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Due to rain (and horrible ability) this project has been taking a LONG time it seems. =) We had one of those "cheap" playsets from one of the warehouse clubs that would scare me to death anytime my girls got to swinging on it. So... we knocked it down and I took some liberty with the details from Ana's playset plans.

I needed a project to keep me together during 2017, as I took maternity leave after the birth of my second son. I wanted something that both boys could grow into, and enjoy, for many years to come. I also wanted to challenge myself to go big.

Our garden is tiny, so I was really attracted to the idea of raising a playhouse up and gaining the space underneath too. This corner was taken up by a big wooden raised pond, which wasn't wildlife friendly because of the high sides - and that meant you couldn't see the water unless you walked right up to it, either, so it seemed like a bit of a waste of space.

First of all I took out the old pond, and dug up tons of invasive bamboo that was growing around it. Then I lifted and relaid the concrete paving slabs underneath, leaving a smaller pit for a sandpit in the middle. With that all in place, I was ready to start building.

Wood tends to be expensive in the UK, and given the amount of rain we get I wanted to get the roof thoroughly waterproof and the windows covered. I also included a layer of polystyrene insulation behind a additional plywood inner walls, and I painted the whole thing in rot-proof garden paint. Everything added up, and the materials cost was probably £1k or more.

If I'd been able to work continuously, I reckon I would have completed the whole project in a week or so. However, I was mostly only able to get out in the garden when both my sons were napping (about 2 hours a day) or at the weekends when my husband could watch them. Given the time constraints, I was expecting this to be a long project. I started in April 2017 and completed the build late in October.

The deck was finished in June, and the sandpit in the shady space underneath was a great resource on the hotter days of summer.

The old garden shed we inherited when we moved in here is rotting away, but it had power and lighting which the electrician told us was sound. I transferred the circuit into the playhouse, securing it behind the inner wall and installing a plug socket and a ceiling light. Having the power socket means that we can take a little electrical heater out there, and (under supervision) the three year old has been able to play in his little house throughout the winter.

One issue has been that water tends to pool on the deck in front of the house, and then seep under and into the house. When a big furry throw got left out there for a couple of weeks it acted as a wick and sucked the water up and into some of the plywood at the back, making it a bit manky and mouldy. We've learned our lesson and I've now run a bead of general purpose sealant along the front of the house, preventing water running in. The decking boards came with grooves for added grip, which helped channel the water along, and this was worse by the doors because I kept the doors a centimetre or so above the floor, leaving a gap. I've added a thin strip of wood for a lintel and sealed that too.

Now that we're on top of the damp issue I'm planning to paint the interior, add some old water-resistant flooring boards that I found in the shed when we moved into the house, and generally spruce things up. I hope this will be a comfortable den for the boys for years to come.

Thanks, Ana!

I built these bookshelves with the help of my husband for our daughter's nursery. They were so simple to build, the finishing work is what took the most amount of time. They're very sturdy, and we get tons and tons of compliments on the 'feel' that they add to the nursery!

Easy excellent project for That odd room you may have that needs a corner tv stand.

I use pre made 16" wide 3/4" MDF shelving from Home Depot for the Shelves, Used 1" x 3" for the top, and sprayed it all with Rustoleum Industrial flat black which dries in 15min, was the large size cans for $5.40 and and only useds 3.25 cans to paint the whole thing. 

TV is a 55" Class so it actually works perfect, because the tv stand is two legs and not the typical center mounted ones. so  put the tv toward the front of the console and the console is as far as you can go into the corner.

I have two power strips screwed to the back of the console, along with a cable amplifier, my wireless router for the house sits right behind the TV and you can see the blue status lights under the bottom of the TV.

Have  my speaker bar in the added shelf #1 below the tv, comcast cable modem in the right side square, TIVO in the center top, DVD Player in the center bottom, and loads of extra shelf space for whatever else I can think of....

It took us about 2 days to cut, assemble, and paint.  

http://www.whisperingwhims.com/2015/03/diy-pottery-barn-addison-style-headboard/

This was my 2nd woodworking project. My wife had been asking for a farmhouse bed for some time, so I figured I'd go for it. The end result was even better than I was hoping. It came together really well and the bed is just perfect. Thank you Ana for the plans!

I used the Ana White Queen Bed and King Bed plans as guides, as well as another blog called A Lesson Learned. I modified the dimensions to fit our specific bed, then I drew up the plans using Sketchup and got to work. All the wood is pine from Home Depot. The total project took a couple months because I could only work on it on weekends and didn't have full days to commit to it. In the end though, totally worth it and we love the bed!

This was a fun, easy and inexpensive project. Ana's instructions are very easy to follow. I modified her plan, only slightly, by adding 1X6 to the arms of the chairs, as well, I added a 1X2 cap to the top back of the chair. I also built four (4) accent tables (not stained yet) and a bench. Now I have a great set of outdoor furniture for my deck!

First Anna project, I needed a bench by the pool, so I did waterproof it, which is holding up well, and it's extremely nice even with my limited skills. Definately worth the time and sanding.
Things I learned, need to measure each cut out. I didn't, so my slats are not all the same length. Still works really good, but I should've measure, cut, measure, cut, because I didn't take into account the width of the blade. I wouldn't use so much wood filler. I really glopped it on there. The sanding and staining pre, good call.
I would've used 2 pieces of wood for each leg.
Well, next one. I've already learned so much from making it and had a great time making it. Can't wait to get started on the table to match!

The project went relatively well. Had to readjust in order to fit our king. I used 2x4s and 2x4 joist hangers to support the mattres. 

My husband and I made 2 of these for my 3 year olds "Picnic Birthday Party", and they worked out great! We will definitely be using them for a while! They took about a week off and on since I just had a little time each day to do them, but I could have gotten them done in a couple easily. Very fun, easy project! We ended up staining the bottom support pieces and painting the top pieces a light blue, I love how it turned out!

We made this loft bed for my daughter's 4th birthday. I did all of the cuts, sanding, and painting on my own, and had my husband help me with the assembly of the bed. It took us 2 full days to complete this build. The sanding and painting was the most tedious part of the project. I think it cost us about $150 for all of the lumber, paint, screws, etc.

My daughter's really into playing with 18" dolls right now, so I decided to make a mini version of her loft bed for her dolls. I think it turned out really well and she absolutely loves it! The doll sized loft bed only cost about $15 to make (including wood, foam for the mattress and fabric). You can't beat that price for a wooden doll bed...and what little girl wouldn't love a matching bed for her dolls?!?!

I'm so happy with how both beds turned out!

My first furniture project was Ana's Tryde Coffee Table. All along though, the goal was to learn enough to be able to make a dining room table. I love the coffee table, and I love Ana's Farmhouse table plans, but I was worried about getting food and stuff stuck in between the table top boards.

So I decided to embark on the adventure of learning how to make a solid table top that I could rest on top of Ana's base design. The result is below, and although it took about 6 months of learning, practicing, and prototyping, I am finally done!

Because I made a solid top, I was able to skip the support beams on the base, which hopefully reduced the weight a little bit.

I don't have a blog, but I added some additional comments in my Picasa Album.

I made the table from rough-cut cedar that was harvested on my father's land. All I spent was $16 on Danish oil and $5 on sand paper but its priceless to me. Thanks Ana!!!

This was my first project. I am pretty excited how it turned out. If I did it again, I would recommend sanding and painting prior to building.

I built my new sofa!
I am so happy how it turned out. I had to translate all the instuctions in french, and modify the dimensions to adapt them to the lumbers I found in my country (France)
I had to change inches in centimeters too.
It was just a little difficult but I built it!!!
Thank you so much Ana, I am one of your fan.