Community Brag Posts

I built this easel for my wife who teaches 2nd grade using the plan on this site. I used a jigsaw to make all the cuts which is why some of them are not perfect. All holes were countersunk and covered with wood filler as I have not yet purchased a Kreg Jig. One sample jar of paint was just enough to cover the whole project with 2 coats. Home Depot sells the whiteboard in 2' x 4' pieces for about $10 in my area. The toughest part was getting the holes to line up just right for the bolts that fix the four main pieces together. Some of them I had to use a little bit of force to make fit. The plan was easy to follow and worked well. I added a curtain rod to the top to hang a paper pad from which I bought for about $5. The big whiteboard behind the easel was hung over the existing chalkboard using industrial strength velcro strips. I bought the whiteboard material from Home Depot for $13 for a 4' x 8' sheet (it is actually called a "hardboard panel board". It works very well with dry erase markers and was an easy, cheap way to install a whiteboard over the current chalkboard.

My husband built this as my Christmas gift. It couldn’t have turned out any better. We shortened it to 75 inches and added a butcher block top to match the floating shelves and island in my kitchen. The plans were very easy to follow. We did have to spend quite a bit of time planning out the barn door track, but it was worth it.

My wife has been asking for a bunk bed for the kids for some time. The room is a little short because it is in a basement and I knew I would need to modify the plans so I procrastinated.
I ended up shortening the height of the bed to 62" total. I also sank the top mattress down because it is a pillow top and the rails were not tall enough. Those were the easy parts. I then had to modify the ladder, I needed to shorten it and wanted a little more angle to it so some high school trig and I was on my way. It turned out pretty good I think.
To save money I used furring strips for everything but the 1x8s. It is very rough and the finishing is not easy on furring strips, but it saves some money.
I had some extra blue from a previous project but wanted it a little darker. I used a flat black water based paint for the base coat then brushed on an incomplete layer of the blue to give it the look I wanted. Sealed it with a clear coat.

As the kids are getting a little older it was time to retire the train table and pass it on to family. Although our living room is growing up we still wanted a place for storage, though.

I modified the Adirondack Coffee Table to include a lower shelf (just make a second box the size of the top one and screw it into the bottom of the legs) and made it wider and longer (49"x33") and taller (20"). 6 of our toy buckets will fit on the lower shelf for storage. By making the top 49" I was able to cut the 1x6 to make a top board and a bottom board from each (top 50" for a little overhang, bottom boards 46". 6 1x6 boards were needed to make the two shelves, in addition to the 2x4s. Since it is bigger there is also a stretcher across the center for a little extra strength (because we all know that at some point a child will stand on it).

It took me about 4 hours to build it and then a couple more hours spread over the weekend to stain/poly. All total this one was about 6-7 hours for me to build.

A new crib for a new baby. The foot and head board can be attached with the side rails to put together a full sized bed. In theory,  this should be the only bed they need for their little dude with just  a few additions (new footboard). 

We built our daughter a cabin bed from the Ana White websit.   Plans were for a twin size mattress and we converted the width to accomodate a full size mattress.  After completing the Cabin bed and installing the full size mattress is when we discovered that the plans have an error in the length of the the cabin bed.  Plans call for 71 inches in length when 75 inch lengths are what all mattresses come in unless you are getting an oversize one which measures 80 inches in length.  The good thing is we purchased a 9 inch memory foam mattress which compressed enough in lenght to fit. 

Love these shelves.... Best part about them is they were completely free but add such a great country feel to my country style kitchen...

I inherited the guts of a piano, and just had to make them into something funtional.  I am a musician, and these piano hammers were great inspiration for my next build.  I made a box out of 2x8s, braced them with 4x4's (which also added height) and attached some metal 2 1/2 in casters.  I set the hammers inside the box, and topped it off with plexiglass.  A functional work of art to be enjoyed for generations!  

Made it a little taller and a little deeper.  

To celebrate my daughter beginning Kindergarten, I built her a school-appropriate bedroom. Inspired by the Junior Loft Bed on the Walmart.com website, I modified Ana's Chelsea Bunk plan by changing the height and adding a built-in desk unit. The bed is 27.5" from the floor to the bottom of the siderail and has an overall height of 43". The desk section has a custom-built cabinet designed to fit her oddly shaped computer unit.

The room is divided into separate "nooks" with an overall emphasis on reading (she LOVES to read). There is the reading nook with her bookcase and comfy chair, a dressing nook with her stool and mirror, her study nook with her computer and school supply cubbies, and her sleeping nook.

Other modified Ana features in this room include the dollhouse bookcase, flat-wall book holder, numbered cubbies on the wall, and the vintage step stool.

My wife and I were expecting our first so we had to downsize from a queen to a full. While my wife was away for a week on a trip, I put this together. She always talked about a canopy bed and I think it turned out nice. I made a few modifications to Anna's design. The canopy is higher, I used edge support for the bed and I used dowels for everything with the exception of the lag bolts connecting the canopy to the bed. This was my first furniture project (other than shelves).

I somewhat followed the general context of the plans for the bottom, but I added bracing and general durability changes to the plans. As the original builder did not take thought into the event of moving/ un- assembling, warping, expansion or durability. I used kiln douglas fir  (4x4, and 2x4) and kiln dried pine bread board tops. All bracing joints were predrilled and then screwed in with 4.5 or 2 inch screws, as a kreg jig joint should not have stress- I want this table to withstand someone leaning or in the instance sitting on the tabe to be safe- a 1/2-1.5 kreg screw would not work. I also changed the bread board to a 1x10- as most of the 2x10 at the stores were warped or chemically treated. Underneath we added bracing with an additional 2 2x4 beams, with cross beams in the middle to prevent sress. We opted not to have breadboards, as I did not want to mortise or tenon joint the ends. We followed close to the plans- but inforced stronger bracing to withstand weight applied to the table and easy dissasembly. :)

My cost was a little higher - but I did not want chemically treated pieces or warping. There was additional cost in 4.5 inch screws, and brackets but under 50 dollars. 

Followed the plan, adjusted the height to accomadate a trundle bed in the future. Tapered the edges of the 2x6 material for a shaker/craftsman look. If you cut the board at a 25 degree angle the 2x6 material will rest right in line with the 2 x 4 material below. Be sure and add 2 to 2 1/2 inches to accommodate the taper edging.

Used Minwax gunstock stain to match the furniture and three coats of fast drying gloss poly.

This is the greatest website ever! Thank you so much Ana White! Anyway, this was my first project. Our family room was a mess - shoes everywhere, coats strewn, you name it. We don't have a mud room - you just walk in from the garage to BAM, the family room. So the mess needs to be contained and organized and the Braden Shoe Drawer, Locker and Mail Sorter/Phone Charger was our answer! I would have loved to have done the locker-mail sorter-locker layout but space is limited in the room so I was only able to make one locker. I did make a 3rd drawer, per Ana's awesome wood cutting instructions and that drawer is in a storage closet. So, pay attention to her cutting instructions - she knows what she's talking about! I had some left over wood (1x10) and used that as a divider in the shoe drawer to keep each kids' shoes separate.

My husband built the seesaw and I applied the finish and covered the seats. This project was very easy and built in one weekend, including drying time for the stain. I used Minwax stain in Classic Grey and did not use a clear coat over the stain. I bought the canvas seat fabric at Hobby Lobby for $5.00 and used 2 inch foam cushion, which was about $3.00. I had some left over ribbons from another project that I tied to both sides of the handles to make the seesaw look festive for the birthday party! The project ended up costing about $50.00 in materials. My daughter Cwen loves it!