Patio Dining Table and Benches

Ok so the hubs and I spent the first years of our marriage traveling for his competitive softball games or for me coaching competitive volleyball. So we never took the chance to to buy real furniture or decorate. Now that we have kids and we've slowed down how much we travel it was time to start decorating and the one place we use the most is our patio! If you check out patio backyard design part 1 you can see the whole space I'm working with. 

We decided the first thing we needed is to make ourselves a dining table of our patio. And we are so happy we did....and you really can't beat $125 for lumber!

We decided to make use of our stay-cation and work on the table bit by bit. If you've seen any of my other diy posts you might notice my miter saw is no longer on the floor! YES! 

Anyways....So for my plans I went over to the girls at Shanty 2 Chic used these bench plans and this dining table plan. I made a few changes but I am so happy with this table. It's beyond sturdy. and the pans are perfect.

So this plan called for mitered edges for the frame of the table. after you cut the pieces make sure they are nice and square before you assemble them. We rigged up a nice square piece out of scrap wood so we could make sure our corners didn't slip while assembling them. 

I pre drilled the holes and used the counter sink bit before putting in the wood screws.

Once the frame was made the hubs helped me measure end to end before I cut the table top planks. Then following the plans I used my Kreg Jig to make the pocket holes to attach the planks.

Unfortunately we don't have a flat surface anywhere to lay the frame down and attach the planks so hubs held it on it's side while I attached everything via pocket holes.

We used our handy Home Depot pencils as the perfect spacers for our boards.

So the first deception from the plans we added two 2x4 planks to the top since our outdoor patio area where the table is going is covered.

Next up is the table legs.

 I used the center leg supports found the centers and lined them up before attaching the legs.

Once the table legs were attached I added the center legs.

Then I attached the center stretcher and table legs using wood screws.

Once those were in place and secure. Hubs helped me measure for the lower stretcher. We waited to cut this piece so that we knew it would fit and then used pocket holes to put it in place.

The plans called to install X's under the table. But once we got the first pieces in we fell in love with the way it was. 

Plus the kids like to sit under the table and use the lower portion of the legs as mini tables. This has become a miniature fort for them.

The benches are the same as the table. But now that I have the table I had a great surface for assembling the benches on.

I cut the pieces for all four sets of legs for the two benches.

So the girls at Shanty 2 Chic have all the perfect tools for the job....the one thing we don't have is a right angle drill....so we had to improvise (next time I'm buying the drill)

So we used a ratchet with an extender to screw in the pocket screws.

I had to do this 32 times....yes 32 times. 

But it was totally worth it. When we stood this bad boy up it was perfect not a single wobble. So I couldn't bring myself to add the lower stretcher or any of the X pieces. 

I suggest you find a sweeper for your shop. My accepts hugs and cookies for work....although I had to clean up after him.

How amazing does this look and we worked on it as we had time around relaxing, going to a baseball game, and doing some hiking. 

So for our table and benches we chose to use Minwax Wood Stain in Slate. And then Minwax Helmsman Urethane for the final coat. We sanded down the whole table and both benches before we started.

So what I did was a very quick process. I would apply the stain.

And then wipe it off immediately. It was pretty dark so I had some more work to do.

So I ended up doing some heavy distressing on all three pieces. 

I was every excited with how it lightened the stain as well as allowed more of the natural wood grain show through.

Even though the table is under a covered area I chose to use the urethane on top of and under every piece. (plus it goes a lot faster when you jam our to your favorite Pandora station.)

I waited the allotted time for it to dry then we moved this bad boy outside....and let me tell you it's heavy...really heavy. So you definitely can count it as your bicep workout for the day.

We feel like this space is almost complete just a few more things are needed but for now we are content. 

 It's the perfect space. We've enjoyed every meal outside since we've finished it. And I love the way it looks with my Easy No Sew Outdoor Curtains.

 We even spend our evenings watching baseball outside when hubs gets home from work.

So for my first major build I'm pretty pumped with how things turned out. So are you ready to build your own table and benches? If you do please share them with me!

Cutting Edge Stencil Review for our Playroom

Our playroom is a great space. We absolutely love it...but the color....we have hated it since we moved in over 5 years ago. As you can see I put several paint samples on the wall but we never finalized anything. 

So when Cutting Edge Stencils asked me to do a product review I knew we were finally going to get rid of that awful paint from the previous owners. I chose to use the Sweet Dreams stencil from the Nursery stencil section and it's perfect for our space.

This was also going to be a great time to rearrange and make the room function better for our family. Not only is this our playroom, but it's also our home school room, and where do I do all my crafting and blogging. 

The current layout just isn't working for us. It feels small and cluttered. So one day I had my mom come out to keep the kids mostly distracted from what I was doing and I went to work with the base coat of paint.

I chose Valspar's Granite Dust from Lowes as my base coat. Doesn't this room already look so much better? I gave the room for a solid 48 hours to dry before I broke out all the goodies from Cutting Edge Stencils

I got my handy dense foam roller with rounded edges, a stencil brush (for reaching the corners the roller doesn't quite get), and a very handy level to make sure your work turns out great!

For my accent wall color I chose to use Liquitex Titanium White from Hobby Lobby.

I worked a little backwards from how you're supposed to do the stencils. I started up as high as I could standing on the ground and then worked my way down. (I didn't have anyone to help with the kids and ladders just aren't an option with two little Tarzan wannabes) That evening when my hubs came home I continued with no issues because the stencils are interlocking! 

I used light pressure on the roller. I didn't want the stencil or the paint to be too severe. Even though we do our school work here I want this is be a relaxed space where the kids can also go crazy.

I even had a half a stencil which could be flipped and turned to make all four sides of this design for the funky angles on the walls.

My favorite extra stencil was the border. I used this to go above the window and finish the design before the kids came back in and tried to climb on everything!

 Not even two hours of combined work and check out this wall! Our room feels so much bigger and nicer with the accent stencil! Isn't this the best stencil pattern!

And now that walls are done I took the time to reorganize and change our layout in the playroom and I'm absolutely in love!

I'm thinking of doing a second accent wall using the Sweet Dreams Stencil back here after we get our climbing wall installed! If you want to check out some more ideas for stencil projects check out Cutting Edge Stencils Blog. 

Do you have a space in your house you'd love to make over with a stencil pattern?

*Cutting Edge Stencils provided me with the stencils, roller, level, and brush. But all thoughts, opinions, and love of products are my own.