Forget using this for just legos, I can't think of a better place to stash all the remote controls, magazines and game console controllers then in those compartments. Our house is void of legos (for now) but extra storage anywhere that is super accessible and easy to hide is perfect! I may never have to try corralling Wii-motes and xbox controllers again!

This is awesome! Love it. You are fabulous. Thanks so much for sharing!

Definitely plank the top with pocket holes - it's what I did, or double layer over 1x2s run the opposite direction as the planks, every 12" or so would do the trick and add very little weight. Just make sure that the 1x2s end 3/4" from the edges of the inserts, and you won't be able to use the insert bottom as say a lego mat.

Someone else mentioned pop up magnetic clasps - so you would just give the insert a little push and the top would pop up. I simply left a little space so I can pull mine up with on the edges.

Awesome project. A living room junk drawer! I am speechless. My list is growing. Thank you so much!

Ana --

When you planked your 1 x 6's for the shelves and top, at what interval did you space your pocket holes? 6 inches or so apart? Do you need to stagger them from board to board to make it strong enough? I've never used a pocket hole jig but am planning on getting one soon and don't want to screw this up.

Also, to make the wood look more "planked" did you sand down the edges to be joined before putting them together?

Thanks for any feedback.

--Michele

P.S. I found your blog way back when you only had 3 plans on it and It's been amazing watching it grow and develop into something truly spectacular. Makes me wish I didn't have to go off to my lawyer job every day so that I could stay home and build stuff! Keep up the great work!

I want one! This is really awesome, and looks great. You suppose I could talk my father-in-law into building it for me? (As I have No Tools!)

I'm not a mom (yet) so at first I thought I didn't need this table. But the more I look at this, the more I want to build it! It would be a perfect place to stash throws or even DVDs that I would want hidden away. Thanks for everything you do, Ana!

Love this project and am really tempted to try to make it even though I don't have children, nor have I ever tried constructing my own furniture. What can I say? You make it look simple/easy enough that even a klutz like myself might be able to manage. Although I'd really like to see this design with functional draws instead of removable play tops, do you think I'd be able to modify the plans to accommodate this feature? Sorry if that's a silly question, but remember I am newer than a novice at this type of thing.
Thanks for sharing, you really are an inspiration for DIY wannabes like myself.

I love this idea. If we had a living room big enough I would do this. My kids love legos and with 6 kids we have LOTS of legos (just not lots of room). We have built so much from your website. Ledge shelves, hanging daybed (modified to be the hanging bunkbeds we saw featured here), the outdoor sectional, and the pallet picnic table. We have several more book marked to build as well. My 14yo son has built most of it on his own. My husband broke down and bought a dewalt chop saw and is looking at a table saw. We have saved so much money on this furniture and it gives me son a sense of pride and accomplishment when someone comments on his building. He has made some of the doll furniture for his sisters for christmas.

Thanks so much!!

I LOVE this! I am forwarding this to all of my friends. Maybe one of them will build it for me!

Love your site too!

Oh. My. Goodness. I have been looking for a coffee table with storage, this is perfect. It would be perfect for storing our board games, or for the usual hiding of junk when people stop by. ;P Love it! Thank you.

Ana,

In your pictures it looks like you joined 1x6s to make the bottom shelf instead of using MDF or plywood. Is this correct? Did you use your kreg jig?

Thanks! Ariel

where can you get a large lego mat?! Thanks for the info!!

You are smart on so many levels, Ana. My daughter is 16, and I'm waiting:)

I'm also waiting (read as 'busily building') to finish my house so that I can start making furniture!

This table is fabulous! We don't need a coffee table, but I read another comment about using this to store diapers, etc. That is a great idea, but my kids would get into it if it were at coffee table height. Would it be possible to make the legs longer, more like a sofa table height that I can keep up against the wall in my family room? I'm not a big fan of the pack&play/diaper changer taking up half my room, but a pretty table tucked neatly out of the way that could hold all my supplies...THAT I could go for. I guess I'm just wondering if any other modifications would be needed for support if the table were taller? And by the way, THANK YOU so much for this site! My husband and I (who've never built ANYTHING before) are currently building the play kitchen for our kids (girl, 4 & boy, 2) for Christmas, and we never would have imagined being able to do it without this site and your expertise! (We are also already talking about a dining table and queen bed for our next projects!) :)

I'm soooo excited! I just built the Train table depth version of this! This is my first Ana White project, but definitely not my last. I submitted my photos already, but here's my blog post on it: http://afromartha.com/?p=896
Ana, you rock!

L.O.V.E. the "hide stuff" furniture idea! We live in a small space and are always looking for ways to make things fit! Thanks!

oh my gosh, i loooove this! I am wondering how to you remove the top to get to the bin? Is it easy to remove? I totally want to make this!

Joscie, just drill a hole in the center, and it's easy! The panels are rather light.

Did you finish the edges of the plywood in any fancy way or just stain them?

WHat a great idea! I love it and want to try building it myself. Are there any plans in the making for matching side tables with storage?

Thanks Autumn!

Ariel, that is correct. I used 1x6s joined with a pocket hole jig, 3 1x6s wide. If you built your 1x6 shelves first, then you could measure their width and build the table around them. Should be easy to make the mods. Good luck! Ana

I made this for my sister for Christmas (she has 2 year old twins and a 3 month old!). She LOVED it! The only change I made was to make a "skirt" under the lower shelf with extra 1x3s. It helps support the shelf (for when the twins try to climb under there) and will prevent toys from getting lost under the table. Thanks for the great plans!

This is a great plan, one we are building right now. I do, however, have a question about the top and how to get into the top storage. Did you put a hole in the top to lift the tabletop up or use a different idea? I'd like to hear the solution.

Thanks!

This might be the project that solves my lego problem! Thank you so much! Is the bottom shelf necessary for stability or strength? I think I might like an even simpler version, without the shelf. Of course, if I have a shelf, I have a place to store the floor cushions I want to make to go with the lego table....

I LOVE this. I think I might actually have all of the wood in my garage to make this. WOOHOO!!! I am thinking I should have asked my hubby to get me my own power tools for Christmas. :)

Thank you for your amazing plans. I have shared your site with many friends and family members.

You are AWESOME!!!!

LOVE it!!! hubby was just laid off, I think I just found a project for us to do together as he looks for new work

Well, I was considering buying a 'train table' but this is so much better and exactly what I'm looking for! My list just keeps growing! Kitchen Helper Tower, Mom's table, Farmhouse bed, oh my list goes on and on... Thank you for all you do!

I don't know when my comment will be seen, but I would love to see something like this that is more shallow so that you could scrapbook while sitting on the floor. You could hide the stuff while the kids are up and about and the get it out at nap time. I love this idea!!

Brilliant! Legos have taken over my living room with all of my 6 year old sons creations and colorful bins. I'm not much of a DIYer but this I might have to give a try.

Wow! I just stopped by your site for the first time (linked from Simple Mom) and WOW! Your instructions are clear and your drawings are super-clear and professional. Keep up the phenomenal work!!!

Where did you buy the sheet of Lego bumps to flip over for Lego play-table mode?

Elisa, welcome! Thank you! You can buy the lego mats at Walmart for sure, we don't have a Target, but I would guess they would be sold there too.

I love this!

We're in need of a coffee table, and I recently asked my construction-worker brother to help me learn my way around some power tools, so I found this at the perfect time. And it's beautiful!

Thanks for sharing this with us!

Hi Ana - We are planning to do this as our next project for our living room, but we've also been dying for an appropriate ottoman.... so I've decided that instead of having the panels flip over for lego mats, etc (we don't have kids!) I'm going to make upholstered cushions on them! So it'll be a coffee table that converts into an ottoman!! What do you think about my idea!?

OMGosh!!!! Hubby and I are going to make this as part of the silent auction Lego theme "basket" for our eldest daughters class for the Spring Fundraiser!! Can't wait to get started - and yes, we're going to build it twice and keep one for us!!! HA!!!

I love this coffee table. I've been looking at lift-top coffee tables. Could you convert this to be a lift top? It moves the top over the sofa so that it works like a TV tray/work table over the sofa. Where could you find the hardware?

WOW!!!!!! All I can say is WOW!!!! Wow to everything on this site!!! I love this table and as unhandy as my husband and I are, our handyman is not. He is dirt cheap and with the help of your plans, I am going to be hiring him a lot!!!!! Farmhouse table and benches, beds, entertainments centers, you name it!!! The thing I love best is how you lay it out simply and that I can buy the materials that meet my criteria for safety in my home. Most might consider me a little crazy :) but I am trying to rid my home of all of the "fake wood" for the chemical emissions. This is the perfect scenario for us! Ssshhh, I really shouldn't say this because I really don't want you too, but you could easily charge for these plans. They are BRILLIANT!!!!

Thanks so much for this great table! I can't wait to show my husband so that we can get started and I can stop stepping on Legos!!!

You are so awesome! I went to my first moms club function and someone raved about your site, and emailed the link out today. I have no idea how to make this stuff, but it is PERFECT for my dad to make my 2 kids. This is only the first post I have looked at, and I cannot wait to look at more. He is going to be SO busy!!!!

do the drawers pull out? sorry, im just startin on this.

Anna,
After looking at the plans and the pictures I am trying to figure out if you have a slight reveal for the bottom of the box. If there is a reveal how did you negotiate the legs? Did you use a dado blade to notch them or is it all an optical illusion?

I think I love you. I just found this site, and I am in LOVE! Especially with this coffee table.

I love it!! I just told my hubby to clear his weekend, he is going to be busy!

I finished mine this weekend.  Thanks Ana.  Putting my brag blog post together now.

Going on my to do list. Thank you Ana

I adore this plan! I, too, am waiting, waiting, waiting...but in the meantime this really fits the bill for a functional coffee table that doubles as a Lego table. I have one question regarding the bottom shelf. In the pictures it looks like it's made of pine boards. I can see parallel lines running the length of the board. Is that a finishing technique, and if so could you please tell me how you did that? Thanks for all you do!

Do you have to put the shelf on the bottom or can you leave it out? We always sit at the table on the floor with our feet under the table.

I can't believe that I have not seen this idea before. I can't think of a way to say what a great idea this is. It is going on my list of "I wish I had time to do" because we don't have a coffee table yet and I have been wishing we had room for a train/lego/building table.