Community Brag Posts

Arhaus inspired bookshelf

 Awesome rustic book case that was inspired by an Arhaus table. It is a fun twist on a traditional  book shelf with  tons of character! 

Estimated Cost
$55 -$75
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Briarsmoke Stain "Varathane"
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Skiki Bar

Submitted by pArtpunk on Sat, 06/20/2020 - 09:15

I'm calling this a Skiki Bar which is a word play on Tiki bar. It is based on the Simple Rolling Cart design. I used my own dimensions according to the width of cross-country skis. I have a large number of these old skis for projects. They are sold for very cheap at garage sales, etc. The top of the bar is made from boards that I had removed from an Adirondack chair set, which I had made Ski chairs with. So those were already stained and they matched the stain I used on the pine 2x4 frame of this Skiki Bar. I already had a pair of wheels laying around so I only had to buy 2 more of the same size. The pictures were taken before I installed a shelf on the bottom with some scrap plywood I had in my garage.

I estimated the time to factor in how long it takes to stain all the boards and let them dry.

On the left edge I installed a Ski bottle opener I made.

I estimated my cost on what I bought that I didn't already have. I bought the pine 2x4's (also a 1x4, 1x6), Construction Screws, Stainless Steel Screws (For attaching skis), and 2 wheels.

I already had: Skis, Bar top boards, 2 wheels, deck screws (attaching the bar top boards from underneath), stain, clear coat, wood glue and tools.

My next project is to make Ski bar stools. Thanks for having a look at my design!

Estimated Cost
30
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Pittsburgh Paints & Stains Ultra Advanced Stain & Sealant in One for the pine 2x4s and shelf. For the bar top boards that were already stained I applied a coat of Minwax Helmsman Indoor/Outdoor Spar Urethane.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Painters shelf

Submitted by Krissymia on Fri, 08/17/2012 - 06:47

Whew! I am a total novice. I have never used a saw in my life, but with a little bit of instruction from my husband i was able to do it almost completely on my own. Even as a beginner i could have finished it in a full day, but i was trying to work on it during my daughters naps so it took almost a week!

Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Using Commonly Lost Garage Spaces for Storage

Submitted by lookitsash on Thu, 09/08/2016 - 11:52

I recently spotted a little gem in the garage - a little space in between the garage doors. It was perfect for building a modular system of small French cleat box shelves. I made them all using scrap wood. I even had extra scrap wood to make a battery charging station in another narrow gap on the wall. You can read all the details about my latest storage adventure on my blog:

 

http://www.justmeasuringup.com/blog/using-commonly-lost-garage-spaces-for-storage

 

I'm on high alert for more areas like this that get overlooked easily, and am just waiting for more inspiration to strike!

Estimated Cost
$0 for me as I used all scrap wood, but you're not as lucky, under $20 in lumber
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
none used, but a nice stain or paint could add some more visual appeal
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Sofas for our patio

I adapted these from Ana's plans for the one-armed sofa a couple years ago and they have held up very well in our desert heat. Found the seat cushions on closeout at Target and made the back cushion covers myself.

Boat Shaped Planter

Submitted by Saf37y on Wed, 04/03/2024 - 07:39

boat planter

A fleet of 3 wooden boat planters built in the traditional style of a clinker creel boat (Orkney Longliner).

Alex

Playhouse Loft Bed with stairs

This was my first major project I built from this site. I would say that I am a beginner builder with only a little experience building small things. This was my first big project and I built it piece by piece over the course of a few months. This was my 4 year old's birthday gift. I bought my first Kreg Jig Jr. (I already want the master system!) and got a lot of confidence by doing this project. It was pretty straight forward, although the painting and sanding took way longer than I thought! I pretty much stuck to the plans and did not change much. The only thing I did was add hand hole cut outs on the stairs and I chose not to cut out a side window because that side was against a wall anyways. I am SO excited about this project and will be posting MANY MORE builds from here.

Estimated Cost
$250
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Sand entire project. Primer coat followed by waterbased paint. I used a spray gun with many light coats.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Will (not verified)

Sun, 10/21/2012 - 22:14

Great job dude! I bet your daughter loves it. I am going to start building one for my nephews this week, hopefully it looks half as good as yours!

Conner side table - first build

My first build. Built two of these for less than $50 and four hours. Finished the top with dark brown Polyshades and the bottom with off white satin paint. Borrowed my dad's mitre saw and and drill. Can't wait to do more.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

X-style coffee and end table

My mother wanted something to match the table she got for under her TV, and I found the plans here for the x-style coffee table and small end table to be very fitting. The crosses were pretty difficult with just a hand saw, but with the help of my brother in law we got these done in a few days.

Estimated Cost
$100-150 for both with paint
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Valspar - the perfect white
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Backpack Locker Cabinet

Submitted by jwerne2 on Thu, 08/23/2012 - 09:04

Thank you so much, Ana, for posting these plans. My husband built the storage locker in a few hours last Saturday. Our only modification was to use beadboard for the backing instead of plywood, and to switch out the 1x12's for 1x16 project panels to add depth so the backpacks will fit. I love how it turned out and now there is no more tripping over backpacks! I can't wait for our next project.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Valspar Latex Paint, Furniture Wax
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Kitchen Island

Submitted by kharris on Sat, 06/14/2014 - 00:16

Our new 1970s Hawaiian house had never been renovated. It has beautiful redwood walls, but felt dark with a lot of walls dividing the kitchen from the living and dining rooms. They were partial walls, so we removed them and decided to add an island to divide the kitchen from the dining room.

I actually built this twice, the first time at bar height and the second one I altered to be counter height to match the existing cabinets. Since the kitchen is open to the living room and dining room, we thought it would look cleanest if the counters were all at the same height. (We saved my first build and I now use it as a workbench).

I also removed the corbels from the plan and closed in the center wine rack. Lastly, instead of feet, I added 2X4 to the bottom to create a toe kick on one side. The top of the island is Corian and the paint color is Benjamin Moore Marina Bay.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$400
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Benjamin Moore Marina Gray, Eggshell
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

DIY Custom End Tables Set

Submitted by Luis Mqz on Mon, 09/12/2016 - 20:50

I build just one piece for my wife and she love it and ask me for build another one so I just build it and add a triangle table more for surprise her,The ""X'' design I take of this website and the legs and dimension and style is my own design 3 corner 45 with the router and and Front drawer is decorative (fake)

 

Estimated Cost
I just spend $75 Dlls
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Red Mahogany Minwax Stain and to coats of clear semi gloss Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane Indoor Outdoor for more durability
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Vintage Crate

I left off the casters, but added a one inch foam pad covered with outdoor material to make an ottoman. I made sure the top was removable so we could also use it as storage. I've got a little material left over to make a matching throw pillow.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$13 for the wood, $7 for the handles and $5 for the material. All other material I had on hand
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax stain and polyurethane semi-gloss
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Library console table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 11:09

My husbannd has built a handful of things using Ana's plans, but this was my first time doing everything on my own (aside from asking where to find the wood filler in our messy garage).  It was super easy to cut and put together and turned out perfectly for my girls nights stand/book shelf.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Camp Loft Bed with Stair

Thank you for this plan! We had a blast building this project and watching our daughter's expression once she saw it complete made it all worth while! She has a very small bedroom and this bed allows her so much more floor space now plus it has the "fort" feeling. She loves it! Thanks, Ana!

Estimated Cost
0
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Natural
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Modified Rustic X Kitchen Island

Submitted by palmer225 on Sat, 06/21/2014 - 07:58

This is a my take on the Rustic X Kitchen Island. I couldn't find an island that was the right size for my space, so I modified this plan to fit. It is 24x42. I built the slat shelves, drawers, and side boards to go the full width of the piece. I also made the top by ripping 2x8's, and joining them with Kreg pocket holes and wood glue. Instead of using casters, I just cut the legs a little bit longer. This thing is pretty heavy and does not move. After it was in use, I added some additional 12" deep shelves. I finished it by hand rubbing with General Finishes Gel Stain in Brown Mahogany and their Gel Topcoat.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$150 ($50 of that for the General Finishes products)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
General Finishes Brown Mahogany and Gel Topcoat.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Bench Right Coffee table

Submitted by Nick862 on Wed, 09/21/2016 - 00:07

This was my first real project and I am happy with how it turned out. 

Estimated Cost
80.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Chest of Drawers

This is a 10-drawer cabinet that I designed and built. It's the first woodworking project I've ever undertaken. It took about 2 weeks to complete the build (between bedroom remodeling and this project), but I think it can easily be completed in half the time. The cabinet carcass was built with 3/4" plywood. The drawers were built using 1/2" plywood. The drawer bases are also 1/2" thick as I intend to store some heavy items in these drawers. The drawers all measure 23" in outside length and 17" in outside width. The bottom 4 drawers measure 10" deep (internal dimension). The top 4 drawers measure 3" deep and the 2 remaining drawers measure 6" deep (internal dimensions). The drawer banks (Each vertical set of drawers) are separated by a 1.5" thick center wall (glued two 3/4" plywood boards) to allow fastening of drawer slides using 3/4" truss head screws. All joints on the cabinet carcass and drawers are glued and pocket screwed (512 pocket holes all told). Having the Kreg K4MS pocket hole jig was a time saver compared to the Kreg R3 jig that I had before as I was able to "assembly line" the pocket hole drilling process. The drawer fronts were designed to be flush with the outsides of the cabinet and have a 1/8" gap between drawers (both vertically and horizontally) and were made out of 3/4" plywood. They were then veneered with White Oak Veneer sheet and edge banding

Estimated Cost
Around $250
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
The chest was finish sanded to 400-grit and then stained with Varethane Golden Oak stain (2 coats), followed by 2 coats of Fast Drying Satin Polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate
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