Introduction: THE CONSOLE TABLE

By MY SECRET PLACE
About: In my shop I have a name for hammer, saw, and plier. The saw is Tess, the hammer's Joe, and Glumdalclitch is the plier. Yes, I'm brillig, and my slithy toves still gyre and gimble in the wabe. With that, le…

Wifey wanted a console table for the hall. She wanted it 4' long and 12" deep. Maybe some drawers. Nothing super fancy. We went to Lowe's and she picked out some legs and some molding and left the rest up to me.

CONSOLE TABLES

Step 1: MATERIALS

4 legs, 1 x 12 x 8', molding, and I had some 1 x 3s laying around the shop I used. As I progress, I'll probably add some more materials which I'll attach. Ahh, the freedom of not working with a plan, just an idea. Scrap 1/2" ply for the drawer bodies.

Step 2: TOOLS USED

Pictured are the tools I used for this project.

Step 3: THE TOP

There was a slight warp to the board so I added a breadboard on each end and secured them with pocket screws. I plugged the holes. Total length of top was 4 feet.

Step 4: ADDING THE LEGS

Each leg had a threaded rod. (Yes, I know about T-Nuts which I elected not to use.) I made a template to drill a hole to accept this rod. I glued each leg in place and let it sit. In my head, I have a basic image of what this console table is going to look like. If you've followed any of my builds you know I don't really work from a plan, just a basic idea. I like to let a job take me where it wants to go. I know I have to make the legs more secure than just using glue. I know I want a drawer or two or maybe more. I'm not sure about a bottom shelf. We'll see.

Wifey said she wants a lot of little drawers. So a lot of little drawers it will be.

Step 5: ADDING THE APRONS

I cut three aprons to size and pocket screwed them in place. This also secured the legs better than just the glue. For the two drawer stretchers, I glued the top one and pocket screwed the bottom. At each stage, I set the console table in the hall for Wifey to see. Wifey loved it so far. She asked if I could make 6 small drawers with glass knobs. I said, "Yep." I'll let her pick out the knobs.

Step 6: SPACING DRAWERS AND ADDING DRAWER GUIDES

Setting the dividers took a bit of trial and error, but once I got the exact spacing and made a SPACER, it went smoothly. While doing the drawer guides I added the decorative edging. The guides and slides were simple. I just made inverted "Ts" for the drawers to slide on.

Step 7: THE DRAWERS

I made the drawer bodies out of 1/2" ply which I had plenty of in my lumber cart; the drawer faces out of the same 3/4" I've been using for the carcass. I started by making a test drawer out of scrap to get the measurements right. Then I cut all the 1/2" ply to size. I made a drawer assembly jig out of scraps. The drawer faces I cut from one piece of lumber and labeled each to make sure the grain would be continuous and flow from drawer to drawer.

Step 8: WIFEY'S KNOBS

I know, but I can't stop laughing over that title. I repurposed the jig I used for the table legs and used it for the center hole for the drawer pulls.

Step 9: ATTACHING FACES TO THE DRAWER BODIES

I spread glue on the drawer and set the drawer face by tightening the knob. Since I made the screw hole a bit oversized, I was able to adjust each drawer face to leave a uniform gap. One challenge was trimming the long screws down a quarter of an inch since they were made to go through two pieces of 3/4" wood and I used 1/2" wood for the drawer bodies. All in all, it came out great.

Yes, I'll be adding a finish to the console table, but basically, it is done!

Let me know what you think.

Step 10: STAINING

Since I work out of my home, I'm not rushing the staining. I'm doing a little at a time. I used a pre-stain since the wood is pine. It eliminates blotches. Wifey selected a dark walnut stain. I sanded each step with a fine grit (at least 220) sandpaper. I coated it with polyurethane. I will continue to post until completed.