DIY Friday: This Back-of-Couch Table is the Perfect Addition to Your Family Room!

Happy DIY Friday! This week, design expert Paige Hemmis stopped by Hallmark Channel's hit daytime talk show Home & Family to demonstrate how to make a back-of-couch table — the perfect addition to your family room! Check out the instructions — inspired by an AlwaysNeverDone.com project — below.

Materials:

• 4 Staircase Spindles

• 1 1×8

• 1 2×4

• Chopsaw, handsaw, or jigsaw (optional)

• Nail gun or drill

• 2” nails or 2” screws

• Wood glue

• Medium-grit and fine-grit sandpapers

• Wood filler or Spackle

• Paint / Stain (color of choice)

• Paintbrush

(H&F Photo Credit: Copyright 2015 Crown Media Family Networks/Photographer: Jeremy Lee)

Directions:

• You’ll need 4 staircase spindles for the legs, one 1×8 and one 2×4 for the tabletop.

• We want to make the table thin enough to not take up too much room behind the couch. Traditional table legs would be too thick. Also, regular table legs are about $25 each whereas the staircase spindles are $4 each. With the 1×8 being $4 and the 2×4 being $3, we’re looking at a DIY table for the low price of $15.

• Repurpose old spindles or buy them at hardware stores. You can find all of the wood at hardware stores, too.

• Use whatever wood you like; I suggest furniture pine. Furniture pine is sturdy, affordable, lightweight and easy to work with.

• Measurements of the wood depend on the height and length of your couch. Cut the wood with whatever wood cutting tool you are comfortable using. That could be a table saw, jigsaw, handsaw; you can even have the hardware store cut the wood to your specifications for you.

• Cut your 1×8 to the length of your couch. Cut your 2×4 4-inches shorter than your 1×8.

• Your 2×4 beam will be centered on your 1×8. Mark approximately 2-inches in from the edge and all the way around the 1×8. This will give you’re your placement for your 2×4 support beam.

• Run a bead of wood glue along the length of the 2×4 and following your guide marks, place the 2×4 glue-side down, centered on the 1×8.

• Secure the 2×4 to the 1×8 with nails or screws.

• You want the top of your table to be flush with the top of the couch, so you may have to adjust the height of the spindles. Attach a spindle to your 1×8 against the outside edge of the 2×4 with glue. Again, secure with nails or screws. Repeat for all four legs.

• Fill the holes in with wood filler or Spackle and sand down the table with medium grit sandpaper to get rid of any rough edges. Then use a fine-grain grit to finish it. Then you can paint it or stain it any color you like to match your décor.

• Place the table behind the couch and enjoy for years to come!

Home & Family airs weekdays at 10 am ET/PT on Hallmark Channel.