Community Brag Posts

Art Studio Loft Bed

Submitted by Auntie LAD on Tue, 02/26/2013 - 08:26

After I built my nephew's AT & T Park bedroom, I had to figure out what to create for my 5 year old niece, Maggie. She loves drawing, so I settled on an "art studio," where she can work and display her art.

The bed was created using Ana's Camp Loft Bed Plans. I narrowed the stairs by 4 inches as one of the other posts had done. I also put shelves under the stairs like another post I read on this site.

I built a small drafting-type desk for underneath using my new Kreg Jig (Man, I love that thing!). I also made some curtains to pull shut in case Maggie wanted to escape from the world. Chairs, storage containers, flower light, and leaf above bed are from Ikea.

I bought some cheap picture frames, and put a bulletin board in one and a chalkboark in the other for above the bed, and the string hanging across the front of the bed is from Target. It actually has clips to hang artwork.

I painted the bed using Ana's antique finish with the Minwax pen. It came out fantastic.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Antique White paint from Home Depot with Minwax pen finish.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

spiceylg

Tue, 02/26/2013 - 10:00

Your niece and nephew must be over the moon! Another awesome build!

Patio Table with Coolers

Submitted by docfin02 on Sun, 04/26/2015 - 19:19

Basically followed the plan, but added 4x4 legs and used 2x8s for the long ends to make it a little wider.  I used the basic plans for the Farmhouse Bench (http://www.domesticated-engineer.com/2012/05/29/bench-for-farmhouse-tab…) for the bench, but tweaked it to make it match the design of the table.

Estimated Cost
$200-$250
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Outdoor Grill Trolley

Submitted by angiemicn on Sun, 07/24/2011 - 05:39

This started out as the Outdoor Multipurpose Cart....and after my hubbies evergrowing wishlist, it quickly become THE GRILL TROLLEY EXTRAVAGANZA!!!! I added the bulk and the height which he wanted, a John Boos butcher block 24x18, which is removable. Funny thing is, I also sampled Ana's Farmhouse frame to cradle the butcher block! I didn't want to put any holes in the 100 clam butcher block so it has it's own little bedframe. It's totally waterproofed and stained since it's new home will be beside the pool. I used all Kreg joints, so you could sit on this it's so sturdy. I also added 2.5 inch locking casters for the bottom. There's a stainless steel bathroom towel rack which doubles as a handle, lots of hooks for his BBQ paraphenelia, and the most important addition...The Guinness bottle opener. Totally hubby customized. And the best thing> I did it myself, setting it aside whenever a problem arose, but always coming back to it. This was originally a Papa's day present

Estimated Cost
150. (100 of it was just for the upgraded John Boos outdoor reversible butcher block! well worth it!)
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Thompson's Waterseal, Minwax Puritan Pine, 2 coats, but wiped it off very quickly, didn't want it too dark. I didn't want a uniform appearance, so I wet it down, heavier in some areas than others, with water, wiped the stain on, and was taking it off with the other hand.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Trestle Desk with 2x6 laminated top

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 05/07/2023 - 16:31

Started with simple small trestle desk idea. Decided to edge glue the top. Finished with poly and paste wax. Didn’t turn out too bad for the first project.

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Triple Doll Bunk Bed

Submitted by dananryan on Sun, 01/13/2013 - 21:18

My friend's 7 year old daughter custom ordered this bunk bed! She asked for a bunk bed for her 3 dolls and she even picked the color! I had a lot of fun building it and learned a lot in the process. As usual, finishing took longest. Lucky for me, my hubby likes spray painting :-)

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
3 coats of Rustoleum Berry Pink spray paint, sanding btw. coats.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Shoe Dresser

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 04/01/2017 - 08:26

We used the shoe dresser instructions with some modifications to make it longer

Built from Plan(s)
Finish Used
Stain, polyerthane, chalk paint and wax
Recommended Skill Level
Advanced

Chevron headboard

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 04/23/2017 - 15:02

A friend asked me to make a headboard for him as he couldn't find anything online or in store that he really liked. 

I was up for the challenge and always love working with wood to make new and exciting things so, challenge accepted. 

This was my first attempt at a headboard and I think it turned out pretty nice. 

Knotty pine face with a cedar frame. 

Looking forward to my next project! 

Estimated Cost
CA 225.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Dark Walnut stain
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Reclined Back Outdoor Sofa and Chair DIY

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 04/09/2022 - 07:12

OK, I think this build may be my biggest project yet! It is definitely the heaviest. With the strong winds we can get here in Florida we needed substantial outdoor furniture.
I did make some modifications along the way measurement-wise so the sofa would fit my front porch better. All in all, this took 2 full days. I built the sofa first, stained it the next day and then decided (due to trying to get stain in all the nooks and crannies) to stain the chair pieces first before putting it together.
I am so happy with the results and so far, almost a year later, this furniture looks great and hasn't moved an inch in any of the thunderstorms we've had! Thank you Ana!!

Comments

Deck furniture

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 10:59

We used pine for the chairs and table and stained with Cabots black exterior deck stain and sealed with polyacrylic.

Comments

Corner Cupboard

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 11/26/2022 - 06:16

Finally I have made a project that is nice enough for our living room. Now I am so i spired to build more!

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Farmhouse Bed and Night Tables

Submitted by frmoody on Tue, 10/01/2019 - 18:44

A friend of mine wanted a new queen bed in a rustic, weather grey look. I have built many projects from Ana's site and decided on the Farmhouse Bed. The plans were perfect and building the bed didn't take me long. The time consuming part was the finish. I really wanted an old, weather wood look so the entire bed and night tables were first stained with a dark Kona stain. Once this dried I applied two coats of a watered down (50:50) light grey paint. The thinner paint made it easier to sand. Once this was completely dry I used a medium grit sanding sponge and selectively sanded everything. This took a while. Once complete I carefully cleaned all pieces and then applied three coat of semi-gloss varathane. The bed is incredibly solid with the 2 x 4 slats and will last a few generations. As always great plans from Ana.

Estimated Cost
$300 for materials
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Varathane Kona, Beauti-Tone Designer Satin "My Favourite Sweater", Varathane Diamond Finish Water Based Interior Semi-gloss.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Fire Pit Swings

My wife saw something like this on Pinterest and desperately wanted one. The one she saw was hexagonal in shape. We didn't need as many swings so we went with just a plain square shape. We used 6x6s for the legs and posts across the top and used 4x4s for the angled support pieces. We built the swings using the plan from this website. All the materials can be picked up at the blue and orange stores. However when it came to the springs for the swings, the blue store was 1/3 of the price of HD. The legs are 12' long and buried 4' under the ground and cemented in for strength. Luckily I am retired military and was able to rent an auger for 1/2 the price of HD or the blue store. You could do it by hand but it saved us hours and lots of back pain. We found our dimensions for the size we wanted and spray painted dots on the ground where the posts were going to go. We dug the holes and stuffed the 6x6s in them. Using a post level we made sure they were plum. We braced them and added the quickrete and left them to setup over night. The next day we had to make sure all the tops were level with each other. This is where having some knowledge of physics paid off. I took clear tubing and screwed it above the height that I wanted on one post and then screwed the other end to another post. Fill it with water until the water level on the first post is where I wanted it (8 feet high) and it will automatically fill it level on the other end. There is a picture of this above. Water will always level itself out. I had to do this because my yard is at a slight down hill grade. We marked it and cut the tops off to make it level. After attaching the 6x6s on the top with 8" lag bolts it was time to paint. After painting was done we built 3 swings from Ana's plans. We shortened them by 6" to give room to walk between the legs and the swings. All in all it was a great project that only took two dedicated weekends. My wife still has to paint the swings though.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$600ish
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
We used an oil base Black Barn Paint from the blue store.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

jkread

Wed, 05/27/2015 - 22:38

It sounds and looks like the top 6x6s are mitered and sit on top of the end of the vertical posts. I'd say at least one lag bolt each way to hold the mitered corner together and then at least one in each piece down into the vertical to hold it in place.

carewarner

Mon, 04/27/2020 - 10:24

WOW, LOVE!!! This is simply gorgeous! What a warm and welcoming addition to your yard. And thanks for sharing your method of finding level for your posts on your sloped yard. I absolutely love it!

Seasonal And Holiday

Our New Patio Table

This took new novice DIYers about 25 hrs. Also this table is really heavy when complete so build it where you want it to sit or build in it one place and right before you are about to finish move the 3 built peieces separely where you want it to sit and finish assymbling it. Also, when completed this is counter height. We are going to take ours apart abit and shave 6in or so off the legs to be normal table height.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
About $175
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Bear Solid and Semi- Transparent Stain
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Playhouse

Olivia's Playhouse, built by mommy and daddy, though she did "help." Super-thankful to Ana for her awesome plans and making all this possible for our Little One. Modified the door to make it "barn style" which opens top/bottom. In the spring, plan on adding a small front porch/deck and railing.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday

How to Build Simple Raised Garden Beds

Starting with Ana's simple $10 raised garden plans, we built ours to be part of our experiment: Growing Vegetables in Our Driveway. Because our boxes are visible from the street, we made them a bit fancier and sturdier than we would have if they were hidden away in the backyard. An easy, afternoon project - with delicious results!

Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
none
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project
Seasonal And Holiday

Outdoor Sectional

I scaled back the length of the sofa by a few inches and I made the sectional only one seat to fit my space on the deck. This was my first woodworking project that I did by myself. I got the cushions for more than 1/2 off at Ikea so the whole project cost about $150 ($80 for the cushions). It took me about a week to complete but the total time was less than 10 hours to build and stain. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

Estimated Cost
$150
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Pittsburgh Paints Stain & Sealant in One for Decks, Fences, & Siding in Walnut. I brushed on the exterior stain just like a paint. I did the top part of the sofa first, then flipped it over and stained the bottom. Read instructions on the label.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Chicken Coop

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 07/10/2022 - 12:26

Great for a small flock of 5 or less.  

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday
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