Community Brag Posts

Queen Size Farm Bed

Submitted by msts on Sun, 06/05/2011 - 12:54

This took about 10 hours, including prime and paint. I raised the side rails 3 1/2 inches to dado the posts to accept a 2x4 siderail on the inside of the post, with 1x8 covering it at the center of the post. The siderails are bolted with 4x5/16" bolts, washers and nuts. We chose to leave it more rustic, showing the siderails at the ends and the bolt holes. It is all pine, bought new and along with a 1" forstner bit to recess the bolts, cost $198. It can be repainted at any time. Tools I used were a compound saw for ease of cutting straight cuts, a cordless and corded drill, 1/2" socket and box wrench, easy square and a circular saw for the 1x8's. We painted it with left over paint. Because its pine, we primed with BIN,

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
BIN Primer Sealer, one coat on knots then another full coat.
Benjamin Moore Pearl Luster "
Butter" Finish Coat, two coats.
I sand all wood with an orbital sander prior to assembly. Then I use a block sander after the primer dries and between the first and final coat of paint. I only sand after the primer and paint to knock off anything that might be sticking up off the surface. I don't go crazy.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

marlaandwilliam

Sun, 06/05/2011 - 18:27

Looks great! What did you use for the panels in the headboard and footboard? it almost looks like beadboard ?

Mark Shortt (not verified)

Sun, 06/05/2011 - 20:23

It is 1x5 bead board (pine). Some places call it match board. It is v-groove, tongue and groove and has a smooth (flat) side and a two inch flat, bead, two inch flat side. The plans called for a 61" wide panel but I made it 58" with the dadoed posts (1 1/2 inch each cut).
If you want to do the panel using the T&G bead board, make sure to lay your 1x4's out the distance of what ever height you want your panels and center the first piece of T&G bead board on both the top and bottom panel. Then you work your way out fitting the T&G and screwing in each piece. When you come to the two end pieces, they are going to ned to be ripped but by starting at center, they will be even at the end when ripped.
Another tip is when screwing the panel, you will want to get at least halfway into the 3 1/2" post. measure the distance you want to cut on the drill bit and put a piece of tape on the bit. Then drill until you get to the tape.

Adirondack Love Seat

Submitted by burgan on Tue, 07/23/2013 - 15:06

Modified from Ana's Home Depot DIY, using all pine lumber w/1x6 for the arms.

Estimated Cost
$55
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Left natural...for now.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Rustix X Console

Submitted by colawtx on Sat, 08/01/2015 - 08:03

We modified the size slighly 54x16x29 and added a 1" reveal at the front. The top is made of 1" cedar planks. All the wood we used for this project was free recyled wood. The top color is expresso satin and the support structure is pure white.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Rustic X Console

Submitted by aelliott on Fri, 03/02/2018 - 09:24

Had a blast doing this project! Wife was skeptical at first but it's found a great spot in our home as an entry way table! Thanks for the plans!

Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

File Cabinet based on Eco Office File Base Plans

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 04/21/2022 - 08:22

I got tired of wrestling with my old filing cabinet and decided to build one that would stand up to regular use. Based on the AW plan noted, I build this out of 3/4" plywood. The drawer faces are 1/2" birch plywood and the hardware is salvaged from old kitchen cabinets. Overall dimensions are slightly modified to fit my space. Painted the cabinet box flat black and because the birch faces have such an interesting swirl, I used clear poly for the drawers. Fun project that works well and looks great.

Comments

Exactly what I wanted

Submitted by rhamil12 on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 08:07

I stumbled upon the octagon picinic table almost by mistake. I set out to just find a blueprint for a standard picnic table to know how much materials I needed and this came up in the top of the Google search. As soon as I saw it I knew it would be perfect for my backyard. It looks great and the neighbors are quiet jealous!

In the first additional photo you will also see the entry way bench and storage shelf (http://ana-white.com/2009/11/plans-for-entry-storage-benchshelf_2314.ht…) that I worked on when I wanted a break from the table.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Olympic Redwood Naturaltone Semi-transparent Deck stain/seal
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

jlbarahona

Thu, 07/25/2013 - 16:56

This is gorgeous, i'd love this for my backyard! Do you know how much it cost you? thanks!

Donna's bathroom pipe organizer project

Submitted by dmmonarch on Wed, 08/05/2015 - 19:33

Went a little crazy on the pipe project, but love it.  My favorite thing is the bench.  My husband loves the toilet paper holder. 

Estimated Cost
I literally wrapped the pipe almost all the way around the bathroom so that cost was near $200. That's not including the boards and paint. Not a cheap project but worth every penny.
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Farm House Queen Bed

Made this bed using 4x4's and 2x4's from some large pallets we acquired. The rest of the wood I had to buy. I had to make some adjustments as our mattress was not a true queen. I loved making this project. This is a great plan.

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Modular office small desktop/Narrow file drawer base unit

Submitted by gmamurphy on Sun, 06/12/2011 - 14:00

Combined the modular office small desktop with the Narrow file drawer base unit to suit my needs/space requirements. Used the legs from the narrow farmhouse table because I just loved them! Added beadboard for the drawer faces because it matches the rest of our house.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
painters touch and minwax polycrylic
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

bundaboy

Mon, 04/28/2014 - 22:18

I am about to start on a very similar 4 draw version of this, do you have any more information? In particular I was wondering how the drawer slides were fitted - are the side or bottom fitting? Cheers and well done!

Bathroom Vanity - This one's Josephine!

Submitted by JoanneS on Sun, 07/28/2013 - 09:08

Converted an ordinary bathroom vanity into a Napoleon sink console/vanity. This is the second one I’ve completed, the first was in the hall bathroom which Hubby calls “his” bathroom. Since this one for the master bath is more feminine, I’m calling her Josephine! This was approximately a day and a half project, but spread out over several weekends. I had originally planned to put a faux drawer in front of the sink, and had the drawer front made, but then decided I’d like to try to make some custom drawers in front of the sink to utilize that space. I ended up doing the center drawer fronts twice – on the first try the space in the center was a little too narrow for the knob once the trim was in place. Since the vanity is in a corner, the sink doesn’t fall exactly in the center of the vanity cabinet, leaving it left of center by about an inch. This required different middle drawer sizes with interesting shapes.

The drawers are made from a combination of 3/8” craft boards and 3/8” plywood, ½” craft board, and some ¼” plywood for the bottoms (all of them except the one right of center – that has ¾” plywood for the bottom). The 2 outer drawers also have ¾” S4S as guides.

The doors and drawer fronts are ¼” birch plywood cut to size, with ½” x 1 ½” craft boards glued to the fronts for rails and stiles (I added a few pin nails from the back side also). Inside these, mitered pieces of mini-stop moulding were glued in place. The whole thing received some putty on the edges and joints, and thorough sanding with 80-grit, then 220-grit.

The inside frames are made from S4S, 1x2, and some scraps of 1x4 cut to size. If I were doing this in a newly constructed vanity without the sink already in place, the setup for the drawers would have been much simpler. But, we weren’t ready to buy new yet, so necessity was the mother of invention and we have this. I re-used the hinges and 2 of the knobs from the original, and I bought 4 more and the hardware for the drawers.

The pull-outs in the bottom are made from plywood scraps, thoroughly sanded and painted. These are based on Ana’s wood pull out cabinet drawer organizer, with added supports across the bottom to make the drawer clear the lip of the face frame, keeping them the correct distance apart, and giving something to attach to the cabinet floor.

For the inside floor of the cabinet, I got this Idea from Yvonne at Sunnyside Up-Stairs in this post:
http://sunnysideup-stairs.blogspot.com/2013/06/progress-installed-dishw…
Left over flooring was placed on the cabinet floor to give it a fresh new look and protect the cabinet bottom. Our house is 21 years old, so you can imagine the floor of the vanity cabinet had seen some wear and tear. Now it looks new!

Estimated Cost
$45 (hardware, craft boards, trim, already had the finishing materials and the rest was scrap on hand)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
This was my first try at home made chalk paint (2 coats). I got a free quart of Clark & Kensington flat paint at Ace, and had them tint it to Benjamin Moore’s Blue Echo color. I made the chalk paint by mixing the paint with some water and plaster of paris. I love how it dries so quickly and covers well, but I missed the sheen of a satin or semi gloss. The glaze is some Minwax Express Color in Walnut. Once everything was dry, it received a top coat of Minwax water based poly. I ran out of that right as I was doing the center drawers, so those have some Oil-modified water based poly. Pull-out drawers are some left over cream paint, and the frames are Ace Royal semigloss in Wishbone. Overall I’m very happy with the finish.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

yurra-bazain

Sun, 07/28/2013 - 12:25

I love your vanity. Something about it helps me imagine a British nobleman's home, or since she is Josephine, I suppose it would be in the home of a French duchess. =D I really do like the idea of having that pull out drawer on the bottom of the vanity.

I am definitely going to give glazing and distressing a try sometime. I just have to find the right project for the look. Lest I forget, thank you for sharing the link to my site. :)

JoanneS

Sun, 07/28/2013 - 15:57

Thank you so much for the nice comments! I love the idea of a Duchess, I think I'll nickname this finish Duchess Blue! :) I was happy to share your blog link, the idea about the vinyl flooring in the vanity worked like a charm, I'm going to do that in my kitchen and the other bathrooms too.

Herringbone Daybed

Submitted by sailonseas on Mon, 08/10/2015 - 10:25

I build this last minute for my daughters room makeover.  I worked through the night, but got it completed and painted just after sunrise. (I slept good the following night!)

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
This project ran about $70 in all.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Farmhouse Nightstands

Submitted by rbgreene04 on Sat, 03/10/2018 - 20:30

I had made the farmhouse bed from Ana a while ago and finally got around to building a pair of these bedside tables to match. I love how much bigger the top is than my previous nightstand's top. The bins on the bottom shelf are relatively cheap from Walmart, and I like the galvanized look with the wood. 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
About $120 for a pair
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
I wiped on two coats of dark walnut Danish oil; I love how quick and easy Danish oil goes on. Being that they are only bedside tables, I don't foresee much wear and tear and thus I didn't need a more durable finish.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Three Little Sling Chairs

Submitted by LissaNY on Wed, 06/15/2011 - 13:16

My first non-home-repair project. Made three of the sling chairs for my kids. They each picked out their own fabric (regular fabric). We still have not sanded, filled and painted but are hoping to do so this weekend. The kids were very excited to have them. I have been reading your website for months now wishing I had time to make something, and these chairs fit the bill. Thank you!

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Still unfinished. Undecided on how we are going to do each chair.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

RyansMama (not verified)

Wed, 07/13/2011 - 18:16

How old are your kids? My daughter is 6 and I am wondering if the chair will be too small for her.

Narrow Cottage End Table

Submitted by mom of 4 on Tue, 07/30/2013 - 16:21

I built matching side tables using Ana's Narrow Cottage End Table plan. I changed the height to suit the arms of my furniture. They fit our tight space and look fantastic with our existing wood pieces. Very easy to build, even the drawers! I used a router to finish the edge on the drawers, to make them stand out a little more. I learned to put my pocket holes on the outside of the drawer, since the back one is in the back, and the front one is covered by the separate drawer front piece. A Kreg jig makes this a very simple project. Also, I sanded my boards before assembly, then did touch-ups before finishing the project.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$50 total for two
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
One coat Minwax Ipswich Pine Stain. One coat Minwax finishing paste, hand rubbed.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Laundry Pedestal

I took this plan from www.Ana-White.com Home Depot cut my wood and I was off and running. I added a few ball feet on the bottom to give it a little pizzaz. I felt so accomplished after my first project... especially after the install guys told me it wouldn’t fit and it DID and it was level. I’m getting ready to make a coffee table now. Thanks for the inspiration, confidence and help!!

Estimated Cost
$150
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Satin Furniture paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Workbench

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 04/22/2022 - 13:19

Workbench with tons of storage! Not from a plan on the site. 

by La Nin

Farmhouse Twin Bed

After making the sling chairs, I decided to give the Farmhouse twin bed a whirl for my daughter. I absolutely love it! It ended up costing us $225 for all of the supplies needed. The only issue we had in making this was trying to make it easy to disassemble. This was fun to make!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$225
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Behr Creamy Almond Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

square planter

Submitted by gale on Thu, 08/01/2013 - 11:40

My first project! The legs are shorter than in the plans-my fault for not reading thoroughly before I printed just the cut list and headed to the store. Still, I love it. I used the Square Planters with Finials plan for this. Painted it with a stencil in place, then stained over that. Also used a kreg jig.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
paint: glidden, stain: minwax, clear coat: rustoleum water based spar varnish
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project