Community Brag Posts

Kids picnic and sand box.

I LOVE how these turned out. So simple...but a huge statement in our room!
I used the other half of the 8ft pieces I used to make the book ledges in our daughter's room.
Now I am starting on some for the living room!!

Four 8ft ledges slightly adapted for our needs - used quarter round rather than another 1x2.

My daughter found the Sweet Pea bed on the Ana White site. She asked if I would build one for the girls. And, of course, I agreed. I had to resove one big issue... Building the bed in my basement workshop and moving it to her 1920 vintage house where tight turns presented barriers to getting into the stairwell and up to the 2nd floor. My solution was to build the upper and lower bed separately. The front, back and sides of each bed are assembled with threaded bolts, washer and wing nuts. The top bunk bolts to the bottom bunk.  The pergola and roof facade also are bolted on. The stairs are two separate pieces that bolt together. 

From Greece. Thanx Ana!

This was a big project to tackle. I'm not very good at modifying building plans, so my husband was frustrated during the beginning of this build. But we are very happy with the way it turned out.
The hardest part of the build was the steps. We modified them to look like blocks, so getting the dimensions equal was tough. We also made it a full size bed so that there was more room under the bed.
We used plexiglass for the doors and LED lighting under the bed.

After 3 years staring at the empty space beneath my dining room window, I decided it was time for a buffet end table. I went to Pintrist for some ideas and found this awesome design by Ana White.

I decided to modify the dimensions and do a multi-stain pattern to give the table a more bohemian look.

Here's a link to the step by step instructions:
http://rusticcedar.blogspot.com

Using the 'Grandy Sliding Door Console' plans we were able to build this amazing piece of furnitire. Altered the plans slightly and made it work for us! 

This was my second project using plans on this site and I loved it - I made this for a friend's daughter who was moving into her own apartment. She and her girlfriends loved it too! It was very easy and quick to build. Wheels took a bit of time and effort!

This was a real hit and I'd love to make more, if I had room at my house I'd make one for myself!

My first attempt at woodworking

Using the 4x4 Truss Bench plan (http://ana-white.com/2013/10/plans/4x4-truss-benches), we built this bench using entirely reclaimed lumber. (We had removed an old patio and part of a fence.) We already had all of the lumber, screws, etc. so the only cost to us for this project was the cost of the stain.

We modified the plan slightly, using 2x4s on the ends.

My husband is obsessed with decking screws. Thus the entire bench is held together with 2 1/2 inch decking screws. (Unfortunately, we purchased our Kreg Jig a day following the completion of this project.)

Because the lumber was very old and weathered, there is a lot of character to the wood. There were some incredibly soft spots which made sanding a challenge, and some of the boards were somewhat warped. However, we still really like the way it turned out.

I sanded (and sanded and sanded) using 60 grit, then 80... then 120... then 220. I filled the screw holes with wood filler (and sanded again). I then conditioned the wood with Minwax pre-stain wood conditioner. I used Minwax Early American oil based stain on the entire project. I then went over the top only with Minwax Weathered Oak. After about 36 hours of drying time, I used 2 coats of Minwax Fast-Drying clear semi-gloss polyurethane.

This bench is a beast! I'm sure it weighs over 75 pounds. It is extremely solid, and quite beautiful in our dining room. The plans were easy to follow, and the whole thing went together fairly quickly. (It would have been completed even more quickly had we had our Kreg Jig at the time. Lesson learned.)

This is my king size farmhouse bed with storage. I also changed the height of the footboard to be even with my mattress. 

I adapted your plans for the indoor playhouse to make a bridge between my daughters’ beds with a landing for their dolls and favorite dresses. Lots of fun painting and used leftover lattice and posts to brighten it up!

To build:
2 x 4s
1 1/4" dowel rods - x3
2 1/2" wood screws screws
1 1/2" PVC pipe (for spacers) - cut at 3/8" thick - x2

Needed:
Hole saw kit
powerful 3/8" drill or 1/2" drill
Jig saw
Miter saw
sandpaper
wood filler
paint

Was a great project! Was surprisingly easy to put this together. Modified the plans slightly and used all 1x3" boards for the edges (instead of 1x2"). Made the top out of left over walnut from the truss farmhouse table we made earlier in the month. Painted off-white (fledgling). Highly recommend buying decorative hinges as it made a big difference in the look.

 I had heard about Ana on the YoungHouseLove podcast and she inspired me to take on this storage bin! It looks great and my 2 year old son loves it!  I documented the process on my blog at 1thing1week.com where I take on one new challenge each week. 

This was my first attempt at building and I learned a lot such as if you drop pine, it cracks in half - and - when cutting with a jigsaw, cut inside the lines....you can always trim more off, but you can't put it back - and - my dogs can distress a piece of furniture faster than I can if I put it under "thier" window....whether I want them to or not!
This was a great beginner project and gives a fast, satisfying result. As you can see, it has become the cat's bench...can't get a picture of it without him, he lives on it!
Just a couple of notes: I cut the legs more according to the plan diagram than the pretty cuts Patrick made on his...I wasn't ready for that. Also, I didn't have my glasses outside with me, so my measurements on the legs are probably not right. I made the top shorter because I wanted it for a specific space (which didn't work out, see note about about dogs and distressing....ugh!).
Also, this probably should have taken me just an hour or so, but I had my Kreg jig set all wrong and first had shallow pocket holes (see note above about pine breaking when dropped) and then made them too deep (learned to use wood filler)! That's when I finally got my butt into the house to get my glasses to read the dang directions (again!).
Thanks Patrick and Ana for giving me such a great, easy beginner project!