Community Brag Posts

Our modern take on the Modern Outdoor chair

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 06/07/2020 - 15:59

When I told my husband we were going to make patio chairs instead of buy them - he thought I was crazy!

I started looking for chairs during the tail end of the pandemic’s stay-at-home order, but after looking for something that was a nice quality yet reasonably priced, we soon realized the options just weren’t there. In my 20’s, I had made a dining room table when I could really afford anything nice! Man I loved that table! So I decided to google DIY patio chairs and found your site! OH. MY. GOODNESS. I want to make all the things. In addition to these beauties, we’ve also made counter height garden boxes, and are getting ready to start on the Farmhouse Potting Bench. Your videos are great - and make everything look incredibly easy. I stained and polyurethanes before assembly, but in hindsight might have opted to wait until the end! All accessories, including cushions are from at home. Make these chairs! You will love them!!

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Kona stain with Satin polyurathane finish

I presaged wood with a pre-stain, then did one coat of stain (wipes down so it wasn’t so dark), and two coats of Varnish. I sanded prior to staining, and in between varnishes. We made two chairs at the same time - so stained roughly 50 boards - which was the most time consuming part as the varnish takes the longest. It is helpful to have this on a tall surface for assembly

Cedar flower box teacher's gift

Submitted by Benjies on Wed, 05/28/2014 - 10:02

My daughter is finishing her last week of preschool. I wanted to make a small "thank-you" gift for her 3 teachers. I pieced together different ideas from ana's site and other places on the Internet. The printout is from shanty 2 chic's website. I created 3 boxes using 2 six-foot cedar fence panels. I cut mine down to size based on the dimensions of the flowers I used. Drilled a few holes on each edge and used 1/4" sisal rope to make handles. Used hemp to tie the label's to each box. Each box took approximately 15 minutes to make. Including the cost of the flowers, each box cost less than $5 too!!

Estimated Cost
$5 / box
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
No finishes. Just drilled some drainage holes. Cedar is great for outdoor use!
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Pyramid blocks

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 08/29/2016 - 12:53

Really enjoyed making this and the end result is impressive. Wouldn't categorize as a starter project because the frame is a bit more advanced.

Estimated Cost
Around 35-40 dollars.
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Colorations liquid watercolors
IKEA behandla oil
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Water/Sand Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 06/10/2020 - 10:18

A coworker asked me to make this for his daughters. He supplied the lumber and I got it done in less than an afternoon. I didn’t have all of the required dimensional lumber so I improvised using only 2x4s for the lower shelf. I also extended the length by about 6” in order to make a small center shelf. That provides enough room to be able to lock the lids on the containers and for the kids to put some toys. I used 1x3 scraps to make the center shelf. They didn’t want stain so I just sealed it with Valspar deck sealant.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$20
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Valspar clear deck sealant
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Brookstone Desk and Hutch Combination

Submitted by JLW on Mon, 08/06/2012 - 19:16

I saw this plan and knew that I had to build it for my home office. The top of the desk is the perfect size for my HP printer/scanner. I added the cork backing as suggested in the plan - works great for adding notes and papers to the back of the desk.

Because I am taller I modified the plan by not adding the middle drawer to the desk. This gave me the knee room I needed to be able to get my desk chair underneath and close enough that I could type. I also cut a hole in the desk top to place an cable grommet in so that I could run wires for my electronics through it. I added two pocket holes in the back plate to further secure it to the desk bottom.

The only disappointment I had was not with the design but with the stain. While I like the color, at a distance it ends up looking like paint rather than stain. I don't know if the wood was drier than normal and soaked the stain more, or if it just stained darker than I thought it would (i.e. should have stayed with one coat rather than two). But, when I'm sitting at the desk I can see the wood coming through the stain so the dual character of the stain isn't so bad.

The design is quick, simple, and easy to follow. It came together in no time.

Estimated Cost
$80
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax River Stone tinted stain, Minwax satin wipe on poly
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Pedestal base and Concrete Top with L.E.D. Lights and a Built-in Cooler

Submitted by petesveen on Fri, 05/30/2014 - 10:37

I wanted to build a really neat table for the patio and came up with the idea to do a concrete top with LED lights and a built in cooler. I loved Ana's plans for the pedestal base and so I used her plans to create the base. I did modify the plans a bit to help it hold up the the heavy concrete top. I have the modifications listed on my blog. There is also a complete 17 minute tutorial showing how to do the concrete top.

Estimated Cost
$350
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
MinWax Dark Walnut Stain with 3 coats of Minwax Outdoor Spar Varnish
Recommended Skill Level
Advanced

Comments

spiceylg

Fri, 05/30/2014 - 11:47

What an awesome build! Also, where do you live with such a gorgeous view?!

Farmhouse X Table - Modified

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 08/31/2016 - 12:42

This was my first Ana White project, I modified the plans a bit because I didn't want the 2nd stabilizing bar on the floor. I also went a bit bigger, my table is 10ft 5.5in. 

 

Overall I am very happy with how it turned out.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$150
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
WATCO Danish Finish Oil for the tabletop, Gray paint for the base
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

DrOriginal

Thu, 10/27/2016 - 05:59

Looks great. We were planning on doing a similar build where we get rid of the x braces in the middle and use the pedastals you built with the long boards in between. But the plans called for 3 of those pedastals. I was curious of the 2 pedastals/legs are stable enough? I like the look of just having 2 instead of the full 3.

Open Bench Hall Tree

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 03/18/2024 - 10:45

My husband built this coat rack and it is amazing and beautiful.i love it. I know the hooks look crooked in this picture but they are definitely straight.

Tracey and Wilbur Fawbush

Built from Plan(s)

Huge butcher block cutting board - my very first build ever!

Submitted by kendikat on Thu, 08/09/2012 - 14:37

This was my very first build ever! I enrolled in a beginning woodworking class at the local community college and our first assignment was to make a cutting board. All that was required was a super simple cutting board with some wood strips glued together then cut into a shape of some sort. But I decided that if I was going to bother making a cutting board, I was going to make something awesome and useful. I wanted to make a butcher block style cutting board. My boyfriend's only input was that he wanted something "big enough to hold a tri-tip". This was the result! It's made of PC maple and measures 23-1/4" long by 14-1/2" wide and 2-1/4" tall with the feet (1-1/4" thick cutting surface). It took me way longer than most of the other people in the class, but I love it. For this project alone, I had to learn to use the table saw, the compound miter saw, the planer and jointer, the router, an assortment of machine sanders and palm sanders available in the school's shop, the glue scraper (oh goodness I hate glue squeeze-out), and how to do clamping set-ups. At the very end, I finished it with mineral oil, and we broke it in with an amazingly delicious prime rib at New Year's ;D

Estimated Cost
$20
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Mineral oil, just a regular bottle from the drug store. Apply a liberal coat, allow to soak in, apply again, allow to soak in, and so on, until it goes for at least a few hours without absorbing any more, then wipe off the excess.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Old Deck Wood Laundry Crate

Submitted by dmcarwin on Mon, 06/02/2014 - 07:56

I have been in love with Ana's laundry dressers since she first posted them. When I helped makeover my sister's Closet/Laundry room I knew she had to have one! Only problem? We were out of funds. I wouldn't let that stop me!! With some free old deck wood I modified Ana's laundry dresser into a rustic awesome laundry crate! Talk about bringing cute to the laundry room, this totally fits the bill, and it is of course useful. She uses the top as a folding station too. To make it taller I cut small pieces of the deck wood and stacked them for feet, which I love! Then I added casters so she could roll it around the room. For a full tutorial check out my blog post, you won't be sorry!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Free! (ok, I spent $4 on casters, they were on sale at Harbor Freight)
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Three coats of poly on the top.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

My Fancy Farmhouse Bed

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 09/04/2016 - 19:19

I loved this bed and after making Ana's fancy farmhouse table for my daughter, I couldn't wait to try this.  It turned out beautifullly and even accomodates our three labs.  Extra support added underneathe, of course! Love it!

Estimated Cost
$125
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
White roughed up
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Easy Farm Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 06/16/2020 - 17:08

Used watco danish oil. Table will be used outside not sure how the danish oil will hold up by itself. May add polyurethane or if it falls apart I’ll build new next years. Also added diagonal supports at the bottom because it swayed a bit

Estimated Cost
75
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Watco danish oil light walnut
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Craftsman Frame

Submitted by pde00311 on Tue, 06/03/2014 - 08:50

Our new house has an imposing exposed brick wall over a fireplace and mantle. To fill the big wall, we wanted to post enlarged pictures of our baby/family, but did not want to spend to money on a massive frame. Executing these plans turned out awesome. We blew up a photo, had a matte and glass cut to size, and then I built the craftsman frame to fit around everything. The framing probably would have been better/easier if I had a router to cut out an indent on the backside, but I ended up framing the photo/glass/matte inside some plain molding I nailed to the back.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$10
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Ipswich Pine with Polycrylic
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Farmhouse table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 09/05/2016 - 15:12

Farmhouse table and benches

Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
early American 230 stain with semi-gloss white paint and clear semi-gloss polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Patrick’s Router Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 06/18/2020 - 14:44

As a beginner woodworker I was searching for a router table project and came across this one. I constructed it entirely out of birch plywood. I will admit is was a challenge for me as I had never done drawers before. The biggest challenge was the small drawer for bit storage. I used a Rockler table top and it worked perfect. Overall I’m pleased with the way it turned out and have already used it in several projects

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Linseed Oil
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Rustic "X" Coffee Table

Submitted by Meagan84 on Wed, 08/15/2012 - 16:12

This table was super easy to make and is solid as a rock! I'm very happy with the way it turned out. It is the first piece of indoor furniture I have made. I did need 3 2x2x8's instead of two though. I don't know if it was my inexperience or what, but that is the only thing I had trouble with.

I finished it exactly like Hillary did, with the steel wood vinegar concoction, but mine came out much more brown than hers did. It wasn't exactly what I had planned, but in the end I'm happy with it. I guess that's one of those things that can't be controlled.

I can't wait to build the end table to match!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$75
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Hillary's oxidizing method starting with strong tea, then adding a coat of steel wool and vinegar mix. Then used Minwax Finishing paste wax.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Hillary (not verified)

Mon, 08/27/2012 - 22:41

Gorgeous, Meagan! It did come out a lot more brown than mine. That is so strange. I guess with oxidizing you never really know what you're going to get! I go a bit crazy with scraps before I oxidize and I experiment with more or less vinegar to tone down the effect. Anyway, yours is really beautiful and looks super square and sturdy. You did a great job.

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