Kitchen Bench

This project was a real treat - a family in our congregation has six kids... and you can imagine what that does to logistics at meal time around a small kitchen table. And of course, there is also the ongoing plague of not enough food storage spaces in homes in Northwest Arkansas.

Solution - construct a wrap-around bench that wraps the kitchen table on two sides, with a lid that opens to provide food storage space. The bones of this bench are made of maple cabinet-grade plywood, and the entire unit is wrapped with a walnut cabinet front, with a solid walnut top. Torsion hinges were used to give the lids a rigid feel, to reduce the number of smashed little fingers. Both tops open, independent one of another.

You will notice the sunk panels that face the unit. These panels provided me the opportunity to get into an art that I have only yet dabbled in - real wood veneering. It is very difficult to find walnut plywood, and even more-so in these parts. As such, you make your own. With the help of a veneer vacuum bag pump kit, I was able to attach a slice of real walnut veneer to a piece of maple plywood to form each of the panel inserts.

Species Featured: Walnut
Lumber: Dimensional lumber, wood veneer & maple plywood
Finish: Polyurethane
Features: Hinged tops for food storage
Measurements: Each leg is approx. 72" long, 18" deep, 18" tall.