Mission-Style Dining Table

Miter the 57.5" and 27.5" 1x2s and glue-and-nail them around the plywood panel, flush with the top face, to frame it. Then miter the 56" and 26" 1x2s and set them just inside the frame edges to form an apron under the lip. Fill the nail holes and any miter gaps with putty and sand smooth — the corners are where the eye goes.

Lay out 2" diamonds 3" from the top and bottom of the 1x4 slats, positioned to sit between the slats as shown. Cut them with a jigsaw and sand the openings smooth. Do the layout identically on all six or the base looks hand-cut.

Assemble each pair of legs with the 2x4 side rails and the slat panel between them. Using the pocket-hole jig, fasten the rails 5" from the bottom with two 2-1/2" screws each. Check each unit for level and square before moving to the second.

Connect the two leg units with the 49.5" center stretcher, centered on the lower 2x4s and glued and screwed with 2-1/2" screws from the outside. Add the 1x4 cross supports across the top of the base, centered, to carry the top. Check level again — the floor finds every error now.

Miter the base molding around the bottom of each leg and glue-and-nail it on. An inch above the bottom rail, run the mitered screen molding around. Finally, tuck the 3" screen molding pieces over the structural screw heads on the bottom rail so nothing shows. Putty, sand, and you're ready to finish.

Prime and paint, or stain the whole piece — the source table even projects a graphic onto the top, traces it, and paints it before staining and topcoating with several coats of poly. When the finish is cured, set the top on the base and screw up from underneath through the cross supports with 1-1/4" screws.