3-Legged Kitchen Dinette Table

I came across this picture of a small, round dinette table with powder-coated steel chairs, and I fell into manic mode. My searching indicates this table is a West Elm table (Luna model) that sells used for around $200, with none available locally. Since I cannot buy one, I'm going to forge ahead and hope building it will cost less that buying it used.

Specifications I could locate show it to be 30" in diameter and 29½" in height.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN, I feel I need to state that I use as few power tools as possible. I get no exercise, so this kind of is my way of burning some calories. In addition, I use less electricity, saving on my utility bill. Also, this ISN'T a one-day project. Because of the drying times of all the coatings, this might take several days, or even weeks. It took me one day just to prime all the pieces!

For equipment, you will need:

1. Putty knife (Dollar Tree is fine.)
2. A scrap piece of wood about the size of a deck of cards to use as a sanding block
3. Just today, I found a sanding block at Dollar Tree; going to give that a try.
4. A portable table (Lowe's link) or a couple of chairs
5. A drop cloth large enough to hold the purchased table top (Home Depot link)
6. Flat-head and #2 Phillips-head screwdrivers (Home Depot link to screwdriver with interchangeable bits)
7. An old paint brush.
8. A premium polyester-bristle paint brush (Home Depot link)
9. A printer with software that can do poster mode
10. Certain free versions of Adobe Reader have this capability.
11. Scissors to cut paper
12. Don't you DARE use fabric scissors! Dollar Tree is fine.
13. Combination square
14. I don't remember where I got mine, but here it is at Amazon (affiliate link).
15. A drill
16. I use a Craftsman cordless I got from Lowe's.
17. Drill bits the correct size for the plate screws
18. I ended up choosing a 5/64" drill bit from my bit kit.
19. A "fresh" container wide enough that you can bend the brush flat.
20. I used a Rubbermaid Brilliance glass container, but I've seen videos of people using plastic ice-cream buckets.
21. A "waste" container with lid in which to store the used mineral spirits
22. I used a quart Mason-style jar with a lid. An old paint can with lid could work as well.

For materials, you will need:

1. Wood filler to match the table top wood (Home Depot link)
2. Sanding paper in 80, 120, and 220 grits (Home Depot link)
3. Tack cloth (Home Depot link)
4. A table top (Home Depot link)
5. Four 1-inch foam paintbrushes (Home Depot link)
6. Pre-stain wood conditioner (Home Depot link)
7. Oil-based wood stain of your choosing (Home Depot link)
8. Cotton rags (Home Depot link)
9. 6 sheets of letter-size printer paper
10. Painter's tape
11. Three 17° leg plates (Menard's link)
12. A pencil or other marking implement (Amazon affiliate link)
13. Three 27½" legs. (Menards link)
14. Primer
15. I had some Kilz Mold and Mildew Primer left over from painting shelves that had molded; I got it from Home Depot.
16. White protective enamel paint in the finish you want (Home Depot link)
17. Mineral spirits to clean the paintbrush (Home Depot link)
18. Paper towels to clean the paintbrush
19. Polyurethane stain topcoat (Home Depot link)

Inspect your table top for any imperfections, such as gouges, cracks, or knots. Fill these imperfections with the wood filler using the putty knife.

1. Open your wood putty. My container required use of a flat-head screwdriver.
2. Stir the putty using the putty knife.
3. Take a glob of putty and place it in the imperfection.
4. Spread the putty flat using the putty knife.
5. Allow to dry per the instructions on the putty container. Mine said drying would take at least 15 minutes.

Depending on the depth of the imperfection, you may wish to apply several thin coats instead of one big glob.

(Wow; I learned so much about wood putty and filler by doing this project. I did not know that you have to choose the filler based on the type of paint or stain. A water-based stain needs a water-based filler; the same for oil-based. I am using an oil-based primer and paint, so I had to get a filler that was OK with that. On top of that, some putties are meant to be applied on top of stain, whereas others can go directly on bare wood. It took me several hours of research and a couple of false-start purchases before I settled on trying the product I got. We shall see if it works!)

Flip the board over and repeat this step on the other side.

NOTE: Now that I have done this, I recommend you do this in an area with good ventilation. The smell carried through my entire apartment.

Once the filler is dried, use the sand paper and sanding block (or scrap piece of wood) to smooth the surfaces.

1. Start with the 80 grit sandpaper on the areas to which putty was applied.
2. Move up to 120 grit to smooth out these areas further.
3. Sand the entire surface lightly with the 220 grit to open up pores to accept primer and stain.
4. To sand the rounded edge, use the 220 grit sandpaper without the block. Shape the paper around the curve using your hand.
5. Wipe off the dust using a tack cloth.

Flip the board over and repeat this step on the other side.

(The Dollar Tree sanding block turned out to be useful, although the sandpaper I used was a little too small for it. Even getting the sandpaper as squared up as I could, there were still small edges of the block exposed. This didn't seem to impact the process.)

After you've sanded the table top, download the PDF below. Print it on your printer using poster mode. I print with "cut marks" turned on for ease of assembly. Verify the document printed correctly by placing one of the leg plates over the printed leg plate.

Here's how I assemble the pattern. I find a pair of corresponding cut marks. I then cut at the cut marks on one edge of the paper. I put the two pieces of paper together, aligning the cut marks. When I am happy with the overlap, I use painter's tape to secure these two pieces together. I did this for all 6 sheets of paper. Once the pattern is assembled, I cut it out around the circle. The circle does not appear on the plates, so do your best to keep the arc of the circle going as you cut.

Set the combination square at 5¾", and lock it in place. Putting the upright portion of the square against the edge of the table top, measure in 5¾". Move the pattern to meet the ruler. Tape it in place. Repeat this measurement several more times around the pattern until you are satisfied you've done all you can do to get it placed centered on the table top.

Place a real plate on top of a printed plate. Using the pencil, mark the screw holes on the wood. You will need to peel back the pattern to be able to do all 4 screw holes. You don't need to mark the center hole; that is where the leg screws in.

The leg plate instructions do not include which drill bit to use to make the pilot holes. Therefore, I eyeballed it. To me, a 5/64" bit seemed to be the best. To make sure I didn't drill too deep, I placed the bit next to the screw and used a piece of painter's tape to mark how deep to drill. I then drilled the holes for all 3 plates.

At this point, I did a test assembly, screwing on the plates and legs and standing the table on a flat(ish) surface. The resulting stable table was quite satisfying.

Everything I read regarding staining pine recommends using a wood conditioner to prevent the stain looking blotchy. Therefore, I will apply conditioning to the edge before staining. Remember to check the weather before proceeding to make sure the table top will dry before any rain comes.

1. Take your portable table (or chairs) outside.
2. Cover it (them) with the drop cloth.
3. Place the table top on the portable table (or chairs) so it is balanced.

1. Mix the conditioner. I did this by shaking the can to get a little physical exercise.
2. Open the can using a flat-head screwdriver.
3. Dip in one of the foam brushes.
4. Carefully paint the edge of the table top. Don't get a lot of conditioner on the brush; you don't what to have to deal with drips.

Allow the piece to dry as per the conditioner's instructions. (Mine says 30 minutes before applying stain.) Since you used a cheap, foam paintbrush for this step, it can just be thrown out instead of cleaned.

Once the conditioner has dried, . . .

1. Mix the stain. I did this by shaking the can to get a little physical exercise.
2. Open the can using a flat-head screwdriver.
3. Dip in one of the foam brushes.
4. Carefully paint the edge of the table top.
5. As you paint, make sure to wipe off any excess using the cotton rag.

NOTE: As I stained the piece, I noticed that the long grains weren't getting as dark as the end grains. Therefore, I immediately applied a second coat of stain to the long grain areas. When I wiped off the excess, I didn't press as hard. This got me a more consistent color.

Now, allow the piece to dry as per the stain's instructions. Since you used a cheap, foam paintbrush for this step, it can just be thrown out instead of cleaned.

Using the painter's tape, tape around the stained edge of the table. I lucked out in that my edge was extremely well defined. A small warning: The tape will have a hard time sticking because of the oil-based stain. Rub the tape hard and be patient. Getting the tape around the entire table top is possible. After all, I did it. As an additional note, the tape might not be wide enough for your table top's thickness. I used a 1"-thick table top and 1" painters tape. Due to the curve of the table top's edge, it was longer than the top was thick. Therefore, I had to apply a second band of painter's tape to the other edge of the table top in order to cover all of the brown stain.

Once the tape is in place, mix the primer. Brush it on using an old/cheap paint brush, applying it carefully to the edges first and then filling in the entire top. When done priming, clean the brush per the primer instructions. Mine can be cleaned with soap and water. Allow enough drying time as per the primer instructions.

Once the drying time is over, flip the table top and repeat this step for the other side of the board.

While the primer is drying, you can use this time to prime the legs.

Lightly sand with 220 grit sandpaper. Clean off the dust with a tack cloth. Use painter's tape to cover the parts you don't want painted. Paint with primer, and allow to dry.

Once all the primer has dried for the appropriate amount of time, you can begin applying the paint.

Mix the paint, and pry off the top. (Do I really need to post pictures of this again?) Apply the paint using the premium paint brush.

I would paint the table top first and follow this with the legs. Allow the table top to dry according to the paint instructions, then flip the table top and repeat this step.

Clean the brush using the mineral spirits. (See the next step for the cleaning process I used!)

The first picture is after one coat. The second picture is after two coats.

Wait the appropriate amount of time before applying a second coat. My paint, unfortunately, says to wait 24 hours before doing this. So, everything is in my pantry awaiting the next day without rain, which AccuWeather says is 5 days away.

I don't know if you've heard about the record-setting rainfall and flooding in Milwaukee, WI, a few days ago (August 10, 2025), but that happened the day BEFORE the 5th day on the AccuWeather forecast. I've waited another 5 days for things to dry up. Going to try the painting tomorrow night when I get home from work, as it is supposed to rain again tomorrow.

The second picture is after the second coat of paint. I'm not 100% happy with it. I was expecting something with less grain. Maybe I should have sanded it more before painting. Be that as it may, I've decided to apply a third coat (which is currently drying).

The third picture is after a fourth coat. I really slathered it on, as I wanted a nice, smooth surface. What I got instead were waves and burst bubbles. Turns out I do not have skill when it comes to painting. I am getting impatient about having a usable table (it is now October 8), so I moved on to the next step.

You want to clean your premium paint brush well before using it again. Here is the method I use:

1. Use the paper towels to wipe as much paint off the brush as possible. Massage deep into the bristles, but be careful not to damage them.
2. Pour mineral spirits into the fresh container. You only need enough to be able to dip your brush.
3. Put your used paint brush into the container. Press it back and forth to remove as much paint as possible.
4. Take out the brush and wipe it down with fresh paper towels. Massage as much paint out of the brush as you can.
5. Pour the used mineral spirits into the waste container.
6. Wipe the container with paper towels.
7. Restart the process by pouring fresh mineral spirits into the fresh container.
8. Repeat this process until the mineral spirits stay clear. By the third time I did this, I was down to repeating the process 4 times before getting clean mineral spirits.

Once you are done, you'll have a quart jar with used mineral spirits and an empty fresh container. Screw a lid on the quart jar, and store it in a safe place. As time passes, the paint will drop to the bottom of the jar, allowing you to use the mineral spirits again on another project. Allow the fresh container to air out before covering and storing. DO NOT use it for food purposes!

Remove the painter's tape from the edge. Two things I noticed as I removed the tape: It did a better job at preventing white paint from getting on the brown stain than I thought it would AND the blue tape removed a little of the brown stain, leaving an interesting pattern on the edge. Although I am not 100% happy with the paint job, I am very pleased with how nice the edge has turned out.

So, sand down the white paint drips and re-stain any edge area you feel necessary.

Lastly, use a foam brush to apply the polyurethane topcoat to the stained edge.

As you can see, 3 coats of paint (yes, 3 coats on the bottom; I only did the fourth coat on the top) did not completely obscure the screw holes for the plates. Go ahead and screw all the plates into place, then screw on the legs and flip it over.

The picture on the left is the inspiration for this whole project. The picture on the right is the finished table in place with the chairs I bought. I'll be the first to say I didn't do a perfect job. However, I do like how this turned out!

This project started out as a manic kick to my bipolar disorder. Most of the time, these projects end up piled in the corner somewhere. This one I actually finished (although it took me 4 months)! For me, personally, completion alone makes the journey worth it.

Cost-wise, if you have to purchase everything, including the drill, it would be less expensive to find the Luna table to purchase. Since I already had the majority of the tools, my out-of-pocket expenses were about $210, not counting the pencil or the primer I already owned. Kind of high just to make something that might have cost me $200 used (if I could find it locally). As already stated, though, finishing the project gave my attitude a boost. You can't really put a price on that, can you?