Community Brag Posts

Lady Bug Table

Submitted by heidii on Tue, 07/12/2011 - 10:07

This was my first try with an Ana White plan. It was tons of fun, and my husband came up with an awesome paint design. Here it is:

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$15 plan + $15 spray paint
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
I used spray paint and then lacquer. It would be simpler with regular paint because you wouldn't have to tape so many times.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

heidii

Tue, 07/12/2011 - 10:09

Use a piece of cardboard or sturdy paper to make the cut-outs for the spots.

Rustic coffee table

Submitted by W.Warren on Wed, 08/14/2013 - 19:27

It came out looking pretty good. We followed the plans. Treated entire area with a pre-stain conditioner. Then applied 3 coats of Minwax PolyShade. Voila!

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Polyshade brown, oak maybe.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Sweet Pea Bunk Bed for Viktoria

I spent the last 8 months building 2 bunk beds from the Ana White site.  This little girl sweet pea version for my granddaughters and a cabin version for my grandsons.  This took alot of time but their smiles made it all worth it.  I am thankful for the website and plans you provided. It allowed someone like me to build something that my granddaughter loves and hopefully will remember forever.  Many, many thanks!!!!

Finish Used
primer and paint
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Wife's Kindergarten Classroom

Been a while since I had time to actually build anything worth posting about! My wife wanted some items for her Kindergarten classroom this year, so built several items, most inspired by the Farmhouse family.

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

jennyboo

Sat, 06/12/2021 - 11:23

I am moving from 15 and half years of third grade to a first year of first grade. I NEED tables for my kids. I plan on building my own. I am building mine as a "2 seater." Would you please share the dimensions of these student tables? I love the teacher desk too. I built something similar for my home.

Essential Bed Frame

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 05/26/2022 - 15:29

I had to move quickly from Washington to Ohio for a job ( which I've since quit!). I flew here in January, with two suitcases. I ordered a nectar mattress and needed a frame. Built it, stained it vintage blue, love it!

Comments

Canopy Doll Bed

Submitted by canesa on Fri, 07/15/2011 - 00:03

I built 2 canopy doll beds and matching nightstands for my neighbors. I modified them by flipping the plans over, raised the top shelf and turned the bunk into a canopy. I wish I could take credit for the fabulous sewing skills but that is my friends talent!

Estimated Cost
They bought all the supplies so i'm not sure on this one.
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Petite Planters for the Potager

Submitted by JoA on Mon, 08/19/2013 - 06:23

After building a large planter from Ana's plans and my salvaged fence wood I thought 2 smaller planters for the entrance to our kitchen garden would be nice. The complete instructions are on my blog, Let's Face the Music. Jo

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$12 each
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Benjamin Moore Exterior Semi-gloss in Bunker Hill Green over exterior primer.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner
Seasonal And Holiday

Doll bed

I made this dolls bed with my daughter, and she really enjoyed it :-) Had to do some adjustments from Inch to centimenters before I started. Thank you for a great site!

Estimated Cost
NOK 300,- (included fabrics)
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Tweaked 6 cube Cubby and Bookshelf

Submitted by Ryan57ford on Sun, 09/09/2018 - 07:56

I used the 6 Cubby plans and just started tweaking.  First was the plan to just do 12 cubbies, then decided to just put in adjustable shelves for aethetic purposes and not having it look too "Boxy"  After that decided it would look better with doors too.

 

as for the shelf on top, I used the cubby bookshelf plans and just made it wider to match the width of the doors and then decided to also make it adjustable shelving as well.  (used the kreg shelf pin system.)

 

Overall turned out pretty good. I am making a even bigger one for my other room.

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

Living Room Set

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/04/2022 - 12:31

Just finished this set up. All Poplar and Birch Ply.

Comments

Harriet Higher Chair

Submitted by glennj on Sun, 07/17/2011 - 08:04

Well I decided for my first project/projects to make chairs for my girls. They turned 2 and 3 last month. I also made a couple of chairs for friends of ours who have twin boys that also turned 3. Once I got the hang of it making the chairs didn't take to long but painting seemed to take forever. But I love how all the chairs turned out.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

glennj

Mon, 07/18/2011 - 15:45

I am happy I made them too. The are super sturdy. Toddlers climb all over them and when they aren't looking adults sit on them. No problems. I am making a couple more but a little taller for our kitchen.

Modern Slat bench

Two tone 3 ft long slat bench

Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Dark walnut and chestnut fence stain
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Audrey Wright

Thu, 10/22/2015 - 05:16

I love the two toned rhytm. I wonder how you attached the slats. Did you just glue or did you nail / pocket hole etc.. 

Michaela Kitchen Island

Modified the plan to use 2x2 with pocket screws to support the shelves.

Shelves were made edge glued board from Lowes https://www.lowes.com/pd/Common-1-in-x-24-in-x-4-ft-Actual-1-in-x-23-25…

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$150 - not including the granite countertop
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Spray painted the legs with Flat white paint
Stained shelves with General Finishes Gel Stain in Antique Walnut - 3 coats
Applied General Finishes Top Coat in Satin to everything - 3 coats
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Platform bed

Cedar and pine. The pine ,pine,head and foot board, on this project have ants holes, which one cannot reproduce.

Comments

Tryde Coffee Table

Submitted by dreamer43 on Sun, 07/24/2011 - 01:35

Tryde coffee table made from a combination of pine and recycled wood from old pallets.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Tryde Media Console with doors

Submitted by blawson972 on Wed, 08/21/2013 - 15:04

This was my second project. It took a little longer than I wanted because I don’t have a table saw :( I didn’t trust Lowe’s to cut the plywood for me since it needed to be perfectly square and they only guarantee their cuts to be within 3/4" so I had to wait to go to my dad’s house to borrow his, but other than that it went pretty fast!

I kept to the plans for the most part, but I added some trim and cabinet doors. I knew that at my house the inside of that cabinet would be a hot mess in a matter of days, so I wanted to have a way to cover it up! I just used 1x4’s to frame the doors and leftover scrap 1/4" plywood from the back for the faces. I used a router to rabbet out the doors so I could inset the plywood instead of it just sticking off of the back. They turned out pretty good considering they were my first and I had never used a router before! Overall, I am really happy with this one! I’ll be making the matching pieces this weekend - the coffee table, end table, and entry table.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$75-$80 + stain/poly
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
I used Minwax pre-stain wood conditioner, 2 coats of dark walnut oil based stain, and 2 coats of polycrylic in clear satin. It turned out great!
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Picture Frame Sliding Door Console

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/15/2018 - 07:41

I took the original plans and modified them to work with my requirements. Most of this piece is made with pallet wood. I made the rails from aluminum bars and sliding door pulleys. 

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Dark walnut for top and doors. White chalk paint for cabinet.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Parsons Coffee Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/25/2022 - 11:33

I host an Airbnb and wanted to add a small fire table feature to the outdoor front porch of it. Everything prebuilt was either very large or very ugly, so I decided to build a small coffee table and add a tabletop lp gas unit I found. I had built Ana's Farmer's table before so I searched the site and found the Parsons Table series. Ana's plans are so straightforward and easy to customize so I scaled it to fit the space. I added some privacy panels to hide the lp tank making one hinged for access.

Comments

Bathroom Storage Cabinet

I built this cabinet to store magazines and diapers (towels when the time comes) in the small 1/2 bath.

The top was made with left over oak pieces from when I ripped out the carpet and 2x12 stairs and replaced with oak treads.

Estimated Cost
$20 (already had the treads)
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
jacobean stain on top, pale sandy beige paint with jacobean stain used as glaze on body.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Debi G

Wed, 07/27/2011 - 11:15

I just created something similar. The way the top and body coordinate, and how the top cubbies are sized make this a stand-out.
Something similar would work for my classroom, too.

Cedar 2-Drawer Desktop Storage Cube

Submitted by JoanneS on Sat, 08/24/2013 - 15:02

This is the prototype build for the Cedar 2-drawer desktop storage cube. It is made from 1 piece of ½” x 5 ½” x 6’ fence picket, about $3 for wood. I had based this plan on a board that is ½” thick and 5 ½” wide, and had identified areas in the plan where you’ll want to measure and cut as you build. I found this especially important on the prototype build, since it turned out the picket I bought was 5 3/8” wide, which affected the depth of the shelf, length of the drawer sides, and the size of the drawer bottom. Measuring and trimming as you go gives the best fit for all the pieces. Probably the most helpful thing besides keeping the measuring tape handy, was some 60-grit sandpaper. After everything was assembled, I used 60-grit sandpaper with my palm sander to sand down any high spots caused by cupping, to get the outsides nice and smooth. Followed up with some 220-grit for a nice smooth final sand. The pulls are some ¾” x 1 ½” pieces of the cedar, sanded well on all sides. I just cut these from the scraps, and they are glued on. You can use regular knobs or pulls if you like. You may need a shorter screw or a ¼” spacer, since the drawer face is only ½” thick. The screws for regular knobs are normally sized for a ¾” thick door or drawer face. This build took about 3 hours. Finishing time will depend on the type of finish used. My words of advice for building this would be: Take your time measuring. Measure twice before cutting. Sand thoroughly. Have fun!

Estimated Cost
$3 for wood, + finishing materials
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
I plan to stain this with Minwax Express Color in walnut, to match the 1-board cedar desk accessory set that I posted last week. But I had to brag this one with it au naturale, because I thought the grain on the cedar was so pretty and I wanted to show it off. It has a neat kind of striped look which is pretty all on its own. I’ll add the stained picture of it below, later this weekend.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

X-less Rustic X Console

Submitted by ianp on Wed, 10/07/2015 - 12:36

I made this using the Rustic X console plans but changed a few aspects. Instead of 2x2's I used 2x3's to beef up the cross beams and removed the X. Also extended the shelves out a few extra inches.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax classic grey and Minwax Dark Walnut.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate