Community Brag Posts

Rustic X Console Table

Submitted by Monique on Sun, 06/21/2020 - 18:44

This is our second time building the Rustic X Console Table. It is such a fun project! I have all the details and more pictures on my blog.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Varathane Dark Walnut
Satin Polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Rhyan End Table - hardwood plywood, aspen, pine

Submitted by bryanvold on Sun, 08/19/2012 - 18:05

This all started with wanted to clean up my side of the bed. I have a CPAP machine, I like to read and I am a techno-geek. There simply wasn't enough space for things to fit, so they find themselves on the floor.

I started looking around at furniture stores, and none of them were exactly what I was looking for, and the ones that I would have considered were $500+. I thought to myself that I can use this as a learning opportunity. I found Ana's site here and immediately knew I had found the right place.

I downloaded the plans to the Rhyan End Table and was so impressed with the layout. I wanted to know how the construction pictures were built and downloaded Google Sketchup and the Rhyan End Table plans and proceeded to build the end table virtually. I am truly in awe of the power of that tool.

Then I started the actual build of the project. I hadn't really done a lot of woodworking - but I am now a fan of the Kreg Jig. What a great tool!

I know I should have read everything *thoroughly* - but I didn't. Because I didn't have all my own equipment, I went to a friend's house to cut all the boards. In hindsight, I now know why that wasn't a good idea. Because I had pre-cut everything (and was as accurate as I could make it), when I got to the drawers, I was really in over my head. I had a woodworking friend help me set the drawers and shave off a bit of the drawer slide mounting boards, so the drawer would fit. One side effect of that is that I decided that putting the spacer board in-between the two drawers would made things more difficult and could possibly make the drawers not work very well, so because it is for me, I decided to leave the spacer board off.

I just finished putting the last coat of Pecan Poly on last night and moved it in.

As this was my first project, I learned a _ton_ of stuff. So I left it rougher than other people would like but I already love it.

Now my wife wants one for her side of the bed :-)

Thank you Ana for your site, your passion and inspiring me to start doing a little woodworking!

-Bryan

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Too much sanding initially, but I learned ... stripped too much of birch plywood veneer off.
2 Coats of MINWAX PolyShades Pecan Stain and Polyurethane Satin 320
I didn't sand in between, just left it kind of "rough" - I'm fine with the results. My friend said it best when he said you can't be a perfectionist in wood, it will drive you insane.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Awesome Farmhouse Style Table!

Submitted by Andrew_P on Mon, 06/09/2014 - 10:21

Plans used from Ana-White.Com's awesome recreation of a commercially available table. Ran through this construction in no time and it came out like a charm. Thanks!

Estimated Cost
$74
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Min-Wax Espresso Brown
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Farmhouse Coffee Table

Submitted by alabama360 on Mon, 06/22/2020 - 18:56

This was one of my first projects and I was thrilled with the way it turned out. The plans were great and easy to follow. It was also the first time I had stained anything. I was trying to really match a pallet wall in our den and Golden Oak color stain was absolutely perfect! Thanks Ana!

Finish Used
Varathane - Golden Oak
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Mud Kitchen for 2

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 04/07/2024 - 18:25

Mud kitchen made from scraps for my coworker’s kids. (Mud kitchen is a little kitchen to make mud pies and let the little imagination play.) They love it!

Aminnie Laws

Built from Plan(s)

Here's our version...

Submitted by bethnapp on Wed, 08/22/2012 - 07:23

This is our version of the factor cart. I used 12 inch boards on the sides to make the table have a little more height.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Jacobean from Minwax.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

New bedside tables!

Submitted by bec4547 on Mon, 09/12/2016 - 04:52

Took about 26 hours total, so a full weekend and couple of evenings painting!

I made a couple of changes - things are typically in cm/mm here in the UK, and couldn't find 1" planks anywhere (so used 18mm planks, and 44mm square timber). Also used 18mm MDF for the sides and back, as it was a bit expensive to use nice wood, and no point anyway if it's being painted.

Very pleased with the result, they look great.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
£55
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Paint - primer, followed by Colours Quick Dry Interior Pure Brilliant White Satin Paint (2 coats)
http://www.diy.com/departments/colours-quick-dry-interior-pure-brilliant-white-satin-paint-750ml/566922_BQ.prd
stain - B&Q varnish - mixture of "light oak" and "dark oak".
varnish - Colours Quick Dry Clear Satin Floor Varnish (3 coats)
http://www.diy.com/departments/colours-quick-dry-clear-satin-floor-varnish-25l/128312_BQ.prd
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Modern Adirondack Chair

Submitted by nk25 on Fri, 06/26/2020 - 18:46

I really enjoyed making this. Notes: The board with 20 degree cuts needs to be cut at a longer length if cutting at 90 degrees and trimming later. The back support is a little low if you’re over 5’10”.

Estimated Cost
$50
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Deck stain. redwood color - Olympic brand
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

DIY Craft Table with Storage

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 04/13/2024 - 12:39

Your plans were easy to follow. Made our DIY so much easier. Material sheet was perfect. Made a few small modifications and used a butcher block for the table. Finished product turned out great. Thank you again.

Lisa A.

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Harriett Higher Chair

Submitted by jcordle on Fri, 08/24/2012 - 06:21

This seat is awesome for my 5 year old because now she can have a big girl seat and reach the table!

Estimated Cost
$20
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Paint and fabric for the seat
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

modified 4x4 bench

Submitted by Angel Rose on Mon, 06/16/2014 - 13:48

I used 2x4 instead of the 4x4 to create this bench for my entry way. I left off the stretcher so my shoe baskets could fit underneath.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
maybe $15 I used a lot of scrap wood
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
I used left over blue paint from a bathroom redo. I watered it down to make it more of a wash. Finished with rub in wax.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Simple Modern Shelves

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 09/14/2016 - 08:06

These modern style shelves are easy to make and can be used for a myrid of things. We are using them primarily as DVD storage, but they will work for books, small toys, and other display items. 

 

My daughter likes movies and by likes, I mean she loves movies!! Her world, much like many other 4 year olds, revolves around Disney characters. At this point she is hung up on Toy Story, for the second time. When next week rolls around, who knows who or what it will be next.

My wife and I have been buying her Disney movies and all other various cartoon movies since she was first born. The problem with that is, you start to run out of places to store them after a while. Our dvd storage racks have been overflowing for the last couple years and we finally decided enough was enough. I had to build some more storage, preferably in her room this time. This would alleviate some room for us and put the movies where she could more easily access them. I knew I wanted something colorful and not too complicated, I was pretty happy with what we came up with. 

You can check out the rest of the article and the instruction here and get the plans here.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Primer, If you really want them to stand out, use a high gloss paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Barn Style Greenhouse

Followed your excellent plans, thank you.
Adapted to make smaller...approximately 10ft X 8ft.
It gave me a very enjoyable project to complete during 'lock-down ' and with Greenhouse.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
£800
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Treated all wood with preservative.
Steel panels (old roofing) were obtain from a kind neighbour for free and all external metal/wood was given several coats of 'Red Oxide' gloss Barn/agricultural paint.
Adaptions made by myself were :-

I put self adhesive 'Flashing' on the bottom wood of the vertical sides...to attempt to protect the wood in contact with the floor from getting over wet......time will tell if it works.

I made additional gussets to support the top piece of wood (attached to each end).

I had trouble with keeping the corrugated roof running parrallel....but the reason for this was that it was not manufactured with straight@right angle ends (when I held a level/straight edge along end - there was a quarter of an inch gap in the centre).
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Deadly, Deadlier, Deadliest Medicine Cabinet

Submitted by Jake on Sun, 08/26/2012 - 05:59

I needed to add some cabinet space in the bathroom and saw this medicine cabinet on DesignConfidential. It turned out great. It is big and heavy so if you build it make sure you use substantial fasteners when you place it on a wall. I spent more than necessary because I wanted certain drawer pulls and glass. In a small town they are just not available. I got the drawer pulls on-line from Kennedy Hardware and the glass at a local glass company. Big Blue and Big Orange just do not carry much. The door is probably backward but I am tall enough that it doesn't make much difference. Now my big old Lab and I don't have to share the same cabinet. I will redo the drawers so the ends of the plywood bottom doesn't show. The design is such that you have a lot of flexibility in how you use the interior.

Changed the look of my medicine cabinet with the help of photographer Sonja Caldwell whom I ran across on ETSY.com. She had a wonderful pic of a medicine cabinet she found in a medieval French charity hospital. She worked with me to get the image to fit into my cabinet window. I really like the result. It almost looks 3D. I changed the drawer labels to the best French I could come up with and still fit in the little slots. The words are Mortel (Deadly), Plus Mortel (Deadlier) and Le Plus Mortel (Deadliest). I understand that there are not comparative endings in French but i hope these translations will do. Here is a link to Sonja's site:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SonjaCaldwell?ref=seller_info

Estimated Cost
About $60 or $70 dollars
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Rust-O-Leum spray on enamel. I used three coats on visible areas and one or two for the other areas. The back is black only because I did not want to use my valuable moss green so I found some spray black in the garage.

The photo in the window is by Sonja Caldwell http://www.etsy.com/shop/SonjaCaldwell?ref=seller_info
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

New counter height planters in use

Submitted by jrbdmb on Fri, 06/20/2014 - 05:05

Using the counter height planter plans from Janettx. Thanks!

Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Janettx

Mon, 09/20/2021 - 13:24

Nice job!!! I'm still using mine. I ended up putting 12"x12" pavers under each leg to extend their life. After the 2nd year now we get bumper crop out of ours each season.

Our relaxation area

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 09/19/2016 - 13:25

I had fun doing this project, it was pretty simple.  One of the boards said wrong on the plans, but I like my finished project!

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Tool Organizer

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 07/02/2020 - 07:02

I’m very happy with my tool organizer. I also used the tool organizer idea for bracket to hang our bicycle rack. We love the way it all came out. Thank you so much for sharing!

We run a fence company. The best thing about this project is that it cost me $0!! I used 2X4 cutoffs that we were going to trash!

Built from Plan(s)
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