Mid-Century Modern Bedside Tables
I truly love my clients, and I know they have a deep appreciation for the Mid-Century Modern style. That's why I've grown to love it too. Honestly, before I started building in this style, I wasn't really a fan. I think I saw too many "DIY" makers trying to replicate it without following good design and build principles. That turned me off until I actually started making them! One of the first opportunities to work on Mid-Century Modern pieces came from the Inman Park Festival in Atlanta last year. I was an exhibitor for the first time, and it was a blast! During the event, I met a client who said, "I need adult bedside tables! I'm tired of my IKEA college tables." We scheduled a meeting to discuss her vision. During our consultation, we talked about the best woods for the bedroom and measured the bed height since that would be a key factor in the table's overall height. As a rule, a bedside table should be as tall as your mattress or just slightly above it. The idea is that it's easier to reach up than down. But, like most things, it really depends on the person using it. That's another reason why having something custom built to your specifications makes sense. For these tables, we decided on a pair of matching tables with dimensions of approximately 25 inches in height, 18 inches in width, and 18 inches in depth. Each table had a shelf that split the case in half, with the upper part being an open shelf and the lower part a drawer. Each section was about 5 inches in height. They also featured round splayed and tapered legs. We chose solid maple wood and a natural oil finish. When it comes to building, the first step is selecting the right wood. I handpick all my lumber to find boards that match in color and grain patterns as much as possible. For the case components, I used 4/4 maple. Since the table is 18 inches deep, I wanted two boards wider than 9 inches to reduce the number of boards and glue-ups. I'm lucky to have a 12-inch jointer, which made this task easier. After selecting the wood, I cut it to the required lengths and ran it through the jointer and planer to get it flat and to the final thickness. Then, I glued up the individual parts. Normally, I wouldn't break down the table into its side, top, and bottom pieces at this point, but in this case, it worked out fine. I just had to be careful with the edges when clamping. Once the case was glued and cleaned up, I used my table saw blade at 45 degrees and the Incra 5000 table saw sled to cut the 45-degree bevels on all the pieces. This gave the tables a nice continuous grain wrap. Next, I used a dado stack in the table saw to cut a dado in the side pieces that would house the middle shelf. Lastly, I used a Festool Domino to cut tenons into the miters. These domino tenons provided more support than just gluing the miters themselves. After the cases were assembled, I dry-fitted them to check alignment and determine the measurements needed for the shelves. Once the shelves were built, I fit them into the cases and glued them in place. It's important to maintain the same grain orientation as the sides and the top to ensure the shelf expands and contracts in the same direction as the rest of the case. Next, I built the drawers using poplar wood, which is a great secondary wood for such projects. I used a Liegh D4R dovetail jig to make quick work of the drawer for each side table. I installed full-extension drawer glides, which are about 16 inches deep. I didn’t want the drawers to be too long, as that could cause the table to tip if there’s too much weight when fully extended. For the drawer fronts, I used figured maple to add a nice design element. I used business cards to fit the drawers to the case, ensuring an equal reveal around the drawer front. Any fine-tuning was done with a hand plane. I admit I cheated a bit by not building the legs myself. I found some Mid-Century Modern legs from TableLegs.com that had a unique mounting system. They come with a base plate that you screw into the bottom of the piece. The plate has the angle built into it, not the legs, so the legs are threaded into the plates, creating a 90-degree angle. The threaded insert in the base plate and the threaded rod in the leg itself are very heavy duty, not flimsy like other systems. I was impressed. The finish for these tables was a natural oil finish, as the other furniture in the client's bedroom is modern, light, and airy. I sanded everything to 220 grit, wiped it down with mineral spirits, and applied two coats of OSMO Polyx clear satin oil. This oil and wax mixture penetrates the wood and provides a surface barrier. After the oil set, I buffed it dry with a non-abrasive pad or a clean rag. Overall, I'm glad I could provide my client with a set of “adult tables†for her space. I look forward to building more pieces for her in the future. I hope you enjoyed this project. To receive updates on future blog posts, please consider subscribing below! Disclosure: Some links in this article are affiliate links meaning, I may get a small commission if you purchase anything from these links. Thank you for your support!Muffin Pan,Cupcake Pan,Square Cupcake Pan,Cupcake And Muffin Pans
Xiongyang Household Co., Ltd , https://www.yjkitchen-manage.com