Covering your center insert

We couldn't find many websites that actually talked about adding your fabric for your center playing surface.

It's much like the rail you completed earlier. 

Simply lay out your fabric to cover your center playing surface. 

We started with the arcs and pulled our fabric tight, and stapled.  When stapling along the rest of your insert, pull the fabric tight, and go slowly.  Much like the rail, the more time you spend on this piece, the better the end result will look.

And again, don't be afraid to use staples.

The pic to the left is Cory's insert, and he went with a royal purple.  The material was a stretched velveteen.  The fabric did stretch quite a bit, so we had to make sure to pull the fabric really tight before stapling.

Here's a side view of the stapling process. 

Our staple gun was the cheapest electric gun Lowes had to offer, so we had quite a few staples that were stubborn and only went about half way into the wood and material.

Just take a hammer and check for staples that need a little extra push. 

Once completed, cut away any excess material (in this case, quite a bit).

Once your insert is completed, it's mandatory to have a celebratory drink. 

I just follow the rules, I didn't make them up.

Here's a pic of my table insert.  I went with a regular black casino poker table felt.  You can find them at any number of poker table supply sites online. 

My material was a regular velveteen and wasn't stretched. 

As you can see, I obviously went with black. 

We followed the same steps as we did with Cory's.  Take it slow, and start with your arcs on your staples.  Pull it tight and check for air pockets or folds where they shouldn't be. 

Here's our insert totally covered and stapled down.  Again you get the idea that you don't need to be afraid to use a lot of staples. 

When in doubt, stable more. 

Notice the light "2X" we have marked on the insert.  Again, make sure your parts are all properly marked so you can save some time putting them all back together when you're finished.

Your insert should look something like this once the material is all cut away. 

Your insert should now be completed.  Make sure there are no hugely obvious folds on the top of your playing surface.  If there are folds that wrap around, no big deal.  They won't be seen.

And again, it's the rule to have a drink once you're completed with the insert.

Again, I didn't make the rules, I just follow them.