Community Brag Posts

I built this outhouse to go with a dry cabin I'm working on, and also as an emergency backup for my house. I used treated lumber on the base/deck and splurged on T-111 for the siding. I wanted to use greenhouse polycarbonate for the roof, but found a piece of metal roofing in my shed that was exactly the right size so I used that instead. I thought about doing a fancy cutout on the door but ended up going with a half moon because it was easy. I'm thinking about cutting out stars of different sizes all over the rest of the door to let in more light. I'll trim and stain it next summer.

This is a great beginners project. I wanted something that would match my living room and still be functional for my daughter to get her toys out . We have a full tutorial at our blog.... www.Ahouse-2-Home.com Also , if you have any questions please feel free to leave us a comment! Thanks!

Built this to clear up my son's room a bit. Lots of flexible storage for his legos, rock collection, art supplies, and everything else cluttering up his room.

My first real project, can't wait to do another one.

I used Ana's plan as a base.

I changed it from 8x8 to 8x12, made the 4x4x8's to 4x4x10' for a higher main platform and swing platform, and added a 12' long monkey bar set to the other side. Also, an 8' climbing wall and a plank walkway to accompany the two slides.

For the clubhouse, I used Hardiplank 4x8 sheets for the siding and an EZ-Framer kit for the structure itself.

The slides I purchased from Lowes, monkey bars from Amazon, and the swing frame braces from Amazon as well. The swing kits I got from ebay.

Couldn’t wait to share this one. I’ll post the finished pics on here once the painting is finished and the cushion is sewed.

This build is a reclaimed wood version of Ana’s Simple White Outdoor Loveseat. We’ll be using this inside. This started as a way to repurpose those blue vinyl cushions (which I made 11 years ago for a hot tub bench – these had been stored in the garage for a few years). Using reclaimed wood on hand – reclaimed 2x4 studs, an oak 1x12 shelf and some pine 1x12 scrap ripped to 1x6 for the aprons, plywood from an old entertainment center ripped to 1x4 size, some 1x4 that used to be trim, a left-over 1x2 and S4S, and some left-over 1x6, constructed the frame and back. After I got that together, Hubby suggested we add some wide arms so it wouldn’t need to have a side table. That was the only wood I had to purchase on this one – a 1x6x6 for the arms, and a 2x4 for bracing the arms.

So far this has been a weekend project, including re-sizing the plan to fit my 24” x 24” x 4” cushions, doing the math to use 1x4 size instead of 1x3 size for slats and rails, and sizing to use the 2x4 frame on their ends rather than flat, to save a tiny bit of space in the footprint. Originally there were going to be 8 1x4 rails for the back, but I was 1 piece short, so instead of having 8 rails in 1x4, I have 6 1x4’s plus the 1x6 in the center (now I have 1 piece of the 1x4 left over). And it’s very comfortable for sitting!

Still left to do: sand the filled screw holes on the arms and paint the arms, and sew the cushion. I got that high density foam with a 60% off coupon at JoAnn Fabrics. Also the fabric was 30% off (right now it’s just draped around the cushion for the photo). The fabric and foam was only $90, and I’ll have enough fabric left over for a few accents. Hopefully I’ll get to that during the week, if not, on the weekend.

We bought a vacation home that has such a small kitchen. I knew we needed more storage. So I checked out Ana's plans and made this bad boy based on the Simplest Armoire plans.

The home is in the mountain/lakes area of northern New Hampshire, so I wanted to bring the outside colors in. I used Valspar Cabin Red paint and the Valspar Antiquing glaze over the top after distressing it a bit.

I started with the basic plans and dimensions, then made it my own from there. I added a center shelf, used regular (cheap) hinges and a removable brace instead of the shelf brackets, with stop blocks on the brace cleats to help easily center them. Added 2x4s on the sides to mount the hinges and let the wings fall flush, 2x4s on the bottom to mount 4” casters, 1/4” plywood backing, and 1x3 trim on the front for aesthetics and as a lip to hold items in place. The backing completely covers the lower shelf, and I left a gap to run cables through in the upper shelf backing. Velcro strips on the back hold the wing braces when they’re not in use.  Even though it’s plywood, I sanded everything thoroughly to reduce splinters and snags. 

I loaded this project months ago, but somehow it was removed I believe during one of the websit updates. So far in my wife's crafting life she generally cuts things out on the floor. It's not so good. Our dining room table is usually covered in food or playdough so she generally just spreads things out on the floor. I realized how much she needed a table, and armed with new power tools from Christmas and my birthday, I set out to make me a crafting table. This was my first project.

Good plans and easy to follow directions.

I started by searching Ana’s website for a vanity plan, and found a really great jumping off point with this plan. The problem was that it was for a single sink in cabinet size. But I was looking for something about five feet long that would incorporate a drawer and countertop area so my little miss will have lots of space for makeup and hair products and all those other girly things. I added a shelf to the cabinet, made the top 66" long and added a drawer and some spindle legs to give it the extra length it needed as well as a vanity area. I also incorporated Ana's genius idea to make the kickplate into a pull out step stool with drawer slides and some scraps. My blog post features the modified cut list as well as my step by step assembly for it. I love this vanity and am so proud to say I built it all by myself!

Started with the basic loft plans. Changed out the 2x4 post for some sturdy 4x4's and added a bottom bunk to build this set for my two boys. I also deviated from the plans by using carriage bolts to connect the landing for the steps and the side rails to those post so the bed can easily be disassembled and moved in the future. Finally I placed the steps themselves on a set of hinges so I could easily access the area underneath the landing if needed. This has the added bonus of allowing me to lock the steps in the up position to restrict access to the top bunk during visits with younger family and friends. Now just need to stain it, seal it, and put inside.