Building Expensive Coffee Table on a Budget

Today, I’m going to show you how I made an almost exact replica of a $500 coffee table using a budget of only $100 and four simple tools that most DIYers should have in their home.

Let’s get started:

Gather Materials 

Remember, we’re aiming to keep costs low with this one, so while I’d usually buy long wooden boards then cut them to size and glue them together, there is a better option.

Pick up two of these pre-cut, pre-sanded rounded blanks. That works out much less expensive than doing the work ourselves.

While we’re out buying supplies, we’ll also need a single 3/4” dowel, so pick up one of those and let’s get to work.

Cut The Dowel into Four Equal Parts 

Our table is going to be 15 1/2” tall, so we need to first cut the dowel into four equal parts of that size. A miter saw works great for this, but if you don’t have one of those, a circular saw will do the job just as well.

Secure the Dowels and Paint

Next, we want to secure the dowels to the bottom using pins or screws.

With that done, we can apply a little bit of primer before painting the legs. I chose satin black but go with whatever color works best for you.

Sand and Stain 

While the dowels are drying, we can give our table tops a light sanding down to 220 grain.

With that done, stain each tabletop in a color of your choosing and leave it to dry.

Create the Holes for the Dowels 

We need four holes to slot the dowels in place, one on each side that are 2 1/2" recessed inside. The first set, we go all the way through, the second set, we go partially through. 

Assembly 

Finally, it’s time to put the whole thing together, using wood glue to first secure the dowels into the tabletop with the partially-drilled holes before 

We then attach the bottom base, sliding the dowels all the way through as so:

Adding a single brad nail to each dowel provides extra support, after which all that’s left to do is to spray on an acrylic wood sealer to protect our new table.

With that, we’re done, a $500 coffee table for only $100 and using only four simple tools.