This has certainly been my favorite DIY project for under $75. I wanted to create a unique dining table for our odd sized kitchen. I decided to pair the vintage Singer sewing machine base with a modern top and chairs — it's an extremely easy project for a fantastically low price.
Buying an entire dining set for under $75 is nearly impossible. I like this DIY because it is completely mix and match. Try a different tabletop or keep it retro with vintage chairs. With the help of Craigslist and a great sale at Target, I put everything together for nearly half the price I had expected to pay. The best part is how easy this DIY table is!
Supplies:
- Singer (or other brand) sewing machine table base
- Table top from IKEA
- 2 chairs of your choice
Steps:
Step 1: (Image 2, above)
Grab a tabletop of any size from IKEA. We chose a longer, narrow tabletop to match our space. Ours only set us back $20. The IKEA wood isn't strong enough to hold your screws if you pre-drill. Make sure to not pre-drill any holes in your tabletop.
Step 2: (Image 3, above)
Find an antique cast iron sewing table base. We found ours on Craigslist for only $15. If you don't have luck on Craigslist, try scouring estate sales or thrift stores to find an equally low price.
Step 3: (Image 4, above)
Measure and match the bottom of the board to the top of the base. Luckily, these bases were pre-made with holes to accommodate tabletops. You should need a fairly hefty screw to compensate for the weight of the base. Make sure to not get a screw longer than your tabletop is thick!
Step 4: (Image 5, above)
Drill screws through the table base into the tabletop. Don't forget to use a washer for more security. When you move your table to its permanent location, make sure to pick it up from the base. Since the base is cast iron, a cheap IKEA tabletop will not be able to carry the weight of the base alone.
Step 5:
Enjoy your new table! We decided to pair our table with modern chairs from Target. We sprung on a set that was $35 for two. (sale in stores only)
Images: Meg Lewis
Apartment Therapy's Sofa Shopping Guide
Nikki’s Sweet and Cheery Print Studio
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Stanley Console by ...
5 Things Paris Taught Me About Travel
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
I love this use of the vintage base. Much better than keeping around a nonfunctioning old relic simply because it's too beautiful to toss out.
Love the look.
QUOTE: The IKEA wood isn't strong enough to hold your screws if you pre-drill. Make sure to not pre-drill any holes in your tabletop.
Respectfully, this comment is bad advice. You ARE pre-drilling with a bit slightly smaller than your screws...aren't you???
IF your BIT is the same size as your screws, there's nothing for the screws to grab hold to (i.e. you defeated the purpose) The *strength of the wood* doesn't play into it at all, at all.
Hope this helps.
OOO, I wish I had seen this three years ago, before I let go of a classic old Singer base. I don't sew, so I didn't want the machine (my mom wanted to keep the machine as it was her grandmother's) but this would have been a neat way to repurpose the base (which not original to the machine- she returned the head to the original casing and base, so there was a perfect orphan base!)
I admit to liking this, never thought I'd say that about a Singer treadle base for a table. All black and paired with black chairs is good design. The ones that give me the creeps are made with a glass top and used as an occasional table in a living room for plants or some such. EEooo...
This is a great solution for your tiny space.
I like the idea, but the top is too modern and the base is not...
I think a wood VIKA BYSKE (IKEA) table top would work better and help highlight that gorgeous pattern.
Great DIY project. I am always a fan of repurposing vintage. I think personally I would prefer it with a top that was a little less modern, but I think it would depend on the decor of the rest of your home.
My family has a habit of doing outdoor consoles (for bars, for plants) with sewing machine bases and salvaged marble. It always looks really beautiful.
Kudos on your project!
Very neat and looks comfortable as well (you have a place for your feet).
Where can I find old Singer machines?
I've been trying to get an old sewing-machine base away from my mother for years! Great idea.
I did something similar with my great grandmother's Singer base. Fortunately there are granite and marble dealers in my neighborhood and I was able to get a marble remnant piece fairly inexpensively. Now my modern machine, sits on my great-grandmother's antique sewing machine base in my sewing room.
@ChanteuseAR - That's an amazing idea!
This is really pretty - I'll give it that. But the 2 machines stashed at my mom's house (that's right - TWO! :D ) still kinda work. I really like the look of the machine itself, too, and as a seamstress... I acknowledge that it's pretty, but would rather see the machine whole.
Love this! So Cool!
Love it. I think we've decided to steal this for our new dining table as I have been looking for something interesting but inexpensive for months. Does anyone have suggestions of other places that also carry just table tops? We'll probably also just go with an Ikea one for now but I'd love to find a wood top.
Funny that I find this, since about a month ago my partner proposed fetching my grandpa's old singer and fashioning a dining table from it. My idea for a table top is glass.