Community Brag Posts

I used the plans for the Reclaimed Wood bedside tables but I didn't want to make all those drawers (being a beginner) so I settled on one. It took me fairly long to complete but really it should have been only a weekend project. I love the way they turned out.

Built in bookcase with lighting and power outlets in cupboards for audio and DVD equipment to feed to the wall mounted tv (to the left).

The photo with the lights is when it was unfinished and I also decided that I didn't like the inset doors and so made new overlay ones. Now I have four doors I need to use on another project...

Built the drop zone bench with hidden storage in the laundry room. Modified to fit in 45 inch space where a built-in desk was. A fun and easy build. Thanks Ana for the great ideas and plans.

I had been wanting to build a mantle for quite a while but couldn't decide what I wanted it to look like, then I saw the wood mantle with hidden storage plans on Ana's website. I used a steel wool\vinegar mixture as a stain, 3 coats making sure it dried completely before applying the next coat. I finished it off with a beeswax & orange oil wood polish & conditioner. So far I'm storing the remote for the fireplace, the key to the gas for the fireplace and the tool that helps remove the front of the fireplace in there. I'm not sure what else will find it's way in there. I'm very happy with how it turned out.

We built this as a birthday gift for family members and boy were they excited. We, though, were not excited to let it go. So happy with how it turned out. The plans are good for reference but make sure to make your own measurements when using milled lumber from a big box store. Some of the the changes we had to make on the fly were to the back and front panels having to use a different combination of board sizes to fill it in without massive gaps. Its recommended that you lay them out first before attaching them to the frames. Also the measurements on the cooler lid were smaller by 1/4" to 1/2" of what's listed in order to get a snug fit. The shelf on ours is two 1x6's cut to the width of the whole project (around 16.5") and then the shelf brackets were also 1x6's cut to a length of 10". Brackets are mounted inside the legs using wood glue and three 2.5" screws through the backside/inside of the cooler box to hide (obviously done before the cooler was inserted). For drainage we attached a 2" piece of 1/2" inside diameter clear tubing that was fed/jammed through the cooler drain and pulled through the other side and then a 1/2" push on adapter, threaded on the other end screwed unto a 1/2" faucet head. Drilled a 3/4" hole about 2.5" (center mass) from the 2x4 cooler base through the middle piece on the side. We placed the cooler in first and used a pair of pliers to grab the clear tube and line it up with the hole and then pushed a long screw driver through the tube from inside the cooler in order to guide the faucet head/adapter combo into the tube and stiffening the tube so it didn't collapse when pushing it on. We couldn't decide what do to with the center display piece and then remembered we had a can of chalkboard spray paint left over from another project. We spray painted the whole menu board and then painted the "logo" at the top before clear-coating it with a protective enamel. Its a snug fit so the pressure holds it in place but you could also use velcro strips on the back if that tickles your fancy. We took the snug fit route that way if they didn't want the menu board in. A 1/2' hole was drilled towards the top so they can use a finger to pull the board out.

I loved this design.  I couldn't believe that they wanted to charge me almost $600 for the pedestals for the washer/dryer set that I bought on black friday, so I decided to give this project a go.  I basically used the same construction plans from Sausha's project, but I dressed mine up a bit.  First, I chose a bit larger trim for the tops and bottoms of the posts.  Then, I bought some 2" baseboards and did the top and bottom with baseboards.  On the bottom, I had to use my tablesaw to trim off about 1/2" because I used 1x1" boards on the bottom so that I could have more space for baskets.  Then, on the top, I inverted the baseboard and allowed it to overlap a bit so that if it were to vibrate, the washer/dryer could not fall off the edge.  I also added some fabric on the top (stuff that I use to cover the bunk boards on my boat trailer...kind of like a very thick and durable felt material) to cut down on vibration and also keep the units in place.  Finally, I added sides by using wedge trusses on the inside of my side posts and then I put a 1/8" piece of plywood over top and nailed/glued it to the trusses.

It turned out great.  Thanks for the plans Sausha!