A few years ago some friends gave us a small picnic table for our kids to play with in the yard. This morning, just after I had started work in the shop, I was given the news that my oldest had injured himself and the table was effectively no more.
Always being up for a new project, I set to work to make a new bigger, stronger picnic table for the kids to use. Here is what I ended up with:
The old table had been made from wood that was roughly 2 1/2" x 5/8". Obviously something a bit stronger was needed so I used 1 x 4" (which is really 3/4" x 3 1/2", approximately). It was only around 16" tall and since my kids are growing (both in size and number) something bigger made sense. The finished product is a little over 20" tall and big enough for an adult to sit on one of the seats (although 2 adults on the same bench is not recommended - this is a kids table after all).
It's around 48" long, which means it should be big enough for those times when friends come over and more than big enough to run around, climb on, climb under and do all those other things that kids are wont to do with picnic tables.
The legs and crosspieces are 2 x 4"s, which provides more than enough strength to support a small horde of children, and the center crosspiece stabilizes the top 1 x 4"s for some added resiliency.
The one thing this particular table doesn't have is a finished look. And that's because it isn't really finished. It has no colour, either paint or stain, no protection from the elements, and it doesn't quite look fun enough for little kids. Sadly, that's what comes from being the children of a woodworker: the finish comes when there's time. However, it also means that after breaking the old table this morning, my kids got to play with this one by the afternoon.
I will be making this table available for sale for interested customers, along with full size picnic tables. Pricing will depend on size, materials and finishing options. Contact me at mapleridgecreations@gmail.com for more information.
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