My husband and I used your plans to make this cradle... He built it, and I painted it. I’m so excited to give it to our granddaughter for Christmas!!
After special ordering glass spice jars for my cupboard I came across your plans for this spice rack and decided to attempt the build. Plans were very well written and easy to execute with a few customizations. I opted for brass rods to hold the jars in place and lined each shelf with shelf liner to ensure the jars don’t move when the pantry door swings. I am very pleased with the outcome and will be making a matching rack for my aluminum foil, plastic wrap, etc.
This has been a work in progress for about 4 years. My wife and I started this project before we were married. Between a wedding, moving into our first house and having our first child we've had a real hard time getting in the shop to finish this project. I'm proud to say that's it's finally together and just needs a few coats of poly. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
I had been looking everywhere for an antique Mid Century Modern buffet table to use as a changing table for my daughter but found that these vintage pieces ran about $1200 to $3000 and still needed refinishing. That was out of my price range so I came here and found plans for a console table that had the look I was going for.
The plan I found was too short in length and height so I reworked them a little to fit my needs. I just added a second cabinet in the same dimensions as the first onto the other end of the drawers to increase the length and bought 12" legs instead of 6" ones to increase the height. I used the same hardware that was recommended in the original plans but added a magnetic door stopper to make the cabinet doors flush with the frame when closed. I also added dowel rods in the cabinets because my daughter doesn't have a closet and I needed a place to hang her clothes.
It is great to have 2 cabinets because the left side holds clothes that are too big for her and the right holds all of the clothes she wears now. The drawers are nice and deep so I can put all her changing stuff like diapers and lotion in the top and fit all her socks, diaper covers, and pajamas in the other drawers.
I will say that I used 1x6's to make the drawers first but found that I am really bad at picking straight boards as there were a lot of gaps between the sides and the bottom of the drawer. I went back and used scrap pieces of 3/4" plywood for the drawer sides and they came out much better with no gaps, plus, the exposed top of the drawer sides look better.
This was a fairly fast project. I put it as a weekend project due to the down time between staining and poly coats. It was my first time working with edge banding and I loved it. It was super easy and kind of relaxing! Over-all, this project was easy and fun! This table meets all of my needs AND it looks great! Thanks Ana for the plans and thanks Brooke for the inspiration and tips!
Fri, 06/28/2013 - 11:02
Wow, really great job. I love mid century mod, and you pulled it off perfectly!
My son needed a dresser that would fit a small space (no more than 40 inches wide). I modified the Cabin Collection plans to fit the small space. Looking at the plan, I wanted to brighten up the wood and opted not to stain. Instead I purchased an airless sprayer and was very pleased with the finish. For the drawer faces, I found old barn wood. The barn wood was a little tricky because some of the boards were warped. I brushed the wood with a stiff nylon brush to bring out the deep grain texture of the wood. Finally, purchased bronze finished drawer handles. Very pleased with the outcome. Thanks for the plans. Can't wait to start my next project.
Christmas Tree Wall Shelf
Stockings hung using cabinet/drawer pull knobs that I found on Amazon
I made these shelves - following the plans on the site - with my kids who helped with the painting. What a straight forward way to organize the garage and have fun introducing kids to building. The shelves are deep enough for storage tubs, access items easily and are very sturdy. I would fully recommend this plan to get things sorted in your garage and have more room for other projects!
I still need to level the legs out, file down 2 screws I put in backwards, fill some spots, stain and apply poly coat, but this is a start! =)
This was a blast to build. This was all a gift for my wife since the traditional 5th anniversary gift is wood.
The coffee table and console are both awesome! The only thing I would change/modify is the end table, because its kinda big and doesn't really look its part of the set other than the "X". I would maybe take about 2 or 3 inches off all sides or maybe 3 off the sides so its not such a box.
Thu, 06/20/2013 - 07:31
I'll start one! Go for the poly. You're absolutely right, it will bring up the beautiful grain, and show off the "X" accents. Nice work, by the way!
Thu, 06/20/2013 - 07:32
I'll start one! Go for the poly. You're absolutely right, it will bring up the beautiful grain, and show off the "X" accents. Nice work, by the way!
Thu, 06/20/2013 - 08:39
Beautiful builds! Wow, they look wonderful. What an amazing gift! From the pics, the end table looks fine, too, as the furniture isn't a small scale. I love the two-tone so I say go for just the poly!
Thu, 06/20/2013 - 12:08
I think you did an amazing job :) love the contrast of the two tones. Using poly for the rest would be beautiful. I cant wait to do this project myself.
Thu, 06/20/2013 - 15:47
What a wonderful gift! These tables are beautiful, great job on this build! I love the two-tone - One more vote for the poly! :)
Fri, 06/21/2013 - 13:04
I'm going to go with only the Poly over the bare wood. Thanks for the comments and advise! It will be a few weeks due to work and travel but I'll send updated pics once its done.
Sat, 02/24/2018 - 21:18
I like the naked/poly look too. The other option I think would look good would be painting it white. The contrast between the white frame and darker kona top and shelf would be cool.
I used local Colorado beetle killed pine. I based the table on Anna's Farm House Table plans. I used the bread ends to create pull outs for 11 inch extensions on each end.
Thank you Ana for the plans. Our daughters dolls needed some pets and this project was the perfect home for her New bunnies! I can't wait for her to open this gift Christmas morning.
I LOVE the hot cocoa stand but wanted to make it “year round”. So I also created accessories for lemonade, fireworks and snow cone stands. The signs are reversible. They are made of metal and attach with magnets. The banners also attach with magnets. There are hot cocoas, gingerbread cookies, peppermints, lemonades, iced cookies, a cake plate, fireworks, smoke bombs, bottle rockets, sparklers, snow cones and a snow cone holder that flips over to become a crate.
Thu, 12/23/2021 - 20:09
So awesome, love all the accessories to make it a year round favorite! Well done:)
I first came across Ana's site while looking for a table and chairs set for my little ones. Their room is Jungle themed so I decided to take on the project and build the set myself. My wife and I ended up painting it in the Jungle theme to match my daughter's dresser. We added a checkerboard on one side of the table, and a bamboo tic-tac-toe board on the other side. We had previously painted the dresser so we had experience with the finish. I had a great time building this, and I can't wait to start my next project! I just got my hands on some pallets, so we will be tackling a preschool picnic table next! Bring on the Miter Saw!!!
Made with western red cedar from Lowes. So pretty!
Wed, 08/21/2019 - 09:00
Did you use any kind of finish on the cedar? I’m making one as an indoor end table.
What grit sand paper did you use?
Looks great by the way. Excellent job!
I loved this project! I had been wanting a new set of end tables for a while and I came across these plans and was in love! I altered them just a smidge by raising the bottom shelf a little so I could fit a vaccuum/broom under it more easily, but other than that I left it as is! For the decorative hardware, I used L brackets and large upholstery nails/tacks...you can find them in most craft stores...I picked mine up at Hobby Lobby.
My husband and I made two Queen Platform Storage Beds for our "Carriage House" apartment. They are a beautiful and functional upgrade! Thank you Ana for sharing your plans!
A photographer friend of mine requested I build her this after she saw them selling on Etsy for $115. They make super sweet props for newborn shoots, as well as a really cute doll bed for those popular 18" dolls. I free-handed the side details, and cut them out with my new Dremel Trio. It's an awesome tool! I used scrap MDF and plywood for everything but the 2x2 legs and finials, which I snagged for about 60 cents each at Lowe's. I played around with my finishing to give it a rustic look, since the cheap MDF I had on hand is super ripply and can't be sanded smooth.
I used the Farmhouse Doll Bed as a jumping off point for the dimensions. I put it together with my Kreg Jig, but I wouldn't recommend it, since those holes are really hard to fill, and you can see the indentations on the back of the headboard and footboard. Though it's sturdy enough to hold my 55 pound boxer, so I'm pretty sure all those newborns will be safe and sound on it! I really love how it turned out, and can't wait to get my own newborn photographed in this bed come August!
This was my first project from ana white. Thank you for making such great and easy to follow plans! I will be making the matching coffee table next!
Mon, 07/08/2013 - 10:16
Was the color of the table brown like that after just the oxidation process or did it turn brown like that because of the Vermont Natural Coatings Polywhey?
The reason I ask is we're trying to decide between the wax finish, which we love, or the more protective and durable PolyWhey.
Mon, 08/12/2013 - 12:43
Sorry for the late reply. I hope this advice is still useful for you. I figured I would have got an email if someone replied to my brag post. I just changed my settings so I will get emails in the future.
After the oxidation process It was a fairly dark brown. At this stage the colouring was not even everywhere so I used 220 grit sandpaper on a sanding block to lighten the colour and even it out. I sanded fairly lightly. After applying the Polywhey the colour did not change much. It is hard to describe as I am not a very artistic person, but it definitely made the colour richer and more pleasing to the eye after applying the Polywhey. As for the Polywhey, it is oderless and very quick and easy to apply. I put on 3 coats. I hope that helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.
It was a fun and easy build. I did the oxidation finish for the first time on this project and am really happy with how it turned out. I also added washers to the lag screws on the legs to make it stand out a little more.
Comments
JBachelor
Sun, 12/17/2017 - 20:52
Additional info
I put that it took 10-20 hours... that was mostly the painting and drying time between each coat, and doing the A for her name.