coat or two of white on each table, and let them dry.
16) Lastly, use your stone texture spray paint to do several light coats over your tables from all angles. You want to barely press down on the spray paint nozzle and do back and forth motions for an even coating of the stone texture on your tables.
17) Once completely dry, spray paint a clear coat all over your tables to seal them.
Thank you all so much for checking out this DIY of mine it was a true labor of love! If you want to see more of the tables in this room make sure to follow me on Instagram @peonyandhoney - I would love to have you there! A reminder to y'all that you are wildly capable! I never thought I could build something like this, but here we are! xo