Community Brag Posts

Super easy gift for a toddler

This is a set of photo ledges built for a friend!

Website article: http://www.lanebroswoodshop.com/2015/02/photo-ledges.html

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6jwfhwJQ-g

We built the one arm sectional but 8 ft cedar was all we could buy. So with the scraps left over we built the coffee table to match. Couldn't be happier with it. 

I used the basic plan by Ana, but modified it for the size I needed. Its 2x12 pine with english chestnut stain and tung oil (formby's) finish. I did use 4x4 posts for the legs instead of 2- 2x4's. notching out was the most difficult part. (Should have watched the video by Ana 1st. Lol). I did want some over hang so I cut the leg notches 1/4 shallow so there would be detail. I regret not using the kreg jig on the top, as I have much bigger gaps than I like! But I started buying better tools during this build when I realized mine were not getting the job done. And it definitely makes a huge difference!!! I still have to finish the benches. Just trying to find the time. I can't wait to start the next project!

Used the plans for the Rustic X coffee table as a starting point. Left out the X's as they don't appeal to me. Took a butane torch and burned the base and tabletop before staining, and stained the table in alternating stains to give it a really unique appearance. Stains used were Rustoleum Summer Oak, and Minwax Early American, finished with Minwax Semigloss Poly.

Hi there!  This is Dani from The Project Lady!

I wanted to share my building plan and tutorial for these dining room benches!  Total cost is about $20 for lumber per bench!

Head over to my website for step-by-step instructions and pictures!

Happy Building!

Thecreativityexchange.com did such a great job with the original project, so of course I had to give it a try! I had only a few minor adjustments in size. I made this one 8ft X 8ft and only using one sheet of pegboard. My amazing wife stained it too with English Walnut!

I needed a garden shed (for potting supplies) and a dog house, but I wanted it to look good. I started with Ana's plans, but screwed up a cut and was too lazy to go to the store, so I modified the plan a bit - also we didn't want a lot of venting off the roof.

OUR MODIFICATIONS:
NO BACK WALL - I did not build a back wall, as we pushed it all the way up to the house. (You need to check your codes for this if it's allowed. The way I'm integrating mine w/o breaking the exterior waterproofing of the house and it's unconditioned made mine OK)

DOG HOUSE- I cut away a hole for our dog between the battens. And as you can see - he loves it. He's got his Coolaroo dog bed inside. We also added a 'ceiling' to the lower dog house half, that divides the gardening storage from dog house. The large shelf inside that acts as a dog house ceiling, and above are my un-used pots, hand tools etc. (no worries no chemicals with the puppy)

PAINTED EXTERIOR- I painted it red to match the house, and will also be putting garden pavers in front of the doors.

ROOF- We did put an underlayment down on the roof before the asphalt shingles.

LESSON LEARNED- If your dog is a Mama's boy like mine, he may try to climb a ladder to remove you from a roof which he has determined is not OK for you to be up there.

*One concern is - most sidewalks slope away from the house, so we had to shim the sill plate so front of the shed doesn't lean outward causing the doors to pull open constantly. As you can see from the photo I still need to flash at the roof where we cut back our houses' battens.

COST- We live in CA - and this project was more expensive than anticipated, our lumber/roof shingle costs were around $270 alone, and keep in mind we didn't build a back panel. I have very little scrap left over too. When I was nearly done the hinges were an additional $15 a piece, $10 for the latch. And we had the primer and paint in the garage. Underlayment for roof, I already had in the garage too.

TIM-: I started this project on a weekend, but it ended up taking longer; probably because I didn't block out the weekend just for this project. I spread it over the course of a month, so hours wise it probably wasn't as bad as it felt... You do need two people though, and that's where I ran into some trouble, I kept trying to work on it when my husband wasn't home. Probably 24hrs, 3 easy going days. Could probably be done in a weekend if you were dedicated and didn't get distracted (or screw up a cut like I did, which sent me to the drawing board to fix my mistake)

I made some of the cute little cedar boxes to use as planters. I love the size and they were super simple to make.

Needed a two seat bench for an existing table.  Used biscuits instead of pocket screws to manufacture the seating surface.  Cut 1/4" from each edge of the 2x4  (original 1.5" x 3.5" => now 1.5" x 3.0") so the premilled humps would not be evident on the seating surface.  The surface now has 6 layers of boards for 6x3=18" width instead of the plans 5x3.5 = 17.5"  Great plans, easy to modify!

My new Craft Table I built from Ana White's plans. I combined her plans from her Modern Craft Table (http://ana-white.com/2010/09/modern-craft-table) and the desk drawer from her Craft Tabletop for the Modular Collection (http://ana-white.com/2010/02/plans-bedford-project-table-top-with.html). I modified the plans slightly, I added 1x2's aroung the tabletop instead of edge banding or nosing to give it a nice decorative finish. I also used 1 x 3's instead of using 1 x 2's for the floating base for the tabletop so you could see more of the floating base since the 1 x 2's around the tabletop covered up the majority of the floating base from view. I also created a frame for the table top to sit on which also helped stabilized the 2 bookshelves in place, as well as adding support to the frame of the drawers.

Table and bench before we finished it

We had been saving up for a table like this one from Restoration Hardware or Urban Barn or West Elm but needless to say it was taking a while (just for the table)... then we stumbled upon @Shanty2Chic on Pinterest and loved the idea.

As far as woodworking/furniture making goes, I have taken a turn at it here and there but this was our first major project and it worked out great. We decided to go with two benches and we're currently hunting for chairs, maybe a DIY as the ones we want are also pretty expensive for what they are!

We bought all the wood, subbing the 96" 2x10s for 72" 2x10s and subbed the 2x4s in the X legs for 4x4s. I like the one piece better than the 2x4s and we attached the X pieces to the 4x4 using 2-1/2" pocket screws. After cutting and sanding, we assembled the table and set out staining it with a brush and a clean rag using the "brush on - wipe off" method which gave us a nice look at the grain pattern. The stain we chose was Varathane Weathered Grey and did one coat which gave us the look we were after. After staining we applied three coats of Varathane Matte Finish clear to allow for that "natural wood feel".

New to raising chickens, but eager to jump right in to it.
We bought a pre-made coop for the main home for our new chicks and it's very nice, not something I could do myself since I'm not yet at that level, but I saw this chicken tractor and thought it would come in handy for what I have in mind so I made up my mind to build it.
The lumber, chicken wire, staples, and wheels are all store bought new and came to about $75. The materials we had on hand were the screws, hinges, plastic coated metal shelving (used in the nesting area, I thought that would make it easy to clean), paint, and the corner piece of vinyl siding for the roof cap (hubby's brilliant idea, and I painted it green with spray paint for vinyl).
I did not try to build it quickly, I don't really know how much time it took me, but if I had to guess I'd guess total time would amount to about 3 afternoons, by myself.
I wanted to leave the top on the one side open with the option to slap on the other boards if/when the need arises. I have the other t1-11 panels that can sit right in those areas because I stapled the chicken wire in a way that would allow it.
I also added a flip up panel as seen in the pictures for access. I didn't want a small door that I would have a hard time getting to things in there. I'm so glad I added this feature, it sure gives plenty of room for me to maintain the food and water dispensers as well as get in there and catch the little chickies :)
I wanted it green to blend into the wooded background in our backyard. I didn't want to take any beauty away from the cedar greenhouse and fencing we added last year, and this tractor would be moved from time to time and I felt this green that we had on hand was perfect to help it blend in rather than stand out.
This thing is heavy! I have a hard time moving it around and usually need my husband to move it so I won't hurt myself. I am considering some options... I don't like the rope I have on it to pull it, any suggestions would be appreciated.
As with the other items I've made with Ana's plans, this was fun and pretty easy to make. I love this site! Soon I will take on my next project, I've bought and gathered the materials, I'm anxious to get started :)
Thank you for looking :)

This is a modified version of the sturdy workbench. I made it six feet long, about three feet wide (I can't remember exactly), and 36'' high. Since I'm 6'2'', I needed a bench that didn't keep me constantly bending over.

I used Douglas Fir framing lumber and 3/4'' plywood for the surface. The plywood was a cheap replaceable option since hardwood is extremely expensive in my area. The wood warped a bit after I built it, so its clearly not perfect. But who cares, its a workbench after all...

I used left over paint / stain I had laying around in the garage. The gray is a custom mix interior paint, and the stain is Minwax Golden Oak. I used 1 coat of stain, and three coats of Poly.

I used these plans and modified the height to create functional countertop and shelving in my garage. I added a little face framing too. Thank you for the inspiration Ana!

I wanted to use our laundry basket dresser as a collector for dirty laundry in our bathroom, and wanted it to have doors so it would blend in better. I also made the shelf above for our towels. It is painted white with a faux-zinc finish on the top. I made the top slightly larger so it would overhang and added cute little bun feet. My talented friend Carli helped me build the doors (and by helped I mean I handed her things while she impressed me with all her tools and skills!) and frame.