Long time readers will know that I'm partial to a bit of marble. Having had a bit of a family room makeover lately, I was on the hunt for some side tables to go with my Gatsby inspired curtains and cushions. I've been gradually starting to layer in touches of gold, copper and rose gold to add warmth to our dark inky blue walls, and I knew I wanted the side tables to be in fitting with our affordable luxe scheme.
THE SEARCH
Don't get me wrong, I saw plenty of tables online that I loved. But before you buy big furniture items, always make sure to check the dimensions and get that tape measure out. In doing so, I saved myself money (P&P is killer for furniture deliveries don't you know) and the hassle of returning a bulky item (I discovered that one beautiful table in question wouldn't have fit the space). Specifically lots of the tables I found were knee high (Ok I exaggerate) meaning that rather than reaching across for that cup of tea, you'd have dip down into a dark corner to retrieve said cup of tea. Which is bloody stupid. Nobody got time for that.
THE SOLUTION
I came to the realisation that I wanted something that didn't exist. I couldn't find a table that was high enough (why are all tables so low??). So I took matters into my own hands and one weekend I popped into my local DIY store feeling inspired towing it create something of my own.
Disclaimer: in light of the recent collaboration guidelines and red tape, let me make very clear that this post was written of my own accord and has not been funded or incited by B&Q in any shape or form.
SEARCH 2.0
I went to my local DIY store and picked up MDF for my table top, screws and table legs. In an ideal world I would have loved hairpin legs, but 1) our local B&Q didn't have them and 2) sometimes you need think about practicality (for example, where will your table sit?). In our case, the table would be tucked away in a corner, meaning that we couldn't justify spending more on hairpin legs, only not to see them / enjoy them fully.
We were debating leaving the wood as it was, but the labels on the MDF didn't come off particularly smoothly... so we knew there and then that we'd want to cover the table top up in some capacity.We found some great sticky back plastic / laminate designs in our local store and picked out a realistic looking marble print which we decided to try covering the table with. Here's how we achieved the final result.
YOU WILL NEED
METHOD
1) Position your table legs where you want them (we kept some centimeters spare around the edge of the MDF so the weight was better distributed nearer the centre of the table). Mark holes for drilling.
2) Drill said holes and align the legs with the holes.
3) Screw into place using those trusty screws you picked up
4) Repeat this process for all four legs until you are left with something like this
5) Stand the table correct side up and check its stability.
6) Lay out your sticky back plastic and work out where you want the pattern to sit. Naturally Bailey had to 'help' at this stage.
7) Peel back the sticky back plastic and start one end at a time, gradually pulling as you go and smoothing out any bubbles. Don't worry if you see a crease or a bubble or two - it's easily fixable. The beauty of this material is that you can unstick and try again until you are happy with the finish.
8) Finally, leave enough excess to fold away under your table top out of sight, and trim the edges at an angle for neat corners.
THE FINAL RESULT
I was really impressed with how high end the final result looked. To me, this table reminds me of the one of the French Connection ones, but at a fraction of the cost.
I love how the table makes use of the dead space that was once in the corner of our room. It's almost like a hovering shelf. And seeing as I don't trust myself to be drilling holes into walls, it's a super easy way of getting the shelf look. Without actually being a shelf. Also feel like it was a good shout not going for the hairpin legs - it's not like you'd see them anyway!
We received some lovely coasters from my sister for our anniversary and given that she didn't know we were even building this table (let alone the design!), how spot on are these coasters??!
This table has been so handy for drinks, magazines, vases, you name it. Bailey loves it too despite me frequently telling him TABLES ARE FOR GLASSES NOT ASSES
COST DIFFERENCE
The tables I was looking at originally were £100+. Some high street supermarkets had good options below the £100 mark, but I read mixed reviews about the finish / quality and then there's that question mark, you know? Like when you find a hotel you like the look of and then a bad TripAdvisor review puts you off. All in all, the MDF, screws, laminate and table legs cost us the following:
= £32.51
...bear in mind that the above is an upfront cost. We didn't use the whole roll of sticky back plastic, meaning we have plenty left over for another project. And we used 16 of the 25 screws. So the actual total cost of our table is potentially less than £30 - not bad eh?
THE SEARCH
Don't get me wrong, I saw plenty of tables online that I loved. But before you buy big furniture items, always make sure to check the dimensions and get that tape measure out. In doing so, I saved myself money (P&P is killer for furniture deliveries don't you know) and the hassle of returning a bulky item (I discovered that one beautiful table in question wouldn't have fit the space). Specifically lots of the tables I found were knee high (Ok I exaggerate) meaning that rather than reaching across for that cup of tea, you'd have dip down into a dark corner to retrieve said cup of tea. Which is bloody stupid. Nobody got time for that.
THE SOLUTION
I came to the realisation that I wanted something that didn't exist. I couldn't find a table that was high enough (why are all tables so low??). So I took matters into my own hands and one weekend I popped into my local DIY store feeling inspired to
Disclaimer: in light of the recent collaboration guidelines and red tape, let me make very clear that this post was written of my own accord and has not been funded or incited by B&Q in any shape or form.
SEARCH 2.0
I went to my local DIY store and picked up MDF for my table top, screws and table legs. In an ideal world I would have loved hairpin legs, but 1) our local B&Q didn't have them and 2) sometimes you need think about practicality (for example, where will your table sit?). In our case, the table would be tucked away in a corner, meaning that we couldn't justify spending more on hairpin legs, only not to see them / enjoy them fully.
We were debating leaving the wood as it was, but the labels on the MDF didn't come off particularly smoothly... so we knew there and then that we'd want to cover the table top up in some capacity.We found some great sticky back plastic / laminate designs in our local store and picked out a realistic looking marble print which we decided to try covering the table with. Here's how we achieved the final result.
YOU WILL NEED
- 18mm MDF (sizing completely up to you)
- 3.5 x 12mm wood screws
- x4 table legs of your choosing (ours were these B&Q kitchen work top legs)
- Marble sticky back plastic (or any other design of your choosing)
This was the marble we used (they also have this amazing version in black)
METHOD
1) Position your table legs where you want them (we kept some centimeters spare around the edge of the MDF so the weight was better distributed nearer the centre of the table). Mark holes for drilling.
2) Drill said holes and align the legs with the holes.
3) Screw into place using those trusty screws you picked up
4) Repeat this process for all four legs until you are left with something like this
5) Stand the table correct side up and check its stability.
6) Lay out your sticky back plastic and work out where you want the pattern to sit. Naturally Bailey had to 'help' at this stage.
7) Peel back the sticky back plastic and start one end at a time, gradually pulling as you go and smoothing out any bubbles. Don't worry if you see a crease or a bubble or two - it's easily fixable. The beauty of this material is that you can unstick and try again until you are happy with the finish.
8) Finally, leave enough excess to fold away under your table top out of sight, and trim the edges at an angle for neat corners.
THE FINAL RESULT
I was really impressed with how high end the final result looked. To me, this table reminds me of the one of the French Connection ones, but at a fraction of the cost.
I love how the table makes use of the dead space that was once in the corner of our room. It's almost like a hovering shelf. And seeing as I don't trust myself to be drilling holes into walls, it's a super easy way of getting the shelf look. Without actually being a shelf. Also feel like it was a good shout not going for the hairpin legs - it's not like you'd see them anyway!
We received some lovely coasters from my sister for our anniversary and given that she didn't know we were even building this table (let alone the design!), how spot on are these coasters??!
This table has been so handy for drinks, magazines, vases, you name it. Bailey loves it too despite me frequently telling him TABLES ARE FOR GLASSES NOT ASSES
COST DIFFERENCE
The tables I was looking at originally were £100+. Some high street supermarkets had good options below the £100 mark, but I read mixed reviews about the finish / quality and then there's that question mark, you know? Like when you find a hotel you like the look of and then a bad TripAdvisor review puts you off. All in all, the MDF, screws, laminate and table legs cost us the following:
- MDF - £8.99
- Screws - £1.10 for a pack of 25
- Legs - £3.98 each
- Marble sticky back plastic - £6.50
= £32.51
...bear in mind that the above is an upfront cost. We didn't use the whole roll of sticky back plastic, meaning we have plenty left over for another project. And we used 16 of the 25 screws. So the actual total cost of our table is potentially less than £30 - not bad eh?
In summary, I love how we created something unique and how rewarding it was seeing it all come together. I definitely feel inspired to keep it up with the home DIY and life hacks so watch this space!
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