How to Build an Outdoor Dining Table and Planter Boxes

Ron visited Orlando, Florida, to help Rowe and Ashley Jones create an outdoor eating area to make better use of a large Saltillo tile patio out near their pool. The couple enjoys spending time outdoors and an eating area, complete with a handmade table and matching planter boxes, creates just the atmosphere they are looking for.

Click Here For a list of what you will need in order to complete this project.


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The 3-dimensional drawings for this project were made with Google SketchUp design software.

1. Table design

The table and planters are made from cedar. The legs are made from 4 x 4's, notched at the top. The notches, or tenons, support the frame that serves as the foundation for the tabletop. A cross brace is also added for further support.

There are spaces between the 2 x 4 slats that make up the tabletop. Not only do these gaps provide an interesting detail, but more importantly, they allow for the wood to expand and contract as the weather changes. If the slats were touching, the table might be pushed apart as the wood swells.

Please click here to download the full-size, 3-D drawings for the table project.
To view these drawings, please download the free Google SketchUp.

2. Cut wood

Create a cut list based on the design and dimensions you have chosen. Use a power miter saw to cut all the lumber to size.

To notch out the tenons at the top of each leg, clamp the table leg to the workbench and then lay out the cut lines on each leg.

Use a combination square as a gauge to determine the thickness of the table frame, then transfer this measurement to the end of the leg and draw the first line. Turn the gauge 90 degrees and then make another identical mark.

Next, set the combination square to the width of the board and again, use it as a gauge to trace the cut line on the table leg for the depth of the tenon. Continue this line around the other three sides.

Finally, extend the lines drawn on the top of the leg down to the lines drawn on the sides.

The material removed from the table leg will be exactly the width and length of the table frame, which will be supported by the shelf created by the tenon.

Reposition the table leg in the workbench and use a handsaw to cut away the wood. First cut along each of the vertical lines, then reposition the piece and make the necessary crosscuts to form the shoulder of the tenon.

Repeat this process on all four table legs.

3. Table frame and leg assembly

The frame is designed with a cross brace in the center and will eventually support the tabletop. The five pieces that make up the frame are 2 x 4's and are attached together with glue and screws using simple butt joints.

First lay out the two end rails, clamp them to the workbench and then drill a pair of shank holes or clearance holes through the end of each 2 x 4. The clearance holes should be large enough to allow the shank or the shaft of the screw to drop all the way through. The thread of the screw should only bite into the piece of wood that it is attached to. Turn the rails around and repeat on the opposite ends.

Also bore shank holes and countersinks in the middle of the side rails where the cross brace will be attached.

To conceal the screw heads, use a countersink bit to create a shallow hole slightly larger than the screw head. The countersink holes are drilled directly over the shank holes and will be filled with plugs later.

Paint glue onto the bottom two inches of each frame end piece and at end of each side rail.

Join the end and the sides of the frame together, make sure they're flush on the ends, and then drive in screws. Repeat the process on the opposite side and then move on to the cross brace.

Once the frame is assembled, bore shank holes through the tenons on each leg.

4. Tabletop assembly
The tabletop is made up of 2 x 4's held in place by a 2 x 6 frame. The 2 x 4's attach to the frame using a system called biscuit joinery.

To join two pieces of wood by biscuits, slots are cut into each piece. Glue is brushed into the slots and then biscuits, which are compressed pieces of wood, are inserted into the slots to assemble the joint. The glue causes the wood to swell, which forms a very strong attachment.

First cut the slots in all of the wood using a plate joiner, used exclusively for biscuit joinery.

Draw a center mark on the wood in each location you want to attach the wood with biscuits. There is an indication on the top of the plate joiner to align with the marks. Put the plate joiner in position, turn it on and push it into the edge of the wood. It will cut the slot in the perfect position, automatically.

After the slot is cut, pull the plate joiner back out and move on to the next position.

Once you have completed the first set of slots, adjust the blade, lowering it from the base. This will allow you to make the second set of slots about half an inch below the first.

Repeat the process on the 2 x 6 end frames.

Brush exterior-grade glue into the slots of the end frames then do the same with the slots in ends of the 2 x 4's. The glue has a short work-life. On a warm day, it can lose its bonding ability in as little as ten minutes, so it is important to work quickly.

Drop the biscuits in the end frame piece pushing them all the way into each slot. Slide the end panels into place with the slats and then secure it with pipe clamps as the glue sets and the biscuits expand.

Use the same biscuit joining technique to attach the side frames to the end frames.

5. Attach tabletop to frame
Measure the inside of the table frame and cut wooden cleats that will serve to attach the tabletop to the frame.

Bore clearance holes, apply wood glue, and then secure the cleats with screws along the inside of the table frame flush with the top edge.

After the glue has dried, set the completed tabletop onto the base and attach it by driving screws up through the cleats.

To make the screw holes less noticeable, see Ron's tip on creating and installing wooden plugs.

6. Sanding and finishing
Use a random orbit sander to flatten and smooth the top surface of the assembled table.

When building any piece or furniture for outside use, it is especially important to seal the wood. Choose either a clear or tinted sealer.

Use a sideways brush stroke to apply sealer to the edges of the wood between the slats. This is important because the wood will get wet between the cracks and needs to be protected. A good quality sealer will protect the wood not only from water, but also from mildew. Many sealers even provide protection against ultraviolet light.

Clear sealer goes on somewhat dark, but lightens as it dries.

1. Planter box design

The planter design is essentially a box with heavy legs and a wide lip on the top.

Please click here to download the full-size, 3-D drawings for the planter project.
To view these drawings, please download the free Google SketchUp.

Begin by assembling the 2 x 2's to form the frames for each side panel.

Run a bead of construction adhesive over the face of the frame, and then attach tongue-and-groove cedar strips.

On the first strip, shoot a single nail through the face, and then angle a second through the tongue.