When you have four large dogs that like to play with each other as if they are at the dog park and only weigh 5 lbs each instead of the 100lbs that they are, your anxiety level can shoot through the roof when they start bumping the table that your TV is standing on. (insert big eyed emoji here)

Our first BIG interior construction project in our current home (back in 2008) was to steal about 3 feet from our hall closet to provide more space to our pretty small living room. (Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures to share of that experience, sorry)  Don’t worry, the hall closet is still large enough to store a significant amount of our hoarding.  🙂

Anyhow, our goal with this project was to create the perfect space to hang our TV from the wall and provide more space for seating.  We had a console table under the TV that we used to have our TV standing on.

Hanging the TV has been the best solution EVER.  The only challenge was the height that the TV was hung on the wall.  My lovely husband and I didn’t necessarily agree upon this topic.  In fact, it was a discussion that had to have lasted two days.  Maybe it is because I am vertically challenged, but I just didn’t want to hang the TV quite as high as Bert did.  We came to a compromise, but the TV was still quite high for the table that we had placed underneath.

I spent quite a bit of time problem solving this situation.  Like 6 years of time!!!  I LOVE the table under the TV, but decorating on the table was super frustrating for me.  Plus, hiding the cords was driving me crazy.

I found this lovely inspiration on Ana-White’s website, and the wheels started turning.

I started measuring the cable box and the surround sound electronics.  The sub-woofer, the photo albums, the distance from the bottom of the TV to the floor….  You name it, I was measuring it.  I drew up the dimensions, create a list for Home Depot and went for it.

I built the front and back of the table and had to bring it in to confirm that it would fit under the TV.  HAD TO!!!  LOL

The assembly went pretty fast.  Well… it least in time, but my muscles felt differently.  Fighting these boards to line up and be level took A LOT of effort!!!  I learned quite a bit from this build.  I would have created the shelves first and then added the shelves to the legs.

Then came the paint and stain.  I had built this table before I built the dog crate table.  I knew I wanted to use the same tongue and groove 2×6 boards that we used to replace our sub floor in our bathroom remodel.  It is a lighter color than a pine 2×4, and when we installed it in the bathroom we just kept talking about how cool this wood would look stained. The stained 2×6 did not disappoint!

One thing I am disappointed with is the clear coat that I put on the table.  The stained wood still looks great, however, the clear coat that covered the white paint has yellowed over the years and cracked.  I learned that it would have been better to just get a glossier paint, rather than bother with the clear coat.  At some point I will be dragging this beast back out to the back yard to repaint the bottom. 🙁

Even with this little setback, I am still in love with this build.

It is the perfect height for under the TV.  I can change my knickknacks periodically and give it a different look.  All of the electronics have space to breath and it isn’t too hard to dust everything.  The cords are stashed away, which is my most favorite part.  Now… the cable guy might not love this setup whenever they come out to service their system, but I am sure they have dealt with worse, right?

One more thought before I sign off.  This week, on the 20th, is the 6th birthday of our puppies!  I just can’t believe it!!!

These girls are partners in crime.  They don’t know how to be without one another and bring so much joy to Bert and Me.  Happy Birthday Eva Diva and Lyssa Love!!!