My husband and built this fancy "X" outdoor bench to go with the fancy "X" outdoor table we built a few weeks ago.
I scoured the web unsuccessfully for months trying to find a cabinet big enough to store everything we needed to store. I wanted something huge and bright and simple, and so I decided to just build away. It's 8'4" long, 18" deep and 36" tall. Topped with a slab of Giallo Napoleon granite and painted a nice plain white. Took me only a few nights to build and paint, thanks to my power nailer and power paint sprayer. Thanks to a great deal on a remnant granite slab, this was just about $400 total start to finish. I winged the entire plan and didn't really use any plans in particular, though I have gathered many great ideas and tips from this site.
Sat, 08/13/2011 - 14:51
Wow - looks great! You would think it was done by a pro! You should be very proud of your finished product.
Tue, 12/04/2018 - 06:43
Trying to find cabinets like this. Did you buy them or build them?
The kitchen helper tower was a fast and easy build, the modification of 16 hinges to allow the tower to fold flat was actually the most time consuming part of the build. I added clear skateboard grip tape to the platform floor. I found the hinges and griptape on ebay and most of the wood was scrap leftover from other projects.
Tue, 10/04/2011 - 20:38
Love the use of grip tape! Will use it on my little helper! It definitely adds a little flair...thanks!
Mon, 02/27/2012 - 08:52
First off, your website is awesome and I love how you give such great directions. However, on everything I pull up all this information is on it. On this one it is not, can you help me? I really want to build this for my daughter.
Thanks so much.
Stacey
Fri, 03/09/2012 - 19:46
Stacey, This page is just a brag post from someone who has made the project for themselves. The full project plans are here: http://ana-white.com/2010/12/helping-tower.html
We are getting ready to list our house and the laundry room was the last room in the house that hadn't been renovated. I used the momplex cabinets as an inspiration and made a 6 cubby cabinet, small cabinet with drawer and door, laundry pedestal, and sink cabinet. The cabinets are made of MDF and face with pine and pine doors. The countertop is made of 2x6's.
Sun, 01/03/2016 - 08:23
This looks great, you might want to keep the house after that upgrade!:)
I adapted the plan for the Shoe Rack Bench to give it multiple levels and allow it to serve as an entryway table in addition to a shoe rack. I used 2 x 10's for the project.
I have bookmarked these plans for my front porch a year ago. Finally last Saturday I decided to finish.
I had to change the chair dimensions to fit 24" x 24" cushion, and the accent table leg height from 13 1/2" to 20".
I also forgot sanding the surface too fine makes staining so hard and fine sawdust is not good to be around.
This was a simple project, super easy to do if you need an inexpensive bed for a young child. It freed up floor space in our son's small room, which he loves.
This bed was built completely out of necessity. Our old 30 year old bed (including mattress) had given me my last backache. A new bed and mattress set was too expensive so I decided to build the bed and spend the saved money on a mid class mattress. So glad I did! What I built seems waaaay better than what we could have afforded. And it only took me a long weekend plus a few days waiting for stain and polyurethane to dry. Plus the return trips to HD to purchase new lumber after making wrong cuts and the cheap furring strip I bought at first continuously split on me.o t
I wanted the box spring to fit inside of the frame as much as possible. I realized the farm house queen bed plan plus the platform bed plan that I was using did not do that a bit late. By then I had already glued and screwed on the side rails. So I just flipped the frame around and decided to go with that side. Later I realized that the inside width of the bed was 57!! (60 - 3 for the frame) so I needed to return to the store to get new wood for the frame since what I cut already was 3 inches too short. My already built headboard and foot board also would not fit like the plan suggested so I needed to improvise. What you see is mainly my improvisations as a result of many, many mistakes.
My bed has two sets of legs. I did not trust the headboard and footboard legs as I could not attach them as described so I added a set to the frame itself. I also made the upholstery so that I could easily change it by unscrewing it from the head and footboards.
Fri, 01/10/2014 - 20:10
Oh my! I had to giggle about your experience, especially the last part when you were forced to put on another coat after spilling half the can! Been there, done that. You did a great job at improvising and I'm impressed you could keep the cost so low. I really like the dark color. Great job!
Fri, 01/10/2014 - 20:09
Oh my! I had to giggle about your experience, especially the last part when you were forced to put on another coat after spilling half the can! Been there, done that. You did a great job at improvising and I'm impressed you could keep the cost so low. I really like the dark color. Great job!
My son chose this system for his room (minus one bookcase - the room wasn't large enough!) and even painted a few of the pieces himself! he's very tall so I lengthened the bed to 92" which is the length of the extra-long mattresses. For the time being, I added 6" high-density foam to the end of his mattress. I also used plywood with edge banding instead of 1x12 boards.
Sat, 04/21/2012 - 10:23
I love it - the hardware finish is amazing! Great job.
In reply to I just built the same thing :) by mycreativeescapes
Sat, 04/21/2012 - 13:26
It was such an easy build! I built a piece each weekend and primed/painted during the week! One day, when he has a bigger room, he'll get the other bookcase!
I altered the plans just a bit so that I could make use of the drawer closest to the headboard, while using bedside tables as well (not the ugly ones in the pictures, but some that only exist in my mind as of now). With the plan as is, I didn't think that first drawer would be able to open if you have a nightstand. So I left about a 17" gap that can be used as an open shelf for storage, and still had room for 3 drawers. I also wanted to include a bookshelf as the footboard to make it multifunctional. We have a ton of books and no place to store them (fear not, a large bookshelf/media center is coming soon!) I also altered the top of the headboard just a bit to give it more texture and visual appeal (hopefully, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder so I've been told). Lastly, I did not put the 1/4" plywood backing on the drawer carcasses. They were pretty sturdy as is, and only got more sturdy as they were attached to the headboard and footboard; I'm not worried about racking at all. Leaving the back off also allows me to pull the drawers out and access some hidden storage in between the two drawer carcasses.
I wanted a simple finish, so I rubbed it with dark walnut Danish oil. Super simple finish and I think it'll hold up as the bed is not like a desk that needs poly or something.
Sun, 08/28/2016 - 19:50
This bed turned out amazing. I love the modifications and agree the first drawer will be more usable.
Thu, 05/28/2020 - 06:11
Could you please tell me how you attached the footboard on this one? I thought about using some bolts and counter sinking them from inside the self. How did you do it?
I bought this tv corner cabinet for $40. I spent many hours turning into my perfect bar cabinet. I built a custom lighted liquor display. I have posted photos of the transformation.
Thu, 03/18/2021 - 00:07
Wow that beautiful do you have directions on what you did?
Tue, 07/06/2021 - 19:04
So this is not your project? Because there isn't much information or a before and after picture. This gave me an idea for our home.
Sun, 08/15/2021 - 18:34
Yes, this is my project. What would you like to know?
Wed, 12/29/2021 - 06:41
This looks beautiful and authentic at the same time. Love how it gives me a theatre vibe! cabinet makers mornington
This project has been a long time coming and I'm so excited that it is finally finished. We modified the plans to better fit our media center opening, so it is about the same dimensions as the original Pottery Barn Benchwright TV Stand. We also used true dimension lumber, so we adjusted the measurements based on that. This is definitely my favorite project to date!
For my son's 7th birthday, I promised him a new lofted bed. I poured over different designs, drooled over all of the different things I could make, worried about whether or not I could actually do it. Nothing in the market fit my requirements or my budget... I was determined to make this for my son.
Over the long weekend, this bed was constructed... a little "Loft Bed", a little "Claire", a little "Cabin" and a little inspired innovation and ta-da: The Fred-enstien Bed :)
Claire guardrails and bookshelf supports
Modified Claire Desk (work in progress)
Cabin Headboard
Custom built storage shelf stairs (he didn't want a ladder)
Next weekend will be touching up the paint and installing the remaining bookshelves
Modified to make the coop bigger and the planter smaller. Added 1" foam insulation on the inside and changed the design to use the "deep litter" method. This means the coop bottom goes all the way to the bottom of the support beam rather than using a removable tray. Added a steel roof with a ridge vent at the top. The chicken run under the coop is lined with buried hardware cloth so no animals can dig under the coop. All hinges are mortised and doors flush mounted. The coop is wired for power for a heat lamp. The planter is lined with a metal tray. The coop can be separated into two pieces so you can move it or rotate the top 180 deg if needed (so you can get to the eggs from the left or right side). Great plans, thanks Ana!
Tue, 05/12/2020 - 15:09
Amazing! Thank you so much for sharing a photo, this is truly beautiful!
Sun, 09/27/2020 - 14:42
Do you have the exact measurements that you used for this one?
It's a little twist on Ana's Coat organizer. Turned out really useful and did not cost me anything since I ussed scrap wood. I wish I would build have built one for coats as well.
We built three of these for a women and children's shelter. We had friends help us with various aspects of the project. The colors are definitely more vibrant in person. Table tops are painted with chalkboard paint. Because we built three, it took three weeks with some down time here and there. Haven't sat down and figured cost but I know other bragposts have included them if you are curious.
Wed, 10/24/2012 - 20:49
This is beauitful I love the colors! The children are going to love them too! Keep doing God's work!
Mon, 02/25/2013 - 20:57
It is amazing that you built these for a women and children's shelter. You are truly using your talents for good. :) Thank you for the inspiration.
In reply to What a Blessing! by yurra-bazain
Wed, 02/27/2013 - 17:47
Thank you for the sweet comment. God gives us gifts that I feel we should bless others with. Heading over to check out your blog! :)
Fri, 06/28/2013 - 22:27
Hi! I absolutely love the colors you used (and the chalkboard paint is pretty awesome as well). I did have a question. I saw your question about the type of material to keep costs down. The 1 in material in my town is way more expensive than 3/4 in quality Purebond plywood. Do you think the plywood would hold up? This would be much more cost effective and leave some change to do a couple of extra small projects. Thank you in advance for your help!
Tue, 07/23/2013 - 05:12
MrsPowers, I am just now seeing your comment, my apologies! I don't see why the plywood wouldn't hold up, but unfortunately, I am not the one to ask. I am still quite the novice! I had asked about material for the top because I originally didn't want to buy the pre-made round tops. However, time got away from us, so we ended up just biting the bullet and buying them after all. If you are on Facebook, you will probably get a question answered quicker there. Ana's wall name on Facebook is Knockoff Wood. Best wishes on your future projects and sorry I couldn't be of more help!
Jennifer wanted a cutting table for her sewing room and so I took Ana-White's Sewing Table plans and made them taller into a cutting table. We aimed for 36" (Standard Counter-Top Height), but ended up at 36 19/64" due to the casters not being exactly two inches. Jennifer's a little short so I was really worried about the extra 19/64" (but don't tell her I said that :)
We decided to use MDF instead of plywood to avoid the risk of snags on finer fabrics.
Instead of simple hinges for the legs, I chose locking hinges available from Lee Valley https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/hardware/table-hardware/legs/leg-b… ($38 for all four).
We purchased 2" Casters from Amazon.ca https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07G84R9Q9/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_… ($22.99 for all four).
The base was cut from one sheet of 3/4" MDF
We used 2 1/2" screws and glue to build the base. We pre-drilled and counter sunk the screws, ensuring squarness all around.
We attached the casters with the screws provided.
Then we cut the leaves from some scrap 3/4" MDF and attached them with some old door hinges we had.
Once the leaves were attached, we attached the locking hinges for the legs.
We cut and planed the legs a little, and then routered the corners to give them a bit of a nicer look.
Once assembly was finished we applied a coat of primer and two coats of white, satin, interior paint.
The whole thing came out really well and is a nice addition to the sewing room. Once again, I found the plans on this site to be really helpful and easy to understand. Thank you!
Table and benches, used the 4x4 truss beam table as a guide and inspiration.
I took your entry way plans, went to my local saw mill and bought some rough cut poplar, and got to work. I started this project for my wife and was able to get the entry way shelf built. When I showed a co-worker what I was doing she asked if I would build her a bench with a few customizations. I took a break from doing the bench for my wife and made the bench for a co-worker, btw, I totally under sold the bench($200). The pictures show what I came up with, smaller shoes on the inside and boots on the outside. I still have to build another bench to match my wife's entry way shelf with coat hooks :)
