Community Brag Posts

X-less console

Submitted by edsopko on Sun, 11/13/2016 - 12:11

Used the plans for teh x-table, but left out the Xes and opted for 2x4 pieces on each side to fill the gap. Went "fancy" and made it two tone for added interest. Have developed my "signature look" of staining over paint for the base.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$70
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax espresso stain, and Glidden oil based furniture paint in antique white
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Ipex Bookcase

Submitted by MikeO on Sat, 08/01/2020 - 12:35

Painted the arms in a metallic onyx paint, shelves are Briwax dark brown.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Briwax dark brown, metallic onyx paint
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Lillian's bed

This is my first attempt at building furniture. My wife found the plans and after some research of how much it would be to purchase a bed that would be similiar, my wife decided I was building one. I must admit at the time I was not very thrilled about this idea, but I have experience with building so I thought I could handle the challange. My background knowledge is in framing and deck building, not so much furniture building and finish carpentry. I printed out the step by step plans for the bed from Ann's website and went to work. I added the stairs and the slide and build them to fit perfectly on one wall of her room. I built a small door so she has a hide out under the slide which she loves to go in and read. Under the stairs I built in some storage. After this was done, I was really happy with it. My wife, my daughter and my brother also helped during the process.My daughter loves this bed. For a week she was running around the house saying "I have the best dad ever!" and to this day the first thing my daughter says to people who come to our house is, "Do you want to see my bed?" Looking foward to building more.

Estimated Cost
550.00
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
The pink paint is called very sexy pink. (My daugher picked the colors) Latex based primer and paint.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Our Toy Box

Submitted by djsaffer19 on Sun, 08/03/2014 - 19:54

Toy box for our kids that someday will become a blanket box or something else around the house. Customized with the S for our last name. Use a piano hinge and folding lid support on one side. Made another for our friends with the West Virginia logo.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Provincial minwax stain, rustoleum spray paint for the S, and polycrylic clear coat.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

bzhayes

Thu, 04/16/2015 - 08:37

Hello, I just built this same trunk and it turned out great. However, I had a hard time finding a set of soft stay support hinges for the inside. Did you install any and if you did could you tell me what kind (brand) and also a picture of how your hinges look on the back of the trunk and when it is open. That would be great. I went to the original site and asked but they don't respond.

Trestle table

With two small boys it took me several days to make. I had some problems in the beginning because I cut the legs using a carpenter square and not a miter saw. But it worked out in the end. I love the way it came out!

Estimated Cost
60
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Miniwax Dark Walnut
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Toddler Farmhouse Bed

Submitted by Faithvalle on Tue, 08/05/2014 - 19:09

I gotta be honest, I'm kind in love with the farmhouse collection and when i saw this little bed i knew i had to build it for my 2years old and he loves it. It is so perfect for him, not too big and not too small. The bed was very easy to build, affordable and very strong ( trust me, my son makes me lay down there with him sometimes so he can go to sleep) . I changed the plans for a 28" wide crib mattress after reading all the comments, but it was really easy to do. I'm very happy how it came out.
Thank you Ana for sharing all the amazing plans with us and i'm looking forward to start building more furniture soon, my to-do-list is just getting longer and longer lol.
Thank You Ana XOXOXO

Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

American Girl Doll Horse Stable built for two

My husband made this for my daughter and her friend to have stables at each house for their horses.  We painted the roof with blackboard paint to making decorating fun and creative.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Dress Up Center for Peyton’s 3rd Birthday

Submitted by lmm7rn on Thu, 08/06/2020 - 17:19

We made this adorable dress up center for my niece’s 3rd birthday. Peyton and her sister Ava will be able to use this gift for years to come! It’s strong and sturdy and built to last. The cart itself is quite large and will hold loads of dress up costumes. Can’t wait to give it to the birthday girl this weekend!

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Wall Cubbies for Kitchen Chalkboard/Schoolwork

Submitted by teresap on Sun, 10/21/2012 - 10:45

I loved Ana's cubbies the first time I saw them. :) I used different measurements and set mine for one large cubby to hold class papers and the others each fit a mason jar that holds chalk/ eraser cloth/ misc. Measurements/Wood Used: back: 4" x 1" x 44" bottom: 3" x 1" x 44" front: 3" x 1" x 44" I miter cut the insert separators to go edge to edge. Setting was 31 degrees and sanding to finish top point to back I added the inserts last after distressing the front/back/bottom assembled. I stained the inserts with no distressing and slid them in and used finishing nails to hold them to place front and back as my last step.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$20
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
painted background with our closet/laundry room paint color to bring in that accent color (rusty orange) let dry completely. Added black acrylic to knots and edges and random places around the piece and then covered it all with our home trim paint and then sanded back with power sander to distress
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

mrssem (not verified)

Tue, 01/22/2013 - 10:54

I love this project! You did an amazing job. I also love that you put the inserts in at the end, that would have been so much easier!

Storage Bed Success!

Submitted by maction17 on Fri, 08/08/2014 - 02:52

I took Ana's awesome queen-sized storage bed plans and jut made a couple minor tweaks for my full. Our bedroom is TINY, so I wanted queen (or king) sized drawers/cubbies, which means I kept 20" depth. The side boxes run 53" in length, 54" for the end. I used poplar ply for the boxes, red oak for the trim, and I stained everything with a Varathane Early American wood stain, followed by a couple coats of polycrylic. It came out beautifully, and I love how easy it is to move around and set up.

For the final step, I'm still debating adding drawers or doors, which would hinge on the bottom and secure with cabinet magnets. I'm leaning toward the latter just because our bedroom is so small it will make accessibility a bit easier.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$350
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Varathane Early American; Minwax Polycrylic
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Hall Tree for Garage

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 11/22/2016 - 18:59

made this for the garage...burnt the wood for rustic look

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
burnt
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Porch Swing

Submitted by bbcarey on Tue, 10/23/2012 - 10:12

I wanted to make this porch swing ever since seeing it in the plan catalog (Large Modern Porch Swing). Just a matter of setting aside a weekend to get it done and then to find A frame to support it. I made the A-frame from a combination of this post:
http://www.buildeazy.com/newserve/swing_seat_support_dec07_1.html
and this one:
http://www.hgtv.com/home-improvement/custom-a-frame-childrens-swing-set…

I made the back a bit higher on our swing... and not quite as wide.

Reading several other blogs on this- I chose to attach the chains to the top back of the swing to keep it from tipping backwards...

Now just get to enjoy it!!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$50
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Exterior Sealer/protector
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Great project!

Submitted by roydub83 on Sun, 08/10/2014 - 20:18

This is an extremely easy project and great for beginners. The step by step guide was spot on. I would only suggest that if you are having your local home goods store do the cutting to make sure they cut according to the guide given or you will end up with only enough "correct cuts" to make one shelf.

I applied a dark brown base coat and then a nice coat of DIY chalk paint (off white). I distressed the edges and a couple of spots on the top shelf and topped it off with clear paste wax. Looks great in the living room.

Thank you for the plans!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$35
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
DIY Chalk Paint (Distressed) with clear paste wax
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Sweet Pea Bed

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 11/26/2016 - 16:24

This project cost us about $850CAN and took us around a week (5ish hours a day) to complete. My husband and I are definitely not carpenters so it's not perfect but it's pretty amazing :)

we made several alterations to the plans including making the bottom bunk larger to accommodate a double/full size mattress. We also made the "door" to the bottom bed larger with an opening of 30". Another alteration was we dropped the mattress cleats to 9" off the ground so that the mattress dat down in the bed. The bed is for our 2 year old so we thought she would have trouble getting in if it was much higher. This eliminated the storage area underneath but she has a large closets so we didn't think it would be an issue. 

The plans were great and pretty easy to follow. We are over the moon with how it all turned out! 

Estimated Cost
$850
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Patio Benches and Table

Followed Ana's plan and built two benches table. Pretty happy with the results.
Cost was about $250 including the paint which was $100.

Estimated Cost
$250
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
BEHR MARQUEE Exterior Semi-Gloss. Two coats with sanding in between coats.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Argie Bedside Table (Nightstand)

Submitted by thehallway on Sat, 10/27/2012 - 07:56

I built this bed for the guest room at our previous house. The room was small, so I made floating shelves for the nightstands to save space. We have since moved and are now renting, so we didn't want to put holes in the walls to hang the shelves. I took the opportunity to build these nightstands instead. The original design was a little too tall and wide, so I reduced those dimensions by 3". This was my first time building drawers, but they went together surprisingly well. I had used a combination of stain on the bed and was worried about matching it, but 2 coats of Minwax Dark Walnut ended up being a pretty close match.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$75
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
2 coats of Minwax Dark Walnut & Poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Rustic x coffee table

Submitted by Chowells on Wed, 08/13/2014 - 12:13

Rustic x coffee table made from plan. Used 3-4 coats of early american stain and two coats of poly.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$80
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Early American (several coats) and poly
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

DIY Wood Christmas Tree

This project was such a fun challenge for me!  I needed a table top version of this great Christmas tree shelf, so I modified the plans just a bit, and created an additional shelf. The little ornament blocks were fun to make too! 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$12
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
MinWax Dark Walnut
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate
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