A Buffet Table/Sideboard for Our Dining Room

After selling our last dining room buffet table, I was quickly on the hunt for a new one. I searched many thrift stores and even CL and couldn't find anything that would work for the space. This was a bit of a surprise because I usually can find something that would work that I can redo, but nothing was coming up. Maybe it was the cold weather we had been having so many people weren't trying to get rid of dressers or buffet tables. I don't know, but after much searching and wanting to get a new piece for the dining room I decided to look online for some inspiration. I noticed that one of my favorite bloggers, Dear Lillie, made her own sideboard and used plans from Ana White- a great resource for instructions on how to build your own furniture if you so choose.

My hubby had to help me with some of the plans because they were a bit complicated and some of the parts didn't make too much sense, but overall, I would recommend going to her site if you want to try your hand at building things. She has a plethora of options to choose from with detailed instructions and pictures. Also, this thing is really sturdy and I am soooo very happy with the way it turned out.

I am also excited about the fact that I can now show off some of our dish ware and other decor...whereas before with a dresser/buffet table, everything was hidden. This is a really great option for people who want something a little bit different and something unique, because, Hey, it is a hand-built piece.

Now on to the plans. First, we got the cuts we needed at Home Depot. I had the guy there cut some of the bigger pieces of wood for me. Since I didn't have a saw at home, I wanted those cuts done already. I used a jig-saw for the rest.

Once you get the pieces you need, you build the front and the back:

Then you fill in the middle:

Next, you build the top:

Attach the top and work on the sides and the X's.

I decided to stain the top and paint the rest.

The top was stained with an Espresso finish mixed with a gray mixed glaze. It was a gamble with the color, because I had never mixed the 2 before, but it turned out so beautiful!

I wanted to try out the piece indoors and paint it inside with a sample of Passive purchased at SW. Passive is a color I have been wanting to try out for a while. It is a pretty shade of gray with a hint of blue and is a nice light airy color. I almost went with it for our downstairs color and stairway.

I also caulked the X's on the sides to keep them in place. Some of the spots needed more than just wood-fill and since it was going to be painted over, caulking did a nice job covering in the gaps.

Some side notes:
I ended up building our buffet table a bit higher than Ana White's and because of that, I took another bloggers advice and decided to build 2 X's on each side instead of the one on each side. I actually think that in doing this, it looks much better and so pretty. Such a sturdy piece and all wood! It's awesome!
I also decided to build the top first and then start on the X's even though Ana White's website tells you to do the opposite. It worked out better to do it the other way around because mine was built to be about 36" high instead of 30" high.

And now for some pictures of the finished piece. I styled it pretty quickly, so things will move around a bit every now and then, but for now, I love this change. 

** Dining room wall color is SW Intellectual Gray. 
Cute little baskets are from Michaels- were on sale.
Water vase- Target
Blue and white vase- gift from a friend
Plates- On sale at Bed, Bath, and Beyond
Blue plates- wedding gifts
Wreath- A.C. Moore

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