Plywood Coffee Table

Interesting concept, I like the fold down design.

-- Rob (A) Waxahachie,TX

A very interesting table. The notches are quite creative for keeping things in place.

-- When you give someone a chance it may well be their last.

If I may post a couple of suggestions, this is my first post so if I am out of line please forgive me.

I think you should paint it with a black high gloss latex and then maybe add a polymer finish and I could see it sitting in a modern art museum. If this is your own creation I would say you are truly gifted. I like it, it is a brilliant design.

-- I can build us one.

Gustav’s suggestion is a good one. You already have a great design…. finish it in black and you’ll have a very expensive-looking piece of furniture.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Or veneer it.

Nice design.

-- Still learning everything

Nice design it might look good in a high gloss black – but you have to suit yourself with it and it you are happy, we will all be happy for you :-)). Gustav, I think that all suggestions and even comments are welcome here – as long as they are done in the spirit of moving the craft forward and not intended to hurt someone’s feelings. Your comment should have been well received and was a good one.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

Certainly the comments were well received. I still don’t know what I want to do. The whole world of finishing is kind of a mystery to me so I’m trying to figure that out with different projects.
As rpmurphy509 said, “Still learning everything.” I think that’s why we are here to share and learn more.

-- Kyle, Michigan

That is a slick design. I would second the black finish with a poly topcoat. It would look great.

-- Maplewood, MN

Interesting and original.

-- Jiri

the adaptations to help with moving it is brilliant.
Love the design. Very unique.

I agree with all the comments above!!! You have a talent. Can’t wait to watch what comes next.

(Maybe you should whip up a mini-version and paint it black to see if you like it)

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

I would like to see it finished. Shiny black sounds like a good idea. Pull the picture into photo shop (or like program) and paint it their first to see if you like the look, change the color around and try different textures. My wife and I do this all the time with pictures of our home so that we can both agree on what we want to do next. The last time we did that was with the grids on the windows, we made a few different pictures some with grids and some without until we both could agree. You get the idea :)

-- "so much to learn and so little time"..

Great Idea, now just come up with a good finish. Nice. mike

-- Mike. Profisher50@yahoo.com

Very unique! Not my style, but I totally dig the setup. The finish will be key!

My eyes are pretty poor, so I can’t tell if you did this already, but if you haven’t, before (re)finishing, cover the edges of the plywood with some of that iron-on veneer edging. The wood will cost more than the plastic or cloth, but is well worth it. I made a bookcase and used that on the edges of the shelves. The basic material was some 3/4 fir ply that somebody had tossed, but after doctoring it by “painting” it with heavily-diluted wood filler, sanding, and staining, I was asked where I got the beautiful antique walnut to build the case with. I was careful to use a very dark stain to hide some of the more obvious plywood-type grain. I used Minwax’s dark walnut, obviously, but I’ve also had success with Olympia and Minwax’s ebony on other pieces, finished with a first coat of gloss polyurethane, then a couple of coats of “satin” (matte) finish. I’m still trying to find ground pumice and rottenstone for the cherry on top, if the books I’ve read are any guide. (Have some fun: go into one of the box stores and ask for ground pumice and rottenstone and take a photo of the clerk’s expression; it’s almost as much fun as trying to find a hand drill … not electric, but hand ….) If you’ve layered the plywood (see above about the bad eyes), you can get very wide edging so it looks like a really thick slab of wood, if that’s the effect you want.

-- Hibernicvs

Now this is doing some thinking and Gustav has added a bit of though. I think it was Cajunpen that talks of pushing the craft forward and your thinking has here. Personally I would go with a satin finish as the gloss will reflect too much differing grain heights of the plywood. The satin as Hibernicvs mentions will knock that topography down. If you can get a copy, take a look at “Creating Modern Furniure” by Dona Meilach, in it she has pictures of stack laminating plywood and sculpting, its a book from the 70’s, experimenting was part of woodworking and plywood was affordable. Check it out, you might like it.

That piece will fit right into your lifestyle when school is over and you “knock-it-down” for travel to your next location.

Nice work!!!!!

Very innovative design… I can see you remaking this piece in hardwood in the future… As for the finish, I have noticed LumberJock lclashley has done some wonderful work with pine. In particular, this one. In your case, maybe a brown with dark stain over the top could get it looking like the piece right behind your table. (But don’t take my word for it… never done it, just lookin’ at pictures.)

-- It's not that a craftsman never makes mistakes, he just makes it look like it.

Interesting design. I have to agree, I think a high gloss black would look great, but a white would look pretty cool too. Even a good veneer would be interesting. Way to think outside the box!

-- "Give me your poor tools, your tired steel, your huddled masses of rust." Yep, I ripped off the Statue of Liberty. That's how I roll!