Community Brag Posts

I knew I needed a sandbox for my toddler, and saw the original on pinterest. I was so happy when I came here looking for designs and saw that someone had created a plan for this. I think I'm more excited about it than my little guy is.

The plan was easy to follow, and it went together quickly. Thank you very much for these plans

I think I get more compliments on these galley shelves/picture ledges than anything else I’ve made, and these were probably the easiest things to make!

It cost me about $25 a piece but they were nearly 8 feet long each. I used a paint sprayer to paint them, WAY easier than brushing on the paint! watch for drips though (my first time using a sprayer, treat it like spray paint, light easy coats!)

Great coffee table by April!

For the Finish:

First I lightly burnt the wood. The base is minwax in ebony. I actually sprayed water on the wood and used a damp cloth to apply. 

The top I used random spots of regular satin paint in grey, a couple shades of blue and an olive green and a chalk paint white. Then sanded it down removing most of the paint and stained it with minwax provincial.  And went over some of the edges with the ebony. 

All the wood is from pallets, which you can find for free at local big box stores.
I added the shelf with the same support system used for the table top.
Made with as little cost as possible so materials are not too much.

Material:
A few pallets
Wood screws

Tools:
Table Saw
Miter Saw
Drill
Sander
Measuring Tape
Square
Pencil and Paper
Stain
Brush
Shop Cloth

This is my first Project :)

This was an after work project. (2.5 hours) Easy build. This bench is exactly to spec of the plans. This is a great little work bench already planning to build a couple more.

After spending weeks lurking on the site, I decided to go for it. I have no real experience doing this sort of thing, so everything was a learning experience. I had to invest in a lot of tools but the materials only cost about $100 ($50 in pine from local home store + ~$50 in other materials).

I live in a small apartment, so my workplace was less than ideal. I did a lot of sawing and sanding in the space you see so I made a HUGE mess, but I didn't really have any other choice.

I'm really pleased with the outcome. It isn't perfect, but it doesn't have to be. There are gaps in the planks on the table top, but I can live with it. I didn't follow the plans exactly in order. I built the table top first which allowed me to add removable legs for when it comes time to move. Instead of screwing the legs, I hung hanger bolts and did a nut/bolt setup (as I type this, I realize this was not a necessary step - I could have bolted the legs instead of screwing them in per the stepwise instructions, which would have been easier. Alas, what's done is done!). The picture shows two sets of nuts per bolt, but this is only because I had extra bolts and this ensure that I don't lose them.

I plan on finishing with a polyurethane and building the benches but that will be in the future. My advice to anyone on the fence is to just do it. It's easier than you think and if it doesn't turn out exactly perfect, no big deal. My project goes to show that even with a tiny Chicago apartment, as long as you're willing to make a mess, it can be done. Good luck, thanks for reading!

*sorry my photos are aren't right-side-up - just tilit your head :)

Garden Bench Project. Christmas Gift for my daughter-in-law. Cost of materials $75 and invested about 5 hours into the project. I modified the length to fit their porch. I sanded all the material and slightly rounded over all of the material edges. Recommend installing the seat BEFORE you install the arms as it is much easier to fasten. I extended the arms by an inch because I thought it looked better than cutting it flush to the leg. We will paint it in the Spring after the material dries out and can accept paint. It was fun to build. I have seen similar benches on Etsy for over $500.

We modified the Ana-White modular dollhouse meant for small dolls to build this Barbie size house! (Please ignore the workshop walls in the background of our pics! Lol!) Our daughter loves to set up all sorts of houses/school/hospital/stores, and commercial modern barbie houses are all covered in specific printed paper that restricts what a room can be used for. This way she can make buildings however she likes! It isn't much bigger than her old barbie house, and the pieces/room boxes are easy for her to move/stack. Each room box is 9" (w) by 18"(L) by 13"(h), with wall panels 4.5" wide. We also love that these room boxes can become bookshelves once she outgrows barbies! Thank you!

Modified table to desk. Built the original table plan for a friend and it was too big, so I had the frame in my shed for a year. Repurposed it to office desk. 

This is the daybed option. The plan and cut list worked great.