Round Concrete Table

 An oldie but a goodie! Anyone who followed my old blog has already read all about this, but for all you newcomers please read on if you’re looking for the perfect dining table to add to your space. We were toying with the idea of a DIY wood rectangle table, but after some discussion we decided there were already too many right angles in the house (is that a thing? lol) so a round table would be more fun. But, round wood tables aren’t the most modern looking… so the search began. And I found the perfect table. Well, perfect except one thing – the price tag!! Restoration hardware of course, and it was priced at just over $3k. I think not!!! But look how pretty:

So, we started our research and learning quest to duplicate this beautiful piece of furniture and make it ours for a fraction of the price. A couple things I learned along the way which might help you if you are considering something similar: do not attempt to pour the concrete top. It’s going to weigh five million pounds and will require reinforcement with re-bar if you want to avoid shattering your tile floor when it breaks. Your best bet is to coat a circle shape with concrete which is what we did and what I’ll describe in the instructions below. The thing we did which in hindsight I would have changed is to use melamine for the table surface… originally we bought the piece of melamine because I was planning to use it to make a mold and figured it would be less sticky and make a smoother surface than plywood. Probably true! But, then we decided to coat the thing instead of use it for a mold, so the slipperiness made the coating process a lot harder and the tabletop itself is a little thinner than I would’ve liked. Anyway, it all worked out in the end but learn from my mistakes and maybe you’ll have an even more perfect table.

Making the tabletop

Obtain a large flat piece of wood which is the thickness you want your tabletop to be, and at least as wide as your desired diameter. This may involve some ridiculous strapping and dangerous driving if you have a tiny car like me! Use caution and try living within 2 miles of Home Depot if at all possible. Get your PPE on and try not to look as crazy as Bryan!! These photos remind me, it’s nice that the exterior of our condo is no longer under construction…

To cut the perfect circle, we created a jig made of a skinny piece of wood, nailed into the exact center of what would be the tabletop, and clamped a jigsaw to the end. Before cutting I also used the jig to draw the circle with a pencil so I could make sure to cut along more or less the right line. For such a crazy contraption, it actually worked out really well, and I made a couple of smaller circles which we later turned into end tables for our master bedroom.

Once we had the circle, it was time to coat it with concrete. I followed this great post on the Home Depot blog pretty much step by step – but in summary, mix the concrete feather finish with water, scrape it evenly over the surface, sand with fine grit sandpaper when completely dry, and repeat. Once you’re happy with the texture and amount of coverage, seal with food safe concrete counter-top sealant. As with most of these things it took a lot longer than the instructions said it would, since you have to wait for each layer to dry completely before sanding and adding another. And, we wanted to make sure we added plenty of layers to avoid any possible cracking or wood showing through.

Making the base

This was my first real foray into woodworking, so I scoured blogs and other websites until I found this really nice and easy to follow post, which we followed pretty much exactly. The base came together super quick, basically just 1 full day of work plus a little extra for sanding and staining. It is sturdy and gorgeous! And very forgiving for those of us who are still figuring out how to make perfect measurements and cuts… ahem…

Putting it all together

Once the base was ready to go, we just used 8 wood screws to attach it to the tabletop. No problem screwing through the concrete layer or anything like that, thank goodness! Overall I completely love how it turned out. Check out the details below for pricing and let me know if you think it was worth it or if you’re brave enough to try it out for yourself!!

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Below are the materials I used and their costs (minus the things I think everyone would have around the house). Some of the stuff I already had, and a lot of the tools I used in wood shop so I didn’t have to buy. I bolded the prices for things that I did have to buy, so that I could add it all up and prove to Bryan that it was still a bargain for this cool and beautiful table!

Materials for the top:

• Melamine or other big piece of wood / $35
• Roof straps.. optional if you have a nice big truck! / $10
• Nail & duct tape for making compass / Around the house
• Jigsaw / $25
• Feather Finish Concrete / $17 each (x3) // $51
• Big concrete float or trowel / $13
• Little concrete scraper / $6
• Bucket / $3
• Stirring stick(s) / Free
• Orbital Sander / $30
• Sponge / $2
• Sealant / $75 (ouch!)

Materials for the base:

• 8ft 4×4 Douglas Fir / $8.35 each (x2) // $17
• 8ft 1×10 Premium Pine / $15
• Handful of 3 inch and 2 inch screws / around the house
• Drill / you should have this  if you don’t you can buy one for ~$100
• Trigger Clamps / $30 for a set of 4
• Wood glue / $3
• Kreg Jig / $40-$100 depending on what you want out of it
• Miter saw / Cheapest one at Home Depot is $100
• Table saw (only if you’re cheap like me and buy the pine that needs ripping) / Cheapest one at Home Depot is $150 so just buy wood that’s the right width…
• Paint brush / around the house
• Paint thinner (to clean brushes) / $7
• Stain – I used a pint of Watco Danish Oil in Dark Walnut / $10

So overall it cost me $277 to make an awesome 4 ft round concrete dining table, plus tabletops for a 2 ft round coffee table and two half-circle bedside tables!! I’d also like to point out that even if I bought ALL the tools and paid myself minimum wage (because, let’s be honest, I am not a skilled construction worker) for the ~30 hours I spent on this project, the whole thing would still cost less than half of that Restoration Hardware table. So, yay!