picture ledge
A great way to display books in the kids playroom. So easy to make.
A great way to display books in the kids playroom. So easy to make.
This was my first project using an Ana White plan. I thought the plans were easy to understand and follow which made the project go smooth. I am a fan of painted and distressed furniture so I went with that look for this project. After painting the tables I used a hand sander to scuff up the corners and then added "worm holes" using a hammer and nail.
I used the plans from your site to build this table for a friend. I made a couple of little design changes just to make it look different. The plans were very easy to follow, and I had a lot of fun putting this together. I did have a small problem with the pine stock wanting to bow and twist, but that was taken care of with the planer and sander.
Followed the overall plan to build the console for my daughter's birthday. Made several modifications including using (3) 2 X 6 inch pine boards attached using Kreg pocket hole screws for a seamless and sturdy top; substituted barn door hardware rollers with Barton Kramer 1-1/2 in. Patio Door Wheels providing a smooth glide and budget friendly alternative; added more partitions to accommodate extra shelving; and utilized u shaped brackets lined with felt to keep barn doors in line.
Used Kreg pocket holes to assemble the unit which gave us the ability to easily transport this rather heavy and
6-foot large console. My daughter was extremely pleased and actually many of her friends wanted to know where she bought the unit. This was truly a rewarding experience and confidence builder for me and my wife.
I chose to adjust the great design to have a free standing tree with backing and a live bark base. Fun project.
Chip Brown
This was a pretty quick and easy project. My third one from this site, as well as being my third one ever. We rented a mitre saw to cut the wood (and cut wood for a few more projects we had on the go at the same time), and then it was just a matter of staining it and putting it together. The staining and waiting for it to dry actually took a couple of weeks, mostly because we don't have a lot of room to do that, so couldn't do it all at once, and it wouldn't stop raining. Once we actually had that done, drilling and assembling only took 2-3 hours at most. (Maybe even less, but hard to judge as I had two children helping the whole time.)
I've put a video of it in use on my blog as well. :)
Day one...Two of us making cuts and starting headboard and footboard.
Day two...Working solo, had to get creative in order to add posts and 24 and 26 to top of headboard. Sanding and staining complete.
Day three...Two of us again. Built frame and added slats using decking brackets rather than screws for ease in disassembly. Attached headboard and rails with bolts.
Only issue not specified in plans was how to attach frame to footboard. But we made it work.
Thanks, Ana!!
Thanks Anna, great design great plan. My first attempt at a chair. Was a lot of fun , just have to build 5 more, my wife loves it.
Bob
Duluth MN
Tue, 04/28/2020 - 09:21
Thank you so much for building and sharing a brag post! Looks great! Can't wait to see the other 5!
DIY Outdoor Console Table
My sister wanted this to go with the Simple Outdoor Chairs I had built her for her birthday. I added a 2x4 between each leg to make it more stable and shortened it by one slat to fit the cushion. This was very easy to build and would make a great beginner project.
I found this plan while looking for a entertainment center, I had never built such a large piece of furniture. After reading thru plans I decided to build my first. Plans were simple, yet effective. I did make some modifications on the fly. I didn't want to go with the panel look so I replaced side panels with 1/4 plywood routered into outer legs (cleaner look than nailing to inside). Also went with glass doors(partially frosted to hid junk stored inside). I deleted the drawers and placed shelfs instead for tv components.
My advice to anyone making this is to be really careful when building main frame of cabinet and check square-ness several times and when applying wood strips around door jams careful measuring openings for consistency top to bottom and side to side. This will make hanging doors much easier. I learned the hard way, had to make some adjustments when hanging door. Also have hinges you plan on using on hand so as to measure thinkness of desired hinge to check clearance of door.
July 2016: We recently moved and the corner cupboard we purchased several years was too tall for the new house. I needed a new storage solution for our kid's arts & crafts, games, and funny business materials. Of course, Ana and her corner cupboard saved the day! Thank you! The kids have a great place to store their business and mom and dad can finally recycle all of the cardboard boxes stacked dangerously in the corner.
Our corner cupboard was adapted from Ana's Corner Cupboard plan. The height was increased to 84", adjusted the dimensions for increase heights including the shelf spacing, doors on top and bottom to hide messes, used 1x12 for spine of the cupboard and shelves.
Thank you Ana!
I built this for our two year old, who absolutely loves it. We really like the rustic look, and it's a very sturdy bed. This is a weekend project if you don't have young children. If you do, and you have limited free time like we do, it's more like a month-long here-and-there project ;) Try to get the flattest boards possible, so you don't have to spend a lot of time jointing and planing to correct any twists or warping. We chose to mount the step a little higher than Ana's plan, but aside from that everything is to her plan's spec. Thanks for the great plan, Ana!
Fireplace! Live in Florida and wife wanted a fireplace next to Christmas tree. Ana plans are the best.
I have been redoing furniture for quite some time, but had never actually thought of making my own furniture, until I ran across Ana's blog. Now I am so addicted! My husband is very handy with his tools and can follow plans fairly easily (unlike me) so I definitely had to enlist his help with this project. We are stationed overseas in Germany so our project costs us a bit more than it would have if we were stateside, but still quite a bit cheaper than purchasing the similar one at Pottery Barn.Since it was our first project it did take us a bit longer than normal, but still easy enough to do. I absolutely love how this turned out and now my husband and I are ready for our next project of a rustic console table that we made our own plans for.
I have boys that share a room and we needed some sturdy twin beds. My wife looked online and found some on potterybarn.com or crateandbarrel.com for $425 each and that's before shipping. I told her I could make them for half that. The plans were pretty straight forward. The finishing (sanding, sanding and more sanding - then painting) was the hardest and longest part. I would recommend an electric palm or disc sander. It will be your best friend. I used 100 grit and then moved to 120 to sand all of the wood. I did this after I made all of the cuts and before I assembled. Seemed to make it easier. We decided to paint them to go with the colors in the room. The bed is very heavy and sturdy. I made both beds at the same time, which cost me right at $300. Clock hours was about 20-22 from beginning to end and it took me a little longer than a weekend since I was working around weekend soccer games and birthday parties.
This project was inspired by the featured Diamond Tufted Ottoman plan. I combined the top with a customized plan inspired by the Cameron Coffee Table from World Market and Ana White's tutorial on how to create a weathered stain look like Restoration Hardware.
Tue, 07/26/2016 - 05:41
I'd like to build this piece. Are the plans available?
Honoring the physical distancing brought the challenge to redirect time and allowed me to create something to add more comfort to the deck. Thank you for the plans and specific directions!
Our daughter lives in a small attic apartment that doesn't have much counter space or cupboard space in the kitchen. So my husband and I designed and build her a kitchen island for more usable space and a place on the back she can put stools and she can use it as an eating bar as well. It took us almost 2 weeks because we were trying to build it in the garage below her apartment when she wasn't home. Her reaction was perfection! It turned out so great!!!
Rob and Jen Smith
My girls wanted a bunk bed badly! I was shocked to see the prices shopping around at local furniture stores. So I made one :)
Bed is constructed with all pine wood and stained with Kona color stain. I added a few fun things like a window and a tent on top. These were really simple. Email me if you have any questions.
These potting benches were so fun to make! The plans are well-written and easy to follow. My friend and I had a blast!