Parson Tower Desk
I made a few modifications to the plans, but the overall simplistic design was what I was after. Thanks Ana!
I made a few modifications to the plans, but the overall simplistic design was what I was after. Thanks Ana!
Used the simple nightstand from this site, and modified to add in the "X" on the sides. Finished in a Classic gray minwax to give reclaimed wood look.
Thu, 07/11/2013 - 19:32
Can you please post how you did this. I'm going to make my first project this weekend and I would like it to be this. I know it's based off the simple nightstand but can you give the details on the alters especially how to make the x? Thank you
Sat, 02/04/2017 - 13:39
Did she ever post her plans? If so, I can't find them! I prefer this design to Ana White's original, but I don't trust myself enough to try and wing it and make it look like hers. Did you end up making something similar?
Sun, 07/24/2016 - 12:38
I am very interested in building these nightstandss, could you post the plans, or where would I be able to locate the plans? Thank you!
Tue, 08/23/2016 - 05:30
Your nightstands are beautiful and I am working on creating my own! Did you keep with the original plans and use the 1x2 and 1x3's for the legs? Yours look thinner. Did you use 1x2's for the X sides?
In reply to Question about design by Oohlaladesigns
Tue, 08/23/2016 - 14:11
I didn't build this, but I feel pretty confident in telling you that the legs/x's are 2x2s.
Our daughter loves to use it as a place to store animals as well as books.
I decided to make several of these for family this past Christmas. I made mine from oak which was harder to work with, but more resistant to scratches and nicks. I primed and painted them white with some leftover wall paint. Then I added some craft paint that had glitter in it. While it was still wet, I dusted it with more glitter: white and iridescent. Then I sealed it to keep the glitter from going everywhere!!! Then I hot glued all the sides with a rhinestone like ribbon I found at the Dollar store. I was very please with the result. I also found pearl like stickers that I hot glued on the other snowflakes when my rhinestone ribbon ran out. I added felt stickers (those that are used on the bottoms of chair legs) on the back to prevent the wood from banging on the door every time it opens and closes.
Love this project! I thought it was pretty easy and it was a good practice with the jigsaw, drill and sander which are relatively new skills for me.
Tue, 01/18/2022 - 16:33
That looks awesome, way to go and such a great way to sharpen those skills!
I loved making this! The depth and width of the treads are great. It is sturdy, safe and roomy. My little guy loves it!
When we bought new couches for our new house, we realized our existing rectangular coffee table would no longer work. We searched for larger, rectangular shaped tables in all the major furniture stores. We became disappointed in the limited selection as well as the high prices. The ones we found that could work were typically in the $800 to $900 range. I suggested to my wife that I could make something better and less expensive, which took her by surprise since I had never made anything before. That's when I stumbled unto Ana-White.com and found the tryde coffee table plans. After searching the brag post, I found where a few had modified the plans to the size and shape we were looking for. The plans and build were very straight forward and much simpler than I expected. The table came out great and fits in well in our new den with our new couches.
This is fairly close to standard other than I raised up the sides and footboard 2" from the plans. I also used a plywood platform in place of slats and a standard box spring (there are 3 2x4 supports under the plywood). This saved some money since we just bought a king size Casper mattress and we prefer the look.
The other modification is that I purchased "bed rail fasteners" from Amazon. These "clips" enable us to easily disconnect the side rails from the headboard and footboard (like you might find on a purchased bed frame) for when we decide to move or redo our floors or whatever. I thought that was better than having a semi-permanent connection with screws.
Tue, 01/30/2018 - 04:12
I went back and added another modification I forgot. I bought bed rail fasteners from Amazon in order to be able to quickly disconnect the rails from the headboard and footboard. I prefer this versus having to disassemble the whole thing when we move/redo the floors/whatever. I'm happy with that decision even though it made the alignment a little trickier.
Tue, 01/30/2018 - 09:42
I love how you raised it. What height does your mattress sit at? I'm thinking of raising the rails by 2 or 3 inches as you did, but using 1x10 or 1x8 for the rails instead of 1x6s. In your opinion, would this look good? Or make the clean lines look too heavy?
Fri, 02/02/2018 - 08:25
Sorry @canuck I tried to reply to your other post but it never posted apparently? I was going to do the same thing with 1x10's but then I lifted one at Lowe's and thought it would just be too heavy and cumbersome. As it is, the bed feels like it could take a direct mortar hit! Then I looked for 1x8's and they weren't in stock so I ended up just using the stock 1x6's.
I think you could raise the rails/footboard another inch or two easily (I did 2" higher so 16.5" for the footboard posts because my wife wouldn't let me go higher) and still be fine aesthetically. The plywood platform sits a tad below the top of the sides of course and then the mattress is 10" tall so I think the final result is just above 25" from top of mattress to floor which was close to other beds in our house (our last bed was slightly higher [with a full box spring], at 26.5").
Thanks for the compliment and good luck!
Fri, 10/15/2021 - 06:10
We too have used the same modifications as you. However the bed fasteners I have bought seem to be too wide for the male connector ends on the 4x4.
Can you provide a link to the fasteners you bought?! I thought I was going to get this together today but doesn’t look like it.
Thanks,
Liz
Mon, 01/13/2020 - 19:05
Beautiful work! I also love the blue paint color on your walls. Any chance you know the name/number of it? Thanks!
Thu, 06/18/2020 - 09:31
I also purchased bed rail fittings for the bed. How did you line everything up? Did you attach it to the cleats or the 2x6's on the side rails? I really wish that they came with instructions for installation, but they didn't, do you have any advice for me? Thanks!
We made a few changes to fit our needs but love the design. Way better than any kit you can buy!
Love this sofa! Shown primed and in the process of painting a chocolate brown now. Super easy to make!
I used 5 inch wheels as I wanted the wagon to sit a little higher. http://www.harborfreight.com/5-in-polyurethane-heavy-duty-swivel-caster-69852.html and http://www.harborfreight.com/5-in-polyurethane-heavy-duty-rigid-caster-61757.html We bought these metal pieces for the straps http://www.lowes.com/pd_44138-37672-11662 Our Lowes didn't have snow blower parts in July. But we were able to find a shear pin in the draawers where much of their specialty hardware connectors are located. . I opted to screw everything together and not use nails. Thanks so much for plans that include a seperate shopping list and cutting list and easy to follow directions. The wagon was a huge hit with the birthday boy.
Sun, 07/19/2015 - 18:34
The color is beautiful and it looks solid...definately grandma's heirloom wagon.
I made this for my son; he loves it! I don't have the tools to bevel edges so I did my angles with a cheap jigsaw and I think they turned out just fine. Thinking of adding a narrow shelf on the bottom.
Super easy and inexpensive build!
OMGSH ... I'm in love with this project!! My brother had given me some left over lattice that he had, and I was wondering what project I could use it on. This turned out so precious. However, I must say that drawers aren't for the faint of heart. Feeling defeated, I took the cabinet over to my brother's workshop and he helped me (or maybe he just did it for me). Anyway, as with all of my projects, it's going in the annual church auction and I can't wait to see how high it goes!!
Again, thanks Ana for your blog ... you're such an encouragement!!!
Thu, 02/17/2022 - 08:35
WOW, all the details and color choice are spot on! It will definitely be a big hit at the auction!
I needed a surface to work on all of the projects I'm building from Ana's wonderful plans!
I love how the stain turned out on this one. Super simple project!
Wed, 07/17/2013 - 09:56
I just clicked over to your blog, Autumn. I wanted to comment on your "Never ever" post, as I never thought I'd be building furniture and blogging about it, either. I live in Hawai'i as well, although I was born and raised here. =D I've added you to my bloglovin' list to keep track of your posts. Malama pono!
Wed, 07/17/2013 - 10:48
So glad you commented! I'll also be following your blog. Good luck in your endeavors!
Autumn
I made a pair of Channing desks, one for each son to match the Channing Bookcases I'd made previously using another one of Ana's plans! I followed the directions pretty much exactly, except for a couple of minor changes. On the tops, I wanted to router the edges to add detail, and to make it neat I covered the ply end-grain with some pine 2x1's. At the end (step 15) of the build I added the extra support. 2x1 at the front to match the rail above the drawer, and 2x2 at back to make the RHS legs properly sturdy.
Overall, the project was not particularly difficult, the building took about 3 days to complete both desks. As usual the finishing always takes longer than the building, and in this case it took 4 days. This was mostly due to the 6 hrs between coats for the varnish.
I sprayed the white desk (masking the top) with satin door trim paint I had available, and I used clear satin varnish on the top as a contrast.
The other desk has 1 coat of sealer and 3 coats of chocolate walnut satin stain/varnish.
I'm very happy with the results - but I'm not really sure which one is my favourite!
First attempt at a project and I have to say I am pretty proud! It may not be perfect but I think the imperfections give it some character. I used a dark walnut stain and finished with poly two coats.
I followed the plan and it was way easier than I expected. This thing is sturdy as a rock! Shake it all you want, it's not going anywhere. I'm doing my son's full bed next.
I made this for my granddaughter’s birthday. It was super easy, but it’s really big. I’d reduce size if I made it again. She said she can fit 2 dolls in it.
Thu, 03/31/2022 - 08:17
That is a gift to be cherished for years, thank you for sharing!
This project was so EASY and it is just what I wanted over the entertainment area. We had some So excited that it came out so well and looks great! Thank you for such easy to follow instructions!
We're in a rental and the rooms are a good size, but on the small side of good sized. Thought this would be perfect to give my 4 year old a little extra play space. I added three extra 2x2s to the guardrail, it was a bit short for my liking. Other than that, stuck to the plans. It seemed when putting together the ladder that we were missing a piece and couldn't figure where it was in the plans, but I just ran to the store so we could keep the ball rolling. We love it!