Making Stuff

A few months ago my mom texted me that she was having trouble shopping for new living room furniture. She purchased a coffee table and chair, but when they were delivered, she realized they were wrong for the room, overwhelming in size and not a good match in the light, warm, and antique-y living room. Around the same time, Simon and I took a brief trip to Burlington so he and Sille could ski. Pete and I were left without anything to do and realized that we could help out mom by making a coffee table.

Make a coffee table?! I had absolutely no clue where to start. My brother has a studio/workshop not far from his place in Burlington so we were set with a spot to do the work. He is also, um, slightly smart and knowledgeable about making things. Me? Not so much. I've never constructed anything before so it was all new territory, and I was nervous that I would be useless as he did everything. 

We thought we could refurbish something for less money than than purchasing all new wood. We were in luck when we spotted this old piece at the antique shop next to Pete's studio. I impressed Pete with my negotiating skills and we got the table for $75.

Pete has an eye for this stuff and knew what was lurking under the surface. He set me to work with a power sander as he tore apart the rest of the table. It was amazing what a little elbow grease and power tools could do. The boards emerged as smooth, richly grained pieces and we began to conceptualize how we could reassemble it. When it became clear it was going to be a lighter, simpler piece we knew the existing legs (that I had also sanded...) wouldn't work. Back to the antique shop, where we found some awesome mid-century inspired legs. Pete set to work with the engineering aspect of things and I kept sanding. I know my limits.

It was a full day's work, but it was one of the best days I've spent in awhile. The before and after is pretty remarkable, and I loved the feeling of creating something. While I didn't operate a saw or come up with any of the solutions for getting the thing to actually stand up, I felt helpful. Like we were a team. As you can see, Merwin was a critical member of that team. There's always one who doesn't do anything during the group project but still gets the A.