Modified Outdoor Storage Bench
My first project based on the Outdoor Storage Bench. We will use it indoors for firewood.
My first project based on the Outdoor Storage Bench. We will use it indoors for firewood.
My husband and I worked on this and a dollhouse project simultaneously as our first builds. We did alter the dimensions to be taller and slightly wider than the plans. Being our first attempt, a lot of mistakes were made, especially given our limited tool resource. We learned a lot, though, and the end result is a hit with our little girl despite all the wonky bits.
We opted for the farmhouse sink style, which was quite a bit of work for our newbie skills, but I think it was well worth it. I want a farmhouse sink my kitchen, so I'll just live vicariously! Plus, her toy pots and pans are stainless steel, so it's nice to not have a metal sink that would clang when her dishes are in there. We also opted for now to do an extra unit of "counter space" in lieu of a refrigerator. We do plan on making a fridge further down the road and even hope to alter these plans to make a washer and dryer set.
Regretfully, I can't recall the name of this color. I'm really pleased with it, though, and plan on using the remainder on a sewing table build. I already had all the supplies I used for the curtains (mostly remnant sales and an old curtain I recycled for the backing fabric). I do want to find a wood shape that I can attach to the burners to give it a gas stove look. That and varnish on the counter tops are still lacking here. We also added a tap light inside the oven and painted it a stony grey.
The construction went by pretty quickly, but I'd say the painting and decorating take it from a day project to a weekend project.
For this project we followed the plans pretty well. We added trim to the side rails to be more like the original bed which the plans were modeled after. We also extended the two by fours on the headboard and footboard to give s little more design to the headboard. Plans were easy to follow. We love our new bed with the natural wood combined with a light white wash on the panels.
I began woodworking over the last year, having had no real previous experience, and fell in love. I work full time as a branch manager for the local Secretary of State, and have to fit my new hobby in where I can. Although I stumbled my way through the first few projects with my husband's help, I have grown both in knowledge, and confidence with each new creation. When I first started out I was nervous using cutting tools, relying solely on his assistance and focused on the nuts and bolts portion of the plans. However, I am now able to complete even more complicated plans with no assistance at all. Ana White plans are easy to follow and always end in a beautiful piece. The cabinet that I am submitting for this contest is by far my favorite of the pieces I have made so far. I think it turned out gorgeous, and I'm very proud of the work that I was able to do.
Made 2 of these for my coffee shop in Puerto Rico. Easy instructions. Thank you!
Javiel Cardona
This project was lots of fun. Made it for a college apartment- it is perfect.
This was my first project, and Im pleased with the outcome. I made two different styles, and its hard to pick which one I like best. These are so versatile, thinking of making a silverware caddy and also one for the bathroom with handtowels, soap, etc. Candles would also be pretty.
Modified to be able to be taken apart and easily reassembled into 4 frame pieces (each side plus the middle support beam) for transport at will, and made to fit a Queen bed instead of a double.
Fell in love with Cabin Bed by Jen Woodhouse but really needed bunk beds for my grand kids. So I modified the plans just a little.
Thanks to Ana Whites plans, I made this beautiful wall table for our entrance way. My daughter said it looked like it was from Ashley furniture store! Haha! So she made me put an Ashley furniture tag on it! She also helped me and this project.
David Marks
I gave my son's girlfriend a "gift certificate" for her birthday that said I would build her anything she'd like. There is a small patio outside my son's apartment that faces a lake. She decided to ask for some chairs so they could sit out on a warm night and watch the ducks swim by.
I Modified the plans to add enough shelves for my audio video equipment and leave place for the woofer. I also shorten it to fit in the space I had available. Notice the 2x4 legs became 2x3 to keep a decent aspect ratio.
Love the oxidizing finish!
this is modified slightly from the original plan to accomodate some basic electronics for the TV
Mon, 03/28/2016 - 06:58
i like the modifications that you made. I plan on making this in a couple weeks (too many projects going on right now), how many inches did you add to the top for the electronics/pictures? what you have seems like it'd be a good height for what i'm trying to do. Thank you!
Sat, 09/02/2017 - 16:13
This is exactly what I wanted to build. Are there plans for this somewhere? Looks great!
Tue, 02/27/2018 - 11:36
HELLO ANYBODY? Love love love this. I want to list my house and buy, build and live in this instead!!! I want to know where everybody is going to be putting their new tiny house what kind of property and environment also does anybody know if you can park a tiny home in an RV resort that have the big dog class a types any information about how to build this and to purchase the plans. thank you!!!!
Fri, 03/16/2018 - 18:30
I was wondering if you had the plans to the changes you made to this. I would love to you build this one.
I built this Toddler picnic table from reclaimed 2x4's
This is a project we built this weekend. My husband and I desperately needed some sophisticated storage space in the living room that is kid friendly, so we accepted the challenge. We together built a coffee table with trundle storage inspired by a plan on ana-white. We are truly inspired by her designs and plans help a LOT! Check out our work!
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:11
That looks very nice. This is the next project on my list I think.
It's really great to see the project with a different kind of finish also. How do feel about the functionality of it now that you have it "up and running" in your living room?
And... how do your kids feel about it?
Any drawbacks to this design for your needs, or tips that you can give me for building it over the next couple weeks?
In reply to Nice by Bunnie1978
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:53
Thank you for the compliments! So far we absolutely LOVE the functionality! It really is made for easy clean up, slides back and forth nicely (we used wheels that only go one way, not swivels.) and our one year old seems to enjoy it. The table and storage compartment are just short and sturdy enough that she can pull herself up on them and because the storage compartment is not on swivels it doesn't move when she does. She is the first grand-baby on both sides of the family so she has approximately 175 toys that we have to find a place for and they all fit very nicely. With the large storage we have noticed that she is pulling out and playing with different toys that she could never get to or find before. As far as design is concerned we did have to modify it a little bit to work with the tools that were available to us. We wish the side legs were sturdier, even with 6 screws in each side they are still a bit wobbly. With the storage box underneath it helps to support it from swaying but we are still talking about ways to make it better. A possible support beam on the bottom of the back side? All in all we love the piece it fits perfectly into our space and offers a LOT of storage that we didn't have before. My husband and I had tossed around the idea, before we started, of making the piece smaller but we are glad that we didn't.
Suggestions: if you are going to buy based off of the shopping list provided make sure you also buy 2" screws. They forget to include that in the shopping list but include that in the directions. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. It was a really really fun project for us.
In reply to Nice by Bunnie1978
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 07:53
Thank you for the compliments! So far we absolutely LOVE the functionality! It really is made for easy clean up, slides back and forth nicely (we used wheels that only go one way, not swivels.) and our one year old seems to enjoy it. The table and storage compartment are just short and sturdy enough that she can pull herself up on them and because the storage compartment is not on swivels it doesn't move when she does. She is the first grand-baby on both sides of the family so she has approximately 175 toys that we have to find a place for and they all fit very nicely. With the large storage we have noticed that she is pulling out and playing with different toys that she could never get to or find before. As far as design is concerned we did have to modify it a little bit to work with the tools that were available to us. We wish the side legs were sturdier, even with 6 screws in each side they are still a bit wobbly. With the storage box underneath it helps to support it from swaying but we are still talking about ways to make it better. A possible support beam on the bottom of the back side? All in all we love the piece it fits perfectly into our space and offers a LOT of storage that we didn't have before. My husband and I had tossed around the idea, before we started, of making the piece smaller but we are glad that we didn't.
Suggestions: if you are going to buy based off of the shopping list provided make sure you also buy 2" screws. They forget to include that in the shopping list but include that in the directions. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. It was a really really fun project for us.
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 09:10
I just finished my Tidy Up Table too (brag post coming!) and I decided to add one L-bracket to each corner because of the wobble. I've also got a baby (7 months) and it's nice to have that added stability just in case. Now the sides are solid as a rock!
Tue, 03/13/2012 - 13:08
A little bit of medal support would probably be really good... I was actually thinking of modifying the design a little bit already, which will probably serve the end result to provide better stability. I think I'm going to make the storage trundle a little shallower, and put a row of small square drawers above it on each side. That is of course, much more complex, and then detail the trundle with the small squares so it looks like a cabinet of drawers all the way down...
What do you think of that idea? I mentioned that on the plan post too... still kicking it around a bit.
Farmhouse style table, 4 2x10 with 2X6 border. All Doweled and glued. Seems most plans are with square "breadboard" ends, i thought this style was a bit cleaner with no raw ends. 4X4 legs with 4X4 cross stretchers. Table ended up 4'X8' matching bench to follow.
You really need a dowel-jig, Kreg-jig, and bar clamps to do this project. You can also use a biscuit cutter instead of dowel jig, but I think it lines up better with dowels.
Close up shot shows swirl marks from 80 grit sandpaper used on an orbital sander... Even using 180 grit final sand it left them there, actually a nice distress look.
Plans were perfect. This was my first build.
Ana's wood shelving plans are easily adaptable for whatever requirements you may have.
Apart from some of the cutting done on a table saw I was able to do this project on my own and assemble.
I'm a beginner and managed it OK. It's not perfect but my husband was over the moon to finally have hanging space and shelving in our new house.
Would look great painted or stained.
When I saw the plans for this bench I knew I had to make it. I had been looking for something to put on my porch, but hadn't found anything I liked.
I, or should I say, my husband had all the tools just sitting in the garage.
It was a great starter project. I definitely felt the learning curve. Thank goodness for wood filler and paint!
Comments
Ray (not verified)
Sat, 03/24/2012 - 23:08
NICE!!!
I am VERY impressed - Love it!!!