DIY Farmhouse Dining Room Table for $200 CAD

Inspired by Shanty-2-Chic’s Triple Pedestal Farmhouse Dining Table

I needed a very LARGE dining room table, our family is already a strong ten between siblings and significant others without any babies. When we were looking at tables anything that seats ten or more is VERY expensive (we’re talking $2000+ for just the table!). So we started looking at alternative options. I fell in love with the rustic look and actually considered spending the $2000 on one from Restoration Hardware table, until I saw Shanty-2-Chic’s Farmhouse Dining Table. I thought if they can do it maybe I can too, but I had never built anything before so I tested my abilities on the Console Table and moved to the Coffee Table, and this my friends is the grand finale! If you want to build one you can find free plan done by the wonderful Ana White here.

I built all of these pieces with the same principles as my other projects. Check out my Farmhouse Bench Tutorial with very detailed and photographed instructions!

This time I did not make the table top from lumber instead I bought pine shelving pieces, they are milled straight WAY easier to deal with. If I was to remake the other furniture I would definitely do it this way. NOTE: Pine is not typically encouraged for heavy use projects because it is quite soft. I read that before I started but didn’t think anything of it. However, be warned – a heavy bowl dented my table top already, it isn’t noticeable unless it is pointed out and the sealant is still in place so it really isn’t a big deal. However, this is definitely one instance where you get what you pay for. Before you shed tears for me – let me tell you that the typical harder woods (maple, oak etc) are VERY expensive and would have easily taken my total cost back up to the thousands. I would still do it in pine if I was building it again today – just be warned. I did have a carpenter tell me I could use spruce which is only slightly more expensive than pine and quite a bit harder.

The table top is so seamless. It’s beautiful. I can find the seams between the pieces of shelving but I bet you can’t. To accomplish this I probably had a total of 20 clamps squishing it all together while I was connecting the pieces to the frame with gorilla glue and wood screws.

Because the table so wide I did two pedestals on each leg instead of the single that Shanty-2-Chic did. For our table this provides a better balance, as well as better stability. That top is HEAVY! Also, if I need to I can fit two people on each end!

There were a lot of “nuggs” for the table. It gets a little tedious, but I will be the first to say that they really do add a lot. If you check out the Shanty-2-chic table you’ll notices their’s are curved. I took the easy route, but I think it suits my style. They are chunkier and fit the look I was going for.

The stain was purchased at our local Benjamin Moore, its Saman Water Based Wood Stain in urban grey, and I wish I had found it earlier. It is almost an identical match to my hardwood floors and I wish the Coffee Table and Console Table were done in the same colour. As per the other projects we finished this one off with a few layers of polyurethane.

Helpful Tip I got from an experienced painter: Dilute your first coat of polyurethane with varsol (about 10% varsol). This makes it a little thinner and allows the wood to absorb it more evenly. DO NOT SAND, apply your second coat (full 100%) and continue as stated on packaging.

Too finish off the look we wanted some modern chairs. I didn’t want the dining area to look like it was actually pulled directly out of a old farmhouse and thrown into my brand new house. Everything was expensive and / or cream coloured linen (although linen is beautiful it doesn’t fit well into my 5 year plan which has small children eating spaghetti on those chairs). Until these… Brogan white faux leather chairs from The Brick. We got them on sale and it works out to about $90 a chair. PERFECT!

Hope you are inspired by my project. You can find free plan done by the wonderful Ana White here.

– Joy