One of the first things I wanted to do was to extend one end of our dining room table. The table was just a little too small for us. It was fine just to eat from but if we were both sitting at the table with food and wanted to read a magazine or look at a laptop it was a little crowded.

I decided that an additional 16” should work fine and it wouldn’t be in the way. So this is what I came up with.

I took a picture of the table and went to my local hardwood sawmill. I thought the table was oak but they told me it was ash. Since I didn't have bar clamps I had them glue up the raw wood. I paid around $60.00 for the glued piece of ash, 16” x 26” x 1-1/4 plus a couple of 1 x 4s for the pieces underneath.

I took the table apart and sanded the top to remove the old finish. It was in good shape but I did this so the two pieces would match. I found a stain at Home Depot that was close to the original finish. I cut out two slots in the bottom pieces of the original table to let the 2x2s slide in and out to support the extension. I used a Kreg pocket hole jig (which I already had) to attach the bottom pieces to the extension and a new piece on the original table to hold in the 2x2s. I also bought a brass clip to hold the two pieces together.

Although the stain doesn’t match exactly, I’m happy with the results. When I put the table back in the trailer I had to attached the wall side to the wall with some aluminum angle. It would have been too heavy and tipped with the extension on if I didn't. When we move the trailer it takes very little time to remove the extension and store it on the couch. Check out the pictures below.