Here’s How to Build Bench Seating for Your Breakfast Nook

A breakfast nook is a cozy space for coffee and mealtimes, and it can also add functionality to your home. It provides extra seating for guests and can help cut down on traffic in the kitchen. Your breakfast nook table can double as a food prep or serving area for get-togethers. It can even offer an extra workspace or homework area for the whole family! DIY expert Stevie Watson decided her family could benefit from all these features. Follow her easy steps to build a breakfast nook in your home.

Here’s How to Do It

We’ve had this underused space next to our kitchen forever. It wasn’t an eyesore, but I felt it could be put to better use. We discussed several ideas but ultimately a breakfast nook won out. Our local Home Hardware helped make the project come together. They had all the tools and supplies we needed and were super helpful with design tips and building advice.

Step 1: Planning & Measuring

First we had to figure out the space where we were going to place the seats. In our kitchen, we have a rectangular alcove that sits adjacent to our cabinetry. This allowed us to create an L-shaped seating arrangement, with one bench running 72” lengthwise into the cabinets, and a shorter 54” bench about two seats wide. We measured (and remeasured!) before making any cuts or starting the boxes that would end up being the bench seats.

Step 2: Building the Seat Frames

The bench seats had to be 18” wide to match the size of the foam pad we purchased. So, we cut our 3/4” plywood into 18” strips to serve as the seat top. For the seat base, we cut four 2x4’s into a 72” lengths, and four into 54” lengths. We wanted the bench to be the same height as our kitchen chairs, so we cut the vertical 2x4 pieces accordingly (allowing for the thickness of the foam pad). With the cuts all done we put together the two frames and dry fit them into the space before cutting the melamine fronts and sides. 

Step 3: Attaching the Bench Fronts & Seat Tops

We made the melamine front about one inch taller than the frame to hide the seat structure. We attached the melamine front pieces to the frame with decking screws. Before attaching the plywood seat tops to the frame, we primed and painted them with BeautiTone Cabinet & Furniture Paint. Even though we have cushions to sit on, we painted the seat tops so the space will not look unfinished if the cushions are lifted or removed.

Step 4: Making the Seat Cushions

We cut our foam pad to match the dimensions of each bench, then attached them to the plywood seats with Gorilla Glue. This ensured there would be no movement in the cushion when people are seated at the table. To upholster the cushion, we cut our fabric large enough to cover the seat and with enough overhang to be folded underneath. We then stapled the fabric to the plywood underside of the seat.

Step 5: Adding the Details

We added trim and hardware to the melamine fronts to create the effect of faux drawers. This took a lot of measuring, so we penciled everything out before cutting anything. The trim was unfinished, so it had to be primed and painted before it was attached. We used a mitre saw to cut the trim corners to 45-degree angles then attached the pieces with glue in the shape of a rectangle. We centered the handles in the rectangles, drilled our holes, then popped the bolts through from the other side and tightened them down.

Step 6: Assembling All the Pieces

We painted the melamine fronts again once the trim was attached before pin-nailing them into place. Then the seat bottoms and cushions were placed on the frames with the finished melamine fronts to finish off our nook beautifully.

We’ve had visions of this breakfast nook for so long and to see it finally come to life has been so rewarding! The alcove is brighter, the seats are comfortable, and our kitchen seems much more inviting. We also have more space for our family and for entertaining, too!