Chicago Maker Wins Furniture Contest

Photo: This "DIY 'Marble' Table" that won the Furniture Contest is actually constructed of concrete.

A Chicago maker won the Furniture Contest Grand Prize on Instructables.com with a table featuring a “marble” top made from concrete. Woodcraft provided prizes for the contest that encouraged makers to build or repurpose a piece of furniture for the competition.

Mike Clifford describes himself on his Modustrial Maker YouTube Channel as a DIY hobbyist who loves making things, especially with wood and concrete (and recently LEDs). His award-winning “DIY ‘Marble’ Table” incorporates two unusual features: a cement top made to look like marble and a Douglas fir base made using Shou Sugi Ban, an ancient Japanese exterior siding technique that preserves wood by charring it with fire.

According to Clifford’s Instructables.com how-to narrative, he made the coffee table top using a glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC) ready-made concrete mix, which is pre-cast in a melamine form. He separated out batches of different colored concrete (from white to dark grey), mixed them together in the form, and then swirled them together by hand to get the marble-like appearance.

For the base, he used a modernized version of Shou Sugi Ban, employing a propane torch to char the outside of the wood. He said the technique works well on any open-grained wood, such as Douglas fir, pine, and cedar. To learn more about this project, visit www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-Marble-Tabletop-From-Concrete-and-a-Torched.

Clifford will receive prizes worth about $847, including a 10" JET Open Stand Bandsaw, Model JWB-10; a Rikon 1" x 42" Belt x 8" Disc Sander; a Wall Lenk Branding Iron, "Handcrafted By ...", Electric Model; a Pinnacle Craftsman Leather Shop Apron, and an Instructables prize pack including a robot t-shirt.

OTHER PRIZE WINNERS

First Prize Winners (3)

•PartCraft of Oregon, “Custom Live Edge Walnut Slab Dining Set with LEDs, Glass Inlay and Custom Steel Legs”
•B. Rodriguez of Tennessee, “DIY Bed with Storage”
•jmarrufo of Arizona, “Reclaimed Lift-Top Coffee Table”

Each winner will receive a 10" JET Open Stand Bandsaw, Model JWB-10; a Wall Lenk Branding Iron, “Handcrafted By ...”, Electric Model; a Pinnacle Craftsman Leather Shop Apron; and an Instructables prize pack including a robot t-shirt.

Photo: "Custom Live Edge Walnut Slab Dining Set with LEDs, Glass Inlay and Custom Steel Legs,” by PartCraft. Inlay holds the owner’s tumbled agate collection.

Second Prize Winners (5)

•J. Krug of California, “Circular Wood Resin End Table”
•B. Lehrman of Rhode Island, “Modern Platform Bed//Hand Tools + Framing Lumber”
•N. Clampitt of California, “Corner Bench with Storage”
•Chris (Make Everything) of New York, “Making a Breakfast Nook (with Storage)”
•G. Claessens of Belgium, “Modern Console Cabinet”

Each winner will receive a Bosch Colt PR20EVSK 1 HP VS Palm Grip Router; Porter-Cable 382 5" Random Orbital Sander and an Instructables prize pack including a robot t-shirt.

Photo: Circular Wood Resin End Table" by J. Krug

Judges' Prize 

(2 prizes: one for a chairmaker; one for a person demonstrating upholstery skills) 

D. Van den Abeele of Wenduine, Belgium, won the chairmaking prize for “Convertible Bench.” M. Bishop of Maryland won the upholstery prize for “Sofa Reupholstery with Biscuit or Square Tufting.” Each will receive a Bosch Colt PR20EVSK 1 HP VS Palm Grip Router; Wall Lenk Branding Iron, “Handcrafted By ...”, Electric Model; and a Pinnacle Craftsman Leather Shop Apron and an Instructables prize pack including a robot t-shirt.

Runner-Up Winners (10):

•J. Jones of California, “Bird Table”
•H. Bridge of Ontario, “Build a Metal Sectional”
•R. Bleu, “Anti-Gravity Workstation (with Standing Option)
•E. Walsh of Ireland, “Shock Absorber Stools”
•S. Ollári of Hungary, “Make a Modern Pallet Stool/Coffee Table”
•Pricklysauce of the United Kingdom, “Splined Mitre Bench”
•Landomi, “The Hairpin Table”
•A. Lindsay of New Zealand, “Blanket Chest with Padded Seat”
•S. Boeke of Michigan, “Spinning Gear End Table”
•J. Whittaker of the United Kingdom, “The Riverbed Coffee Table: Using Resin, Plywood, and Walnut”

Each winner will receive an Instructables prize pack including a robot t-shirt.

Photos above: H. Bridge constructed this metal sectional as a dog-proof couch - when cushions are removed, the metal and wood sofa is safe for the owner’s dog when unattended.

Photos above: J. Jones built this "Bird Table" as a replica of a side table his great-great grandfather, a carver, built that was passed down through his family.

Visit www.instructables.com/contest/furniture2017/ to see and read about all the winning Instructables.

Described as the World’s Biggest Show and Tell, www.instructables.com attracts 30 million plus viewers each month to its web-based documentation platform that allows passionate creators to share what they do and how they do it, as well as learn from and collaborate with others. Besides offering a place to showcase and store new projects, Instructables also sponsors ongoing competitions.