Outdoor

Kids Picnic Table

If you have toddlers, make them their own outdoor wooden picnic table with pocket hole joinery this summer!!

Difficulty: Easy
Time: 3–5.8 hours
Cost: $$

About this build

If you have toddlers, make them their own outdoor wooden picnic table with pocket hole joinery this summer!! They will love eating snacks at the table while taking a break from outdoor play. It also makes a great place for the little ones to sit while you have outdoor dinner parties!

Tools

Essential

Circular Saw
Impact Driver
Miter Saw
Pocket Hole Jig
Random Orbit Sander

Optional / nice to have

Bar / Pipe Clamps
Tape Measure

Materials

Item	Qty
Board, 2x4 96"	10 board
2 1/2" Blue-Kote Pocket Hole Screws	36 each
Teak Oil + Stain (WATCO brand, Hazelnut color)	1 each
2 1/2" Construction Screws	36 each
150 Grit Sandpaper	1 each

Overall cost: $$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.

Cut list

Part	Qty	T × W × L
Top Support	2	1" × 1" × 3"
Bottom Support	2	1" × 3" × 3"
Middle Support	1	1" × 2" × 3"
Legs	4	1" × 1" × 3"
Table Slats	9	1" × 2" × 3"

What to buy

Buy 3 boards at 8 ft.

1" × 3"

1 board

3"3"

1" × 2"

1 board

3"3"3"3"3"3"3"3"3"3"

1" × 1"

1 board

3"3"3"3"3"3"

Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →

Start building →

Instructions

1Cut wood down to size
Follow along with the free woodworking plans provided for your visual cut list in the Extras Tab or see the Cut list tab for more details. There are several angled cuts that will also need to be cut, which are all detailed in the plans/cut list. To do the angled cuts we drew a line and cut with circular saw.
2Sand wood
Next move on to sanding the wood very smooth with 150 grit sandpaper on an orbital sander. Also, take the time to round the edges and corners to your sander to give it a more comfortable feel.
3Drill pocket holes
Using your Kreg pocket hole jig, drill the pocket holes where shown on the woodworking plans.
4Stain wood
We chose to use a teak oil stain on our wood, which is great for outdoor use. We used WATCO Teak Oil + Stain in the Hazelnut color.
5Assemble top.
- First start by putting the top together first.
- Lay the table slats on a flat surface spaced 1/2" apart.
- Lay top support on one end and screw 2 1/2" pocket hole screws into pocket holes.
- Repeat with the other support on the opposite end.
6Assemble legs.
- Next you'll want to put on the legs. The legs connect on the inside to the top support in each corner.
- Predrill 4 pilot holes where the leg will connect and secure with 2 1/2" construction screws.
7Attach bottom support.
- Once all the legs are attached you'll can move on to attaching the bottom support on the legs for the seats.
- Measure as shown in woodworking places and check to make sure it is level before securing. Secure the bottom support the same way you did with the top support pieces with four 2 1/2" construction screws.
8Secure bench slats.
Secure two table slats on each side for benches, spaced 1/2 inch apart with 2 1/2" pocket hole screws into the pocket hole guides as previously drilled.
9Add middle support.
Using 2 1/2" construction screws driven at a slight angle into bottom support, secure the middle support to the table. We used one construction screw on top and one on bottom on each end.