Farmhouse Table

There she is, in all her glory. It took a long time to get to this point, but totally worth it! It was a fairly simple project, it just took FOREVER because when you have a 19 month old, everything takes forever. We were only able to work on it about 3 hours a night, and on the weekends, so it took us about 2 weeks to complete. Ok, and maybe I decided to stain the entire bottom half and then sand it off and pick a different stain. Whatever. ;) But she looks exactly like I wanted her to. I love her. And don't mind my two empty frames. I want family pictures in those and we haven't had time to actually take them! Oh and see the wall moulding? Yep, my husband is handy as a pocket, he did that too! It's fairly simple, but if you guys would like a step by step on that, let me know!
SO! What does it take to get to this point? Let's get started. Here's everything you'll need (well at least the items that we used):

• Sander
• Pocket Hole Jig (Optional, but extremely useful)
• Wood Glue
• Clamps
• (5) 4X4X8 Posts (Ours were Douglas Fir, because that's all we could find)
• (4) 2X4X8 (We used Pine)
• (6) 2X10X8 (Again, Pine. All of these depend on how long/wide you want your table)
• Circular Saw
• Table Saw
• Miter Saw
• Drill
• Impact Driver
• Screws
• Stain of your choice, We used Ranch Oak by Wood Classics (Our final choice anyway)
• Wood Conditioner (Optional, but highly recommended)
• Polyurethane

Seems like a lot of saws right? Well, you'll need every one of them. So beg, borrow or buy one! Let's start with the top. You will need all of your 2X10's for this part. Be sure to measure how long and how wide you want the table. Ours is 7 foot long and a little over 4 feet wide. Cut all of your wood to size and start drilling out your pocket holes so that you can attach the pieces together. Once that is complete you're ready to screw them together. Put a little wood glue in between each piece and clamp them together for extra security, and begin screwing it together. We put about 6-7 screws on each piece. Same goes for your end pieces. Here is how it looked after this step. He's pretty proud, as he should be.

He's Handy as a Pocket

Now you're ready for the base! Get one of those saws out, it's time to notch! I didn't take too many pictures, as I hadn't really planned on blogging, but I have a very unflattering one shown below with our nephew that kind of shows what we did to notch, how to remove the excess, and that I need a tan. Super easy. Cut a bunch of times in a row, rip it out, sand smooth (nope I didn't sand, but I thought it sounded appropriate).

Little Helper

Here's how it should look put together. Awesomeness.

Notched, to look awesome

Once the frame is built, time to put it all together! Before putting it together make sure you will have enough room to get it through the door. This is one heavy table!! It's solid wood, so just keep that in mind! Get your pocket hole jig back out and get busy! Once it's put together, you are ready to stain. Unless you are putting it together inside the house, then it's better to stain before she's all screwed together. I recommend sanding, at least the top, and then putting a coat of wood conditioner on so that the stain takes evenly. In my experience, it worked great on the pine wood, but not so much on the douglas fir posts. Luckily, we chose a dark stain so it's not too noticeable. Once you're done with the conditioner, you're ready to stain. I found using an old rag, and not wiping the excess was easiest. I used two coats. After the second coat dried, I started on the polyurethane. Warning: This is the tedious part! I used a nylon bristle brush and you have to go SLOW and steady. Definitely read up on how to properly apply, otherwise you will end up with a bubbled mess. Once the first coat of poly dried, I sanded extremely lightly with a fine grit paper, then applied another coat of poly. This part is optional, but I chose to do it. I wanted it to be durable and stand up to everything my family will throw at it on Thanksgiving. The picture below is before any poly. I think it looks dull, the polyurethane really makes it POP! Totally worth the headache!

Pre Poly

Once the polyurethane is dry, you are ready to move her in! Congratulations, you have just built your very own heirloom to pass down to future generations. Don't forget to autograph it! This is the bottom of the table, and oh look, you can see our pocket holes :)

On the Bottom of the Table

A little more info on the room and table:

• Curtains: Lowes, $30/panel
• Charger Plates: Hobby Lobby, $1/each (I got them half off)
• Chair Covers: Bed Bath & Beyond, $9.99/each (Don't forget your coupon!)

The Chairs that we used were from our old table, we just covered them!

Good Luck! Be sure to post pics or any questions if you intend to tackle this awesome DIY!

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