Community Brag Posts

Building this Jewelry Cabinet was really fun and easier than I expected. I made one to give away as a birthday gift, could not resist making another to keep. I don't really have that much jewelry, I just think its gorgeous! I loved the look of the original posted project, that I wanted to duplicate it just as it was.

Weekend Project :)

I built this table be ie for a medical student w hi o wanted a standing desk. It’s a basic butcher block design ( my own design) and made from pine 2x10’s. I’m a self taught novice woodworker.

It is a great storage bench. It took me a while to finish it because I made the decision to make the storage area deeper to 4.5 inches without thinking about how that would change the side panels. So I had some adjusting to do. I took my medicine and moved on. I was going to use the bench in the garage to store tools but it came out so well that now I may find a place in the house. Great bench and very sturdy. I was going to paint it entirely black but the idea of the flip top being a different color hit me and I kinda like it. If I do it over I would go with black hinges, which I can still do.

I modified this plan to allow for interior storage space within the shelving. Rather than nailing the front board on, I attached two lower hinges so that it functions as a drop-down panel. The front panel then secures to the top board with a centrally located screw-in hook and eye (not visible if the top of your ledge is above eye-level).

I took the Rustic X Console plans and used some rouch sawn pine and hemlock from a reclaimed lumber yard. We left some of the character (nail holes, saw marks, imperfections) in the table top for a more rustic look. 

I have been planning to build the apothecary media console, but my desire for a new hall table and shoe storage won out. So...I transferred the look, and I love it! I wanted a vintage feel so I added legs, apothecary drawer fronts and knobs, a 2x10 top, and a distressed finish.

I needed a bigger kid play room table because my girls have outgrown our play table and chairs from IKEA. We have a window seat, and it seems the consensus is that pedestal tables are the best for window seats, but they're not really my style. I let the big kid pick one, and she chose the triple pedestal farmhouse table! I obviously couldn't follow the plans for that, so I more used them for inspiration, and lessened the size of everything. **UPDATE** I posted plans for this modification here.

I have refinished wood, but this was the first time I ever built something from scratch with my own two hands. I have always loved ladder shelves and loved the idea of having a ladder style desk. I looked for plans and couldn't find any. I had to get rid of an old desk and the day I threw it out, I found Ana White's plans. For nearly the same price as the particle board ones sold at stores, I figured I could buy all the tools and materials to do it myself and customize it....and then i would have the tools to use on future projects. As a beginner with no technique or skill, working between overtime hours, it took me about 2 weeks to finish. I had to work on it in stages. Cutting the boards all the exact same length was by far my biggest challenge. I even had a Home Depot employee cut me two extra pieces and he couldn't even get them perfect. A stop block really would have made this a lot easier. I stuck very closely to the plans except I made my book shelves 18" wide to accommodate my printer. I also added a slide out tray under the desk shelf (not in picture). I made quite a few mistakes, but the finished project looks amazing in my living room. I should have taken another picture after it was all set up with my desk supplies. This picture doesn't do it justice. I love it so much, I may just build another one to serve as an entertainment center on the opposite wall.

These were made for a charity auction and ended up selling for much more then I expected.
I was suprised and how strong the chairs ended up being. I'm thinking of making another table chair set only with 4 chairs and a longer table.

With the new addition to the family it seems that most holidays everyone in the family will be coming to our house. So with that in mind we needed a new table to fit everyone. Ana you great website has pulled me out of a jam yet again. Finding the plans for this table was a life saver. Hope you all enjoy!

For the finish I found a website that showed me how to mix steel wool, vinegar and tea together to make a beautiful stain. It took a couple coats and a couple days to dry but I think it turned out great. Even though it was kind of scary at first when it started to turn shades of green rather than a dark color but after the stain soaked in and it dried it turned out the way i wanted it.

Oak Plywood and Oak Trim

We just love your work and detailed plans!

Hubby and I built the Console Unit and now the Base Units and plan to add on the hutches. We built the units only 30" tall vs. the 34-1/2" height from the plans. We used oak plywood and oak trim and finished it with a Minwax Fruitwood Stain and Minwax Polyurethane Seal. My hubby loves to make You Tube videos and made one of our work and posted it at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtB6LK1xEHg

Keep up the great work and we plan to post more pics!

A friend contacted me about building a custom sized desk to coordinate with a set of dressers that she purchased used (I refinished them years before). We started with the Simple Modern desk (more in overall look), but made some changes away from "Modern" such as the bases, overhanging and routed top and trim on the side aprons. The legs of the desk aren't solid 4x4, but1x4s and 1x3 furring strips kreg jig'd and sanded till nearly seamless. The support under the desktop was redesigned to create a large, single drawer faced as two. The top is made from pine boards edge joined together. The two "bases" combined, have 96 pieces of trim to create this look. It was alot of work to get some tiny pieces just right, but well worth it in the end.

There are two comparison pictures uploaded. the photoshopped photo is the inspirational photo that came with the "Can you build me one of these?" and the second is the side by side with one of the dressers I was asked to compliment.

At 4 ft by 2 ft, she says its the perfect size for her home office laptop.

Overall, I was pretty surprised about how different of a turn this desk could take in style as I went from bare to adding the trim. Perhaps it can inspire others as well.

This project was desperately desired and needed! We had old wire shelving which previous owners of the home had installed improperly and were falling off the wall. This took about 6 weeks from start to finish, but I am SO happy with the results. Unfortunately, here in south Florida, our homes are built with metal studs which are more often than not spaced all over the place. So, attaching anything to a wall securely is next to impossible. I believe I've gotten things as securely attached as possible and things seem to be holding up really well. The icing on the cake was my mother-in-law purchasing 100 Huggable Hangers for me for my birthday! The OCD in me was ecstatic! Anyhow, thanks Ana for the great plans and helping bring custom organization to our homes!

This project was a success!! I had a week of vacation that I dedicated to this great project! The directions were easy to follow...thank you Ana! 

I managed to get the slide from someone's outdoor play set that they were giving away :)  I secured it to the side of the upper level. It's been the kids favorite part!