This is a project we built this weekend. My husband and I desperately needed some sophisticated storage space in the living room that is kid friendly, so we accepted the challenge. We together built a coffee table with trundle storage inspired by a plan on ana-white. We are truly inspired by her designs and plans help a LOT! Check out our work!
Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
We used one coat of red oak minwax stain with a layer of red mahogony stain over top. We finished with clear polyurethane.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner
Comments
Bunnie1978
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:11
Nice
That looks very nice. This is the next project on my list I think.
It's really great to see the project with a different kind of finish also. How do feel about the functionality of it now that you have it "up and running" in your living room?
And... how do your kids feel about it?
Any drawbacks to this design for your needs, or tips that you can give me for building it over the next couple weeks?
In reply to Nice by Bunnie1978
Windycrocodille
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:53
Thank you!
Thank you for the compliments! So far we absolutely LOVE the functionality! It really is made for easy clean up, slides back and forth nicely (we used wheels that only go one way, not swivels.) and our one year old seems to enjoy it. The table and storage compartment are just short and sturdy enough that she can pull herself up on them and because the storage compartment is not on swivels it doesn't move when she does. She is the first grand-baby on both sides of the family so she has approximately 175 toys that we have to find a place for and they all fit very nicely. With the large storage we have noticed that she is pulling out and playing with different toys that she could never get to or find before. As far as design is concerned we did have to modify it a little bit to work with the tools that were available to us. We wish the side legs were sturdier, even with 6 screws in each side they are still a bit wobbly. With the storage box underneath it helps to support it from swaying but we are still talking about ways to make it better. A possible support beam on the bottom of the back side? All in all we love the piece it fits perfectly into our space and offers a LOT of storage that we didn't have before. My husband and I had tossed around the idea, before we started, of making the piece smaller but we are glad that we didn't.
Suggestions: if you are going to buy based off of the shopping list provided make sure you also buy 2" screws. They forget to include that in the shopping list but include that in the directions. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. It was a really really fun project for us.
In reply to Nice by Bunnie1978
Windycrocodille
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:53
Thank you!
Thank you for the compliments! So far we absolutely LOVE the functionality! It really is made for easy clean up, slides back and forth nicely (we used wheels that only go one way, not swivels.) and our one year old seems to enjoy it. The table and storage compartment are just short and sturdy enough that she can pull herself up on them and because the storage compartment is not on swivels it doesn't move when she does. She is the first grand-baby on both sides of the family so she has approximately 175 toys that we have to find a place for and they all fit very nicely. With the large storage we have noticed that she is pulling out and playing with different toys that she could never get to or find before. As far as design is concerned we did have to modify it a little bit to work with the tools that were available to us. We wish the side legs were sturdier, even with 6 screws in each side they are still a bit wobbly. With the storage box underneath it helps to support it from swaying but we are still talking about ways to make it better. A possible support beam on the bottom of the back side? All in all we love the piece it fits perfectly into our space and offers a LOT of storage that we didn't have before. My husband and I had tossed around the idea, before we started, of making the piece smaller but we are glad that we didn't.
Suggestions: if you are going to buy based off of the shopping list provided make sure you also buy 2" screws. They forget to include that in the shopping list but include that in the directions. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. It was a really really fun project for us.
brookifer86
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 09:10
Added Stability
I just finished my Tidy Up Table too (brag post coming!) and I decided to add one L-bracket to each corner because of the wobble. I've also got a baby (7 months) and it's nice to have that added stability just in case. Now the sides are solid as a rock!
Bunnie1978
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 13:08
Yes...
A little bit of medal support would probably be really good... I was actually thinking of modifying the design a little bit already, which will probably serve the end result to provide better stability. I think I'm going to make the storage trundle a little shallower, and put a row of small square drawers above it on each side. That is of course, much more complex, and then detail the trundle with the small squares so it looks like a cabinet of drawers all the way down...
What do you think of that idea? I mentioned that on the plan post too... still kicking it around a bit.