Creating Custom High End Butcher Block Counter Tops for Cheap

2 Weeks
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After our success with butcher block counter tops in our last house, we knew we wanted to put them in our new kitchen as well. We choose Ikea butcher block again but wanted to create a custom high-end look, so we routed the edges, stained the wood, and sealed it with Waterlox. We love that the counter tops now look like a work of art!
Here is our countertops after being routed, stained, and sealed.
This is the Ikea butcher block before we started.
The first thing we did after cutting the counter tops to length was route the exposed edges with a French Baroque bit.
See how professional the edges of even cheap butcher block look after being routed?
We used 3/8" wooden dowels and adhesive to connect the two long stretch of counter top together to create a cohesive look.
We stained the countertops in place with two coats of Minwax Dark Walnut.
The countertops are sealed with 4 coats of Original Waterlox. It took 4 days to apply the sealer then we had to wait another 3 days before using the counters.
Simply Swider- Stephanie
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  3 questions
  • Rot2880964 Rot2880964 on Nov 23, 2015
    Are these countertops solid wood(not comosition wood)? The only butcher block tops I see on ikea site are composite with a veneer. Or, is this not listed as a counter top on ikea's site?
  • Dwayne Gibson Dwayne Gibson on Jan 05, 2016
    I am curious the type of wood that you used for your counter tops?
  • Jan Jan on Mar 13, 2019

    What about preparing food on this counter top?

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  • Teresa Hamilton Teresa Hamilton on Sep 04, 2016
    I was going toward granite but the price is a bit high. This is a beautiful alternative and I goes with my style more so thank the granite so....THANK YOU for sharing. :-)
  • Linda Linda on Sep 24, 2016
    What a great transformation! They're gorgeous. Now I just need to get some help so I can do the same!
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