Community Brag Posts

King of Beds, no shims

Submitted by hannaar85 on Tue, 07/07/2015 - 06:22

Built using birch as the main wood for the headboard and footboard, everything else is pine. Turned out great!

Estimated Cost
With special finishing agents, lumber, and hardware, $170
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Rustoluem Kona Stain, Custom Poly/Oil/Thinner mix, Minwax Paste Finishing Wax
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Tiny house MIL unit

Ever since I saw the "wild rose" I knew it was the one I would build for my mom. I wanted a tiny house she would not have to climb a loft for her bedroom and still fit everything she would need. This is a brilliant layout! Many family, friends, and strangers donated money, time, appliances, and windows to get this house built. My husband and I have been finishing it up ourselves with some professional help in between since September and just put the appliances in today. Tomorrow the sink and counter-it's really happening, pinch me I'm dreaming! Thank you Ana & family, I can't imagine what kind of house my mom would have ended up with without your help. This was a really easy and fun build. Thank you so much!

Estimated Cost
20K
5 months
Finish Used
outside will be painted with stian. Inside we mixed a stain of red mahogany and early american to match the windows
Recommended Skill Level
Advanced

Flat Wall Bookholders

This was my first project and gave me the "umph" to get started as a builder. I loved them in Pottery Barn, but didn't feel good about how expensive they were to buy. So I bought a jigsaw and made two of these. One for each of my boys. I did the large size and I love them! They are a really pretty blue and hold a ton of books and were fun to make. I think I will make more for gifts and for our homeschool room.

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Primer and Blue high gloss paint.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Woven Bench

Submitted by jeglover on Fri, 07/10/2015 - 20:42

Turned into a more time consuming project than I first envisioned. I think it turned out great as everyone seems to like it. Going with the two-toned design made the finishing much more difficult but produced good results.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$35
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Mixture of stains,
primer and indoor/outdoor semi-gloss paint
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

My First Project!

My husband and I just moved from an apartment to a house, the first place we've ever lived with a dining room! I knew I wanted to build a really special table for us and I LOVED this plan. It seemed straightforward enough, and my stepdad had all the tools in his workshop. So my stepdad, mom, and I built the table over the course of a weekend. It was SO fun and it looks perfect in our first little house!

Estimated Cost
It cost me about $100 to buy all the lumber, screws, turnbuckles and hardware, stain and polyurethane. I didn't have any of those things on hand before starting. If I had, it would have been less! I also didn't have to purchase any tools.
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Wood was finished with Varathane Light Walnut wood stain and 4 coats (on the top) of Varathane Water-Based Polyurethane.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Paper towel rack

Yea, I know these were posted way back in 2013, but I only recently found them. Was looking at some kitchen organization ideas and I knew I wanted to make a paper towel rack. I liked this idea and went with it. My variance from original was to use a dowel rod for the paper towel holder and I cut 45 degree angles in place of the radius.

Comments

My first build

This is the simple outdoor bench. Was my 1st build ever and what started it all :)

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
stained w/gunstock and 3 coats of poly
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Breakfast Nook

Submitted by grovesteen on Mon, 07/15/2013 - 12:42

I made this breakfast nook by taking apart an old teak outdoor dining set, sanding all the boards, and turning the chairs into benches. For the full story and more pictures, please see my blog post on crunchyurbanites.blogspot.com entitled, Our Teak Breakfast Booth. Just click the link below to navigate to my blog. Happy Woodworking!

Estimated Cost
The cost of this project was purely in TIME - A LOT of sanding!
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Table top- three coats of polyurethane
Benches- Teak Oil
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Made with 2x4s and barn wood top

Submitted by Misterskw on Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:35

I made this table for my wife. The top is some oak barnwood attached with table buttons to allow for seasonal changes, and the bottom is two by fours resawn to fit. Thanks for sharing this plan!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Roughly 40 since the top was reclaimed
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax English chestnut and polyurethane. 3 coats each.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Rolling Side Table

Submitted by Bradnag on Sat, 02/03/2018 - 13:04

I had a bunch of scrap 3/4" MDF, so I used that instead of wood. The result is still as sturdy but a bit heavier than if I'd have used pine, which has added to the table's stability. I added a cup holder, but otherwise kept to the base instructions with no extra mods. I put an extra thick layer of polycrylic on the top surface, to protect the MDF from absorbing any spills. This was just a test run, so I didn't bother filling any of the visable pocket holes. Given how cheap and easy this was to build, I imagine I'll end up making 2-3 more.

Estimated Cost
$10
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Dutch Boy primer+paint, Minwax Polycrylic
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Bunk Beds

Submitted by hook Fam on Thu, 05/26/2011 - 12:24

I had so much fun building these beds! Thanks Ana for providing the plans for these. My boys absolutely love them. This was my first furniture build and now I can't wait to tackle some more. The bottom bunk is using an odd-sized mattress, so I had to change the plans a little, and the ladder has since been attached as well.

Estimated Cost
$250-$350
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Varathane Dark Walnut and Clear Finish. The finish is what took the bulk of the time building this. The bed itself went together incredibly fast.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Bar

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 03/14/2022 - 10:09

Built this exactly from your plans. Used aged barrel for stain. I love it!!!!

Comments

Stackable kid's chairs

My daughter needed chairs to use at her art/play-dough table. I used pallet wood for everything except the legs of the chairs. The legs were from some scrap wood that I had. I made two chairs and plan to make two more. They are each a different color.

Estimated Cost
free
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Can of oops Mint green Behr eggshell finish water-based paint and some leftover light blue spray paint.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Man Crate for Grandson

My Grandson Brax is staying with me for a few days this summer and I thought I'd get him invloved with a wood project. We decided on building him a "man crate" to keep toys & other boy stuff in. He was a great help, and got to have a lot of fun while learning to build a DIY project.

Maybe one day Brax will love to build things out of wood like his Paw-Paw.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Polyshield "Espresso"
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Entryway bench

Entirely made of reclaimed wood.  Sanded with 220 on a random orbital and applied two coats of polycrylic finish

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$20
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Polycrylic clear matte
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

I built a table O_o

Submitted by kiki on Wed, 06/01/2011 - 06:34

I haven’t done woodworking since jr. high and that was only making a plant stand and a turtlebank, so it’s been a while since I last used wood tools and came out with a useable product at the end.

Estimated Cost
Including taxes it ended up being around $51dollars. See my blog for breakdown.
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Tinted outdoor stain applied with a brush; two coats.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Entertainment Center

Submitted by Dadx6 on Sat, 07/20/2013 - 08:53

This fun project was only my third piece of furniture I've done. I took my time and worked on it a couple hours during the work week and got a most of it done on a Saturday.

I appreciate the projects here on ana-white.com. They are easy to follow, clear, and use basic tooling and cuts.

Estimated Cost
~$250
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Rustoleum Kona Wood Stain
Rustoleum Spar Finish
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Trash Bin based on Ana's Plan

Submitted by Scottcs42 on Sun, 07/26/2015 - 20:39

Trash bin based on Ana's plan

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Wheat stain, poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Dining Table SC

Submitted by bhoward7 on Fri, 02/23/2018 - 08:28

It took me a good 6 months to finish this since I started before summer, but it got too hot here in SC very fast. So I just finished it in January this year. It turned out great! Longest part was the finish work since many days it was too cold to put Poly on it. The actual building of the table went quick.

Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Provincial
Minwax Polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Bed+ entertainment center

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 04/07/2022 - 13:02

This is your storage bed and entertainment o r media center flipped upside down. I am self taught thanks to you. Thank you for making it easy to do and follow!

Comments