If you’ve been wanting to change up the style of your living room but don’t want to break the bank, a do-it-yourself project is a perfect option for you. You won’t have to build a whole new set of furniture, either: you can add a lot of character and refresh your space just by making over the coffee table you already have!
Give Your Coffee Table a Rustic Makeover
Rustic, authentic-looking wood is a very popular style for furniture these days, and it doesn’t take an expert or expensive resources to get the look. All you will need in addition to a coffee table is wood stain, polyurethane, tools to use for distressing the wood, and sanding tools.
First, sand the top and all sides of your existing coffee table until the wood is very smooth. Avoid sanding too deep, unless however, if you’d like to keep the wood’s original texture.
Next, distress the wood to get that authentic, vintage look you are going for. If you’re working with a fairly new coffee table, it may not look as rustic as you’d like. Fortunately, you can easily distress the wood yourself using various tools, such as hammers or bolts, to give it some more character. Make sure not to overdo your distressing, however, so it still looks natural.
If you would like it to have an especially rustic look, Pete Sveen, winner of Bob Vila’s 2014 DIY project competition and founder of the DIY website DIYPete.com, recommends distressing the wood with a steel wool and vinegar mixture. Sveen says, “The mixture reacts with the tannins in the wood to bring out grey and black colors. It also brings out the grain and distresses the wood.” Sveen says to place a handful of steel wool in a container of white vinegar, and let it sit for 24 hours. The steel wool will dissolve in the vinegar. Once it has dissolved, simply paint the mixture onto the wood. Don’t worry if you don’t see an immediate difference; after a few hours the wood will take on a very rustic look. An alternative method to give it a more rustic look is by mixing and matching the stain that you use (this is the method we used). To give the wood an older gray hue give the wood a light treatment with an Ebony stain, then go back over the wood with a stain more to your liking.
Once you are finished distressing the wood to your liking, it’s time to stain your coffee table (unless of course you’re using the stain to make it look rustic). First, after making sure the room is properly ventilated, thoroughly wipe down the table to get rid of any dust. Next, test a piece of scrap wood or an inconspicuous spot on the table before beginning to stain the entire table. If you are happy with this stain, proceed to thoroughly apply the stain with a lint-free cloth or brush. If you would prefer a lighter, more subtle color, wipe the stain off immediately, making sure to wipe in the same direction as the wood’s grain. If you would like a darker color, let the stain sit on the wood for about five minutes before wiping it off.
Once you are finished staining the table and it is dry, apply a coat of polyurethane to the entire coffee table. Once this dries, apply a second coat. Once your second coat has dried, Sveen recommends sanding down the coffee table, wiping it down with a clean, damp rag, and applying a final coat of polyurethane. When your third coat is dry, congratulate yourself–you’re now the owner of a rustic coffee table you’ve created yourself!
Convert Your Coffee Table into an Ottoman
Another great coffee table makeover you can do yourself turning your coffee table into an ottoman. This is an especially good project for you if you have small children, and your current coffee table’s sharp edges present a bit of a risk. By transforming your table into an ottoman, you can make your family room more kid-friendly without making the whole space feel like a playroom. For this project, you will need either stain or paint for the coffee table legs, polyurethane (optional), a drill, foam, spray adhesive, batting, a staple gun, tufting buttons, plain buttons, upholstery thread, long needles, and a coffee table.
First, paint or stain the coffee table legs whatever color you would like. If you stain the legs, seal the color with a coat of polyurethane if you’d like to add an extra layer of protection.
You will then need to mark the spots on your coffee table where you would like to place the tufting buttons on your ottoman. Once you have these marked, drill holes on these spots; you will be attaching the buttons later.
The next step is to attach foam pieces to the tabletop. You may need to trim the foam to fit your coffee table. Some do-it-yourselfers prefer to also attach strips of foam to the sides of the coffee table to make the ottoman even softer. Once the foam is cut to fit the table and situated to your liking, use an adhesive, such as a spray adhesive, to affix it to the coffee table. Next, cover the table with batting, using a staple gun to attach the batting to the underside of the coffee table.
Once you have secured the batting, cover the coffee table with the fabric you would like to use for its upholstery. When you’ve situated the fabric the way you want it, tack it in place to secure it.
Before you permanently staple the fabric to the table, you will need to attach the tufting buttons. This step can be a little tricky, but the buttons add a lot of character to the ottoman, so be patient! Thread a piece of upholstery thread through a long needle, and then attach that thread through the loop on the backside of the button. Next, push the needle through one of the holes you drilled into the tabletop until it reaches the other end. Pull the thread through and attach it to a plain button that you can use to keep this thread taut. Do this for all of the tufting buttons.
Once all of your buttons are in place, flip the coffee table over and firmly attach the fabric to the table using a staple gun. Voila! You have transformed your coffee table into a new ottoman.
Build a Crate Coffee Table
If you’re itching to give your living room a whole new look, creating your own crate coffee table is a great DIY project for you. A crate coffee table can add a cool, vintage flavor to your room, and it is not difficult to make!
You will need four wooden crates, one 2×4, and one piece of heavy-duty plywood, which will serve as your coffee table’s base. You will also need sanding tools, wood stain, polyurethane, and a drill.
First, sand the plywood and each crate; once they are each smoothed down, wipe them down to eliminate any dust. Next, stain each side of the crates and the top of the plywood. Don’t forget to test a subtle spot of wood before staining all your pieces. Once the wood has been stained, apply a coat or two of polyurethane to seal and protect the stain.
When the crates and plywood are completely dry, glue or screw the crates together to connect them the way that you want. For the slightly elevated base cut the 2×4 into 4 pieces, lay them flat making a large square under the plywood and and screw them in. Next you can glue or screw in the bottoms of the crates to the stained side of the plywood, and give yourself a pat on the back: you have just built your own crate coffee table!
Get Started!
What are you waiting for? You too can give your space a whole new look simply by transforming your coffee table.
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