8bit Mario End Table

My kids saw this table and absolutely loved it! not to mention it took me almost back to my roots! I will do my best to keep this all straight and to the point! Woodworking has been a hobby, but recently I have been focusing a lot more time into it and am in the process of trying to make it a living! But here we go lets get started!

Tools (i used)

Mitre saw

Table saw

Orbital sander

bench top sander

1/2" drill driver

Kreg PH jig

tape measure

pencil

wood clamps

small propane torch

I used scraps from other builds for this table to keep my cost down and to get rid of some clutter! So I will do my best to nail my estimates right on!

Qty: - Material

1 - 2"x2"@8'

2 - 1"x4" @8'

1 - 2'x2'x3/4" plywood

4 - 2 1/2" ph screws

16 - 1 1/4" ph screws

wood glue

blue stain (minwax water based is what i used)

red stain (ditto^)

brown stain (i used special walnut)

Famowood glaze coat. (I picked a little box kit for $25 @ home depot)

Here is the cut list!

1"x4" @ 17 1/2" (2) these will be long sides

1"x4" @ 16" (2) shorter sides that will go on the inside of the longer sides

2"x2" @ 18" (4) these will be your legs

16"x16"@3/4" is what we need to trim the plywood too.

Here is the FUN part.....

256 1"x1" squares. use the extra material from the 1"x4" boards for this

I ripped them into 1" strips then slowly trimmed off 1" at a time.

Use the Kreg ph jig and you will want to put 2 holes in the short sides

and on the bottom of the plywood put 2 by each corner!

Then the last spot on the side of the leg that is going to mount to the bottom of the table top!

Now time to give it all a good sanding!

Ok lets see that hardworking pay off!

Lets start with putting the frame of the top together!

On the short side pieces lets put a bead of wood glue down them! then line them up on the long pieces and clamp them down and finally put some 1 1/4" ph screws in them!

after the 4 sides are together its time to get the plywood in!

* I put pieces of extras and sat them under the plywood to make sure I would have a 1" gap from the top of the plywood to the top of the frame!

Now as we put the plywood in you will want a good bead of glue on its edge and remember that you want the bottom towards you!

Then attach the plywood with the last of your 1 1/4" screws!

Flip it over and for the fun I put all the unstained pieces in! lol also I wanted to make sure I didn't need to trim anything down!

Ok here is the breakdown of how many pieces get what stain.

44 - flesh tone (don't stain leave plain)

58 - red stain or paint

67 - brown stain (special walnut)

87 - blue stain or paint

I also stained the legs and frame in ebony however this was just a personal choice.

Please remember to use a respirator with stains and properly dispose of your rags!

for the red and blue if you buy the water base minx as I did I recommend 2 coats.

heres where it gets fun! DO NOT SKIMP on the wood glue! cover the bottom good! If not the squares will float up in the finish. and not to mention attaching the legs will also move them...

make sure to run a good bead all the way around where the plywood meets the frame!

Now time to race against the glue setting to drop in the image!

I put the legs on now so I could move the piece to a space away from my finishing station so I could push other pieces through.

make sure you let the glue set and harden before you do this!

at all connecting points put some glue then clamp it down and drive the 2 1/2" ph screw in!

READ and make sure you completely understand how to use the clear coat! I also bought this specific kind because you can call and ask questions before you use it!

GO step by step by their instructions. If you put the same gap in top as I did it should be almost a perfect fill to mix 16oz of both bottles!I did this in 2 pours. make sure to mix it good and watch for the bubbles! do not put torch directly on finish indirect heat is how you get the bubbles out otherwise you will burn the finish.

after this tedious process just let it sit and wait

after you have let the finish sit and harden enjoy your new table sitting next to you holding your drink and snack and go with some retro games for the night!

I hope you enjoyed this and I hope I didn't confuse anyone. I did this in between other jobs and forgot to take good notes for this moment.

If you liked this please let me know and vote for this build!

Thanks and have a Great time!