Crafting the frame of a wooden farmhouse table

Our Craftsmanship Process

Crafting wooden dining tables that respect our planet.

Building your wooden dining table

At Design In The Sand, every wooden dining table we create is a testament to meticulous craftsmanship, precision, and care. Here’s an insight into the process we follow to ensure each table is as unique and perfect as our customers deserve.

Tools for building wooden dining table
01

Sketch it out and order materials

The journey of a bespoke dining table begins with a carefully crafted sketch. This isn’t just a blueprint; it’s a vital part of our process. The sketch helps us visualise the final piece, ensuring that we order the correct materials and that every element is accounted for. Throughout the making process, the sketch acts as a reference point, keeping our work on track and true to the design.

Wooden Dining Table Top being made in the workshop
02

Making the top

The table top is the heart of your dining table, and we
approach its creation with exacting attention to detail.

  • Precision Cutting: High-quality plywood is cut into 31mm strips. It’s critical that every strip is not only the exact width but also perfectly uniform along its entire length.
  • Bonding the Strips: These strips are carefully bonded together, with painstaking attention to alignment. Any misalignment at this stage would result in an uneven surface, so we work slowly and methodically.
  • Drying Time: Once bonded, the top is left to cure for 3 to 5 days, depending on air quality. This ensures the glue sets fully and creates a durable base for the next steps.
Sanding a wooding dining table top
03

Filling and Sanding

To achieve a flawless surface, we invest hours into perfecting the top:

  • Filling Cavities: Natural cavities in the plywood surface are filled with an ultra-tough hardener, ensuring the top is structurally sound and smooth. We apply drawing to the top so that we can ensure we have covered every part of the top.
  • Sanding: Sanding is a painstaking, multi-stage process. We start with a coarse grit sander to remove imperfections and gradually work our way to a find 120-grit finish. We sand until the top is silky smooth and ready for the finishing stage, leaving no roughness or unevenness behind.
Heavy Duty Extreme Varnish for a wooden dining table
04

Finishing the top

The finish is what transforms the table from raw material to a showpiece.

  • Extra Hard Coating: We use ‘Polyvine Heavy Duty Extreme Varnish,’ a water-based, highly durable varnish, chosen for its resilience and sustainability, it is available in Eggshell or Dead Flat.
  • Layering with Care: Six coats of varnish are applied, each one lightly sanded between applications to achieve a pristine finish. We also varnish the underside of the table to ensure maximum stability, durability and protection.
Crafting the frame of a wooden farmhouse table
05

Crafting the frame

The frame provides the sturdy foundation for your table, and we build it with the same dedication as the top.

  • Best-Quality Redwood: We select premium redwood for its strength and stability. The frame is carefully constructed with glue, screws, and reinforcement brackets for maximum durability.
  • Filling and Sanding: Once the frame is assembled, any minor imperfections are filled with fine filler and sanded smooth, leaving it perfectly prepared for painting.
Yellow paint for a wooden dining table
06

Painting the frame

The frame’s painted finish adds the final touch of elegance to your bespoke wooden table.

  • Custom Colours: We paint the frame in any colour and brand of paint our customer chooses. Little Greene is a popular choice due to its beautiful
    finish and high sustainability credentials.
  • Meticulous Coating: The frame is primed (if needed) and sprayed with three coats of the chosen colour. Each coat is lightly sanded with fine-grade sandpaper to ensure a flawless finish. If the final coat doesn’t meet our standards, we apply additional layers until it’s perfect.
Finished Scandi Dining Table
07

Final Assembly and Delivery

Once the top and frame are completed, the table is carefully assembled and inspected. Only when we’re completely satisfied with its craftsmanship and quality do we prepare it for delivery, ready to become the
centrepiece of your home.

At Design In The Sand, every table is crafted with patience, precision, and pride. From the first sketch to the final brushstroke, we’re committed to creating something truly special for your dining space.

4o

01

Sketch it out and order materials

The journey of a bespoke dining table begins with a carefully crafted sketch. This isn’t just a blueprint; it’s a vital part of our process. The sketch helps us visualise the final piece, ensuring that we order the correct materials and that every element is accounted for. Throughout the making process, the sketch acts as a reference point, keeping our work on track and true to the design.

02

Making the top

The table top is the heart of your dining table, and we
approach its creation with exacting attention to detail.

  • Precision Cutting: High-quality plywood is cut into 31mm strips. It’s critical that every strip is not only the exact width but also perfectly uniform along its entire length.
  • Bonding the Strips: These strips are carefully bonded together, with painstaking attention to alignment. Any misalignment at this stage would result in an uneven surface, so we work slowly and methodically.
  • Drying Time: Once bonded, the top is left to cure for 3 to 5 days, depending on air quality. This ensures the glue sets fully and creates a durable base for the next steps.
03

Filling and Sanding

To achieve a flawless surface, we invest hours into perfecting the top:

  • Filling Cavities: Natural cavities in the plywood surface are filled with an ultra-tough hardener, ensuring the top is structurally sound and smooth. We apply drawing to the top so that we can ensure we have covered every part of the top.
  • Sanding: Sanding is a painstaking, multi-stage process. We start with a coarse grit sander to remove imperfections and gradually work our way to a find 120-grit finish. We sand until the top is silky smooth and ready for the finishing stage, leaving no roughness or unevenness behind.
04

Finishing the top

The finish is what transforms the table from raw material to a showpiece.

  • Extra Hard Coating: We use ‘Polyvine Heavy Duty Extreme Varnish,’ a water-based, highly durable varnish, chosen for its resilience and sustainability, it is available in Eggshell or Dead Flat.
  • Layering with Care: Six coats of varnish are applied, each one lightly sanded between applications to achieve a pristine finish. We also varnish the underside of the table to ensure maximum stability, durability and protection.
05

Crafting the frame

The frame provides the sturdy foundation for your table, and we build it with the same dedication as the top.

  • Best-Quality Redwood: We select premium redwood for its strength and stability. The frame is carefully constructed with glue, screws, and reinforcement brackets for maximum durability.
  • Filling and Sanding: Once the frame is assembled, any minor imperfections are filled with fine filler and sanded smooth, leaving it perfectly prepared for painting.
06

Painting the frame

The frame’s painted finish adds the final touch of elegance to your bespoke wooden table.

  • Custom Colours: We paint the frame in any colour and brand of paint our customer chooses. Little Greene is a popular choice due to its beautiful
    finish and high sustainability credentials.
  • Meticulous Coating: The frame is primed (if needed) and sprayed with three coats of the chosen colour. Each coat is lightly sanded with fine-grade sandpaper to ensure a flawless finish. If the final coat doesn’t meet our standards, we apply additional layers until it’s perfect.
07

Final Assembly and Delivery

Once the top and frame are completed, the table is carefully assembled and inspected. Only when we’re completely satisfied with its craftsmanship and quality do we prepare it for delivery, ready to become the
centrepiece of your home.

At Design In The Sand, every table is crafted with patience, precision, and pride. From the first sketch to the final brushstroke, we’re committed to creating something truly special for your dining space.

4o

Tools for building wooden dining table
Wooden Dining Table Top being made in the workshopSanding a wooding dining table topHeavy Duty Extreme Varnish for a wooden dining tableCrafting the frame of a wooden farmhouse tableYellow paint for a wooden dining tableFinished Scandi Dining Table