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Wedding Guest Book Bench from Modified Fancy X Bench

I was honored this past March to be Matron of Honor in one of my best friend’s wedding, and as a gift to the happy couple I made them a guest book bench. I wanted this one to look extra special. I started out with Ana White’s Fancy X Bench plans and made a couple of modifications. I reduced the overall length to 54″ to sit at the foot of a bed or under a table, and used only 2 pedestals instead of 3. To make the top better for signing, I decided to substitute the planked 2×6′s for a pine 3/4" thick “hobby board” that was 15″ wide, purchased at Lowes. I framed it out with some 1×2′s to make it look chunkier. Once it was built I gave it three coats of white semi-gloss latex, and then drew up the art for the center. It’s the same font used on the wedding invitations. I wish I had thought to take a photo of the signed bench at the wedding! But I was a little bit busier at the moment. I’m really proud of this pretty little bench. As I received in one of the messages on my own wedding bench, I hope it sees the butts of many friends for years to come!

Blog Link
Wedding Guest Book from Modified Fancy X Bench
Built from Plan(s)
Fancy X Farmhouse Bench
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
three coats of white semi-gloss latex. As it was going to be signed with paint pens, I left it unsealed for the bride and groom to seal later
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

brookifer86

Sat, 07/27/2013 - 09:15

I design the art in Adobe Illustrator, though I'm sure word would work just fine too. Then I print it out at the size I want (tiling the pages if I need to and taping them together), tape it down in place, then trace over the letters with an unclicked pen to make an indention in the wood. I use that to fill in with paint. Here's an old tutorial I made about it http://www.killerbdesigns.com/wrapping-it-up/ . Though I skip tracing the back with pencil now, it's just a redundant step.

Linda7

Tue, 08/05/2014 - 15:24

Brooke, it's over a year since this post, so I hope you'll see my reply. I built a wedding bench for a dear friend's daughter using your mods for Ana's plan. Thanks so much for the details, especially on your blog. It was a big help, since I don't wing anything! The bride loved her guest bench. I am posting on Ana's blog if you'd like to see it. Thanks again.