DIY BARISTA STAND

This fall I had the opportunity to build a barista stand for a collegue at work. It was a new experience for me because I have never built something this before. In reality it wasn't that complex but just time consuming. And because I was building it for someone, there were times when there was a lot of thinking and planning and very little building involved. For this project I was also very particular with the color patterns of the wood so it took some time to find the right pieces. But as soon as I found the right colors, it made for an exciting building process.

After the sketching was done and the length and width determined, all of the wood for the frame was cut to length. I used a different technique for this table because I didn't want to compromise the "face" wood. I glued and nailed a second piece which was also the piece used to secure the frame. This meant that there was a bit less routering. Although I was very excited to use the new router that I purchased for this project. 

The next step was gluing and screwing the whole frame together. This by far was the most tedious part as well as the most exciting. I was a bit nervous with how well the wood alignment would turn out because none of the pallet wood is perfectly straight. It turned out well at the end. A great technique that I learned from a friend was to pour some wood glue into the screw holes.

The front frame looked promising and a relief at the same time. The most important part of the table. 

I then put together the back frame. To temporarily secure the front and back I braid nailed the top and bottom side pieces. Later after the side pieces were screwed in,  the nails were easily removed with pliers. 

I also added some support beams down the middle, especially the bottom shelf where there would be storage. Then I did the back wall of the storage cabinets, followed by the bottom shelf. 

Then the middle shelf was installed. It was nice to have the center beam to secure the boards well. 

There are many options when it comes to designing the doors. I really wanted it to maintain a square shape without any fancy look and match the colors of the stand. Then at the store it was difficult to find the best fitting handle and hinge. It was nice to get a second opinion from a sales person at the store. 

The installation process of the hinges and handles was straight forward. 

I considered placing granite or marble for the top, however it was pricey option that would have also required changing out the casters to a larger size to accommodate the heavier top. So the final decision was to make the top wooden and place a glass on top.