Coffee Table - The Design

Now that we have our new couch,


Melissa has been threatening to buy a coffee table. I, of course, insist that I can make one better and cheaper than anything she could find. So she showed me some pictures, we discussed, customizations, materials, dimensions, and now it's time to get started.

I used Google SketchUp to design it because 2D models just won't cut it. Here is what I came up with.

The top surface is based on an awesome dining room table my brother, Brek, built. His design is ingenious. The breadboard ends are actually attached to the legs. This allows the joined panels, between the breadboards, to expand/contract freely without an over-engineered way of attaching them.

The second shelf was trickier but I think I came up with something that will also allow for seasonal changes. The bottom storage area is an idea Melissa spotted in a picture. Instead of cabinet doors, or drawers, that would need a wide swing, I'll use doors with hinges on the bottom. This way, if the user is perched between the couch and the coffee table, they will still be able to open the coffee table doors and have full access to the storage space. I think this is the most practical way to conceal storage on a coffee table, which will obviously be right next to a couch.