How to commission a custom table: a step-by-step brief
A table is the most commonly commissioned piece of furniture, and the one where a clear brief saves the most back-and-forth. Here is what to decide before you ask for bids, and what to put in the post.
1. Measure the room, not just the table
Start with the space. Measure the room and mark the table's footprint on the floor with tape. People need room to pull chairs out and walk behind them, so check the clearance on every side with real chairs in place. Measure door widths, hallways and any stairs the table has to travel through, and put those numbers in your brief. A maker can build a base that comes apart, but only if they know it has to.
2. Decide the size and seating
For a dining table, decide how many people it has to seat every day and how many on the busiest day. Tell the maker both. Ask about leg position, because a trestle base or legs set in from the corners leave more room for chairs at the ends.
For a coffee table, height relative to your sofa seat matters more than length. For a side table or nightstand, match the height of the sofa arm or the mattress top.
3. Pick a species, or a budget
Oak is hard-wearing with a strong grain. Maple is hard and pale. Cherry starts light and darkens over time. Walnut is dark and usually the most expensive of the common domestic hardwoods. Pine and poplar are the budget choice and take paint well. If you don't have a preference, give a budget and ask makers to suggest one.
4. Choose a finish for how you live
Oil finishes look and feel natural and are easy to touch up, but they resist water rings and heat less. Varnish and polyurethane build a tougher film, which most people want on a dining table with kids at it. Epoxy river tables are their own category; see our post on river table cost.
5. Ask how the top will move
A solid wood top gets wider and narrower with the seasons. A good maker attaches it to the base with fasteners that let it move, and may use breadboard ends to keep it flat. It's worth asking about in the bid. Our wood movement calculator shows how much a top your size can move.
6. Set the date and delivery
Give the date you need it by, and whether you'll collect or need delivery. Large tables take weeks to build, and some makers like to let lumber acclimate before cutting it to final size, so post well ahead of a holiday or a move.
The brief, ready to paste
- Table type and what it's for (dining for six, eight at a squeeze).
- Top size (length × width) and height.
- Base style: four legs, trestle, pedestal, or "open to ideas", with reference photos.
- Species, or a budget and "open to suggestions".
- Finish: oil, varnish/polyurethane, or epoxy.
- Room photos and doorway, hallway and stair measurements.
- Deadline and delivery address.
- Budget range.
Then compare bids
On The Spool List you post the brief once and verified woodworkers bid with a price and a timeline. Look at each maker's past tables, ask about joinery and how they attach the top, and accept the bid you trust. You pay when you accept, the platform holds the payment, and the maker is paid when you confirm the table was delivered.