First things first: thanks for being such good sports about our little April Fool’s Day prank (seen here).
Sherry couldn’t stop giggling while she put together that over-the-top nautical-themed dog mood board (at one point Katie Bower called and I heard a laugh-snort as Sherry shared her “project”). Every comment—whether you fell for it or called it a joke from the first line—made her day. Which made mine. Happy wife, happy life. With that good mood swirling around, I finally tackled my next big build.
The time had come to build a behind-the-sofa console table for our living room. We needed more than a padded ottoman: a long, functional surface for table lamps, a place to set drinks, a basket for remotes, and extra storage and display space. The catch? Our sectional, Karl, is roughly 140 inches long, so we needed a console that would span nearly 12 feet. You won’t find a ready-made console that long unless you commission a custom piece for a few thousand dollars.
So I spent a couple of months gathering energy, confidence, and a plan for a custom DIY solution. We considered floating shelves but decided they’d leave too much unused space underneath and wouldn’t deliver the weathered, handmade look we wanted to balance the modern sectional and green rug. Then we came across a plan from Ana White (this plan) that inspired our approach.
I knew I couldn’t maneuver a single 12-foot bookshelf easily, so I designed the console as three sections: two 4-foot end pieces and a central 4-foot piece, all topped with one long tabletop to create a seamless look. Each end piece would borrow ideas from Ana’s bookcase—open shelving on one side for visible storage—but I simplified the interior to avoid inaccessible shelves and to save material and effort. My sketch looked rough, but the idea was solid.
We tested proportions with our existing hallway console by tucking it behind Karl to check depth and lamp clearance. It was just barely deep enough for a large lampshade, so I decided to make the new console a touch wider to avoid any head-into-shade moments. We also adjusted height so the console would sit slightly above the back edge of the sofa but below the back cushions for a balanced, useful surface.
With rough measurements in hand, we went to Home Depot and had most of the boards cut to size in the store, which saved time and let everything fit in the car. To keep costs down, we used basic melamine-type white boards for most of the structure and saved poplar 1×2 trim for the visible ends. If I were a pro I might have splurged on nicer lumber, but this was a budget-friendly build and using everyday materials reduced the pressure of making mistakes.
One useful tip: the store’s labeled widths aren’t always exact. To achieve about 16 inches of depth, we paired a 1×8 and a 1×10 board side-by-side; their actual widths (7.25″ and 9.25″) combined to roughly 16.5″, which was perfect. Back at the workshop, my Kreg Jig got a lot of love. With pocket holes and clamps I joined boards into three 16.5″ planks to form each section’s top and wide side “legs.” The top edges don’t have to be perfect everywhere since a single long tabletop will cover the seams later—what needed to look good was the open, visible end.
I then assembled the rest of each end piece: attaching legs, adding 1×2 rails for support, and constructing the bookshelf side with two 1×12 boards for the sides and layered shelving. To speed things up I pre-drilled many pilot holes in one session, then moved on to final screwing and clamping. For the exterior trim I cut 1×2 poplar on the miter saw and attached it with the pre-drilled holes, so the finished faces look clean and intentional.
Each end piece took about 1.5 Clara naps (roughly two hours) to build without the top installed. The first one taught me a lot; the second went faster. I did make one mistake on the first: I placed some pocket holes on the visible inside of a shelf where they would be seen. Wood putty fixed that, so it wasn’t a big deal. For now we tested one section behind Karl to confirm proportions and height—the console felt right.
The middle section is mostly built and includes top-entry storage so it’s functional even though it will sit between the two end pieces. For the final tabletop we plan to use reclaimed pallet slats to add a weathered, rustic look that will contrast with the darker stained base. We’ll stain the base a deep tone so it visually recedes behind Karl and lets the worn, varied tabletop be the focal point—Sherry’s idea, of course.
So far the two end pieces and the mostly finished center section cost about $65 in materials, not including the tabletop reclaimed wood. We expect only minimal extra cost since we’re repurposing pallets. We’ll share a full budget breakdown, staining process, and final photos when the console is complete.
Have you built anything recently? Did you use plans from Ana White or another source? She’s impressive—seriously, that woman can design almost anything.