Fancy X Farmhouse Bench

farmhouse bench with three legs and supports
Difficulty
Intermediate
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Free plans to build a Fancy X Farmhouse Bench! Step by step instructions with diagrams from ana-white.com

Build the matching Fancy X Farmhouse Table and browse our catalog of Farmhouse Furniture plans.

Happy Monday! Here's hoping you had an awesome weekend! And especially hoping you were able to fit some DIY time in! 

One of our most popular tables is the Fancy X Farmhouse table plans

A table this beautiful deserves a matching bench plan.

This table and bench was built by Whitney from Shanty2Chic.   

"I was so excited to finally tackle the benches for the outdoor table. It's been well over 100 degrees here for a long time, and I had no desire to even walk outside! The temperature dropped, and I immediately told Ana I was ready. She delivered and I LOVE them! The style is a perfect compliment to the already awesome table. I built both in about 3 hours and stained them the next day. Total cost... $35 a bench! Wahoo! Thanks so much Ana!

$35 and 3 hours and you could have yourself a new Fancy X Bench! This is why I love DIY! And you can get what you want too!

Different Length Bench Options

For this plan, we choose to build the benches just a tad short of the table so they slide underneath. But you can also build the benches the full table length as well - I've included notes in the plan to help you easily adjust this plan to fit!

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Fancy X Farmhouse Bench

Dimensions
diagram showing dimensions for the fancy x farmhouse bench
Dimensions shown above.

Preparation

Shopping List

SHOPPING LIST FOR 63" LONG BENCH

3 – 2x6 @ 6 feet long

1 – 2x4 @ 3 feet long

3 – 2x2 @ 8 feet long

2 – 1x2 @ 8 feet long

1 – 1x3 @ 8 feet long

SHOPPING LIST FOR 96"LONG BENCH

3 – 2x6 @ 8 feet long

1 – 2x4 @ 3 feet long

3 – 2x2 @ 8 feet long

2 – 1x2 @ 8 feet long

1 – 1x3 @ 8 feet long

Cut List

LEGS FOR ALL BENCH LENGTHS

3 – 2x4 @ 11 ¼”

12 – 2x2 @ 6” (long point to long point, both ends cut at 45 degrees off square, NOT parallel)

6 – 1x2 @ 13 ½”

8 – 2x2 @ 16 ½” (long point to long point, both ends cut at 45 degrees off square, ends NOT parallel)

6 – 1x2 @ 2 ½”

TOP/STRETCHER FOR 63" LONG BENCH

2 – 1x3 @ 26 ¼”

3 – 2x6 @ 63”

TOP/STRETCHER FOR 96" LONG BENCH

2 – 1x3 @ 34 1/2” (this puts the bench legs to the outside of the table legs just slightly to allow the benches to slide in somewhat)

3 – 2x6 @ 96”

Tools
Tape Measure
Speed Square
Pencil
Safety Glasses
Hearing Protection
Kreg Jig
Drill
Miter Saw
Power Sander
Drill Bit Set
General Instructions

Please read through the entire plan and all comments before beginning this project. It is also advisable to review the Getting Started Section. Take all necessary precautions to build safely and smartly. Work on a clean level surface, free of imperfections or debris. Always use straight boards. Check for square after each step. Always predrill holes before attaching with screws. Use glue with finish nails for a stronger hold. Wipe excess glue off bare wood for stained projects, as dried glue will not take stain. Be safe, have fun, and ask for help if you need it. Good luck!

Instructions

Step 1

Build legs first, starting at inside and working outward. Once you have one built, use it as a pattern for the other legs.

Step 2

Attach stretchers with 1 1/4" PH screws and wood glue.

Step 3

Add seat boards as shown in diagram.

Step 4

Add bottom decorative supports centered between legs. for an additional decorative touch.

For added support, you could also run cross braces from the center support to each leg - not essential for the shorter bench, but a possible consideration for the longer bench.

Finishing Instructions
Preparation Instructions
Fill all holes with wood filler and let dry. Apply additional coats of wood filler as needed. When wood filler is completely dry, sand the project in the direction of the wood grain with 120 grit sandpaper. Vacuum sanded project to remove sanding residue. Remove all sanding residue on work surfaces as well. Wipe project clean with damp cloth.

It is always recommended to apply a test coat on a hidden area or scrap piece to ensure color evenness and adhesion. Use primer or wood conditioner as needed.
Project Type

Comments

Jamie L (not verified)

Mon, 09/10/2012 - 16:44

Love this bench design! The Hubs and I just built an outdoor table from some old interlocking boards and two of these benches are just what it needs! :)

smacneil

Tue, 09/11/2012 - 11:58

I just finished 1 of the 3 projects I'm building... so there's an opening! LOL!

I might try building this with some sort of backrest and a few seat cushions and use it with the Fancy X computer table I just built. that way we can both work at the desk without having to try jamming chairs in there.

great job!!!

Kaleigh (not verified)

Tue, 09/11/2012 - 17:52

I LOVED this table when I saw it on pinterest. I sent the link to my daddy and asked him if we could make it soon. Couple weeks go by, we move into our new house with an empty dining room. We planned a housewarming party and planned to use the living room and kitchen area.
Dad got to the house before us and when my husband and I drove up with our kiddos, I saw it. The most beautiful handmade piece I had ever seen. My dad had made it for me right before he came over. He said it was easy, cheap ($50 + $13 for stain), and took about an hour and a half. I was elated. The kids and I went to work with a hammer and screwdrivers and anything else we could find to bang it with. I dressed up the rustic table with parson chairs from pottery barn and lace doily table runners and big tall glass hurricane vases. Amazing. I can't WAIT to try the fancy x desk all on my own!

Sabrina Robinson (not verified)

Thu, 11/29/2012 - 17:22

I ran across this site randomly today. I love it!! So many great ideas and I love that the furniture is made to last. I already have a long list furniture I want to get started on. Ana White, I like your style!

Dpregs

Thu, 12/19/2013 - 06:46

Just wanted to drop a quick note and a quick thank you! I had a co-worker ask me if I would build this bench for her dining room set. I finally got around to it, and it came out great! So great I am now building a few more for me and some friends. And all this from carefully selected home depot wood....wish I could find elsewhere to buy quality wood :(

I modified some stuff and added a few steps:
(Summary)
1. Instead of 2x2x8 I bought 2x4x8 KD studs and cut down to match the size of the 1x2 pine boards. The 2x2 comes out much cleaner looking this way and not so ragged as the store bought 2x2 looked.
2. On the 2x4 uprights I trimmed the rounded edges off so that the 2x2 angle pieces sat "square" against them and did not leave a gap between the rounded outer edge of the 2x4 and the flat surface of the 2x2
3. Set up a jig to cut all the 2x2's!!! So important!!!
4. Painted the bottom and made some distressing marks on the boards and the edges of the bottoms (painted, sanded some edges, used minwax marker to darken)

How do I upload pictures?

Thank you again!

sthomas

Fri, 06/06/2014 - 09:31

Hi Ana, great bench! I'm building the Shanty sisters' most recent dining table (http://www.shanty-2-chic.com/2014/05/restoration-hardware-inspired-dini…) and would like to build this bench to go with it. Since the table will end up being around 87", I think I'd like to modify the bench top to be 83" so it is closer to the length of the table top with a couple of inches at each end. How do I figure out the cuts for the two 1x3 cuts? I think the 3-2x6 cuts will be @ 83", I just can't figure out where to make the 2-1x3 cuts. Thank you in advance!

mattkork

Thu, 05/05/2016 - 06:34

I just wanted to let everyone know the plans are wrong for the full length bench (if you are making it to go with the table).  The plans for the full length bench are supposed to be such that the bench will slide under the table.  The table legs will end up being at 72 inches measure from outside of leg to the outside of the other leg (65 inch stretcher + 3.5 + 3.5).  So the INSIDE measurement between the 2 outer bench legs needs to be slightly greater than 72 inches.  The plans call for two 34.5 stretchers so what you end up with is 34.5 + 34.5 + 1.5 for the middle leg = 70.5, thus about 2 inches short.  

 

I think when these plans were made they incorrectly accounted for the middle leg being 3.5 inches but the 2x4 is turned the other way so it only adds 1.5 inches to the overall measure. 

 

So in short, the leg strechers need to be 35.5 (or 36 to be safe) instead of 34.5.  Unfortunately I found this all out the hard way, already built the table and the bench and found out the plans were wrong when I tried to slide the bench under the table.  Hope this helps someone else and I hope the plans are updated.

loisknows

Fri, 06/10/2016 - 20:16

extremely glad I read your comment before I cut my boards... I see what youre saying... 

Thanks.

sfzed

Sat, 09/03/2016 - 20:12

I just built the fancy farmhouse table and it was my first project. I now want to make the bench but am not sure where the screws should go especilly the small 2x2 ( 6 inch) pieces for the legs- attaching them to the centre piece . I am making the 63 inch bench.

Rusticsparkle

Wed, 12/27/2017 - 11:08

I have made several of these benches in last few years , with few changes . My question is why do some of them wobble ? I usually attach my base to top upside down and do from under , so tried doing from top and still had a wobble . Any ideas why this sometimes happens ?

 

i did 6 of them in dec and happens 60% of the time :(