Design Table...err...Table Design

Alex Slocum teaches about how to make design tables in SolidWorks. I never really got it, so I decided to make a table design in SolidWorks instead. I've been wanting to design and build a cool-looking glass table for a while now. Sources of inspiration:

2.009 Green Team Final Project, "Elika"

80/20 Conference Table

I wasn't really looking for something fancy. Just a small kitchen table for my "efficiency apartment" in Cambridge. A place to eat breakfast in the morning, or to work when my desk gets too boring and a need a new place to think. The idea probably would have stayed in my head for a while, if not for a generous donation of a slightly-used glass tabletop. With the heavy lifting done, all the way left was to design a cool aluminum frame. Here's the build, from start to finish:

Like any good engineering project, I started in CAD. I drew up some cool-looking corner brackets that would also hold the glass, which sits on rubber bumpers, in place.

Here's the "before" shot. The corners were cut on a water jet.

Sanding jig.

Oooooh, pretty.

Just before final assembly.

All together, complete with $20 folding chairs. Now I have a place to eat my cereal in the morning!