So it's kinda hard to enjoy hanging outside with the grill going, kicking back with a beer, when all we had were camping chairs. I decided we needed some kind of outdoor table/chair set so we could properly enjoy the Minnesota summer. However, again - terrible shopping options - and I could not bring myself to spend so much money on lawn furniture that I wasn't sure would last or worse - get stolen! Surely there had to be a solution I could be happy about. I tried rummage sales (that's what these northern folks call yard/garage sales) and Craig's list. Totally came up empty.
Ahhhh ha...I remembered the metal table base that I had in Florida (the top had broken but the base was still solid). Maybe I could add a mosaic tile top. I was inspired, this could be a fabulous solution, I could totally see us having a glass of wine after work, enjoying the wonderful weather, endless hours of summer daylight, etc, etc, etc. Can't you just picture it??? Only problem - the table was still in Florida!! It never made the move due to space issues. Bummer. Back to square one - now what?
So let's tangent for a moment. For several years, we spent many a weekend at the beach in Englewood, FL. At some point, not sure when, I started collecting beach rocks during every trip. By the time we moved to MN, I had filled a huge storage bin full of beach rocks. Funny thing looking back now is that the tub of beach rocks moved to MN with us but the table did not. Go figure. Anyway...this storage bin takes 2 guys to lift and move it. During our last move, our friend tried to pick it up himself not knowing what was inside. Comment to me "chell - what do you have in here - a box of rocks?" My reply (trying to keep a straight face) "actually yes - it really is a box of rocks!" Then there was a long conversation with me trying to explain why we have a box of rocks and why I keep moving them from place to place. I'm sure he thinks the Florida sun fried my brain or something. But in my head, I always imagined that my beach rocks would make a wonderful table top.
So I'm talking to my brother about this outdoor furniture dilemma and my idea of creating a table with my beach rocks. The problem - what would be a base for the table? Good thing for wise siblings - he brought me out of the "design cloud" and reminded me that the rocks are really heavy and the base better be just as hefty to support all that weight. Hummmm - now what? We came up with a great solution - I should use one of those wood spool things that electrical cable/wiring comes on - one that's table height. And guess what - my brother has access to several - and free! Great solution bro...but they are in Florida, too!!!! Yeah - how about ship those to me and while you are at it, throw in the table I left behind. LOL
Good thing I'm resourceful and the hubby doesn't mind helping with my crazy schemes. So I enlisted Shaun's help and a day later, we had not 1 but 2 free wooden cable spools of different sizes! A girl needs options ya know! I'll spare the details of how we got those home in our car - that was another fun adventure as I'm sure you can imagine. 
So I got to work sanding my new "table". Now let me say that I was not interested in making an outdoor table that would outlast me. I approached this project as fun and hopefully it would last a summer or two. So I skipped the primer and just went with a coat of spray paint. Next on to the top. If I were to do this properly, I would have used concrete board and all the stuff to tile in a wet environment, weather-proof, etc. But how much do you invest in a free table - life is all about balance. 
So I used liquid nails and glued my rocks and tiles to the top. The tiles were key because otherwise the drinks would tip over since the rocks don't make for a very level surface (that was Shaun's idea - genius!!). Then I used stepping stone concrete mix to "grout" the table. And added a final coat of clear spray paint on the top to "seal" it. 
That same weekend, I went by our local "free-cycle" center and found 2 wooden chairs - totally free - my favorite kind of shopping trip! They both got a coat of spray paint and some outdoor fabric for the seat cushions ("reupholstered" with my stable gun). Voila - an outdoor table set with tons of character for under $20 in supplies.
My neighbor thinks someone would pay $100 for the table - well, if that person exists, come on by and you just bought yourself a table!
