Our Farmhouse Picnic Table
November 2, 2026
One by one our patio table chairs have given up the ghost, usually to the shock of the sitter and the amusement of the onlookers. I am reminded of the children’s song, “The ants go marching one by one,” and in like manner, our patio chairs have gone marching one by one to the county dump. We are currently down to one patio chair, and I wonder who will be the unlucky person to unexpectedly fall to the ground…
My parents kindly gave us their old patio table and chair set about a decade ago, and we have thoroughly enjoyed its use in our yard. The set has supported many family meals and even fall parties for the whole church.
Recently my husband was telling Nana and Pop (his parents) about our dying table set and how he doesn’t want to spend the money on another set. A little indignant, I thought to myself, “What, we can’t get a new patio set?”
But then I started looking at patio furniture online (I was completely clueless about pricing). I was shocked! A good quality patio set could easily set you back at least $1,000 if not much, much more.
My husband and I share a vision for frugality, so I quickly saw my husband’s point of view. But what could we do about seating in our yard?
My husband already had a plan…he would build a farmhouse picnic table.
At first the idea of a picnic table seemed kind of antiquated…like a relic from my 90’s childhood. Everybody has swanky lawn and patio furniture now, or so it seems. But the more I thought about a picnic table, the more I fell in love with the idea.
Why I’m excited about our new picnic table!
Frugal. The supplies cost slightly less than $200 for premium treated wood.
Spacious. The new picnic table is a generous 8-foot length, longer that many patio tables, and certainly longer than the store-bought picnic tables.
Farmhouse aesthetic. The long planks evoke that farmhouse vibe, especially since my husband was careful not to screw into the top side.
Educational opportunities. We can easily walk outside and homeschool at the picnic table. We can have cousins and friends over for our own versions of “co-op.” For some reason, the patio table just didn’t work well for school, probably the umbrella protruding out of the center.
Stationary. I can’t tell you how many times I had to round up my patio chairs from the far corners of the yard just for a family meal or to host guests. Now no one can drag the chairs all over the yard. A point for mom’s sanity.
I thought about writing a point-by-point post for you of how my husband built our table, but call me lazy (or rather time-savvy), but here is a link to the lovely people of Farmhouse in the Field who wrote a solid and detailed post on how to build a table.
My husband did make a few of his own modifications to the plan. Here are my husband’s modifications:
He created angled braces for underneath the center of the table. This tied the whole table together and made it a whole lot sturdier.
He attached supports underneath of the bench seating and at the end of the tables to discourage warping and provide extra support.
Since the time that I started writing this post, my husband, Jesse, actually built a second picnic table! Since we host a yearly fall church picnic and we are hosting Thanksgiving for my side of the family, Jesse knew that more seating would be greatly beneficial.
Thanks for stopping by, friends! I hope this post gave you some ideas for creative outdoor seating. Happy Monday!
-Ashley
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