My bathroom is continuing to feel a little bit less neglected than before. If you’ve been following along, you’ll remember this D.I.Y Wall Art I made for McGregor and my anniversary, which was my first step to doing, well, anything in here to make it feel more cozy and homey. Now, I’ve taken it upon myself to work towards actually finishing this room and checking another one off of our list. This time I had grand visions of making a table to prop up my pampas grass and make them slightly taller. Which is how this concrete side table was born.
I proceeded very excitedly to try my new saw and did not think through much in terms of the logistics of the table.
I did not consider how little space there is between the tub and the wall. Okay, I did as it does fit, but there is no breathing space there and you cannot see this table from behind the tub. Which means I also did not measure how tall the concrete side table would need to be to prop up the pampas grass. Truth be told, the table is already too tall to house my tall pampas grass; it would need to be half the height to make it work because they TOWER over everything.
Regardless, the most important thing that I did not consider was how much I would fall in love with this little piece.
At the end of the day, it’s all worked out just fine and I’m still equally as excited, if not more excited about it.
This DIY Concrete Table Is An Beginner Project
This concrete side table is two things (aside from so cute):
- Highly affordable (ringing in at $15-$20 – I cannot remember the exact price, but it was cheap, clearly!)
- A beginners project
This project was my very first experience using a saw! I’m so proud to say that I did it, and it was easier than I could have ever thought! I recently bought my first saw because I want to foray into more extensive projects than my cute little crafts I’ve been doing. I still love them – but I’m ready for more!
If you’re not like me and so excited about all the new projects you could take on with some power tools, you could easily have the store make your (three very simple) cuts for you.
Making This Concrete Table Versatile
I know you love when I talk about versatility and doing flexible projects. So, this concrete side table is no exception.
You can choose your own size. You just need to find a bucket that suits your needs.
You can choose your own thickness. Fill the concrete up to your own desired height.
You can choose your own table height. Cut your dowels to the size you need.
You can paint the table legs, stain them, or you can leave them as is.
Like with any project, there are so many options for you. Now that you know your options, you’re ready to learn how to make this concrete side table.
How to Make a D.I.Y Concrete Side Table
Materials
+ Two buckets (they do not need to be the same bucket size. The general size is also of your choosing – I decided on these home depot buckets, which are approximately 12 inches in diameter)
+ Quikrete Mix (+water)
+ A trowel, shovel, or anything you’re comfortable mixing your Quikcrete with
+ A tape measure
+ Wood dowels (at least 1 inch in diameter – more if you’re doing a more extensive table) – the length is up to you, again, but I made my three dowels 15 inches long each (so you’d require at least 45 inches of a wood dowel)
+ A sharpie
+ Leftover styrofoam from packaging (if you have it – not necessary, I used it to make sure I had a very flat surface)
*tools: a circular (or table, or any saw you own) saw, or make the cuts at the store
Instructions
1. If your bucket isn’t flat at the bottom (mine were both slightly warped), cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit the diameter of the bottom of the bucket and place it at the bottom.
2. Measure 3 inches (if you want the same thickness as me) from the Styrofoam up and mark your bucket with a sharpie.
3. Cut your dowel down into three equal legs. I made mine 15 inches each.
4. Sand the bottoms of the legs if your cuts weren’t smooth.
5. In the bucket that doesn’t have Styrofoam in it, start mixing your concrete – this is a total guessing game, but it sets fast, and, therefore, you’ll want to move fast. I started with 1/4 of the bag and 2 L of water but quickly ended up using half of the Quickcrete bag and didn’t add any additional water. Mix quickly and thoroughly. Keep adding water/Quickcrete until you have a thicker, peanut-butter-like consistency.
6. Once the Quickcrete is mixed thoroughly and is at a peanut-butter-like consistency, quickly pour it into the other bucket and fill it to your sharpie line.
7. This part was super precise (insert eye roll). it was purely eyeballing the legs so that they were evenly spaced and looked like they were at a similar angle to one another. If it doesn’t come out evenly, you will need a saw to cut the legs down to make them even.
8. Let it cure for three days. Now, I did mine in winter, so it probably took a little bit longer, but longer is safer, in my opinion.
9. Gently roll the bucket onto its side, and gently push on the sides of the bucket to loosen up the table from the sides.
10. With your mightly strength, pull out the table (I had to enlist the help of my husband on this one!)
11. Let cure an additional three days out of the mould, and voila! You’re ready to go!
*make sure you dispose of any additional concrete safely
**DO NOT EVER POUR WET CONCRETE DOWN YOUR PIPES (not even to rinse anything off). THIS WILL NOT TURN OUT WELL.
I am the queen of inexpensive curtains. I have yet to pay more than $300 for curtains in a room. Our
I made this DIY desk fully out of wood - it came to about $100 to make. I could have done it for $75
As many of you are well aware, it was McGregor and my anniversary on Wednesday (if you missed it, he
Comments
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Samantha
Haha, I’m going to call it a champagne table! Great marketing tip! I wish, I couldn’t imagine the fee to ship there based on weight LOL.
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Erin
This little table turned out so cute lady!! I want one to set my champagne in every room of the house. Do you ship to Tampa? 😉