DIY Ottoman Breakfast Tray to Coffee Table

We FINALLY felt ready to enter our coffee table era–but we didn’t have a lot of room. We decided to use our ottoman from our Home Reserve couch as the base and get a breakfast tray. That being said, they were HUNDREDS of dollars. We decided to make one.

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Materials

Hardwood Edge Glued Panel (21/32 in. x 18 in. x 4 ft.)
Measuring tools
Square
Saw (Sliding Compound Miter saw is ideal)
Electric Sander
60 Grit Sandpaper
Wood Glue
Brad Nailer & Nails (we did 1.5″)
Wood Filler
Form to help with nailing/gluing
Wood conditioner
Wood Stain
Wood Poly
400 Grit sandpaper
damp cloth

Steps

Measure surface putting tray over.
- Ours was 34″ so a 4ft board was plenty leaving approx 6″ for each “leg”
Double check and draw out 45° angles for cut lines
- 45° off the end, short side length sitting on surface, 45° going the other way – making a trapezoid long size up.
- straight cut for bottom of legs, 45° for attaching side
Make cuts
Sand Smooth
Sand corners (not 45°) to round edges
Apply Wood Glue to 45°s
Brad Nail 45°s
Fill Brad Nail Holes with Wood Filler
Let Dry completely
Sand 45° meetups to round them, wood filler excess, and drips
Using scrap wood, pick a stain color you want-if using conditioner, make sure you use that before stain samples strips too
Open, Stir, and Apply wood conditioner according to directions (I used cloth)
Open, Stir, and Apply stain according to directions (I used cloth) as many times as desired for desired color (dry between)
Open, Stir, and Apply Poly according to directions (I used a foam brush first & wanted a much thicker coat so switched to brush)
Sand with 400 Grit sandpaper. Wipe all dust off with damp cloth. Let dry
Poly, Sand, Poly, Sand, Poly, Sand until desired thickness (we have 4 coats of poly)

Tips

having something under the trapezoid and against legs to make a 90° angle for you can help glue/nail corners easier
My wood GLUE was not stainable (filler was) and made the stain not have the look I wanted where some drips were. MAKE SURE TO SAND OFF ALL GLUE OFF THE STAINING SURFACE.
Smooth any drips of poly on the sides so they dont dry drip marks.