Community Brag Posts

Farmhouse King Bed Frame

Since developing a love for woodworking I’ve began building things for other people. This particular bed frame I built for a couple who are rebuilding their home after it unfortunately burned down. It’s a beautiful farmhouse home out in the country, and this bed frame fits perfectly in their new home.

Estimated Cost
$250
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
I used minwax pre-stain to prepare the wood. I then stained it using special walnut by Varathane (got it from The Home Depot). Finally, I finished it using a clear satin polyurethane by Minwax.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Command Center

We built this command center to hang in our kitchen so that we can organize incoming papers and jot notes on the chalkboard portion. Also a hook for keys!

Estimated Cost
Less than $50
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Flat paint and primer in one; chalkboard paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

fancy x farmhouse table-first timer!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 04/10/2016 - 22:31

These wood plans were great! Easy to follow and an awesome first project for my hubby and I to build together. Only hitch for us was by choosing to make the longer bench we didn't check the placement of the feet before attaching it. When we were done we weren't able to push the benches under the table so we had to redo that step.

Estimated Cost
$120
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
We used two coats of minxwax red oak 215 stain and 3 coats of minwax semi gloss polyurethane.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Bar Height Outdoor Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 08/27/2023 - 12:42

We had this unused lower deck and this bar height table was the perfect addition. We have place now to hang when too hot or it’s raining. My husband and I built it in one weekend and your plans where great.

Julie Moran

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday

Standing Desk

This is my very first build which was inspired by this website. I have been wanting to build something for a while but was pretty scared. In any case, my husband really wanted a standing desk for our office corner in our little house. After browsing forever and not finding anything I liked in store I decided to build. The entire project was built from materials we had laying around in the shed (1 - 1x2, 4- 2x4 and 3- 2x8 pieces for the desk top).

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
10$
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Wood-Sheen stain and Glossy White paint
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

X Console Table

Submitted by Bob_Ross on Mon, 01/20/2014 - 18:25

This was my first Ana White project, and i'm hooked! this was a lot of fun, and i've already done several other projects since.

As with any of these, the straighter and flatter the wood, the better the whole thing goes!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
100
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
rustoleom kona and minwax satin poly
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Corner nursery book shelves

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 04/13/2016 - 17:53

Gallery ledge book shelves in the nursery

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
White semi gloss
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Double Outdoor Chair with Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 09/01/2023 - 15:34

Good morning, I took this double chair with table and made it my own. Adding bigger arm rests and table top. This chair is so comfortable and sturdy. Totally love all your projects. Keep up the awesome work. Thanks agin

Workbench Console

Submitted by old_man on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 10:31

I saw this and thought I would give it a try. First time building furniture out of dimensional lumber. Worked out for the most part. I forgot that wood dries and shrinks along its width so there are a few small gaps that eventually appeared in between the boards. I am sure they will disappear once summer's humid air arrives. All in all it was pretty straight forward. I switched which side has the towel bar and I modified the bottom shelf to accommodate wine bottles for easy storage. I had fun.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$80ish more if you have to buy stains and can't use scraps for the little pieces of wood.
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax dark walnut stain with 3 coats of gloss poly.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

DIY Faux Mantle /Fireplace

When I first saw Mimi's Faux Mantle I dreamed about building one for my house but I didn't know where. When I began renovating my Master Bedroom I found the perfect place for it on a bare uninteresting wall.

To add interest to the mantle, I stained the top and attached a faux hearth using a 1x12 painted the same color as the rest of the mantle. I also Diy'd a distressed mirror glass insert to bounce the lighting off. I added low voltage LED lights too.
It turned out better than I expected.

Visit my blog http://thepursuitofhandyness.com for a full tutorial of the building process and the distressed mirror glass.

Estimated Cost
$25.00 - $75.00
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Behr Silky White in Satin & Rustoleum Ultimate Stain in Early American mixed with Dark Walnut. Sealed with Rustoleum Ultimate Polyurethane in Satin.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

2x single lounger Simple Modern collection

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 04/17/2016 - 11:53

Thank you for a very clear tutorial. Only challenge was the hinges but managed OK. I changed the position of the legs and chose some bit thicker tree and rounded the bottoms to make it more steady and easier to move around.

Estimated Cost
600 DKK (90 dollars) its a bit more expensive in Europe
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
None, will let nature take over. Will wash it once in a while
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Greenhouse Build

Submitted by Chris Rose on Tue, 12/31/2019 - 18:43

A microburst storm destroyed my first green house (last pic). I wanted something that would be stronger, I found Ana's plan and built a replacement. Was able to recycle some of the metal channels and panels from the destroyed one to cover the end sections and the door.

Modified Laundry Basket

Submitted by LizGar on Tue, 04/10/2012 - 11:32

I modified the laundry basket dresser that you made. Here's the end result :) I allowed the baskets to hang out farther that the side due to limited space for the built in "cabinet." You can not see it in the photo, but we then wrote "dirty" in red on one end of each basket so that I know easily which baskets contain clean unfolded clothes and how much laundry I still need to do. Each person has their own "hamper" basket in their room that gets put into here when it's full and they replace it with an empty one from the rack. It's been working like a charm!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
* 3 bent metal T brackets (pre-bent) to attach the long board to the wall.
* 16 2x2s each 16 inches long - color matched a quart of paint to match the tall white board - I painted these on three sides before I attached them to the wall and the long white board
* 15"x8ft white board sold in the lumber department
* 16 screws with anchors for the drywall side
* 16 screws that are approximately 2 inches long (check this, because my memory is fuzzy on how long was too long and would poke holes through the white board)

Then just follow the plans for the dresser. The 2x2s will hang off the back of the tall white board by about an inch, but to finish that off you can just add a nice piece of trim (I have not done that yet).
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Sweet pea bunk beds

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 04/18/2016 - 22:49

Sweet pea bunk beds

Built from Plan(s)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Loft Cabin Bunk Bed

Best Christmas present according to my 4-year-old twins :)  I combined ideas from Jen Woodhouse's "cabin bed" and "loft cabin bed" after seeing another brag post from someone who had turned it into a bunk bed.  I added a separate platform for the lower mattress for uniformity and to provide some air circulation for the mattress.  I also opted for a 2x6 as the bottom weight-bearing beam because I wanted to be able to add an extra couple pocket screws since this mama likes to play in the top bunk too!  My girls took turns sleeping in the top/bottom for the first 2 nights, and have been camping out together in the top bunk ever since... and my husband and I are finally getting to sleep in on the weekends because they never want to come out of their room!  

 

**Side note -- I'm not sure how my pictures got flipped but I have no idea how to fix it!

Finish Used
3 coats of white primer + paint in satin finish for the main house
Varathane weathered grey for roof & stairs
Rustoleum "Chalked" in charcoal for window trim

Comments

Twinkies' mom

Fri, 10/02/2020 - 09:33

I am SO sorry but I haven't been on here since I posted the bunkbeds (almost 9 months ago!) I had written out all of my modified measurements on the Jen Woodhouse plans but have since lost it somewhere in my garage :( Here is what I can tell you at the moment: short side of "front" & "back" panels = 77.25" ; I kept the angles on the sides/roof the same, so the highest point of roof = 89" (I have short 8' ceilings so this leaves ~7" space up top). I used what I believe were 5" tongue & groove flooring panels instead of plywood for all sides, framed by 2x4s and 2x6 underneath for a little extra support. The height from the bottom of the top bunk to the floor is 38", and I added a 2x6 piece between the bottom legs of the 2 side pieces, flush with the outside edge. I built a rectangular frame for the bottom mattress using 2x6" on the long sides and 2x4 on the short sides -- the 2x4s are raised off the floor in order to allow for air circulation under the mattress and act as the end slats (they're flush on top with the rest of the slats, which I used 2x4s instead of the 1x in the plans)... instead of the 2x2 supports for the mattresses I used some scrap 2x3s from my kids old toddler beds which I had also built but tried to recycle as much of the wood as I could for this project, plus the 2x6 gave me a little more wiggle room -- if you use 2x4 you won't have space for 2x3 supports. The front "door" opening is 22.75", which I based on my size and me being able to get in and out easily (as mentioned above, I like to camp out with my kids sometimes!). The window openings are 12" w x 13.5" h, but the height is measured after I made a 1x3" window ledge which is flush with the inside of the wall; the rest of the windows are framed with 1x2s and 1x3s.
The full width of the side panels is 38" and the front/back are 78.5" -- I based these on the mattresses which I had already bought (Novaform twin from Costco -- since they're memory foam they're a little easier to "squeeze" in the top bunk than I would imagine a regular mattress would be).

I think that covers everything, sorry again about replying so late!

Twinkies' mom

Fri, 10/02/2020 - 09:42

2 more things:
The bottom "frame" was meant to be removable for easy assembly/disassembly as my family moves a lot! That is why I used the inner 2x4s to hold the long side rails together, and the short-side 2x6s which are attached to the side frames are merely fore the illusion that it's all one piece. I did place a couple 2.5" screws through the inside of the 2x4s right into the legs of the upper bunk to make sure it stays in place.
When building the front panels with the windows, I decided on door opening first, then window opening (based on the size of the tongue & groove flooring), then calculated the width of all the pieces to create the window opening. I used pocked holes to connect the tongue & groove flooring to the "frame" created by the 2x4 pieces, and TONS of wood glue in between the boards. Adding the window frames with glue & nails helped provide a little more stability to the windows, although once the glue was dry there was zero movement around the window but I never know with my extremely-destructive twins! Now they're able to climb all over the bunk using the window ledge for support and it's no problem.

My Take on the Benchwright Console Table

Unfortunately, I just finished building this console table two weeks before Ana and Jim's plans went up on the web site! What I wouldn't have given for the plans! Without the plans, my dad helped me modify the Tryde Console Table to look more like Pottery Barn's Benchwright Console Table, but it was definitely a labor of love (and took me three months to complete, primarily due to lack of motivation and bad weather in Chicago). But I am so pleased with the final result! Because my console table is based off the Tryde project plan, I used 4x4s for the legs, and 2x2s/2x4s for the top. Some of the wood came from other projects, including the loft bed my dad built for me nearly 15 years ago! The bottom shelf is a 1x12 that has been cut with a jigsaw to "perfectly" fit around the posts. I say "perfectly" because I definitely had to use some wood filler around three of the posts! The drawers were the hardest part, and where I really could have used a plan! They are much smaller than they appear from the outside - I used 1x2s for the sides, then attached a 1x6 face to match the sides and back of the console table. Both drawers are firmly held in place by metal drawer slides, which means I don't have to worry about the drawer falling out because it's been overloaded with glassware (as you can see, the console was a late holiday present for my partner, who is using it as his bar). I should have used a thicker piece of plywood on the bottom, because as you can see, the screws attached to the drawer slides protrude. It's nothing we can't live with though! We really wanted the piece to look older than it is (hence why we purposely chose knotty boards), and with some many reclaimed boards, I knew the stain would have to be dark. We chose a Red Oak Minwax stain and applied it once to the legs (pine) and twice to everything else (mostly whitewood). Two coats of Deft later, and we love the result. It looks exactly the way we hoped it would and we love the mix of dark and light shades.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$175 - $200
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Minwax Red Oak stain (satin)
Deft Clear Wood Finish (satin)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Lady Goats

Sat, 04/14/2012 - 11:32

I'm impressed that you figured that all out on your own, but moreso with the finish! That's probably one of the best finishes I've seen yet, and I'm not usually a fan of medium toned wood! Very nice!

spiceylg

Sat, 04/14/2012 - 16:24

I prefer the chunkier look of these legs. This is beautiful! Totally looks store bought!

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