Community Brag Posts

Came across your shiplap fireplace and tweaked it a little, not bad for a 64 year old female right? Didn't take a weekend though more like a month but worth it. Thanks for the inspiration.

This is my new couch ,that I built with my husbands help,I could not find a one piece cushion in my area but, I did manage to find individual cushion.I am no expert , but I am learning as I go.

I had my seed starters sitting on a TV stand by my sunny window, which was as ugly as it gets (see before photo...). So, I built this little console for my gardening stuff to sit on while my seedlings are growing. It turned out being the perfect size for what I'm using it for. I only modified it slightly, by adding end pieces to the top (just subtracted 6'' from the length of the top pieces and measured the width of the top to decide the length of the end pieces. I also used pocket holes to attach my bottom shelf pieces and the top shelf pieces, instead of nails. I've never done a 2 tone piece (I love the look of stained wood) so I was nervous about painting over the wood...but I'm really really happy with how it turned out! It was easy to make, and mine was done in an afternoon. Thanks Ana!!

My kitchen drawer wasn't as deep as the one in the tutorial, so I had to use 1x2 hobby poplar instead of 1x3's.  I can't wait to do more drawers!  It's been more than 6 months, and the drawer is still neat and organized.

Wood X Bench with Storage

After spending weeks lurking on the site, I decided to go for it. I have no real experience doing this sort of thing, so everything was a learning experience. I had to invest in a lot of tools but the materials only cost about $100 ($50 in pine from local home store + ~$50 in other materials).

I live in a small apartment, so my workplace was less than ideal. I did a lot of sawing and sanding in the space you see so I made a HUGE mess, but I didn't really have any other choice.

I'm really pleased with the outcome. It isn't perfect, but it doesn't have to be. There are gaps in the planks on the table top, but I can live with it. I didn't follow the plans exactly in order. I built the table top first which allowed me to add removable legs for when it comes time to move. Instead of screwing the legs, I hung hanger bolts and did a nut/bolt setup (as I type this, I realize this was not a necessary step - I could have bolted the legs instead of screwing them in per the stepwise instructions, which would have been easier. Alas, what's done is done!). The picture shows two sets of nuts per bolt, but this is only because I had extra bolts and this ensure that I don't lose them.

I plan on finishing with a polyurethane and building the benches but that will be in the future. My advice to anyone on the fence is to just do it. It's easier than you think and if it doesn't turn out exactly perfect, no big deal. My project goes to show that even with a tiny Chicago apartment, as long as you're willing to make a mess, it can be done. Good luck, thanks for reading!

*sorry my photos are aren't right-side-up - just tilit your head :)

My husband built this for one of the recruiters in his station for his retirement from the Army after 20 yrs of service.

I built one bench originally, but quickly decided that I had to build the complete set. I painted the base of the table and the benches with Valspar Duramax Barnwood and the table top Valspar Duramax custom matched to my garage shutters. The only part of the project that I really needed help was carrying the table to the patio. 

Thanks again Ana (and Brook) for a wonderful plan!

Simple but beautiful!

I needed 3 stools for my kids to eat breakfast at the counter. These were perfect.

I already owned the fabric so I only needed to purchase the wood and the foam. I made it entirely out of furring strips so it was really inexpensive.

I took me a couple of hours to build and sand all 3.

Modified version of the Ana White Triple Pedestal Farmhouse Table. Table top is made of 1in alder while the base is made of construction grade 2x4 and 2x6 lumber. 

We followed Ana's "Toddler's Upholstered Bed" plan nearly exactly. The only major change I made was to add fancy looking french country legs I found at the local hardware store. They were screw in, so I used metal screw guides that popped right in after a little pre-drilling. I included some pictures to help explain this variance to help give others ideas. Thanks so much for these plans Ana!

Took a couple of weeks to complete but, hubby only worked on it in the evenings after he got off work. He had trouble finding untreated 4x4s so he glued untreated 2x4s together (which took extra time waiting for the glue to set up and dry). He used paint grade pine wood so our cost was a little higher than what was estimated. We ended up having around $350 in it after buying paint and everything. Overall, he said it was a fairly easy project.

Made this over a weekend.  It did take a week to apply the final finish to protect it.