Community Brag Posts

Modern Subway Tile Bookcase

Submitted by handymommy on Wed, 03/09/2011 - 05:39

I had to adjust the height and width of this project to fit on my wall in this corner. But I just LOVE how it came out. It's one of my favorite pieces of furniture in my whole house!

Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Mix of ebony and walnut stains with poly top coat.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Happier table

Submitted by venessat on Thu, 05/09/2013 - 21:33

My very first piece of furniture I built!

Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Dark walnut with clear satin
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Entry Built in and Board and Batten

Submitted by anb80 on Tue, 03/31/2015 - 11:42

Entry board and batten treatment with hooks, cabinet with doors and drawers and bench.  Made from plywood. 

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

Comments

anb80

Wed, 04/01/2015 - 06:55

Thanks! We just sold our house in under 48 hours and I think all these built-ins helped! Thanks Ana for all the great plans and inspiring me. I learned so much coming from some one that had never built anything. You're awsome!

Laundry Basket

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 07/03/2017 - 09:09

This was super easy. Just make sure you bolt it to the studs in the wall. I bolted them to each other and to the wall for added support. It only took me the afternoon and then I stayed up all night to finish it and get it done. I made this system over 3 years ago and it still works great for our family. 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Maybe less than $50? It was worth it whatever it was. And I used peg board on the back bc I already had it.
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
painted
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Media console

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 13:28

This great plan!! Thx Ana!

Comments

custom desk

Custom sized desk to fit between a radiator and wall. Combination of cubby desk with added lower shelving and upper hutch with shelf unit.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Desk top surface: 2 coats Minwax cherry stain plus finishing paste.
All other pieces:
1. one coat Kilz primer
2. two coats Behr off white satin
3. distressed with 220 grit sandpaper
4. Minwax cherry stain
5. one coat Minwax satin poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Floating "Book" Shelves

I wanted to make floating shelves. As I was making them, I got the idea to decorate them like books.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
To decorate I used card paper to round one side and covered it with scrap book paper. I used three coats of shellac for protection.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

DIY Minecraft Torches

My favorite 7 year old recently had a Minecraft themed birthday party.    For party favors, I made Minecraft torches from a 2×2 board.   Painting each pixel of the torch was an incredibly time consuming process.  This is definitely not a project you want to procrastinate on.   I would budget two hours per a torch.   The torches are 1.5″ wide and 7.5″ tall.  The scale for the pixels is 0.75 inches.  I am pretty happy with how the torches came out.  It is a great way to use leftover 2×2 boards in the garage and a neat treat for fans of the game.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Acrylic craft paint sealed with Mod Podge (Matte Finish)
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Outdoor sectional!!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 07/05/2017 - 16:12

My husband followed your design for an outdoor sectional for our pool deck. We LOVE it!! Our boys helped and we were able to get the whole thing done in two days!! 

Estimated Cost
Wood and screws: $110
Sunbrella Cushions: $584 (on sale through Home Depot)
White Paint: $30
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Worth every penny, sweat dripple and sun burn (we finally got smart and set up our pop up canopy for shade). We did buy the cushions first, when they were on sale. We used 25 x 25 and I feel like we could have gone a little smaller, but maybe as we use them, they will settle smaller.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner
Seasonal And Holiday

Coffee - Wine Bar (Adapted from Planter's Bench

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 13:58

Built for my daughter but it came out so well, kept it.

Comments

Ana White Admin

Tue, 10/05/2021 - 09:58

That would be hard to give up, lol! The cup and wine glass storage is a great addition, thanks for sharing:)

Adorable Rustic Bench

Submitted by beingbrook on Wed, 03/09/2011 - 12:34

Love the rustic bench! This project took my husband about an hour or two to build and then a little primer and paint and it was ready to use. It was a pretty easy build and we didn’t modify the plans at all. We liked the bench so much that we made another one! My biggest tip is to always read the comments on the plans because people leave great feedback about their experience as well as any tips that they used. It cost us less than $30 to build two benches. Sanded really well and then filled screw holes with wood fill. Primed and painted with Behr’s powdered blush.

 

Pin For Later!

Adorable Rustic Bench

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$15-20
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
A coat of primer followed by a coat of Behr's Powdered Blush.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

2x4 cubby

Submitted by arkep on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 19:26

These cubbies are the next step in organizing my sewing/guest room. I plan to fill the shelves with fabric and books very soon!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$50 (I already had the casters and paint)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
white primer, followed by Benjamin Moore Advance Paint (white)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Bunny Easter Basket

Submitted by DMax2010 on Sun, 04/05/2015 - 10:02

My son loved his new Easter basket! This was super cute to make and I just used scrap wood. The paint was CeCe Caldwell's chalk paint in Blue Montana Sky. I used CeCe Caldwell's Clear Wax for the finish. Love these projects!

Estimated Cost
Used scrap wood and materials I already had
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
CeCe Caldwell's Blue Montana Sky chalk paint and Clear Wax for the finish
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

OUTSIDE FARMHOUSE TABLE

Submitted by DiRico.PF on Fri, 07/14/2017 - 00:17

We just recently moved and we need a dining table for outside. I wasn't happy or interested in the high cost of a low quality crappy steel table set. So i went out and bought the lumber and built the table.I noted that it took me a week to build this table. If I had the weekend dedicated to building it, it would have only taken me the weekend, but life got in the way and it took me a solid week. I used treated lumber for the legs of the table and went with untreated for the rest. I applied some Behr Weatherproofing stain. I thought it turned out great. The only problem i had with the table was that in the plans they are made for a 4X4 that is actually a 4X4. The ones i acquired was 3 1/2 X 3 1/2. It did not cause to much of a problem I just added an extra inch on the skirt. I also was not a big fan of having the feet of the table in direct contact with the ground. Especially on those rainy days. ( Which we have been having a lot of this season) So i went out and I got some Hockey Pucks. Yup some good ol' Canadian hockey pucks. I centered them and screwed them in. Not only do they elevate the table they act as a good grip to the patio stones. By the way this was my first build ever. Excited to get the benches done now. 

Estimated Cost
All lumber I purchased (including benches) Which I am completing soon with Stain came up to a grand total of 250$ Canadian.
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
I used Behr WeatherProofing Semi-Transparent. I sanded at 220 and Stained. Rinse and Repeat for a total of 3 times.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Farmhouse doll bed

Submitted by heidikuz on Wed, 03/09/2011 - 14:07

I am in the process of making my own queen size farmhouse bed but this one came along a lot quicker and my daughter loves it. :) She recently got zebra and hot pink bedding so we made a blanket to match.

Estimated Cost
Less than $10
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
White paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Weatherly Outdoor Sectional!

Submitted by Celeste808 on Sun, 05/19/2013 - 07:40

I really wanted some outdoor furniture but did not want to spend the thousands for a sectional. I used this plan and created the entire sectional for less than $500!

Wood =

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Valspar Outdoor White Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

spiceylg

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 04:43

This came out so beautiful! Okay, I usually don't bring attention to typos, but this one you might want to fix. You wrote suck instead of such. Oops! :)

Farmhouse table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/04/2021 - 15:58

Farmhouse table

Comments

Our Thanksgiving Family Project

Submitted by loniwolfe on Wed, 03/09/2011 - 16:50

My husband, step father and I built these Thanksgiving weekend (2010) and my mom got us a half bushel of oysters to snack on and made awesome steamed mussels with bread for dinner. This was a very fun family weekend.

I modifyed the plans a little to make the arms angle in a bit instead of being straight boards and also created the curved front. Then after building the first chair, Pat decided to make the second chair's back rest taller and cut angles to match the arms.

I picked intermediate because of needing a miter saw for all the different angles needed for getting the front right.
Also, It took one day for each chair

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
To my knowledge, Pat has not yet stained them, but once he does I will take more pics and find out what he used!
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Dog Kennel End table (small)

I loved this plan, but needed to cut down the size. I added fabric to the side panels to make it a little prettier. I had my ply cut at Home Depot, but cut all of the rest of the wood with my little had miter box, which added a lot more time to the process, but it was worth it! More details on my blog. Great plan, as always, Ana!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Clark & Kensington, Paint & Primer all in one from Ace.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Modified Tall Panel Headboard

Submitted by RenoRustic on Thu, 04/09/2015 - 21:31

I built this headboard as a birthday gift for my grandmother. She had a rickety, old makeshift headboard composed of a couple of 2x4's and some lattice that was spray painted. I modified the plans to fit her Full size bed and lowered the height down to 62".

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$180-$200
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
I sanded the entire headboard with 80 & 120 grit. I matched some Behr semi-gloss paint to the color of her door and baseboard trim. Painted it with my FinishMax paint sprayer, sanding between coats with 400 grit. 3 coats of paint overall.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Mom End Table

Finished the X end table, turned out great.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Mix of Minwax Dark Walnut & Classic Grey
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate