The first time I tried to build a child sized picnic table, I thought I could do it without plans.
Needless to say, it was not the work of art I had imagined.
It wasn't even usable.
So when I tried again with new lumber, I made sure that I had child picnic table plans.
If you are going to build your own kid's picnic table, I would really advise you to pick some up.
It will save you a lot of time and effort.
There are a few things you should look for when deciding what sort of plans to get.
First, look at how easy the plans are to read.
Are they accessible to even a new woodworker? Children's picnic tables are not especially hard to make, but it does help to have something that's easy to follow.
Next, decide on what sort of style of picnic table you want for your kids.
Part of your decision will depend on how many kids you have.
There are tables with almost any shape you can imagine.
There are also tables with attached benches and even umbrellas! I decided on a traditional style table with attached benches.
I figured that attached benches would prevent them from tipping over and hurting themselves.
However, they were a bit harder to make than I imagine separate benches would be.
Finally you should consider the price of the plans and what you get with the package.
If you just buy one set of plans, you'll usually be paying more for it.
However, there are books that have many plans in one book.
Look for one that has more than one type of project in it, so if you ever have time to work on something else, you'll have plenty of ideas at your fingertips.
Also, if you're a beginning woodworker, consider getting a book that has instructions on how to actually do woodworking.