Community Brag Posts

West Elm Knock Off TV Stand

Submitted by Mike F on Sun, 09/18/2016 - 06:50

I did not have any plans for this.  I had the dimensions from the West Elm Website so I did my best to match that.  My sister asked me if I could build this for her and I saw it as an awesome challange.  I used euro style hinges for the doors and the left side shelf is sitting on wood strips nailed in the sides.  There is also a shelf inside the cabinet.  I built the stand and she stained it.  

This was my second time welding.  I used a Mig Welder that my buddy had.  It was a little intimidating at the very beginning but Mig welding is super easy.  You can grind the welds down fairly easy too.  I sray painted it all with a flat black spray paint.  I think it turned out really well.  I had a steel shop her in town cut all the steel to the sizes I needed.  All I had to do was weld and paint.

Estimated Cost
$150-$200
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
She used a mixture of a few stains.
Recommended Skill Level
Advanced

Nightstand shelves

Wanted new nightstand but also wanted so shelving for pictures and stuff. Saw a picture on here and google images and decided to make it my own.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$80
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
paint is Rust-oleum Chalked (linen white). Had this from pervious project.
Stain is Minwax semi-transparent Dark Walnut
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Camp loft with side stair

Submitted by Theresa W on Mon, 08/27/2012 - 16:15

I finally decided I was going to make the fort bed for my daughter and was about to print off the materials list to take to the lumber yard and the junior height camp loft was front and center on the webpage. Though significantly more bed, it looked perfect my little girl. We really wanted her bed high enough to avoid the only heating vent in the room and didn't want to lose the floor space for play, this seemed to be an ideal fit. When I finally put the bed together I realized that keeping the staircase as in the original plans resulted in a bowling alley sort of space left over. It was awkward and really shrunk the room as the 'alley' wasn't usable for much of anything. I played around a little bit and my husband and I decided that we would put it on the side. It fit perfectly to the wall and was much more space efficient for the room. I am a little nervous about the new openness of the deck portion, but both kids have found it a fun place to read and pretend fish. It was my first project of this size and I did everything until the final assembly by myself and I am so glad to have done it. It took more time than I imagined, but again I am a true novice.

I really wanted it stained so that it would camouflage the wear a little better, but I had a great deal of trouble finding a low VOC stain in my town. I used the lowest I could find and a low VOC water based poly. It matches her dressers and trim nearly perfectly. Her older brother likes the bed so much that nearly everyday he tries to convince her that she wants to switch beds with him.

Estimated Cost
$100-$120
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Zar UltraMax low VOC stain in Golden Oak
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Triple Pedestal Farm House with Bench

Submitted by hoosierary on Sun, 06/22/2014 - 15:01

So I finally broke down and decided to make the table that my wife had been asking for sometime. This after our last table was damaged by mold in our last move. I have completed a few woodworking projects before this so from a skill level on this project it was not too hard. The problem was that I wanted the table to be perfect but my wife wanted the dings and dents that came along with a farm table, so we compromised somewhat.

I did run into one significant issue that will be a life long lesson. The Douglas Fir wood that I bought had a very high moisture content and during the course of the project most of the wood began to shrink up to a half an inch in some parts as the wood dried out. I was talking to a construction friend in the area when I was finishing up the table and he confirmed that he had the same issue with this wood locally. Would have been nice to know this from the beginning.

Anyways, we followed the Triple Pedestal Table and Bench with the following adjustments. We used all 2x6 boards for the table top in order to provide additional thickness for durability, we also removed the center divider and just opted to use the full length of the 8 foot boards. We then framed the table with 2x6 and then added another lip of 2x6 below the table top. The purpose of this was to create a large enough area to notch the boards for a resting areas of the leg tops. We also rounded all of the 2x6 edges on the top with a router as we didn't want to have any sharp corners for the kids to run into.

On the legs, we opted to use 4x6 posts for the leg bases and tops, as well as the leg post. We (meaning me) wanted to have a nice clean look rather than the layers of 2x6 and 2x4's in the original design. I used the router to create the hole in the post for the runner beam, and used a 2x8 beam rather than the 2x6 beam. Finally I did not have the patience to cut out all of the arches for both the table and the bench and my jig-saw was not working properly, so we just decided to improvise with the design as shown in the pictures.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Rustoleum Kona Stain, one coat and wiped dry with towel after 5 minutes. Rustoleum Satin water based polyurethene, 3 coats on legs and 4 coats on bench and table top, sanded after each coat.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Made by mj

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 09/22/2016 - 08:15

First ever project. Just testing my skills and all materials were low grade.  Next project will be better grade wood 

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
First project will use better quality wood on next one
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

Dressing Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 04/26/2024 - 13:58

My daughter wanted a dressing table and we had just dismantled a small wooden shed so I made her one by recycling the wood. I’ve only been woodworking for about 2 years and I’m really proud of it. Hope you all like it.
Steve Ross

Cedar Planters made from Reclaimed Fence Pickets

I built Ana's under $20 cedar planters for free. Or, almost free! I had to buy some more wood glue, but I had some of the wood on hand and took some from a friend's pile of old fence wood. It took me about five hours to build both planters from start to finish. See the blog link below for more info.

 

Pin For Later!

Cedar Planters made from Reclaimed Fence Pickets

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Free
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Oxidized the new cedar 2x4s with steel wool/vinegar (http://thefriendlyhome.blogspot.com/2012/07/how-to-oxidize-wood.html). Other than that, no finish.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday

Sectional

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 09/25/2016 - 01:37

Mostly the same. Made smaller spacing for the seat (used 1x4 for spacing) and gave it a back (18" 15% miter) hand formed the front seat board and a bit of an overhang also hand formed the tops of the seat backs and armrest idea was it would be comfy with or without cushions. Ow and it's all construction grade lumber that I water sealed. Thanks for the idea!

Estimated Cost
$126.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Thompsons clear water seal applied as I was assembled
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

hidden powder station dresser

We did some small edit to the original plan. Putting six large drawers and only one chair which was moved to the center. We also extended the chair legs the full length of the cabinet. The outer legs are 2x2s instead of 2 1x2s since no chairs were placed there.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
400
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
minwax early american on everything and then red oak stain on all except the drawer fronts and the red oak chair legs. Finished with an oil-based satin polyurethane.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Simple Wine Hutch

Made from Pine and great for Wine! A couple lengths of pine, some bead board, and coastal accent paint and ...Boooom! Show it off to all your friends and family.

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Coastal Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Princess canopy bed

Submitted by GemmaJ on Fri, 06/27/2014 - 17:55

My first ever furniture making attempt . My 5 year old daughter Delilah really wanted a princess canopy bed and we found the perfect one on this site , thank

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$70
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

audreyandmicah

Sun, 06/28/2015 - 23:32

The bed turned out great! I just finished the same one for our daughter. I'm having a horrible time finding a fabric canopy. Do you remember where you found yours?

Loft Bed

Submitted by JesseM on Tue, 09/27/2016 - 13:07

This project was for our 4 year old daughter.  We wanted to get her a loft bed, but I wanted to make sure the rails were really tall so she didn't fall out.  So, I took some inspirtation from loft beds on this website as well as looking at pictures of beds you can buy.  I also added the drawers within the stairs because I wanted to utilize the storage potential.  That was the most difficult part as I'm not particularly experienced in making and installing drawers.  Off to YouTube tutorials I went and it turned out quite nice.  I had to build it in three different parts to get it in her room.  It's the actual bed portion, the stairs, and the side wall.  Once I got it together, I left the screws showing that I connected it with, which I hate, but when we have to move it out of there, I didn't want to go through a ton of trouble.  I used Kreg pocket holes for all of the vertical bed slats which caused a ton of work plugging the holes, cutting off the excess, sanding, and then sanding again and again.  But, it was well worth it.  We have made her a cozy little nook underneath the bed and added a light since these pictures.  Overall, it was a fun project

Estimated Cost
$500-$700
I used maple plywood for the walls which shot the price up a LOT
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
White paint
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Airplane swing

Submitted by boneill on Mon, 07/06/2020 - 20:35

Super fun swing for my son

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$50
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Rust-Oleum Apple red gloss paint , Rust-Oleum flat black (for propeller / handle )
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Reclaimed Wood Look Headboard

Submitted by JenMash on Mon, 09/03/2012 - 12:49

My husband and I had been looking for a great headboard for a bed in our guest room. We found ones we really liked but didn't like the price tag of 800-1500 dollars (not even including shipping!) We stumbled on this site and absolutely fell in love with the reclaimed wood style headboard. It was exactly what we were looking for. Building it just took a few hours. After we distressed the wood using a chain I found at the hardware store (only $1.60), a drill, a creme brulee torch and a hammer, we prepped the wood (sanded and primed), stained and clear coated. I highly suggest not only vacuuming off the wood but also using a tack cloth (so cheap but it makes such a difference) to make sure all of the dust was off. We bolted the headboard into the bed frame. It will be heavy but it is really sturdy and looks great! A good tip is to decide early what you want the front to be - you can chose the best sides of the wood that way!

Estimated Cost
150.00
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
We prepped the wood using Minwax pre-stain wood conditioner. We then applied Minwax Provincial stain, waited about 10 minutes and wiped it off with a t-shirt. After we let it dry for the allotted time (we rushed it a bit but were so excited about the new headboard) and then put on a clear-coat finisher.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Seasonal And Holiday

Farmhouse Table

Submitted by wannabee on Sun, 06/29/2014 - 19:04

This is my first furniture building project and I was initially nervous that I have taken up more than I can handle. But things turned out just fine. My wife said she would pick this table if it were in a store and that made this project a success. My wife and I both like the distressed look and nothing in the stores impressed us enough. Three weekends worth of effort and we have a gleaming new table exactly as we wished. So, if you're a beginner like me, do not fret. This is a good starter project if you have the right tools.

The basic specs were from this site but I had to change it to suit my size. Also, for the top I used 2X6's throughout except the center piece which is 2X12. I liked this look a little better. I do not know how much work Kreg Jig will save as I have no experience doing it the other way. Kreg jig is not very common and I did not find it in Home Depot. Lowes carried it. With this design note that you cannot put any chairs on the smaller side of the table as the bottom stretchers will obstruct you.

I had to use a hand planer on many occasions to level things out, especially between the table top planks and the breadboards. With construction grade lumber there will always be warps and twists, so this is something you need to plan for.

Now to the build part,
Top is all 2X6 with center piece 2X12. Rest as per Ana's plans. Construction grade lumber - Douglas Fir.
I did not sand too much - used 120 Grit throughout - did not sand with anything finer than that and it turned out ok. I did this to retain the feel of the grains. It was fun distressing it. We used hammer, chains and nails, but the best effect was from chiseling on the sides. Practice on spare wood first.

For Finish I used Dark Walnut from Rustoleum. One single coat. Then I wiped on Minwax Red Chestnut on top and quickly wiped it off. That gave it a pop. I used 5 coats of Rustoleum Poly on top. Rustoleum makes a huge difference to your project time as it dries much quicker than minwax. Also one single coat of stain did the job as advertised. Note that Rustoleum Poly is milky in color, but dries clear.

Good luck to your project and hope this helped.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Rustoleum Dark Walnut one coat, Minwax Red Chestnut one very light coat, Rustoleum Poly Gloss finish 5 coats. Distressed look.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Modified Triple Pedestal Farmhouse Table

Submitted by dbcottam on Mon, 10/03/2016 - 13:02

I modified this plan by removing 1/3 of the table so it would fit our dining room. I used the farmhouse bench plans and "upholstered" them. This is the result. I used construction grade pine. Some of the table was altered by mistake, other bits on purpose. This project took me 40+ hours to complete. Weekends, a afterwork. 

Estimated Cost
$350 including tools
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
I used Minwax Wood Conditioner, Dark Walnut Stain, Clear Semi-gloss polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate
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