How To Build A Side Table

A slew of retailers offer premade options along these lines, but the tables are also available in myriad styles and finishes. Or if you’d rather do it yourself, no problem: For under $100, you can easily cut and assemble one of your own, as you can see on the following page. Whichever choice you make, you’re sure to appreciate not having to hold your drink in your lap. Paint: Benjamin Moore’s Avon Green (HC-126), $10 per quart

How to Build a Side Table

Cut List

Download a printable side-table cut list and plan here

Step 1: Cut the Pieces

To splay the legs, chop their ends at parallel 5-degree angles according to the cut list. Trim the ends of all the horizontal pieces at opposing angles to fit between the legs, and bevel their top edges so that they end up flat. Using a jigsaw, cut a curve on the six lower horizontal pieces. Cut the tabletop to size and bevel its edges.

Step 2: Make Two Leg Assemblies

Clamp two crosspieces between two legs—the straight one even at the top, the curved one at shelf height—with the flats flush to the inside. Drill countersink holes at an angle through the crosspieces and into the legs, and screw them in place. Build a second.

Step 3: Put the Pieces Together

Glue and screw the skirt pieces to the underside of the tabletop and shelf, then clamp that frame between the leg assemblies. Drill pilot holes out through the skirt and halfway into the crosspieces, making sure not to punch all the way through. Secure the top and shelf with deck screws.

Step 4: Finish the Table

Fill each hole with a plug. Using a pull saw, cut each plug flush with the surrounding surface. Sand and paint the table.

Tools