Barn Window Table

Recently I finally finished the project that’s been on my mind for some two years. I wanted to make tables out of the old barn windows from the farm I grew up on. Since this is my 100th blog post (yay!) I thought a DIY project with 100 year old windows was fitting. I planned to make end tables for my couch in the living room. I spent much time restoring these windows into usable shape. Then I got to work building end tables out of 2 x 4’s.

First I measured and cut all my lumber. I found these 2 x 4’s at a garage sale for $1/8ft board. They had been in someone’s garden holding a trellis, hence the “chevron” stripes. I cut four pieces for the four legs. four pieces for the width supports, and two long pieces for the length supports.

Next I got to work building the legs. Because I was building by myself, I used cement blocks to be sure I had right angles and had something to push against. I lined up my boards against the cement, made sure it was all flush, and screwed them together.

I wasn’t using a plan for this table. I was just building what I envisioned in my mind. I’m a very visual person, so before I started priming and painting, I laid the pieces together to see how it would look. This picture is the table upside down (in between two parked cars).

Next I got to work on the painting process. I had already refurbished the window to a point where it just needed painting. I used cement blocks to lay out all the pieces and start painting.

When all the pieces had two coats of paint and were caulked, I screwed together the frame by laying it upside down like the previous picture. Then I flipped it up and laid the window on top, screwing that down into the 2 x 4. Lastly I used some 1 x 8’s my dad gave me to make a shelf, simply screwing the ends into the width supports along the side.

Here’s the funny thing about my dream for these windows. I was so looking forward to making a matching pair of wood tables to replace these little plastic stands we had at the ends of our couch.

But before I began making a duplicate end table, I decided to place it next to the couch for reference. I had placed it there for about two seconds before I realized it was horribly wrong. The table was much too big and was not to scale. Putting a table that size on each end of the couch would swallow the couch whole. I started to panic for a second, thinking my sentimental piece I was so proud of building would end up another Craigslist sale. And I also worried I would have to find a different solution to replace the cheap, plastic stands we used as end tables now.

This is when I got an idea. I have struggled for a long time to find the perfect TV stand in our living room. The wall for the TV is in the center of the room, but a limited width. I’ve had a glass TV stand, a tall dresser, and a cabinet all there at one point or another. The problem is that I needed something where the room’s vent could let air from underneath, the electrical outlets would not be blocked for our cords, and the TV and entertainment equipment would not be touched by little fingers. My idea for this special barn window table was to place it as our new TV stand and wall mount the TV.

Our TV looks fabulous wall mounted and out of the kids’ reach. The big basket on the shelf of our new table holds the entertainment equipment out of sight for the kids and visitors, but still easily accessible. The crazy thing is that the shelf I built at an arbitrary height on the table is perfectly situated above the vent (hiding it from view but allowing air flow) and under the electrical outlets (allowing plugs to not obstruct pushing the table flush against the wall). It was like it was meant to be!

Before

After

The old TV cabinet I listed on Craigslist and sold quickly. I loved it, but when the doors were open, my kids were always messing with the electronics, so the doors didn’t really solve our problem. Plus it feels so good to have a home for my special table.

Oh, and are you wondering what I’m going to do for our end tables now? You will just have to stay tuned and see! Thanks for reading, please share and pin if you enjoyed this creation.