(click any pictures for larger image)

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This table was one of three, commissioned for a Skills Builder article. The goal was to present three end table projects; one aimed at the beginning woodworker, another at the intermediate woodworker, and the third for the advanced woodworker.

My assignment was to design a table for the beginner. As such, the construction needed to work with basic tools: a Table saw, a drill, a sander. The jointer and planer were forbidden! The lumber had to be commonly available at a building supply store.

Still, I had no desire to produce a boring clunky ugly project. By mixing a painted wood base with a natural-finished top... By adding a simple taper to the base of the legs to add interest... By adding a cluster of dowels on two sides to give a hint of a mission inspiration... All those together I think still produced a simple yet stylish project.

The body is all off-the-shelf pine, assembled using pocket-hole screws. The top is a laminated panel. I painted the base with a deep burgundy latex, and the top received several coats of clear wipe-on Minwax Polyurethane.