We wanted two smaller tables and four benches so we can rearrange as needed to make one big or two small tables. We can also move them back and forth between patio and deck. We hoped to have this done in a weekend but it took us two weeks working at night after the kids went to bed. I love how they turned out but I'm not sure I will try another project this involved!

My wife and I found some grass clothe mirrors at a local home decor store that we loved, but they were either too big or small for our space. (Not to mention they ran $300-$450!!!) Using the same height/width ratio I built my own.

For this project we used:
-spare 1x4 and 1x6 pine boards left over from other projects (SORRY, I do not have the cut list)
-brad nail gun
-miter saw
-piece of 1/4" plywood (to hold the mirror in on the back)
-8 wood screws (to fix the plywood to the frame)
-an old bathroom mirror
-glass cutter (~$6-8 at Home Depot)
-gloves (for cutting and handling the glass)
-olive oil (for lubricating the glass cutter)
-grass clothe (had to buy it online by the roll ~$75, only used half)
-scissors
-spray adhesive (~$6-8 at Home Depot)
-picture hanger hooks (~$1 at Home Depot)

I spent more time thinking about how to construct the frame than actually making the cuts and building it, which took about an hour. I then spent about a month waiting for the grass clothe to arrive in the mail. Then it was about another hour cutting and affixing it to the frame with my wife.

Simple Modern Toy Box with Lid

-made with pine.

- paint was matched at Sherwin Williams to other furniture.

Designed and built vanity, mirrors, plumbed, tiled, and wired and installed lights.

Another piece that my wife saw online that she liked. We wanted a new entertainment center for the house. I looked at the photo and drew up the plans in my head and got to building. This was a one day build and came together really nice.

I decided to post this project as I know there is room for more information on finishing. I know I can be overwhelmed with all the different types of finish work out there as well as their associated tips/tricks, which are often not on the manufacture's directions!

My wife and I had some black furniture, which we were tired of. Some of it started from my bachelor days and some came later just to match things we already have. I really wanted to build new stuff for our living room, but it seemed like a little a bit of a waste, considering we liked it, minus the color!

Even though it was all sold as "better that Ikea" furniture, it was all pretty cheaply made with weak quarter turn screw joints and MDF.

The first thing I did was to take each piece apart and glue, pocket screw and nail the heck out of each piece.

I than scuff up the finish (committed now :-) ) with some 220 sandpaper. While my wife and I decided what color we wanted I looked into oil based paint. Even though it usually can't be found at HD or Lowe's a guy who worked in the paint department and was a professional painter for 30 years advised me to find some.

We both agreed that Latex paint never really seems to dry all the way, especially for a surface, which will have glasses and what not placed on them.

I got some oil based paint from a "paint store" and also bought a product called Penetrol to put in the paint. The Penetrol "watered down" the paint to allow more working time and avoid brush marks. I really tried to avoid usually a brush, and mainly used a very tight , high quality foam roller. It really work great and I just made sure I covered each area all the way from one side to the other. I would start with less Penetrol than they say. My paint was like soup and although it worked great, I figured you can always add more, but you can't take it out!!

The oil paint took about two days to dry in my garage (very cold now) and than I moved it into my house for the rest of the time. Once it was "cured" 3-4 days, it formed a shell like surface, which did not require any poly at all!

I feel it's about as good as you can get without having a sprayer. It was definitely more clean up as I needed paint thinner for the brushes I did use, but I stored them in zip loc bags in my garage refrigerator in between coats, until I was completely done!!

I hope this post helps someone out there!!

Farmhouse Hall Tree by Leila Adams

My buddy wanted this bed from Pottery Barn Kids but didn't want to spend $1300. It cost him $250 in materials and i built it for $300. So you DIY'ers could do it for $250. We also adjusted the size to fit a full size mattress.

This is my attempt at Ana's recycle console project from her new book "The Handbuilt Home". I made a couple of small changes to the pattern but for the most part stayed on course with her plans.

This piece of furniture is now being used at our cottage. I used 3/4 inch birch plywood for the cabinet and shelf and i used 1/2 inch MDF for the foldout compartment. I decided to use the MDF as it was a bit lighter than the plywood so not as much weight on the door when tilting it out.

The color is from Martha Stewart and is called Cayman Blue.

First project from Ana White plans. Thanks Ana, looks great in my coffee bar.

We made 4 of these end tables using all the leftover scrap wood from the loungers. We painted them white so the backyard would look bright.

We made all 4 of them in about 30 minutes. They were so simple. We should have started with them, instead of the loungers since they were a little more difficult for us beginners.

When we built our small mudroom and pantry addition, I new I needed a tilt out trash bin, nothing on the market fit the space the way I wanted. So I of course came here to Ana-white.com :) the "wood tilt out trash can or recycling cabinet plans" were perfect with a bit of hacking I made it fit exactly!

I made 2 cabinets into 1 unit,
used salvage/old cabinet door fronts I cut to size
Painted the box red and kept the oak cabinets all wood grain
Added handles
Added ball chain to keep the doors from falling over.

LOVE this! fits perfect in our mudroom and it was a pretty quick project too!

Build Instructions:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Shed-Ramp/

Video:

https://youtu.be/WTqfV1HDstc

My garage was starting to get cramped so I decided I needed a shed for the lawn/garden equipment. I thought about building one but bailed and decided to purchase a 10’ x 14’ shed with 6’ wide doors from the nearby Amish community. To not be a total slacker, I decided I could at least build the foundation and ramp. I’ve never built a ramp so I did a little research online and found that there are an abundance of styles, both good and bad. Anyway, this is my attempt at ramp design. Hope someone finds it useful.

MY PALLET PROJECTS FINALLY COMPLETE!! TOOK SOME TIME TO GET DONE SINCE I HAD TO TAKE APART N DO TONES OF SANDING.. COMPLETELY WORTH IT THOUGH.. THE ADIRONDACK CHAIR I USED PLANS FROM THIS VERY HELPFUL SIGHT. THE STORAGE TABLE BENCH I HONESTLY JUST STARTED BUILDING WITH NO PLANS. FIGURED ITS A BOX WITH A LID, I CAN HANDLE THAT.. LOL WELL I DID AND CANT WAIT FOR THE START OF THE NEXT PROJECT. AND YES IT WILL BE FROM PALLETS AS WELL.