Community Brag Posts

Check out the bar stool also. I thought the inset being stained added a little touch. I use this as my desk. I get compliments all the time!

One thing led to another, and we got a rescue dog – Arthur. The good little guy finds the apartment too big to stay alone when we are not around, and it is a recommended practice to have a dog crate so that the dog has a confined space of its own.  The options to buy were hopeless, and the cheapest ones were just made of metal wire. They look horrible inside the house and it looks like a prison cell. There are nicer wooden ones, but they cost few hundreds of dollars. So, I put my DIY hat on, and thought of building one for our new buddy!

Material Used:

• 1 sheet of 4ft x 8ft, ½ inch thick Plywood
• 3 lengths of 1.5 inch x 1.5 inch x 8ft lumber
• Small pack of ¾ inch wood screws
• Small pack of 1.5 inch wood screws
• 8 90 degree metal framing angles
• ½ qt latex based wood primer
• 1 qt wood paint
• 2 Brass hinges – 270 degree
• 1 lock
• 1.5” brush and 6” roller

Refer my blog post for all step by step instructions and optimal material usage.

I built this bed a little higher so it will last my daughter a lot longer.
Such a great way to get back all that floor space! The 2x4 frame makes it super strong as well.

Diane

This potting bench is my first project, and I am so happy with the way it turned out. I was a little nervous to paint it purple, but I think it looks pretty good. I originally planned to deviate from Ana's plans, but decided not to go overboard for my first project. The plans were straight forward and easy to follow, it only took me a couple of hours to build. Looking back though, I would have gone with a different wood (I used cedar), because I used conditioners and sealers and primers etc... and the cedar grain doesn't come through over the paint, and isn't really worth the extra cost for what I did with it. Overall a great beginner project. I am looking forward to many more.

I was inspired by this workbench post to create a workbench, especially since I needed one! I painted it with exterior paint and added wheels. I also added extra wood around the bottom to make it sturdier.

This was my first attempt at the leaning bookshelf project.  I decided upon a modern-contemporary look by using white laminated 1x4s and opted for dark wood staining to give the shelves contrast.  It was my first time using a compound miter saw, as well as intensive wood sanding and staining.  I struggled with cutting the white support beams into the directed 5 degrees, and just made my best guess with a hand saw (however, I will try to improve upon this for our next set, since the additional cost of a second bookshelf is only about $50.)

I also learned about the trick of a 5-point shelf leveling (one for each corner, and the center point) in order to get a truly level shelf.  Creating the jig in order to space out the distance between each shelf is a really good idea to help implement all of the setup.  

Overall, I really enjoyed this project and wanted to thank Ana for her inspiration and plan details.  

I look forward to reporting yet another success on our second bookshelf (and following writing desk) soon!

This was my first project building furniture. It was a fun time!

I wanted a bar stool for my kitchen counter and this plan was perfect for what I wanted. I painted it turquoise to match a bookcase I had in the connecting living room. Since I already had the paint and wax all I had to pay for was the wood.

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

Using the counter height planter plans from Janettx. Thanks!

I made this in one day.  I used builders grade lumber and made it full size instead of queen. 

This is my second project. It went really well. I wanted to do something different with the handles so I used an old bicycle chain that I took it apart to make the handles.

I built this table for a friend. It was fairly easy! The only problem I encounted was getting the 2x2 trim pieces flush with the legs while building the frames. When I just laid them on the floor they would sink in further than the legs. So I made sure to check their positioning and hold them in place with one hand while drilling in the screw with the other hand. It was a fun build and I would definitely build it again!

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!