This is a tutorial on how I built the mahogany counter tops in the little house out of plywood. I was in a real pickle when it came to what I wanted to do with the counters in the little house. Normally I probably would have just run to Menards (or Lowes or Home Depot) and purchased stock laminate counter tops that they have on hand. But because I chose to put cabinets back to back I had a span of 48×60 inches to cover so if we wanted laminate counter tops they would have to be custom ordered and thus: too much a splurge for this little house. A big part of me wanted to just use barnwood like I did for the kitchen backsplash but I knew my mom would hate that and if she ever lived here she deserves the flattest smoothest counter that she could ever want. So, I was in a pickle.
(To get up to speed on this old place you can check out my last three posts all about it! The Little House: A remodel plan and timeline, getting organized, The Little House: When a remodel timeline meets with reality and The Little House: Covering up a very ugly ceiling with Styrofoam ceiling tiles)
After I built the upper kitchen cabinets I headed to my local lumber yard to purchase cabinet doors and they didn’t have smooth pine plywood. Like, what?! Who doesn’t have sanded plywood made of pine?!?!?! All they had (in at least 3/4 of an inch) was plywood with a mahogany veneer so, I sucked it up, figured: “How bad could it be?”
And brought them home. Well seconds after bringing them in the door I knew I was already unhappy. (Not to mention what was I going to do for the counter tops?!)
Because I were leaving the pine trim as it was (plus a couple of coats of poly acrylic) I did the same with the upper kitchen cabinets to keep the whole house looking cohesive. And then I slapped those red mahogany cabinet doors on them and it just made me shudder.
I put up the barn wood back splash behind the sink crossing my fingers that the multiple different shades of wood and patina would help those mahogany doors and pine cabinets clash a little less horribly. It did help and everyone else said it all looked great but, of course, they still bothered me. And then the light bulb went off.
See, we have quite the clash going on anyway because of the brand new white stock base cabinets we installed in the kitchen. (You can check em out here on the Menard’s website.) Even after trimming around the bottom edge of the cabinets (the toe kick) in the same pine I used to build the uppers there was still a feeling of hard core difference between them. So, I needed a flat surface for a counter top that I could build: why not use the same mahogany plywood I had used for the upper cabinet doors?!
One sheet managed to (just barely) provide us with the big L shaped piece and the small piece for the kitchen sink. (Notice how I used blue tape to cover the plywood so it wouldn’t be scratched by the skill saw but in the end I found that this plywood is so darned hard and my skill saw so smooth that I actually didn’t need to tape it but, better safe then sorry!)
This is not really a one-man job, could one guy have got this all done with the right set of saw horses positioned smartly? Yes! But the two of us made this a much easier task: one person holding with the plywood half on the cabinets and the other person cutting: which is why I have no pictures during the cutting process because my hands were full π
I used 2x4s run across the tops of the cabinets to provide support but to also pick it up so I could trim out the outside and make it look much thicker then it was. (I also wanted to cover that ugly plywood edge.) I tacked it down with brad nails and liquid nails NOTE: I used a lot of liquid nails and only a few very strategically placed brads in the top of the counter top, I knew the glue, the weight of the plywood itself and the trim would hold it in place. I trimmed it out in barn wood also using brad nails and liquid nails and sanded it using my DeWalt orbital sander. Another note: when I say I sanded it I mean I really just VERY CAREFULLY sanded the barn wood, this plywood is veneer and could take almost no sanding whatsoever before I went through the mahogany top. It was difficult because I really couldn’t hit it at all even where it met the barn wood trim. I filled in the nail holes and any gaps with mahogany wood filler and carefully hand sanded the mahogany top before wiping it all down with a damp paper towel.
From there I put on five separate coats of poly acrylic. Why did I choose a water based poly acrylic? Well, honestly, I chose it for the same reason everyone ends up choosing the water based: It dries faster by literally hours, it doesn’t yellow and its not nearly so toxic to the person who is applying it. I really ALMOST headed for the really hardcore polyurethane (the type they make specifically for floors) but I’ve finally got enough experience under my belt that I knew that the oil based would only perform a little bit better and thus: not worth the cost or the time to me.
So, I went with a semi gloss poly acrylic by Minwax and did five coats over a few days. I hand sanded after the first two coats with 220 grit sand paper and right before the last coat. (I have not installed the sink yet, just set it in place for pictures but when I do I will also caulk between the countertop and the backsplash)
You can see I also built a little “backer” to cover up the ugly back of the stove using 2x2s and barn wood that also got the sanding and poly treatment. It is wide enough to be used for spices, salt and pepper etc. I think it helped tie the the sink area to this area nicely. Not to mention those adorable wood knobs! Aren’t they just precious? They’re like little wood buttons! I purchased them from Amazon for only $8 for 20 of them!
All in I am extremely happy with how the counter tops turned out. They’re smooth, you can spray them with water and wipe them down etc. Of course, you will never be able to put a boiling hot pan on them but, really, there are few counter top surfaces you can actually do that with anyway. So now, how do I feel about the clash of the uppers in pine and their red mahogany doors? I feel this counter top tied the whole kitchen together and I can finally say that YES, I am happy with it!
Looks great! I will be interested in seeing how the polycrylic holds up. I haven’t had much luck with it in heavy-use or wet areas, but I understand the attraction of drying time, clean-up, etc. Keep us posted!
Hey Ann, yup I’ll definitely keep you posted! I worry about the poly acrylic too, after five coats I’m crossing my fingers that it will hold up. We’ll see! Thanks for commenting!
The countertops look great and it did tie the whole thing together nicely. π
Thank you!
These really turned out beautifully! I always worry about wood next to water, but it sounds like they will hold up. Thanks for sharing with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
Thanks Jann!
I am very impressed Tarah! You did all that with just plywood. It looks so much better than what I would have expected. And the use of the water-based top was an eye opener for me too!
Thank you Mary!
You have done a great deal of work and it all is remarkable.
Thank you Marlene!
The counter looks great. Thank you for sharing at Dishing it and Digging it link party.
Thank you Vanessa!
Gosh you’re talented, Tarah–such great work with those counter tops. You must be very pleased π Thanks so much for sharing your skills with us at Vintage Charm–
Thank you so much!
Thank you so much!
Great job and I would have never thought about using plywood. It looks really good and I love that backer to hide the stove. I admire your dedication and hard work it is definitely paying off. Thank you for sharing with us at Celebrate Your Story, and I hope youβre having a great weekend.
Thank you so much Sandra, it was a lot of work but totally worth it!
It looks wonderful and is really coming together! I don’t like the sink all by its’ lonesome but what are you gonna do?
Thank you so much Kristin! Yeah that sink does lonely over there! Gosh there was just so little room to work with lol, right now though there is just enough room on the left hand side of the sink for a coffee pot, hopefully that will help it look a little less lonely! Thanks for commenting!
Turned out GREAT! Love the knobs too.
Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
Blessings,
Cindy
Thank you Cindy!!
So smart a transformation! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home!
Thank you Sherry!
Looks awesome to me! Glad everything turned out well because I can feel your disappointment with the available materials at first. Just like the others, I worry about how poly acrylic holds up especially if the areas are often wet. Hope everything is still okay since it’s been almost a month now.
Thanks!
You are a wonderful DIYer and a woman after my own heart. We would always rather find a solution and do it ourselves.
Thank you Candy!!
The mahogany is beautiful! Good job!
Thank you so much Cathy!
You are so clever and I love the finished product! Thanks so much for sharing your handiwork with us at #BloggersPitStop. Have a lovely week.
Thank you Sue!
Love it. I love all the different colors & types of wood getting ready to remodel my kitchen & thinking of putting in wood counter tops. I will have to show this one to the husband because he’s not sure.
Hi Gloria, thanks for coming by! I was SO happy with how those countertops turned out and, honestly, with the price they’re really hard to beat lol
Just wanted to let you know that my son built me counter tops out of 2 x 12’s which we stained a cherry color. We also used the water based poly…4 coats if I remember correctly….and they have held up brilliantly for over five years. This includes the area around the sink (although I use a dish rack with a drain mat underneath because leaving water on the counter for long periods of time is not a good idea). I use my kitchen a lot…cooking large meals multiple times daily, canning, jam making, etc. and am just delighted by them. The will dent or ding occasionally but that just adds to their charm in my opinion.
That’s awesome Deb! I think wood as a counter top is incredibly underrated, they’re beautiful and they have SO much character!