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Every party needs a gathering point, and it's usually around the food and drinks. So why not make a purpose-built wine storage and nibbles table to suit?
Before You Begin
Step 1: Glue Up the Top
Step 2: Lay Out the Dowels
Step 3: Drill the Dowel Holes
Step 4: Mark the Offset
Step 5: Mark the Dowel Positions
Step 6: Label All the Pieces
Step 7: Set the Dowels
Step 8: Clamp the Rails and Legs
Step 9: Lay Out Cutouts
Step 10: Check for Fit
Step 11: Measure the Depth
Step 12: Knock It Together
Step 13: Attach Slats
Step 14: Attach the Bottom Shelf
Step 15: Finish the Wine-Rack Table
Written by Ed Frendo
This bar-style table houses a glass holder and wine rack for three bottles. We've made it a comfortable height for most standard bar stools. The table will seat four people, with room to rest drinks and eats. To make the table easy to move, add lockable castors to the legs.
Biscuit or dowel the pieces for the top, then glue, clamp, and set aside to dry. The bottom shelf is made in two pieces to allow for expansion. Join three 2 1/2-in.-wide pieces for each half of the shelf.
Mark the center line on both ends of the four shorter rails, using a marking gauge. Draw the gauge line with a pencil then mark the dowel positions, 5/8-in. in from each edge.
Wrap masking tape around a 10mm drill bit, just over 1-in. from the tip. Drill dowel holes into the ends of the rails. You've reached the correct depth when the tape sweeps away the swarf.
On the edge of the leg, draw an offset line 1/4-in. in from the face. The top rail sits flush with the end of the leg, and the bottom rail sits 10-in. up from the bottom. Repeat for all four legs.
Insert dowel centers into the pre-drilled rail ends. Push the rail onto the leg to mark the dowel centers. Align the top edge of the rail with the end of the leg and the face of the rail with the 1/4-in. offset.
Repeat the doweling process for the four short rails. Identify each matching joint and leg with a corresponding letter. Pre-sand all the interior edges before assembling.
Use a short piece of 1/4-in. dowel to distribute wood glue around the dowel holes in the leg. Drive home two 3/8-in. x 2-in. dowels. Wipe away excess glue with a damp sponge. Repeat for all legs.
Attach the rails to the corresponding legs using a deadblow mallet. Clamp, then measure the diagonals to check for square. Attach the wooden cleats to the inside face of the top rails.
Mark out the bottle holder cutouts evenly, 3-in. wide for the large cut-outs and 1 1/2-in. wide for the smaller ones.
Make cut-outs using a jigsaw. Cut close to the line, then sand the edges smooth. Alternatively, use a wider board, drill the cut-outs with a holesaw, then cut in half with a table saw.
Mark out and dowel the longer rails, marking corresponding joints on the inside faces of the end frames. The bottle holder sits 19 1/2-in. down from the top and 1/4-in. in from the leg.
Glue in the dowels and then assemble all pieces with a deadblow mallet and glue. Clamp, then wipe away any excess glue. Check diagonals for square and adjust if necessary.
Glue the slats to the underside of the wine holder, then fix with 1 1/4-in. brads. Use a 1 1/4-in. spacer to create even gaps between the slats.
Measure and cut notches in each corner of the bottom shelves, to fit around the legs. Cut using a jigsaw or tenon saw and chisel. Fix the shelf sections to the rails using 1-in. metal angle brackets.
Fix the wine glass holders to the wooden cleats. Fix the top to the rails from underneath, using 1-in. metal angle brackets. Sand thoroughly then apply two coats of Danish oil.