Markham Workbench Console and Rustic Hutch

Before I applied stain, I had my two youngest sons whack away (under my supervision, of course) at the piece with a hammer, hatchet, and chain to give it a distressed look. I took a page from Ana's playbook and used Minwax Early American with a Minwax oil-modifed water-based gloss polyeurethane topcoat. I moved the towel bar to the other end of the facade in order to reduce the depth of the piece and added a stationary bottle opener to the other side. Also, I added four lag screws toward the juncture of the legs and feet (a la PB's version), but these were purely cosmetic. All visible hardware was spray-painted with Rustoleum's textured black spray paint. Finally, I carved a heart with "A+A" inside one of the hutch cubbies to add a truly personalized element to the piece. I plan to build another for my father to use as a functional workbench. By far my favorite build (my wife kind of loves it, too). One last thing - if you don't have a Kreg jig, get one. Now. This was my first build using one and I cannot overstate its worth. Trust me.