Rustic Farmhouse Coffee Table

A while back I shared this picture and captioned it, "The beginning of something beautiful."

It was actually the beginning of TWO something beautifuls.  One of those things is a custom, rustic, farmhouse coffee table.  My client wanted a large, rustic coffee table and we decided to use this piece to add a pop of color.

A quick tip:  I love bright colors but there can be too much of a good thing.  Coffee tables, end tables or small console tables are great pieces to get a small dose of color.



This coffee table is big!  It is 60" long which is the normal length of a 6 person dining room table. :)

To give the coffee table a rustic feel, the base is distressed slightly and the top is made from 2 x 6's to achieve that farmhouse look.

If you missed the hutch to wine bar makeover, read about it here.

The colors of the wine bar and coffee table were based on a pretty Robert Allen floral.  The fabric has a soft white background with slate, turquoise and yellow flowers.  I suggested we find a fabric first then use the colors from it. Once we chose the fabric, the client ordered pillow cases in that fabric and a coordinating fabric from Etsy.  Then the fabric was used in another project.  Some of you may recognize it.

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you have seen this fabric before.  Remember this picture?

It is something I have never done before and I am excited to share this project with you.  Be sure to check back tomorrow to see this piece and the 3 other custom pieces it goes with!  

This is something I have never done before and was super excited to do.  I love the final result and so does the client.  The entire 4 piece project will be posted tomorrow.

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Monday - Inspire Me Monday (Sand & Sisal,  My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Domestically Speaking, Sweet C’s Designs)  Made by you Monday (Skip To My Lou)

Tuesday - Twirl and Take a Bow (House on the Way, Déjà Vue Designs, All Things Heart and Home,

Designed by BH, Art is Beauty and A Few Miner Adjustments) The Makers (Tiny Sidekick, Persia Lou, Upcycled Treasures) Show and Share (Coastal Charm)

Wednesday:Wow Us Wednesday (Savvy Southern Style), Inspire Me Wednesday (Seven Thirty Three, Happiness is Homemade)

Thursday: What To Do Weekends (Crafts ala Mode ), Friday Favorites Link Party  (I’m Not a Trophy Wife),  The Best DIY Party at the Handmade Hangout (A Glimpse Inside, Christina’s Adventures, From Gardners to Bergers, Redoux Interiors, Too Much Time on My Hands), Inspire Me Please, (Liz Marie Blog) Catch as Catch Can (My Repurposed Life)

Friday:  Best DIY Projects and Recipes Party (The Idea Room, 30 Handmade Days, Whipperberry, The 36th Avenue),  Anything Goes (Bacon Time),  Be. You. Tiful Link Party (Chic California), Creativity Unleashed (Practically Functional, Shaken Together, One Project Closer, The Bold Abode)  Fabulously Creative Friday (Jennifer Rizzo Blog)  Anonymous Weekend Party (Remodelaholic) Little Friday Link Up (The Grits Blog,  Living Lavender, Fleurty and Fit), Anything Blue Friday (The Dedicated House)

A few updates.

Y'all.  Someone please tell me where January went?!  Seriously!  What happened to it?

A few weeks ago I told y'all about my deal of the year so far.  The $75 Ikea couch.  It came with a white cover that I tried to dye.  There were some problems.  I thought there might be since the fabric was older and had some stains.  Dye is cheap so I wanted to at least try.  My goal was to get a light blue color but it ended up looking like splotchy denim.  Not really the look I was going for.

So yesterday, I ventured into Houston and got a new cover at Ikea.  A little more expensive than dye but the fabric is a better quality than the basic white cover and the color is perfect.

Here is a quick flip I did a few weeks ago and never posted.

And now for something I LOVE.  One of my favorite parts of the job. Seeing made over pieces in their new home!

Do y'all remember the two-tone, baby boy dresser and the small blue end table?  If not read about them here & here.  Well, they are now part of one of the cutest nurseries.  I love that it is decorated with color and not a baby theme.  So cute.

Isn't it great?!

I hope everyone has a great weekend.  I am hoping to finish up a great dresser and end tables makeover.  :)

DIY Coffee Table

So I know some of you are wondering where I have been all week.  And then there are some of you that probably didn't even realize I have been MIA.  :)


Well, I have been tired. And when I say tired I mean exhausted.  So exhausted I started to go to that crazy place in my mind.  Things started to shut down and quit and I felt like I was on drugs of some sort.  So exhausted I stopped doing push ups at bootcamp to lay in a dirty parking spot of the San Luis Resort because I could not lift myself again.  So exhausted that when I woke up to BLittle sending a work email on his phone from bed at 4am I had thoughts of smothering him with his pillow.



For the last 3 weeks, I have been struggling with sleep.  This is something I don't usually have a problem with.  I love sleep and I have to have 7-9 hours of good sleep to function.  After several weeks of bad sleep and going to the ranch this weekend and waking up 5 to 6 times a night, my body started to shut down.  I have been in a bit of a daze the past week.


I am finally starting to get better sleep and I have more energy to be productive.  This project took a little longer than I wanted but it is done and I love it.


Here is our coffee table before.

At first I thought I would just refinish this one but there were too many things I didn't like.  It was super heavy, I hate the bottom shelf (it tends to be a junk collector), and I wanted a stained not painted coffee table.  This one had a few too many veneer issues to re stain.


So, I decided to build one.  True story.  Again.


Yes, last week I built a dining room table (read about it here and here) and this week a coffee table.  Apparently, I am on a roll, in a groove, whatever.


I wanted to make a coffee table that was a little longer than the one we had and didn't have the bottom shelf.  Also I wanted clean, simple lines.  Our previous coffee table was one of the only new pieces we bought for our NOLA home.  Blittle was insistent that we have a coffee table that lifts so I bought one.  I wanted this new table to have this feature too.


I took the lift mechanism out of the old table and used it for the new one.

This is what the finished product looks like.  I think I am going to put another coat of stain on it to darken it up a bit and cover up the yellow still showing through.  I haven't decided yet.  I'll keep y'all posted on that.

The old coffee table will be refinished and available for purchase.  It is a great table, it just wasn't working for us.

Have a great Saturday!  I am working today since I decided to take a snow day without snow yesterday.  :)  There is a great project being delivered today and I can't wait to show y'all!  It's going to be a great makeover.




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52 Mantels, Thursday S.T.Y.L.E, Catch as Catch Can, Redoux Link Party

DIY Door Coffee Table

The first time I saw this idea I was on a plane reading through magazines I had bought while at the airport.  Airports have the best magazine selection!  Anyway, the picture was in one of the repurpose magazines and it was a complicated door coffee table with shelves added underneath and places to put the remotes.  I loved the idea but I wanted an option that was simpler.  I have seen several of these on Pinterest but none have good instructions. I am going to try to give clear instructions...keyword try... this might be "clear as mud" as my mom would say.


Tools & Supplies

• Solid wood door
• Skil saw or Jig saw
• Kreg Jig
• Kreg Jig Screws
• Painters Tape
• Saw Horses
• Tape Measure
• Pencil
• Straight Edge
• Sandpaper
• Paint (optional)
• Rust-oleum Spar Varnish

A few tips and recommendations:

ALWAYS be careful when using power tools!

It is important that the door is solid wood for the Kreg Jig Screws to hold the pieces together.

If you do not have a Kreg Jig, you can use wood glue and L brackets but the table will not be as sturdy.

You can make your door table as tall or as short as you would like.  The height does affect the width so have a plan BEFORE you cut.  I based mine on the height of my door (80-ish inches) and how long I wanted my table.

Always make your cuts with the PRETTY SIDE FACING DOWN.  Meaning, the side that will be seen as the table top should be facing down while using your saw.

Wrap the cut area with painters tape.  This will help keep the wood from fraying and splitting while making the cut.

Measure twice, cut once.  DUH!  I measure 3 or 4 times usually...just to make sure.

The top of the table sits on the legs so your overall table height is the leg height plus the door width.

Let's get started!

I wanted my table 4 feet long or about.  After measuring my 48 inches, I had 32-ish inches of door left to use for the legs.  That was enough to make the overall height of the table about 18 inches which is a great coffee table height.   Once I got my plan, I started measuring and cutting.


I measured and marked 48 inches on the door.

Then, I wrapped the area with painters tape and measured my 48 inches onto the tape.  Using a straight edge (I used our long square) I drew a straight line on my tape.

Measure, tape, remeasure.

Measure twice, cut once.  Draw line over tape then cut.

Using a saw with a laser makes cutting along your line easier.

After my first cut I had two sections.  The 4 foot section that will be the table top and the 32-ish inch section that will become the legs.

I took the 32-ish inch section and divided it by 2, taped, remeasured, and cut.

Measure, tape, remeasure then cut again.

After only 2 cuts, I have my 3 pieces (a top and 2 legs).  I used some 220 grit sand paper to smooth the edges where I made my cuts before I put them together. 

Now to use the Kreg Jig.  Set the drill and Kreg Jig based on the door's width.  The LEGS are screwed into the top so all the Kreg Jig drills will be on the TOP, INSIDE of the LEGS.  There will be 4 sets of drills on the LEGS.  

I forgot to take a picture before I put the table together...OOPS.
This one gives you an idea of what I am talking about.

Once I drilled the legs, it was time to put together.  Again, I forgot to take a pictures of this step...sorry...I am working on taking more pictures while I work...I just forget.  I placed the coffee table top pretty side DOWN on a blanket so it wouldn't get hurt.  I then screwed the legs into the top being careful to make sure my pretty sides are facing out and everything was lined up.  

When the legs are screwed in, the table is pretty much done.  I sanded any rough edges and wiped the table clean. It is up to you to paint or clear coat.  I loved the color of my door so I didn't paint but I did use Rust-oluem Spar Varnish in Semi Gloss to clear coat since my table is going to live outside.

This makes for easy clean up and protects the paint (who knows how old or what kind it is) from bubbling and peeling due to moisture.  It also keeps the wood from soaking in moisture which protects it from rot.

After my clear coat was dry, I WAS DONE!

Clear as mud, right?!  Good luck for those of you who try it!  I promise to have better pictures on my next tutorial :)  And a better overall tutorial on my next tutorial :)