Colorful Patio Side Table
Summertime!
Well, okay. Technically summer doesn’t begin for another month, but in the U.S., Memorial Day Weekend is considered the unofficial start of summer!
Naturally, I wanted to make an outdoor project. But I also wanted it to be simple enough that you can make it in one day so you can spend the rest of the three-day weekend relaxing and barbecuing!
If you make this patio side sable, you will need to make a top. I suggest just cutting a circle out or 3/4″ (18mm) plywood and painting it.
For mine, I used a round piece of marble that has been in my shop for years. It’s older than I am so I am happy to have finally found a use for it!
You can make the base out of 2x4s if you like. I didn’t have any on hand, so I glued together some 3/4″ (18mm) pine boards. I actually prefer this method to using 2x4s. The ones the home centers sell are notoriously warped and wet, causing all kinds of twisted mayhem when they dry!
Once they were dry, I squared them up using my jointing jig, and cut them to size on my table saw.
I drilled holes for the dowels using my drill press. One pair of legs has four holes and the other pair has three. That way the dowels can crisscross each other.
Next, I drew out tapers on the lower part of each leg and cut them out on my band saw.
With a roundover bit in my router, I eased over the sharp edges of the legs.
The top brace is a cross shape. I cut notches in each piece so they would fit together flush. I glued them together and added a couple screws so I wouldn’t have to clamp them up.
I used my pocket hole jig to make holes on the end of each cross piece.
I spray painted everything using seven different spray paint colors!
Once dried, I glued the dowels into the legs.
And finally, I screwed the top cross piece to the leg assemblies using pocket screws.
Since the marble top is so heavy, it just rests on top. If you make a wood top, you will probably want to screw it in place.
Plans
May 27, 2016 @ 7:03 pm
Paint covering the wood grain pattern kind of rubs me the wrong way, but still – incredible job. Thank you.
August 30, 2017 @ 5:57 am
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May 28, 2016 @ 11:48 am
It amazes me Steve that you have been able to maintain a mono chromatic tailgate after all these years.
May 30, 2016 @ 5:54 am
is the marble top just floating above the legs? or it have some king of glueing?
May 31, 2016 @ 11:49 am
Steve, I rarely (if ever) see you using a primer on pine wood before you paint it. I use a shellac based primer to lock the sap in, especially around knots. Have you ever had a problem with sap oozing through or causing your paint to blister or peel?
I am also curious about the type of paint you use when you apply with a roller. Is it a latex? How does it hold up outside? Like on your benches and Adirondack chair?
June 20, 2016 @ 8:36 am
great works