Winsome Wood Round Coffee Table, Espresso
Amazon Price: $115.00

Magnussen Brunswick Wood Round Cocktail Table
Amazon Price: $319.00

Winsome Wood Maya Round Coffee Table, White Top, Metal Legs
Amazon Price: $94.61

More On Amazon ▶

You’ve read the coffee table book about coffee tables, you’ve browsed hundreds of coffee table pictures and magazines, and you already own about seven different kinds of coffee tables and now you’re looking to branch out and hand craft your own coffee table, eh?

Well, maybe you’re not that excited about coffee tables but you do love making furniture with your hands. Maybe you’ve already tried building something like a corner bookcase on your own and it turned out pretty good and now you’re looking for a little bit more of a challenge. You could go ahead and build a full sized dining table if you wanted to but a coffee table is a little bit easier and it won’t take much time.

For all you hobby workshop do it yourselfers out there the Coffee Table Blog has put this article together to help you construct your very own one of a kind (well, everyone who follows these steps will have one too) coffee table custom built by you. Just follow these six easy steps and you’ll have yourself a brand new piece of furniture.

It should only take a few hours so let’s get started.

Before we get started with the steps you’ll need to gather all of the necessary tools. You’ll need to cut a bunch of wood at different lengths to make the legs, top rails, table top, corner supports, fillets, and coach bolts and you’ll have to go out and buy yourself some wood screws.

Materials and Measurements

Here’s a list of all the stuff you need:
• (4) 50mm x 50mm (2” x 2”) wood slabs for the legs.
o For length make sure all (4) are 16 inches.
• (4) 100mm x 40mm (1.5” x 4”) wood pieces for the top rails
o For length cut (2) at 37 inches and the other (2) at 16 inches.
• (1) 20mm (3/4”) slab or board
o For length it should be 2ft by 4ft
• (4) 100mm x 50mm (2”x 4”) wedges for the corner supports
o Cut all of them to be 6 inches long and angle the ends to 45 degree angles.
• (2) 25mm x 25mm (1”x1”) pieces to serve as the fillets
o Cut (2) of them to 6 inches and the other two at 28 inches.
• For the coach bolts you’ll need (4) 6 inch washers and wing-nuts
• You’ll need about (30) wood screws or so, all of them about 1.5 inches long and then you’ll also need to pick up about 16 wood screws that are 2.5 inches long.

Now that you’ve collected all of the necessary materials and have your wood working tools at the ready, it’s time to get to work. Here’s what you need to do, step by step:

Six Easy Steps to Build a Coffee Table

1. Cut all of the wood pieces to the proper measurements and make sure that the lumber widths and thickness match up. Just stop by your local hardware store and show them the above list and you will be able to get what you need cut out, most of those cuts are common sizes.

Choosing the right wood for your furniture is a personal choice. The color and texture of the wood is what is going to give the foundational style to your piece. Choose wisely and don’t get carried away. Some woods will look best without being painted so if you are going to paint your wood, decide at this step.

2. Flip the table top so that it is upside down on a flat even surface. You can also prop it up on stools or chairs if you have to but that’s not really necessary. Place your top rails on the under belly of the table top so that they form a rectangle.

Drill some screw holes into your fillets so that they can attach both to the table top and the top rails. Now you’ll have to lay the fillets down against the top rails so that they will support them as the table top sits on them. With your wood screws and a handy screwdriver, screw down the fillets to the table top and then screw them to the top rails.

3. Place your corner supports against the top rails and screw them into place. You’ll want to have four corner supports for each corner. It should look like an upside down trapezoid.

4. Take a chisel and slowly edge out one side of each of your table legs. You want to go about 10mm deep with the chisel so that the table leg will fit snug into the corner slots we built for the table.

5. Attach the legs to the top rails with some more wood screws.

6. Stand the coffee table upright and decide whether you want to paint or stain it. Your work is almost complete. If you decide to paint it, go out and buy some nice paint or stain and then come back to work on your coffee table. Otherwise, you’re all done.

All done!

Go put your brand new coffee table in front of your sofa and have a relaxing drink. Your work is complete, now you just have to wait for someone to come home and let you know what they think of your hand crafted coffee table. Good luck.

Coaster Storage Ottoman Coffee Table with Trays, Brown Vinyl
Amazon Price: Too low to display

Convenience Concepts Sheridan Faux Leather Storage Bench
Amazon Price: $99.00

Contemporary Dark Brown Leather Storage Coffee Table Ottoman
Amazon Price: $221.98

More On Amazon ▶

If you’re browsing the web on your laptop right now, lounging lazily on the couch with a cup of tea or coffee while you read web pages and check emails, you’re probably resting your feet on the coffee table. Some call it a cocktail table but no matter the name a coffee table is that cute little piece of furniture that sits comfortably in front of the sofa and sometimes below the television.

The coffee table is the greatest way to maximize the functionality of a room.  You can store things in them, put your drinks and plates of food on top of them, and always have easy access to them from an upright sitting position on your most comfortable of chairs. These tables are more than mere coffee holders, hell, I wouldn’t be surprised it there’s a coffee table out there today that actually dispenses coffee! Coasters, small plants, magazines, napkin holders, and works of literature all find their way to the coffee table in one form or another.

Coffee tables can be put anywhere in the house too. They aren’t just restricted to the living room. You can put them in a sitting area for quiet reading and contemplation or you can put them in the kid’s playroom. These are versatile pieces of furniture that can meet any need. The coffee table has withstood the test of time as far as furniture trends go, these babies are here to stay. They can be some fantastic antiques and collectibles.

The concept of the coffee table is simple: a low lying table that sits close to the ground and nearby a seat with the purpose of holding hot or cold beverages. The basic idea existed well before the rise of the actual term “coffee table.” You can find similar designs in the Victorian era in Europe and there are some tripod tables in early India. The Ancient cultures to the East have always been known to use square tea tables.
The function of the coffee table remains just as useful today as it was back then. However, the coining of the phrase “coffee table” is more of a modern development. It is widely believed that the very first reference may have occurred in the later years of the Victorian era.

E.W. Godwin created a table which he describes as a coffee table. You can find reference to Godwin’s coffee table in reputable furniture literature like R.W Symonds. The only difference between Godwin’s coffee table and the common coffee table we see today was the height. His was a little bit taller than most modern coffee tables.

When revivalism hit the furniture industry in the late 19th century the history of the coffee table became cemented in time. No longer was it going to be called a “cocktail table” that name didn’t even make sense. Joseph Aronson in 1938 wrote a brief description of the coffee table that sticks even today. He wrote that the coffee table was a “low wide table now used before a sofa or couch.”

That about says it all. The coffee table is not some mystical piece of furniture with a shadowy past. It is a common everyday table that has been used for centuries to entertain a wide variety of cultures.

Everyone loves to sit around and chat with family and friends while they drink and be merry and the coffee table is the answer to that. Rather than sit uncomfortably around a huge dinner table just to have tea and crumpets, you can sit around the living room in comfortable chairs and rest your dishes and books on top of a coffee table.

Jofran 280 Series Wood Lift-Top Coffee Table in Merlot
Amazon Price: $186.96

Steve Silver Primo Rectangular Lift-Top Oak Coffee Table with Casters
Amazon Price: $301.04

Larchmont Rectangular Lift-Top Cocktail by Ashley – Natural Wood
Amazon Price: $379.00

More On Amazon ▶

There are at least five major categories for coffee tables these days. They all serve a unique purpose and bring a highly specific look and feel to the room you’ll be placing them in. It is always a good idea to first decide what kind of décor you’re going for with your entire room before choosing a coffee table.

Remember, coffee tables are accent pieces but they also serve a higher purpose. They can act as foot rests, tables, or hidden storage places. You aren’t just selecting any old forgotten junk furniture here; you’re defining the entire room with one signature piece.

Here are the five main coffee table categories as the Coffee Table Blog sees them:

•    Lift-Top Coffee Tables

The lift-top coffee table design is a relatively new take on our old friend the coffee table. It harkens back to the good old TV-dinner days where friends and family would sit comfortably in front of the television watching Johnny Carson while munching on plates of steak and potatoes.

The basic concept of the lift-top design is in the utility of the piece. The top of the coffee table is detachable and it can be raised or lowered in order to adjust the height of it as a table. Some tables allow full mobility and can be adjusted to move the top of the table anywhere. These tables are great for eating in front of the television or working on your laptop as you don’t have to sit on the floor or crouch forward to access the contents of the table. It moves seamlessly to you.

These lift-top coffee tables used to have a more utilitarian look to them. They were ugly pieces usually were purchased to serve their dinner table use. However, today the designers have gotten a hold of these great functional tables and turned them into elegant pieces of furniture.

•    Glass Coffee Tables

The glass coffee table was once revered as a luxury. You wouldn’t see anyone with these fine pieces of furniture unless they were well above the upper crust of society. However, as the furniture industry evolved it became far easier to construct these coffee tables and therefore much more affordable. Now they are everywhere.

The great thing about glass coffee tables is their refined look. You can turn any sort of object into a beautiful and elegant piece of furniture by placing a carefully cut piece of glass on top of it. For instance, my family owns an antique New England lobster trap that we turned into a coffee table by placing a pane of glass on top of it.

The glass coffee table can work well in any décor and it offers a wide variety of shapes and sizes as the glass can be custom cut to match any space. Just watch out for sharp edges and be careful not to slam anything down on these pieces, they aren’t exactly durable and have been known to shatter.

•    Square Coffee Tables

Diversity is the name of the game with the square coffee table. Tables have been coming in square shapes since the beginning of furniture and by now those coffee table makers really know what they’re doing. Just be careful when selecting a square coffee table so as to make sure that it fits the style of your room.

The square coffee table will come in a multitude of textures and designs and it is a common mistake to choose a square coffee table that doesn’t match with the rest of your décor. Generally the square coffee table will be made out of a type of wood. A contemporary glass table won’t look very good amongst ornate living room furniture and an Asian style square coffee table certainly wouldn’t match a Nautical theme.

•    Round Coffee Tables

Much like the square coffee tables the round style table comes in a variety of textures, materials, colors, and sizes. The best placement of a round coffee table would be in a sparse room with little furniture and bright colors. Kids rooms are usually great for round coffee tables as they usually have that cartoonish child-like feel to them.

•    Modern Coffee Tables

The coffee table has been taken over by furniture artists and designers a like and the pieces that come from that wealthy of creativity have been labeled as modern coffee tables. These tables are ones that aren’t going to yell out “coffee table” at you. They are in all different awkward shapes and sizes and will splash color here and there.

If you’re going to choose a modern coffee table design for your room be really sure that the room can handle that much design. These tables have a tendency to over accentuate and cause havoc when there is no need for that much flare.

Take your time when choosing your coffee table and make sure you pick a type of coffee table that is right for you. Have fun with it, these are great pieces of furniture and they serve both in function and in aesthetic appeal.