Community Brag Posts

I built this for my oldest brother.  I only used 2x2's for the legs.  I built the carcuses out of plywood and used 1x2 select pine for the face frames.  I built the top shelfs to be 5 feet tall.  So the whole thing is 7 feet high by 8 feet wide.  

I did very little modification to the original plan on this one besides reducing the overall length to 28".  I had an old plate/cup display hutch that wasn't very practical or pretty, so I took it apart and used the pieces to make the shelves (and the curvy bit under the first shelf).  <!--break-->They weren't quite the right size, so I added other wood scraps (including a bit of plywood) to get the dimensions needed.  The 1x2s are crappy used furring strips I ripped out of the attic when we redid the roof, so they were all water stained and covered in nail holes.  The top was a vintage table leaf I acquired at some point and appears to be 3" pieces of poplar glued together (it took the stain beautifully).  Oh! I did do one other thing that wasn't in the plans...I connected the shelves to the base using 5/8" dowels through the horizontal pieces on the sides.  It took a little extra time, but I do feel more secure with the weight of the books+shelves (+possibly a climbing child) resting on those dowels instead of just screws.

The main thing is that this case holds my toddler's whole library.  She can even put the books away by herself without them falling off when she doesn't place them just right.  I love that it looks like it belongs in a grown-up's living room, but it's 100% classy kid-friendly furniture design!

I built this with some scrap mdf, and 1x3's. I offset the shelves, and voila! A modern shelf to go with our eclectic, yet very modern decor. It also gives me a nice display for some of my orchids. I love this shelf!

This was my second coffee table. Anticipating that the hardest part would of course be the drawer, I actually started with the drawer and built the rest of the table around that! Made a big difference too. It was much easier.

I took my time with this project with things that I had rushed through before, sanding parts before assembly, dry fitting with lots of clamps at each step, and I took extra care on cutting pieces square.

Since I was able to get the drawer done so much easier this time, the hardest part was the top. I hate how the ends turn up slightly... does anyone know how to stop that from happening?

I spent about a week and a half on this table, working on it for a few hours a day while my son was in school.

I am SO SO SO happy with how it turned out. The drawer was really tight in the shop (no air conditioning) but when I got it home, it has loosened up a bit, and its still just a little sticky, but not bad at all. I just love this finish. It's by far my favorite finish of any that I have tried.

I am trying to sell this coffee table, and my next project is going to be a console that coordinates, but will have the base part painted and the panel top stained. I really need a good job in the near future so I don't have to keep selling these things that I build and fall in love with!!

** On a side note, this coffee table got me a marriage proposal from a near stranger. Who would have thought that making sawdust would be so attractive to guys? LOL.

This was my first Ana White project and the first time using my new Kreg jig that my wife bought for me as a birthday gift.  I modified the plans to build this as one complete unit and not as separate bins to be stacked.  I used my Kreg jig on the dividers and ends to attach each section to the next.  This saved on material and made it a bit lighter since I was building it 4 units high.  I added small 2x3 feet to the bottom to clear an outlet behind the toy bin.  Two L brackets were used to anchor the unit to the wall. 

Found five 2x12 heart pine planks and used this base as the template. Table is about 18" wider than the plans. It turned out great!

I started to build these crates as storage for my oldest daughter's room, but I never got around to finishing a second. Halloween was coming on fast and I had about 8 pallets in my backyard. I debated tearing them apart and building another crate, or using them to create a graveyard.....

The graveyard won, and I ended up doing a picket fence, a casket and headstones with the pallet pieces. The crate fit right in to the decor, so it has now become a halloween decoration instead of a storage solution for my daughter's room. It even got a lid!

My grandchildren needed a table that they could use for blocks, coloring, trains and just all around fun so with the help from my 4 year old and 3 year old Grandson's we created the perfect table from the rustic x coffee table plans.

I used the plans from Michaela's kitchen island, but modified the top. Instead of 2x4s pine studs, I used black walnut boards a friend of mine had lying around. They were ~1x8" boards so I ripped them to ~4" width and ~60" length. They were a little warped so I glued and screwed them togther using a Kreg jig (best tool ever). This made a huge difference and there was only minimal gaps (1/16") between the boards. I ended up borrowing a belt sander from another friend to take out the 1/16"-1/8" lips in the boards. First time using a belt sander and it took a few minutes with 80 grit across the grain to get a level surface. Used 120 grit paper with the grain to smooth out the scratch marks from the 80 grit. Attached the top to the base with screws, finish sanded with 220 and 320 grit, cleaned up the dust with a tack cloth and then applied a few coats of polyurethane. For the drawers, I couldn't find 21" slides so I ended up modifying the drawers for 20" slides. Another fun and satisfying project!

Was easy to make

I never thought I would have been able to do this. Thanks Anna! This was my first time building anything. It was a great learning experience. My husband was a big help. He got me comfortable with operating the power tools and assisted me with attaching the posts. This project took a lot longer to put together because I have an extremely active two year old. :-) So I had to do this when pee wee was napping or preoccupied. Originally I wanted to stain the wood Espresso but for some reason I couldn't find Espresso stain sold anywhere in Vegas. I took a swatch down to the local paint shop to have it matched but when the second coat of stain was on the footboard I realized it was not at all the color I had in mind. I had to resand all of it down and the second time around I went with a primer and espresso spray paint. I had a boxspring so instead of making the makeshift boxsprings I found the design in another plan for adding the strip to the sideboards so that slats could be laid down for the boxspring. It turned out amazing! My next project is the farmhouse nightstands. I can't wait!

I decided to build bookshelves on either side of the fireplace, where it was just drywall. I wanted them to be flush with the wall, and the garage is behind the wall. So, I built them into the garage.
I put headers above where the bookshelves would be, and framed the back side in the garage with just 2x4's. I used full sheets of bead board to cover the backs and sides, and tops. Then I bought pre made shelves and put them up using quarter round to support the shelves on all three sides.
I then bought a door frame kit that I liked, that came with fluted pieces for the sides and top with decorative squares to put at the corners. I caulked and painted it all once it was built. I used a circular saw, framing nail gun, compressor, trim nail gun, chop saw and a hammer total. It was a pretty simple project but has made the space much more useable and pretty. My next project is to build a mantle and surround that matches the bookshelves.

This is my build of the sliding door console. I built this for my wife after she insisted we needed this for our dining room. The build overall was pretty easy, after my wife decided to change the paint color 3 times (yes, after we had bought the gallons, and I had it completely painted every time). I will say though that if you plan on painting this then you should use plywood for the front facing boards of the frame. I built mine over the course of about a month and after I had painted it I noticed significant wood shrinkage on the areas where boards came together. Plywood shrinks minimally if any at all so it should take care of that issue.

P.S. Don’t mind the unfinished construction in the background, we are in the process of installing bigger baseboards, and the planked walls are still unfinished.

Picnic table

I took this project on not sure how it would come out and I am very happy with the results!!

I wanted to create a library table (big desk) for my two youngest boys so they would have a craft/homework space. I liked the plan for rustic x console so I adapted it to make this 7 ft desk. Kids love it so much I couldn't even get a picture of it before they started using it.

Enjoyed this project. Already have a request to build a whole set.