Community Brag Posts

My husband built this loosely based off the plans and scrap wood we had in the garage. I stained it with Minwax in Winter Sky. Thanks Ana!

Emily Dresser

Modified for standard king bed.

I used the Triple Pedestal Farmhouse plans, but that table would have been much too large for the space we have for a table; so I shortened the length a bit and only used two pedestals.

These pieces are perfect for my home office. I desperately needed storage. I have tons of room to spare.  I love the design, although I used different molding. Couldn't find small enough crown. Thank you!!

Really liked the design of this, but I just prefer the look of wood over concrete. Used 2x6 rather than 2x4 for the base, as it gives it a more sturdy, modern look. Used 2x10 and 2x6 for the tabletop, which was biscuit joined and then given artificial seams with a router. Stained in Jacobean, and given a gloss poly finish.

I followed Jamie's tutorial from "That's my letter" on how to make this frame fit an existing chalkboard piece.

It was easy peasy. Finishing took longer than building.

I had all the wood, just had to buy the chalkboard from Hobby Lobby and the chalk markers.

This DIY Herringbone Barn Door is used over a simple hallway opening to separate the maing living space from the kids' bedrooms. I searched this site and Pinterest for inspiration, and loved the herringbone and chevron patterns that I found. This door was made of reclaimed barn wood and wrapped in raw steel channel iron. Hope you enjoy!

I followed the plans with 3 modifications.

Modification #1: To add more structural support, I used 6 more 2x2s. 3 of them went directly under the 1x3s that made up the seat. 3 of them went at the bottom, flush with the lower 1x3s at the base, right by the legs. I did not pre-cut these! I measured the lengths and did the cuts as I needed them because they needed to be a snug fit-had to use the hammer to lightly tap them into place before securing with 2 in nails. For the middle 2x2s, I tonailed in a couple of 1 1/2 nails to keep the 2x2 from twisting/spinning (because I didn't use 2 nails to attach it the first time!) See the pictures for closeups. 

Modification #2: I stained and polyurethaned the legs.  Stain color is MInwax Jacobean (The other stained parts of the stool don't need staining, but mine are because I used scrap wood for this build and they were already stained.)

Modification #3: Padding and wrapping and slipcover - I purchased a 15x17x2 inch foam pad for the top of the stool. I had some 1/4 batting in my craft room. I used an upholstery stapler ($10 at Hobby Lobby + an extra box of staples) to attach the batting. I wrapped it around the sides and top, securing it along the sides of the cube with the stapler. I used a spray adhesive to glue down the foam pad. Then, I wrapped 1 more layer of the batting over the top of the foam pad, securing along the cube edges. I flipped the whole stool over, trimmed the batting edges, leaving enough to fold over and staple onto the base frame. I made the slipcover as instructed in the link provided in the plans, but I had to take the measurements from my stool NOT their measurements, due to the extra bulk created by the batting and foam pad.  I used 1/2 in seam allowances on all seams, leaving 2 extra inches at the bottom. After making the cover and fitting it, I turned the stool upside down and stapled the cover to the frame, making sure that it all looked neat and secure. Tip: Some of the staples didn't fully sink into the wood so I had to use a hammer and a nail set to get them really secure.  I added a felt slider to each leg.

Finished dimenstions are 19 in high, 18 in (long sides), 16 in (short sides).

Enjoy your build and hope it turns out great!

My husband and I spend a few hours on this. It was our first furniture project and we made our first pocket holes yesterday! We did a platform bed with slats to avoid a box spring. We used Douglas fir and left it natural, just with a clear poly coating. We love it and are addicted to making our own furniture!

I was so happy to finish this bed and get it set up today, one month and one day shy of my 20th wedding anniversary.  My husband and I had never been able to agree on a bed but we got a new memory foam mattress after Christmas and found Ana's website through an "IKEA hack" type of page.  We finally found something from Anna we agreed on and was affordable.  : )  I used non-mortising bed rail brackets as well as a center beam support, all from Woodcraft, so that this bed could be easily disassembled if needed.  I used a combination of 1x2 and 1x4 to create slats, 17 in all, about 2-3" apart, placed on cleats, all to hold the mattress and simulate the bed slats from IKEA.  I sanded 80-120-220 then covered with a wipe-on poly product from Watco, which was easier to work with than stains etc that need to sit, since I had to work in my dining room (else risk getting lots of maple "flyers" and pollen in my finish...)  Thank you, Ana, for all your great ideas and encouragement!  One tip: maybe sand some of the pieces, especially in the head and footboards, before assembling.  It was tricky to get into the tight places with the power sander and by hand.

I followed Ana's plans http://ana-white.com/2012/06/plans/fancy-x-farmhouse-table Total cost for me was $150 thats lumber,screws and stain. Total time for me was approx 6 hours and it was most time consuming for the legs. I build this in my yard as I don't have a shop. I put my old table saw on a pallet and my chop saw on the table saw. I altered a couple pieces to make the look different and bulkier for me. This is going to make an excellent gift. I just need to put a finish on it and seal it. Oh and I made mine from spruce. *Update* So we finally were able to put a finish on it with a 24 hour window of no rain. We used 2 coats Behr Cedar stain. It is an all in 1 and turned out beautiful.

*Note*

Not pictured, but I did add a strip of wood under each end to pull the board ends flush with one another. I used 2 1x2's with ends cut at 45 degrees. Length was cut to fit. This isn't something that was in the build plans, but it was very hot out when I was building this and the boards were starting to run up and down if you can see that in the photos.

This bench was very easy to make and perfect for a family who hasnt tackle any wood projects. We are so happy and pleased not only with the results but how satisfying it was to make your own piece of furniture.
I recommend this project not only for the bedroom but for many places in the house, specially in the Entry way.