When it comes to home based DIY, we’ll be honest that most of our experience lies in the realm of decor. Lately, however, we’ve been feeling a little more like challenging ourselves, so we’ve been thinking about the idea of actually making a real furniture piece!
We’re pretty new to the idea, so we thought an easy end or side table might be a good place to start. That’s why we’ve had out eyes peeled for cool side table tutorials lately.
If you’re feeling just as interested as we are in the idea of learning how to make DIY side and end tables, if not more, here are 15 of the very best ideas, designs, and tutorials that we’ve come across so far in our search for inspiration and guidance!
1. Geometric copper pipe side table
Is the current style of your living room’s decor scheme quite modern but with a slightly fashionably vintage looking industrial chic element to it? In that case, we just might have found the best idea for you right out the gates! Check out how Home Depot guides you through the process of make a very cool geometric shape table from copper piping and a simple wooden circular top.
2. Wood and upside down basket side table
Are you the kind of DIY enthusiast who loves turning essentially any DIY project you’re doing into an opportunity for upcycling because you love the idea of saving things from being thrown out by giving them a new lease on life? Well, believe it or not, that’s something you can do within the concept of making a side table too! We love the way Twin Dragonfly Design turned an upside down wire waste basket into furniture in just a few simple steps.
3. Copper pipe and marble plant table
Did we actually really catch your attention when we started talking about the idea of making a table from copper piping but you’re just not sure that you want to make a piece that’s quite so big and bulky, since you live in a very small space? Then perhaps you’d prefer this slightly more streamlined piece made from copper piping and a smooth marbled top! Get the full details for making one yourself on A Bubbly Life.
4. DIY tree slab table with hairpin legs
Have you actually been scrolling through our list hoping to come across a design that has some kind of slightly rustic chic inspired element to it, even though the rest of your decor scheme also has a slightly mod aesthetic to it, at least in colour scheme and materiality? In that case, we think you just might be the perfect person to try your hand at this wood slice and hairpin legs design outlined step by step on Styled by Emily Hendersen.
5. DIY mid-century side table
Maybe what we’ve caught your attention the best with so far is the concept of making something that has a slightly mod aesthetic, but you’re looking for a subtler piece that will suit your otherwise quite mid-century room? Well, particularly if you were hoping for something that will give you at least a tiny bit of storage space besides just the tabletop, then we think you’ll get a kick out of this mid-century side table with a sliding top featured step by step on Sugar and Cloth.
6. Boxy mod nightstand
A wooden slice top isn’t the only kind of thing you can pair with a hairpin leg of course! If you’d rather create a surface that gives you more than one spot to set things on then we’d definitely suggest taking a look at how Burkatron created this simple, boxy wooden topped side table that gives you an inner shelf, all sitting atop those classic bending legs.
7. DIY faux brass side table
Maybe you’d actually prefer to create something that’s a little more dark in its industrial chic aesthetic, looking more old fashioned than the shining, nearly-modern copper ideas we showed you before? In that case, especially if you like the look of woods and metals combined in one place, then we think you’ll get a real kick out of the way Refurbished Ideas created these cylindrical faux brass side tables with circular tops!
8. Large terra cotta pot accent table
Even though you’ve appreciated some of the designs you’ve seen so far, is it actually your outdoor space that you were hoping to come across in your search for DIY side tables, so you’re looking for something that would suit a yard or garden a little more? Then we think you just might be the perfect person to give this jumbo painted terra cotta pot table featured step by step on Thrifty and Chic a try!
9. Terrarium side table DIY
If you’re going to put in all the time and effort it takes to create an awesome side table from scratch, would you rather create something incredibly unique and eye catching that will impress guests every time? Well, especially if you’re the kind of person who loves including a green element in your indoor space, we’d absolutely suggest taking a look at how A Beautiful Mess made this terrarium side table that’s filled with resilient succulents inside the glass portion.
10. DIY wooden box side table
Are you actually still finding yourself thinking about how much you liked the wooden box top of the boxy hairpin leg table we showed you but you’re very much a beginner and you’re looking for a version that’s even simpler than what you saw there? In that case, we think you might have a little more luck with something like this standing wooden box side tablet hat looks like the top of the previous design but turned on its side! See how it’s done in more detail on Dunn Lumber.
11. Cross-hatched side table
Do we have you feeling quite intrigued indeed by the idea of making a side or end table design that falls into the category of rustic chic but you can’t help wondering whether or not there might be a slightly more farmhouse inspired design out there than what you’ve seen so far? In that case, we think you simply must take a look at how Shades of Blue Interiors made this purposely distressed looking wooden cross-hatch table in surprisingly few simple steps!
12. Knock-off industrial side table
Besides upcycling, one of our other very favourite things to do when we make new things is to recreate the style of expensive brand name pieces that we adore the look of but can’t afford to pay the price tag on. That’s why we were so pleased when we came across this tutorial from The Golden Sycamore that shows you how to recreate the look of a very popular type of store-bought industrial table, only much more affordably.
13. Cargo style wooden crate table
Have we still got you thinking about the boxy idea we showed you earlier but you’d prefer to make yours look a little less freshly made, since the rest of your decor scheme is very intentionally rustic upcycled in its aesthetic? In that case, we have a feeling you might prefer the way Brepurposed made this fantastically simple cargo style side table using a wooden crate as the top!
14. White washed wooden side table
Perhaps your favourite kind of upcycling to do when it comes to furniture is refurbishing old pieces you’ve found at vintage sales? In that case, we’d be willing to bet that you’ll get along a little better with something like this tutorial from It All Started With Paint that guides you through the process of whitewashing old wooden furniture for a refreshed but still vintage look! Their instructions teach you how to make it happen with liming wax.
15. Clock face wooden side table
Are you actually still feeling quite interested in the idea of making a rustic chic piece of furniture but you’re also talented at many other kinds of DIY, so you’re looking to create a table that looks a little more artistic and subtly attention grabbing than a lot of what you’ve seen so far? In that case, we’d definitely suggest taking a look at how Scavenger Chic made this beautiful old fashioned looking clock face table in a way that’s much less complicated than it looks.
Do you know a fellow DIY enthusiast who feels determined to make their very own side or end table but could use a little bit of guidance along the way? Share this post with them so they have all kinds of ideas, inspiration, and help!
