Children's Activity Table
Our play room is officially complete with this adorable children's table! Ever since I saw the episode of Fixer Upper where Joanna had Clint Harp create a kid table with a scalloped apron, I knew I had to do that for our playroom. Here's the Fixer Upper table.
I also wanted to build a table that was more than just a table. I wanted my kids to be able to use the table for several activities so I created interchangeable tops, including a chalkboard surface, a dry erase surface, a paper surface, and a Lego surface. I would have done a train table top, but we have a train table set up in a different spot of the play room.
Believe it or not, this is an incredibly easy build, and you can make it easier by eliminating the scalloped part of the apron. You can find printable instructions here, but I highly recommend reading the whole blog post since I include pictures of the process that can be difficult to explain in the instructions. For the table, you just need a 2'x4' project panel from Home Depot, 2 1"x4"x6' boards for the aprons, and 4 21" table legs (I used these legs from Osborne Wood, but you could make the table cheaper by just using 4x4's).
First up is the apron. Cut the apron pieces to the lengths provided on the instructions. Use the template provided in the instructions to trace the scallops onto the apron pieces. Use a scroll saw, band saw, or jig saw to cut the scallops. Check out the pictures to see exactly how I cut out the scallops. First, make relief cuts (middle picture). Then, cut from the top to one relief cut (third picture). Lastly, cut from the top to the other relief cut.
After cutting all the scallops, use a Kreg Jig (you can find one here) to drill pocket holes on all the apron pieces on the ends to attach the legs and the uncut top to attach the table top. I drilled 2 holes on each end, 2 holes along the top of the short apron pieces and 5 holes along the top of the long apron pieces. Sand the apron pieces. Now it's time to start building. Lay a short apron piece on a flat surface so the pocket holes are facing up. Place a leg on either end of the apron and line it up so the tops line up. I used a scrap piece of wood to lift the apron off the floor so the apron would be more centered on the legs.
Assemble both short sides. Now, you'll attach the long apron pieces by laying the long apron piece on a flat surface and the short side will be sticking up in the air. Again, I used scrap wood to center the long apron piece on the legs.
After attaching both long apron pieces, you have a finished base. The hard part is over! Give the top a quick sanding, and you can also use your sander to round the edges a bit so it's a bit more comfortable for tiny bodies to lean on, but that's totally optional.
Lay the top face down on a flat surface, and center the base on the table. There should be about a 2" overhang between the leg and the edge of the table. I like to use a square to center the base.
Use 1.5" pocket hole screws to attach the base to the top. And that's it! You have a children's table. I told you that was easy.
Now for the fun part: finishing the table. You can do this however you want, but I chose to paint the base Rustoleum Chalked Aged Gray (you can find it here) since it matches a few other things in our play room.
I painted the top with chalkboard paint (you can find it here) for a few reasons: 1. The kids can draw on it with chalk so it already has an activity built in. 2. Black doesn't show up marks the kids will inevitably make with crayons and markers. 3. It's easy to slap on another coat of chalkboard paint when the table is starting to look a little too worn.
For the additional activities, I created different tops. I used these extra large rubber bands to hold each top in place when the kids were using it.
For the Lego top, I used a 2'x4' piece of plywood that was thick enough for me to screw into. Since my kids are still pretty little, we use the big blocks so I bought these large baseplates from Amazon. I just used screws long enough to go through the baseplate into the plywood without going all the way through the plywood. You can screw directly into the baseplate, but the plastic is surprisingly strong so give it a lot of pressure.
For the dry erase top, I used a dry erase paint kit and a thin sheet of plywood. Learn from my mistakes, and don't do that. It worked, but it's not a perfectly smooth surface so I can't completely wipe off the marker. Instead, buy a 2'x4' pre-made dry erase board from Home Depot, which you can find here. I would have done this originally, but my Home Depot was out of stock, and I'm the world's most impatient person.
To have paper on the table so the kids can use old-fashioned crayons and markers, I just bought a roll of white paper, which you can find here. I can tear off a 4' section and secure it under the rubber bands. When the chalkboard is in use, I take the rubber bands off.
I finished it off with the cutest metal bistro chairs from Target. I ordered mine in mint, but they have a few other colors. I really like these chairs because they're durable, easy to wipe down, and have a sturdy base that makes it hard for my son aka The Great Destroyer to knock them over.
The table is a huge hit at our house, and the kids love that they can draw on the table. So does Daddy, for that matter. (That's his hand drawing Mario pictures on the right.)
