If you hadnt already figured it out, we are in the middle of a living room remodel. Weve always had a mishmash of furniture weve picked up here and there, none of which fits well together. But now my wife and are are focused on styling the room in "mid-century modern". Or at least inspired by that era.This end table is meant to replace one we picked up at a garage sale years ago. I decided to use cherry so it will complement the credenza and the coffee table, but not match them. My goal is to work within a style, not create matching pieces.
Steel conduitThe steel pipes are inexpensive 1/2" steel electrical conduit. Initially, I thought I would paint them silver or even a bronze color, but decided I liked its raw galvanized mottled look.They just float in 3/4" holes in the legs. (1/2" conduit is actually slightly less than 3/4" in outside diameter.)
Tapered legsSince my credenza and coffee table each feature turned legs, I decided this table would have square, tapered legs. Again, Im not trying to match my furniture. I made a simple jig to cut the tapers and explain it in the video.
To give the table top its thickness, I used a torsion box construction made from 3/4" pine plywood. This makes it sturdy, yet lightweight. And less expensive: the only cherry plywood in this project is a 1/4" piece for the top.
Plans
- Wood and steel end table plans (pdf)
- SketchUp file
Follow this weeks progress
