Ikea Country Coffee Table Re-do

So I haven't posted in a LONG time but I have a few things that I want to post!  A few weeks ago I broke my cell phone so I don't as many pictures that I originally wanted but I am so excited to share my coffee table re-do!  For the past 5 years we have had a black, IKEA LACK coffee table that we got for about $40.  Over time, the coffee table started to really show wear and tear from water marks and bubbles to scratches and gashes.  I've been seeing some great posts about these country style/ rustic coffee table makeovers and have really wanted to try on on my own!  It was a really fun and exciting project and had a huge transformation on our tiny living room.  

Materials:

IKEA Lack Coffee Table 

(6) 1x6x4 pine boards (1 inch thick, 6 inches wide and 4 feet long)  6 cost me about $14 from Lowes.  You can get them cut it you need to but the 4 foot planks worked perfect for this project.  

Construction/ Wood Glue (Glue Gun to make it much easier)

Sanding Block

Stain of your choice (We chose to go with Walnut)

Sealer

Foam Brushes

Step 1: Roughly sand down your boards.  It doesn't have to be perfect but make sure it's even.  They should be bare already so it's fairly easy.

Step 2: Wipe the boards down with a clean and dry rag to get all of the dust off.  Find a clear area to stain the boards.  I used the cheap foam brushes and they worked great.  I only put a light, single coat of the stain on.  I wanted to really see the markings in the wood (I chose boards at the store that all had different and unique markings!).

Step 3: Once the boards are fully dry, lay them out on your roughly sanded coffee table.  I rearranged a few of the boards to find the perfect order I wanted them in.  Once you have your boards set, take a middle board and glue it down.  This board will act as the anchor for your other boards to measure up to.  After the first board is down, take one board at a time from each side and glue it down.  

Step 4: Weigh the boards down for at least 5 hours.  I used books and gallons of water, which worked just fine!

Step 5:  I put my sealer coat on after everything was dry but you could do this step after step 2.  It was just easier for me at the time!  

It came out even better than I imagined and was actually much easier too. There are little imperfections in it but that's what I love about it!