Community Brag Posts

Handmade Farm table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 12/18/2016 - 02:01

This was my first attempt to build a table . I'm very pleased with the outcome. 

Estimated Cost
$170.00
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Teal and burnt orange flat paint brushed on randomly over project.
White semi gloss for some high lights . Stain doesn't dull the finish of semi gloss paints.
Sand entire piece to bring some of the natural wood back out.
Then I applied min wax Jacobean stain color over the top of everything.
Lastly I applied 2 coats of min wax semi gloss poly.
Recommended Skill Level
Advanced

Ultimate Work Bench using Ana's plans

Submitted by Wendy KT on Mon, 08/31/2020 - 08:30

When I first saw Ana's Ultimate Work Bench I was blown away. I *had* to make this. I love how neat the garage looks when everything is put away.

I had to make a few extra cuts in order to allow room for my table saw fence, but other than that the only thing I did differently was to pretty it up using a white gel wood stain that I sealed with finishing paste. I also added trim using the leftover 1/4 inch plywood.

Thank you for being such an inspiration, Ana. I love your plans!

Estimated Cost
$375
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

20 sec tidy up coffee table

Submitted by Jaime04285 on Thu, 11/15/2012 - 18:08

This was one of my first projects that I completed all be myself. I've done lot's of furniture with my dad but never alone. It went pretty smoothly just following the plans. I even used the Kreg jig for the first time and I love it! I completed in about two or three months working on the weekends for a few hours when I could. I was also working on refinishing my son's trundle bed so I'm not really sure how long it took me to finish. Sorry for the poor quality photos, I'm terrible at taking pictures.

Estimated Cost
$75.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
First I used wood conditoner with a foam brush. Then I used one coat of Minwax English Chestnut over the whole thing and then added another coat where the boards meet and other raised areas to make them darker, aslo with a foam brush. Then I put two coats of Minwax polyurethane clear satin on with a cheap paint brush and as long as I went back over it after a few seconds I could get rid of any bubbles.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

bhoppy

Fri, 11/16/2012 - 11:21

I love how the darker areas look on your table. I tried for that look when I made mine but couldn't get it right. I will have to try again next time. Congrats on your first solo project:-)

Jaime04285

Fri, 11/16/2012 - 20:22

thanks, I didn't wipe any of the stain off, I just blended it in to the rest of the board.

toy box

Submitted by rosewilson on Tue, 09/02/2014 - 06:52

Simple cuts, kreg jig made all the difference when putting this together. Made for my niece's 2nd birthday and both she & my sister loved it.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
With finishing products about $90
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Paint and polyacrylic top coat. White primer after sanding, 2 coats of white paint, hand written name on front of box in purple paint, 2 coats of polyacrylic spray.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Fancy X Farmhouse table with top attachment idea

Submitted by Ryguy5188 on Wed, 12/21/2016 - 15:38

For my third project I built my brother-in-law the Fancy X Farmhouse table cut down to a size suitable for him and his girlfriend. When I read through the comments it seemed like alot of people had the same question: How do I attach the top?!?!?! As this was going to be used for an indoor dining table I didnt want to screw through the top if I didnt have to and I didnt want to use metal bracketry eithery. What I did required 4 inch screws and  a 5/8 drill bit. Ive attached pictures to show where I placed the wood suport pieces. Two screws went through the top cross beam (connecting the two leg ends) into the center support piece and I put a total of 2 screws each through the sides of the two longer support pieces and into the top board of the legs. I used a 5/8 bit to drill about an inch (very rough estimate and essentially to countersink the screws an inch deep) into the 3.5 inch width of the 2x4s and then a smaller drill to pre-drill holes for the 4 inch screws. This allowed the head of the screws to sit about an inch into the wood and the threaded portion of the screw to dig deep enough into the second board without going through it. Overall it holds great and there are no visible screw heads on the top of the table!

 

 

FYI This technique DOES require aligning the cross beam with the top of the second 2x4 rather than the top 2x4  because you want to save enoughg room the support pieces. (See pictures)

 

 

 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
100
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
None yet. Will be gifted to my brother in law and he and his girlfriend will finish it.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Pantry Door Spice Rack

Submitted by HR Dad on Wed, 09/02/2020 - 18:11

First I had to flip the pantry door from opening into my small pantry to opening out. Doing this allowed me to utilize back of the door for this spice rack. Frees up quite a bit of space in our cabinets, drawers and pantry for other items. Substituted braided picture frame wire for the wood dowels; still keeps all items secure on the shelves but also allows for more flexibility when dealing with canister sizes that are very close to the amount of space in between shelves. Already had the paint from doing some baseboards as well as quarter inch ply. So, final cost was for 1x4's and 1x6's coming out to about $30

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$30.00.
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Equal parts Behr Premium Plus Semi-gloss interior and Minwax Polycrylic Clear Satin
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

X Coffee table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 12/25/2016 - 09:40

Rustic coffee table. Plans by Ana White. Coffee, vinegar, steel wool stain

Estimated Cost
$60
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Coffee, vinegar, steel wool with prime of black tea
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Modern Outdoor Patio Set

Submitted by dlangford on Sat, 09/05/2020 - 16:08

Built this over the weekend for my girlfriends sister. It was a great project and the whole family was able to work together on it, sanding and waterproofing it before assembling. The loveseat plans need a little tweaking. We ran ran the slats the same direction as the chair plans call for so we added a middle support for extra stability. We also pitched the seating down towards the back by 5* to make a more natural sitting position.

Estimated Cost
$300
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Behr Cedar Natural Tone Waterproofing Stain and Sealer
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner
Seasonal And Holiday

My fancy farmhouse table version. 10' long

Submitted by JS on Fri, 11/23/2012 - 10:48

Built this fancy farmhouse table for the back patio. Made it 10' long. Instead of 4 2x10's I used 5 2x8's 10' long. All yellow pine from Home Depot. This is the first table or wood type construction project I have ever made. Screwed everything together, filled in holes with stainable wood filler, used 3 coats of Minwax Provencial stain and then 3 coats of outdoors Helmsman Spar Varnish (sanding with 000 steel wool between coats). Turned out great. Total materials including wood, screws, sanding, stain, varnish, and brushes was a little less than $300. The stain and varnish I bought was about $100, 1 gallon can of stain and 1 gallon can of varnish. Tools used were miter saw, cordless and corded drills, and sanders before staining. Thanks for the plans Ana-White.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
MinWax Provencial stain (3 coats)
Helmsman Outdoor Spar Varnish (3 coats 000 steel wool sanding between coats)
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

Yo

Wed, 07/31/2013 - 10:12

That is a great table. You clearly are a talented homemaker. I build kit cars. I bet with your skills we could do great work together.

SOCOOLJ

Wed, 07/31/2013 - 10:52

Looks great. I did the same but I went and bought a Home Depot table(pre-built) and just stained it. Looks almost identical except 1/4 of the time and cost. BTW I love the painted brick. Thanks for sharing. I give your table a 10!

Hall Tree - Shiplap and Old Growth Fir

Loved doing this project. Used the Ana White plans with a few mods. Made the back removal so that I could easily transport. This was for my daughter's apartment that had no entry closet for her shoes and coats.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Benjamin Moore Ceiling Flat White and Wipe on Poly for the seat.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Charlie's Personalized Highchair

A few days before Thanksgiving, my mom told me she wished we had a restaurant style high chair for my daughter. The old one was so large and bulky, and was hard to reach food on the table. I knew just where to look for plans! I spent $6 on the lumber and used scraps for the seat and back. The chair is painted in three coats of lime green paint. We used my mom's Cricut to cut the vinyl letters and stuck them on the back. Then three coats of polyurethane for easy wiping and it was ready for straps! I picked up $3 worth of 1" webbing from Hobby Lobby along with a parachute snap clip. I used two small cabinet screws for each strap on the bottom to attach. I decided to loop the front strap over the 1x2 front bar to prevent any risk of splitting by drilling into that thin side. Instead both ends are screwed down on the bottom.

We absolutely love this new highchair! It perfectly fits under the table and Charlie has no trouble eating (and throwing) food now. And for $10, you just can't beat it! Solid wood, perfect color, personalized name. I really love DIY

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$10
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
three coats of lime green latex paint, followed by three coats of polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Console X

Submitted by linwoods on Tue, 09/09/2014 - 18:11

I modified the plan so that that I had a 48" table top and 4 legs only.  I didn't need such a long version in my entry.  The picture frame is from left over wood from the project.

Can anyone guess where I took the photograph in the frame?  Somewhere in the lower 48 states.

Thanks Ana for the design!!

Daren

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
I followed the rustic Yet Refined Wood Finish Pretty closely, except I let the special walnut sit a little longer.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Side board with hutch

Built from scratch looking at a photo someone sent me that cost $5200. I built for $500

Estimated Cost
500-550
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Special walnut and poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Farmhouse headboard

Submitted by benhuard on Thu, 11/29/2012 - 06:04

This was my first project. My wife wanted one, I made one. End of story. Now I'm hooked on woodworking and each time my wife says she wants something, the first thing out of my mouth is, "I can make that".

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Truss table

My husband built this table for me as an 8th Anniversary present.  It came out absolutely beautiful! For the first time,  we can host  family and friends with plenty of room. I paired it with some chairs that we already owned. He will be building the matching bench soon.

He left out the 45 degree diagonals,  may add them later.  It is so sturdy, they are basically decorative. 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Min wax golden pecan for top
Behrman Roman plaster paint, satin finish
Satin poly on top.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Garage Sliding Screen Doors

Inspired by your diy barn door hardware, I wanted to create a way to have airflow in my garage as I work in there without the nuisance of bees, flies, and hummingbirds entering in. Since this is my first attempt to make a project like this, a few mistakes were made along the way, but, overall, I am happy to say my objective has been accomplished! Thank you, Ana, for inspiring me to start and finish this project to the end!DI

Estimated Cost
$250
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

eegad1973

Thu, 02/16/2023 - 12:52

Amazing, can you tell me what thickness your flat bar was and what size Fender washers you used. I am wanting make hardware for a door that is 27.5 inches wide by around 68 inches high. It is 1.5 inches thick. So I’m also curious what size bolts you used as I want to ensure 1/4inch bolts are enough. I’m struggling to find 2 inch diameter fender washers that have a 1/4 inch hole. I’m excited to make the hardware as traditional hardware is too big for the space. Any ideas are appreciated.