Storage Bed & Step Stool
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Built this bed and stool for my grandaughter's first "big girl" bed.
Built this bed and stool for my grandaughter's first "big girl" bed.
This is a queen size headboard I built for our guest room. This is inspired by http://ana-white.com/woodworking-projects/reclaimed-wood-headboard-queen-size.
The plans for the small and medium picnic table came at a perfect time. Our two granddaughters were growing out of their plastic play table and a big party was on the horizon - a graduation from pre-school.
As it turned out, I had purchased some very nice pine pre-covid and decided to use it for the table. The only change I made to the plan was to use 1" x 6" boards for the top as that was what I had. It gave the table a lighter look. I'm not sure if the boards will cup over time but I'm hoping the 5 coats of Spar Varnish will prevent that from happening.
I was surprised at how easy the plans were to follow and that the level of detail was enough to get it build without questioning "What do I do next?" or "How do I do this?"
I must say that having a miter saw and drill press made the job go faster but I could see that using more basic tools would certainly get the job done. Having the material allowed me to build the table in a single day. The coats of varnish took time to apply and let dry but I believe it will protect the table better than polyurethane.
rustic bench, modified length and omitted x detail, painted numbers
Fri, 02/03/2012 - 07:25
C'est une belle réalisation , je veux en faire l'été prochain. Merci pour toutes vos superbes idées. Bisous Isabelle
Wed, 02/08/2012 - 08:27
Sometime I wish I hadn't been handed down such a nice dining table and chair (plus coordinating antique buffet!)set from my parents. I read about this project at your site and would love to build this for my family. We are expecting baby #6 and two benches with 1, 2, and 3 on one and 4, 5, and 6 on the other would be too cute.
I keep hoping my parents will build again, this time in the style that matches their previous set and I can "generously" give them back the heirloom set ;-).
My sister wanted a step stool for her grand-daughter via her daughter-in-law. Like our mother and grand-mother before us, we stood by the sink with our hands in the wash water "helping" with the dishes. She asked it I could build a stool. After searching through several plans, I came across this vintage step stool and changed it up a little for the personal touch. I added the cartoon characters to fit with my great-nieces theme and she now has something that she can "brag" about as she grows.
I saw this plan on pinterest and really liked the way it looked. I bought the wood, but let it sit for a year because it wasn't a priority. Well, we were getting a new dog and he needed a little more room due to hip surgery. So, I expanded the crate dimension and got to work. I added 6 inches to the width, and 4 to the length but turns out I was about an inch shy all the way around to fit a plastic liner tray. Next one will be better. I used birch plywood on the side panels and the bottom panel, but used 4 inch wide board to create a slatted top rather than a solid top. I put hinges on the top with a window latch style lock, and put 2 slider style gate locks on the door. the color was from using medium walnut Danish oil, finished with 3 coats of gloss poly. During the project, I took time to teach my 9 yr old daughter how to use various tools, from the drill to the power miter saw. It was a great bonding time for us, and for a worthwhile reason- the new dog.
These desk sets were made from scrap wood and left over finishes, and are the inspiration for the desk bling accessory set plan, the cedar 1-board desk accessory set plan, and the 1-board cedar 2 drawer desktop storage cube plan. I had a ball planning and building these 4 sets over the summer, and gave them to the girls at work today as Christmas gifts. They were a big hit!
The cube sides and drawer fronts are made from scraps of wainscoat paneling.
The gray set is a distressed finish (not shown - the matching cube storage included pulls painted in oil rubbed bronze). The Espresso painted set received pulls spray-painted in silver. The Onyx set was stained with Minwax Express color, with pulls spray-painted in silver. The blue set received 2 coats of paint, and a Walnut glaze. Those pulls were done with a gray paint wash, with sea glass pebbles glued on the fronts.
The pulls are all made from pieces of S4S moulding, sanded and then painted. These also received a poly topcoat before attaching with super glue.
Total time for each set is about an afternoon each. Each set received multiple coats for the finishes, but was well worth the effort.
For some added "bling," I raided my stash of sticky-back felt scraps and applied to the bottoms of each piece, along with the drawer bottoms.
I saw someone else make a stand similar to this by combining the rustic x and tryde plans. I just used 1x for the sides instead of the x. Didn't take more than a few hrs to build but finishing took forever bc a couple boards were crowned so I sanded forever. If anyone has aby questions or needs help feel free to email me @ [email protected]
Made this with my brother as a gift for my daughter 20th birthday . Wood is from reclaimed cypress and hand rubbed shellac finish
Have you checked out prices at framing stores lately? Since I didn't want to pay $250 for a frame, I decided to make one out of some spare 1x4 Douglas Fir that I had. It's a single board with a router cut at the edge for detailing. I routed a rabbet onto the back, and kreg-jigged it together. I distressed the wood by beating it with a hammer and chain.
Prior to completing the frame, I took a sample piece to the framing store (who would be matting it) to make sure they could work with my rabbet size. I ended up having to make it deeper and wider to accommodate them, so I would advise doing this if you're taking it to a framer.
I never dreamed I could actually make a frame, much less a piece of furniture. Thanks so much to Ana for sparking all of this. I've found my creative calling thanks to her!
Thu, 02/16/2012 - 04:32
That is really beautiful! I've been considering the same build for the same reasons. Framing costs are outragous! I've never used a router before and I guess I'm a little intimidated by them. What do you think? Are they too hard to use? Worth investing in?
Thanks!
In reply to Good job! by Becky Smith (not verified)
Tue, 02/21/2012 - 08:11
Becky -- thanks for the feedback. The router is hard for me, but I don't think I know all the ins and outs of how to use it. For making the rabbet on the back, I've found out that a table saw works SO MUCH BETTER than trying to use the router. I believe that a dado blade for the table saw could make the decorative cut (and much easier, faster, and cleaner than trying to use the router).
What a great little gift idea and made this in about 4 hours. HD had 2x2 poplar turning blocks that were perfectly straight and pretty smooth to start with. Required minimal sanding. Each board was $1.98 but was 32 inches long. So you have to buy 15. Start with the larger cuts first. The end of each board will produce one or two of the smaller cuts. Used the food coloring and also coconut oil on the blocks.
Great project, had fun doing it.
Tue, 07/21/2020 - 11:16
This is awesome! I cannot wait to try this. Any advice on painting with food coloring?
I made my bench a little shorter (54") and did not need the center support. I also cut the top and bottom of the leg horizontals 3/4" shorter so the legs tucked under the bench top more. It was a great bench and looks good with the Fancy X Farmhouse Table I also followed from Ana White.
Mon, 02/29/2016 - 19:11
In case there is any questions, this is my adaptation of the Alaska Bench.
I love the toy box plans!! I've done some woodworking previously, but this was my first larger project. The first one was so simple and easy to make that I decided to make more!
Tiffanni
I loved this bench when I saw the plan and had to try it. Thanks Ana!
This was an easy plan to follow! We built these for around our fire pit. The finishes is what took the longest. The tops are stained American Walnut.
I looked at all the sofas that people built and took bits out of a lot of them to decide what I needed to fit my needs. I am in a tiny house and I wanted the sofa to be super versatile as well as being good for storage. I decided to build it the size of a double bed, but to divide this into three sections so that it can be used as a sectional, a seating area for meals and a bed for overnight guests. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be.
Thank you for this, I would not have known where to begin.
I decided on brightly printed outdoor fabric because the interior of my tiny house is all wood and I though the bright colours would be a nice addition. The outdoor fabric was chosen so that it would resist water and stains as well as pet hair.
I used the mudroom bench plans and modified them slightly to account for the wider space and air registers underneath. Thanks Ana!
Mon, 10/14/2019 - 12:43
Awesome! I'm going to do something similar in our dining room too!
Yours turned out great!
I made this garden bed in one evening. I love it! I bought 6 6' cedar fence pickets and two cedar 1x2s. I don't have a table saw, and they wouldn't rip a fence picket for me at the store, so I had to buy the cedar 1x2's but the project was still very affordable. I wanted it a little wider than the original plan, so I just cut the 6' pickets in half for the sides.
It is 6' x 3' and I didn't bother to cut the dogears off. You probably wouldn't even be able to tell they are there. I didn't trim the top out because that would add on about $6, and I like it just the way it is.
Now, lets see if I can actually grow some plants in it!!
I'm a beginner, and this project was really easy.
Fri, 05/24/2019 - 10:06
Awesome! These turned out amazing!
I love your can do attitude too!
Made a few beds for my niece and her friends.
First real furniture project. Used pocket screws for just about everything and added some decorative 2" bread boards.
Used your plans to make a sturdy, durable hardwood picnic table for a friend. Top is black cherry (1 1/4") and base/seats are white oak (1 1/4"). The seats are one piece, 11" wide from a white oakoy cut and sawed on our property! Sealed with two coats of Spar Urethane.
Chip McCoy