Community Brag Posts

Dresser Set Makeover

We were using a 1970's dresser set which was constructed of mdf wood with a laminate teak exterior .  I decided to do a makeover that would match our bed.  Instead of simply painting, I decided to use solid wood (pine) and get rid of the poor laminate drawer fronts.

More photos and tips on my blog about this project:

http://www.woodworkingfourdummies.com/blog/dresser-set-makeover

 

Cheers,

Ian

 

Estimated Cost
100.00
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Water based polyurethane, Minwax wood conditioner, dark walnut stain and white paint.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 07/01/2017 - 15:03

Recently built this table my first build actually. I told my wife we needed a new table because we didn't have enough room for our youngest to move up to the table she said let's build one. Well I did the "building" and she did the staining painting and sanding. She is currently putting new fabric on our old chairs. And now she has me building a bed. Her words when I finished "I didn't know you could build stuff". My reply "that was part of the plan lol". Thanks for all the designs.

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

The Modern Fire Pit

Submitted by prelude on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 13:20

I started out several years ago building the Modern Adirondack Chairs using Ana White's plans. Customers loved the modern design and I was able to fulfill orders in any color or stain. Customers even asked if I could make a children's and adult size chair. These pans are available upon request.

As the trend towards outdoor living increased due to the pandemic, I expanded my product line to tables, benches and patio planters. I even created my own design for a fire pit rack and bench based upon Ana's designs.

Today, I have a thriving business for commercial and residential fire pit furniture and accessories.

I continue to follow Ana White for inspiration and ideas, George

Comments

Full Kitchen Set

don’t know when I first stumbled across Ana’s site. But – when I started printing the plans that I wanted, and I printed a whole 2 inch binder – I knew I was addicted.

It was November and I wanted to build the whole kitchen, the hutch, fridge, sink and stove. (I get obsessive about things) That was a lot of building! Being the numbers dork I am, I ran to my excel sheet – planned out all the cuts to use as little MDF as possible. I used three sheets of MDF – which totaled about $90, the accessories and flat black paint ran a little under $30, so in total the four pieces were $120, for all 4 pieces! My full story of my husbands blizzard drive to the depot, and 120 cut’s later are in my blog: http://mycreativeescapes.blogspot.com/

I work full time and I have three kids 4 and under, so I had NO idea when I was going to do it, but – I knew I was going to do it – and as a christmas present!

My dad helped me with the first two pieces, and I finished it up. It secured my love for building!

Overall the building was super easy – after a few popped nails, I got the hang of the nail gun. After the first piece, I figured out the tricks to be able to build it myself. Clamps are my new best friend!

The finishing – ahh good times, nothing like the wife wanting to use the power tools, and the husband wanting to do the paining. He insisted! We had flat black paint, so we did most of it in flat black. We wanted to do “Stainless” but the chrome didn’t look very good because we painted on the primer with a brush – we didn’t spray it, so when we sprayed on the Chrome spray paint – you could see the brush strokes. So we ended up painting most of it black as you can see in the picture.

This is what the project looked like pretty much done, just drying. My plans are resting on each piece, the clamps are holding the oven door together. And the plastic bin is my sink!

Ana – you truly are an inspiration! Your plans are awesome, and your generosity is amazing! I seriously have a binder full of your plans, and I am going to guess about every other blog post will be featuring your work. My first project was a simple bookcase, then the entire kitchen set, then the bench with the butterfly hinges that revealed storage for my mom (for christmas, it made her cry!). I can’t wait till the weather is warmer so I can build more! Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Next – I will post some pictures of my three little nut bags playing with there new kitchen from Santa, and my two girls and my niece sitting on the bench I built my mom.

Estimated Cost
$90-$120
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Sanding, priming and painting with flat paint, tried "chrome" spraypaint - didn't work so well.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Farm House Table

Submitted by Luke2220 on Sat, 05/11/2013 - 07:22

My wife and I love this table: http://www.woodlandcreekfurniture.com/graphics/DT00100NEW.pdf so I took the Farmhouse Table plan and modified it just a little bit. I used pocket screws to join the table top and eventually wound up installing 2x4 runners on the underside to sturdy the top even more. I also used my son to help keep the boards flush while I screwed them together. He though it was wonderful to help his dad out this way.

For the table frame I used a 1" straight bit in my router to put a little "flair" on the rail. The leg bracing is 1x1 scrap that I had left over from ripping the rail to size. I used my drill press on the bracing to make the recessed hole for the screws at the correct angle. I then covered the screw hole with a 5/8" red oak dowel.

I decided to go a little more traditional on the breadboard end just to see if I could do it. Its really not that hard just more time consuming. I used a 5/8" red oak dowel that I bought at the hardware store for joining the breadboard to the rest of the table top.

My table is made of a mixture of pine and spruce. I used shellac to seal the wood before staining. Shellac keeps these softwoods from splotching when they are stained. I then used Minwax Red Oak stain. I let the stain sit for about 15 minutes before wiping it off. The color turned out great. I used my Christmas money to buy an LVLP spray gun to hook up to my pancake compressor. I used the Spray-It 3000 to apply polyurethane. I put 5 coats on the frame and 10 coats on the top itself. In between each coat I used 0000 steel wool to buff the surface. The very last coat I left alone so it would shine. It left it with a little bit of an "orange peel" finish but I thought it made the table look more rustic so I left it alone.

All in all it took me about 60 hours over a 6 month period to get the table done. When you have a real job, kids, and a house to take care of it takes a while to do stuff like this.

I've got a plan for some chairs so I think I'm going to try chairs next. They say if you can build chairs you can build anything. I've built just about everything but chairs so maybe this saying will work in reverse. If the chairs go as fast as the table did, it might take another 6 months to get one done.

The wood for this table I got for free. My brother-in-law works in the lumber business and this wood was the throw away that none of the contractors wanted. All of it had been sitting in the sun and was warped, gray, and cracked. A friend from church who does woodworking for a living planed and jointed the boards straight and square for me. The lumber is construction grade pine and spruce. Most of the money I spent on this was for the spray gun, the finish, and the hardware that I used for joining the tabletop to the frame.

A help hint I found out after the fact. If you're sanding pine and spruce with a random orbit sander or any electric sander you are going to leave little "swirlies" throughout the wood. Either sand the wood by hand to prevent the "swirlies" or learn how to use a card scraper so you don't have to mess with sandpaper. The "swirlies" showed up when I applied the stain. Before then I couldn't see them. My wife thought the "swirlies" added to the rustic-ness of the table, so I left them alone.

Estimated Cost
$150
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Clear Shellac
Minwax Red Oak Stain
Clear Gloss Polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Built It!

Submitted by Sherice on Tue, 03/31/2015 - 19:06

I followed the plans exactly and made this sand box for my friend and her children. Simple! Thank you so much!!!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Using all treated pine, I paid $65 for the lumber and the four handles. I already had the hinges and finishing materials on hand. I spent approximately 10 hours on this project.
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
I used Thompson water sealer for the inside of the sandbox where the sand will go and Behr deck protector for the rest.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Veggie Bin

Submitted by Dlwj27 on Tue, 07/04/2017 - 10:45

I followed the plans as written and my veggie bin came out looking awesome.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Pre-treated with Rust-oleum Weathered Wood Accelerator then gave distressed look by dry brushing Waverly Chalk Paint in Crystal. Finished using Mini Was Polyurethane Clear Satin.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Outdoor Sectional Furniture

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 13:36

I love the versatility of this furniture. I wanted the ability to move it around in different seating sets. It was my first project with no help from my husband. So very easy to do and follow. I made a few tweaks and made wood plugs for all the screw holes. I plan to stain it later. I used ikea cushions.

Comments

Easiest Closet Ever

Wood was cut at Lowe’s for this one. We built it in the living room because it was seriously 10 degrees in the garage. It got moved upstairs, where we shimmed it, removed the molding off the wall, and painted it. Then we secured it, installed some rods, bought some bins (all from Target), hung a curtain, and called it a day. I reccomend you save all the scraps from this one, because they make for a free laundry basket dresser, that we also built.

I would love to see someone do this in birch plywood, and stain it for an elegant look!

Estimated Cost
$60, plus bins
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
White primer and paint, Olympic.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

My first Build!!!

Submitted by fkowalec on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 11:35

This project only took a day to build and not the whole day. The painting took a bit I had to do first coat at night then the second one in the morning and flipped and did other side twice...

Estimated Cost
100.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
rustoleum stain paint stuff.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Mushroom outdoor chair

Top is using old scrap 4 x 10 sanded down to 220 grit and the 2 x 6 is cut at 10 degree so it support the top using pocket hole jig, I used 4 3.5 inch deck screw

Estimated Cost
20 bucks
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Box chairs with an added back

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 07/14/2017 - 00:28

Thanks for the plans Ana. I substituted 5/4 x 6 for the 2x6 and it is plenty strong and sturdy. Also added an angled back to support 24x24" cushion. Very pleased with the finished chairs.

BTW: I have now used 4 of your plans. The X harvest table, an outside dining table and patio loungers (4 of them) and the box chairs. Cheers!

Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Over Toilet storage shelf

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 14:30

I made this less wide then the plans to fit in my small bathroom. Thank you for these wonderful
Plans!

Comments

Ladder Table

Submitted by kari on Wed, 03/09/2011 - 12:47

I love this little table!
I made 3 at the time. One for me, one for my sister, and one for my mom.
I had a little trouble with it not being level when I finished. I just sanded the bottoms of the legs until they all cooperated.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
I painted it a red that I had, which was a little brighter than I wanted. I sanded the edges a bit and gave it a nick or two here and there. I then put Minwax Jacobean stain over the paint and wiped it off quickly. It's final coat is Minwax polycrylic.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Necklace Jewelry Box

Submitted by 6980Design on Thu, 05/16/2013 - 16:23

Saw the plans on this site and decided to make a jewelry cabinet for my wife for mother's day and she loved it.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Polyshades Bombay Mahogany
Finished with Minwax Paste Finishing Wax
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

nicholaix

Fri, 12/06/2013 - 09:23

I am floored, that is gorgeous! Now I have to get off my butt and make one......
My finishing skills are not great I am still getting the hang of it, I have always painted everything in the past. Great Job!

I love it!!

Submitted by equarto on Sun, 04/05/2015 - 19:49

I found the plans for this table after googling "rustic coffee table". I had planned on purchasing a table until I saw this photo and LOVED it.  It took a little time to convince my husband to take this on with me since neither one of us has experience building furniture.  We decided to purchase the wood from a higher end lumber yard since the big box stores didn't carry much kiln dried lumber.  We wanted to start on our project without having to wait for the lumber to dry out in the sun first.

This is definitely a two "man" job.  The only issue we had was figuring out the "x's" since our saw didn't go past 45 degrees.  We decided to just eye ball it and made the cuts.  The cuts came out perfect.  We also had some issue trying to figure out how to secure the "x's".  After a few strategically placed screws and some wood glue, they stayed put and look great!  We also took a lot of time sanding and picking out the perfect stain.  We decided not to do the oxodizing treatment (husband vetoed that) and instead mixed two shades of minwax satin stain.  I am so happy with the end result!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$75
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Green House

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 07/13/2017 - 08:31

I built this amazing green house following your plans!  My wife and I moved our family from the city to an amazing 5 acre homestead out in the country here in Wisconsin. We are super happy that we will be able to keep our new garden going longer!  Thanks so much for the plans!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
We spent about $800 for the frame and plastic panels. Then we spent another $250 for the reclaimed barnwood siding. We found the door at a reclamation site for $25.
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
I followed Ana's plan pretty closely. This was the first building I ever built from scratch. It was a little difficult to get the foundation level. But I figured it out. I used pressure treated 6x6s on top of gravel. I was able to screw the actual walls down to the 6x6s.

I'm actually building a second building from these plans to use as a chicken coop. Once it's done I will post photos.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday

Entry console

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 15:23

I used one by material because I wanted a piece that was less bulky. I also made side tables from the same plan.8 love these, they are exactly what I have been looking for!

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Reclaimed wood headboard -- queen sized

This is my first project, and it turned out really well! I bought the wood at Home Depot. It is pine (except for the crowning 2x4, that's douglas fir because Home Depo didn't have that size in pine) and I probably spent about $150 just on the wood, and then I also bought a palm sander, corded drill, circular saw, and Kreg Jig. I also bought pre-stain, stain, and polycrylic finish which added another $45. Plus I spent money on sand paper, clamps, Kreg Jig screws, and some nails.

I included the picture of the back to show how I used the Kreg Jig. I used it to not only attach the middle part to the sides, but I made the middle part one connected piece so it would be extra sturdy, tight, and pieces would not bow when leaned against. The back isn't pretty, but it's against the wall so no one can see. The Kreg Jig is awesome and I'm glad I bought it so I can do other projects.

I also included a photo of the bottom of the side. I used a scrap piece of wood to make it more sturdy since that's where I drilled the holes to bolt it to the bed's metal frame.

Between sanding, assembly, and finishing I worked on this over the course of about two months on the weekends. If you don't sand much and keep the finish more simple you could potentially get it done really fast. But since this is something we plan on using in our master bedroom for years to come I wanted to try to make it perfect. It still has a handful of mistakes (I learned a lot), but my joke is "it's a reclaimed wood headboard."

Now that I've got the tools I'm on to building matching side tables, and pending that goes well the plan is to build a dresser.

Estimated Cost
$200 (wood, stain, and sand paper)
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Before staining I watched a bunch of You Tube videos to get a feel for it. The finish is Minwax pre-stain (one coat), Minwax Provincial (three coats), and Minwax Polycrylic (three coats). When using pine wood you want a pre-stain to prevent blotchiness. My intention was to only do one or two coats of the Provincial (I liked what a couple people in the brag posts had done with provincial), but I had a couple spots that showed imperfections in the wood that could not be seen before staining, which I had to sand down and then restain. I also had a few small spots where the wood glue made it so I had to sand more (even though I sanded a lot!) and re-stain. I used a nice brush to apply the stain for the first couple coats, but the third I used a rag so I could focus on the areas I wanted to hit and not let it soak as long. The Polycrylic really did a great job at making the surface hard to prevent dings. The hard part I found was that its a large project and Polycrylic drys really fast, so even just doing one side I'd get to the bottom, fix a drip at the top, and then end up with some brush strokes. Polycrylic is water based so it doesn't smell so bad when you're using it and it's easier to clean the brushes.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Printer's Coffee Table

Submitted by jbolson21 on Tue, 04/07/2015 - 16:09

Coffee Table

Estimated Cost
Can't remember
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments