Community Brag Posts

Farmhouse Table

Submitted by johnandash on Wed, 01/15/2014 - 12:47

My husband surprised me with a big pile of wood in the garage on Christmas morning. 3 weeks later, this beautiful table is in my kitchen. The pictures do not do it justice - it turned out amazing. We have plans to make the matching bench when it warms a bit - our garage is freezing!

It took at least 20 hours to cut the wood, sand and assemble. It took another 10+ plus hours to stain and put 3 coats of the polyurethane.

The great people at Orange cut our wood for us, and we took it home and notched it out using a jigsaw. Once we got the hang of it, it was really easy.

We had a hard time finding 2 3/4 screws, so we used 2 1/2. It worked great. We used Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Filler in natural to fill the screw holes. It turned out so nice and looks great with the stain on top.

Neither my husband or I have very much experience building anything, so we took our time - measuring about 60 times and cutting once. However, it paid off. The table looks so great and I cannot wait to make the matching bench!

Estimated Cost
Around $250 (including stain and polyurethane)
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Minwax English Chestnut 233 - wiped on with a cotton cloth
Minwax Polyurethane Clear Semi-Gloss - brushed on with a Purdy brush

We left the stain on, without wiping any off - 1 coat.
3 coats of polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Laundry Room Storage

Submitted by jetoro16 on Fri, 04/08/2016 - 07:21

Modified the laundry basket dresser to hold 3 baskets and have a storage space for laundry/cleaning supplies in our small laundry room. We were going to paint it white, with some leftover paint we had (at the bottom there) but decided we want to change up the room and add some color. We will paint/stain it once we figure out what we want to do with the space but are using it as is until then.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$35
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Left unfinished; will paint/stain once we choose colors for the space.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Toy Car

Instead of pine and paint, I used Walnut, finished with foodsafe Osmo Top Oil for a durable finish. I also made the truck out of Padauk for an orange color. 

Estimated Cost
$4
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Osmo Top Oil
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Wood Adirondack Chair

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 08/21/2023 - 09:41

My young friend Carter used his own twist to your adiraondack chair with this herringbone pattern. He made six chairs from your pattern with three different design. These look so amazing around my firepit.

Susan Morris/Carter Tillman
 

Garden chairs and table

Submitted by joja on Sun, 04/01/2012 - 14:06

It was after getting to know your website and seeing all your nice craftsgirlship we decided to make our own garden furniture.

We are wery satisfied with the results, thanks a lot for the inspiration!

PS) Time investment = per item.

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Saturating wood oil.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Entertainment Center and Bookshelves

Submitted by talvey50 on Sun, 04/10/2016 - 21:08

A combination of the Printers Triple Console Cabinet and the Reclaimed Wood Rolling Shelf (x2). We knew we wanted the bookshelves so I made those first. The plans were really easy to follow and I knocked out both in a weekend. Once I got those where we wanted them, it left a void that only the Printers Console could fill. That took a little longer than anticipated and was about at the extent of my woodworking skill (so far!) but it came together perfectly.

Estimated Cost
Rolling Shelves ($100 each)
Printers Console Cabinet ($250-300)
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
My favorite stain ever....white vinegar and steel wool. Shred up some 0000 steel wool in a jar and pour white distilled vinegar. I usually let it sit for a couple of hours before wiping on the wood.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Footboard Bench

Submitted by kristilmay on Wed, 04/04/2012 - 22:49

I'd been wanting to add a piece of furniture at the end of my son's bed for awhile, but I had a difficult time deciding on what exactly to do. Not only did I want it to be something he could sit on, but also I wanted to add some extra storage. We had thought of a trunk but the idea of little fingers getting pinched made that idea a little scary. I turned to Ana-white's website for help. I didn't find exactly what I wanted, but I did get some inspiration from the new Kentwood Bookshelf. It's constructed the same way but with some sizing adjustments.

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

Doll Loft Bed McKenna

Submitted by LARMO on Mon, 01/20/2014 - 11:57

I made this for a grand-daughter for Christmas and followed the McKenna Doll plan from the plan catalog . My wife made the pad and quilt from a link on the doll plan site. Made from scraps left over using my Kreg jig and spray painted with a gloss purple, her favorite color. I also made a bulletin board near the desk and added cup hooks for the hangars on the ladder side.

Estimated Cost
$50
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Krylon Gloss Spray Paint purple
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Famhouse Dining Table

Submitted by kristyzed on Wed, 04/13/2016 - 11:27

I wanted a really long table for my dining room to use at family gatherings so I can host more dinners. This table is 9 feet long and has plenty of space for our needs. I used knotty pine and finished it with Minwax Espresso wood stain. I then added 1 coat of polyurethane as I didn't want the table to appear shiny but still wanted some protection in case of spills.

This project was definitely a labour of love but I'm thrilled with the results.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$200
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Minwax Espresso stain
Polyurethane
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Dress up centre

Submitted by Milhouse on Sat, 04/07/2012 - 23:13

My princess-loving daughter needed somewhere to keep her collection of dress up outfits, so I made her this 'rolling rack'. Some mods that I made: I routed the edges for some interest and added moulding to the bottom to disguise the casters.

Estimated Cost
~ $35-40
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Rustoleum Painter's touch Spray paint in 'Sweet Pea'
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Truss Table

I have been wanted to build this table for over a year and finally had the time for it. The plans made the cuts very simple.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Watco Danish Oil - Natural
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Outdoor sofa

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 04/16/2016 - 07:25

I built the sofa and loveseat from 2X4's and used 1X4's for the top of the coffee table. I used standard patio cushions for the sofa and cut the tops off to use at the side for arm rests.

Estimated Cost
$130.00 (I already had the cushions stored)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
latex wood conditioner followed by exterior CIL woodcare exterior stain by home depot
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Rustic X Hall Tree

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 12/30/2019 - 12:23

Completed this about a week ago. As usual, I went with the "--" instead of the "X", but it still turns out great.

Built from Plan(s)

Junior Size Classic Bunk Bed

We built this in our living room start to finish - we live in an NYC apartment. Because of the small room size we chose to modify the plans to a small mattress - hoping that it will last our boys until they are about 5 and 7 (currently 2 and almost here). This blog post outlines our buy and cut list for the modified size: http://wp.me/p3DCu3-Kd

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$215 (plus $200 for mattresses and bedding)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
None
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Our Kitchen Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 04/18/2016 - 15:25

We wanted to build a new kitchen table for the home we moved into. I had just bought a new table saw and needed a project. We searched through a lot of plans and settled on the Benchmark Octagon Table that Ana White had. My 14 y/o son and I built this over a few nights in our garage and my wife did the finishing. We were thrilled how it turned out. It comfortably seats 8 adults (yes we have had 8 adults at it). My wife and I always sit in the bench that is pictured and we easily eat side by side on one end. It is a great project. I would recommend being very careful attaching the table top support to the base column and also reinforcing the joints of the diagonal upper and lower supports to keep the table top from twisting easily. All in all a fantastic project and people are shocked when I tell them my son and I built it, particularly from off the shelf pine.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Dark Walnut Stain and about 5-6 coats of Satin Poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Kids table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 01/06/2020 - 00:19

This little table and chairs were so simple to build. My little granddaughter just loved her Christmas present.

Estimated Cost
$50
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Unicorn SPiT, pixie punk pink, zia teal and purple mountain majesty. 2 coats of wipe on polycrylic, and 2 coats of furniture wax.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Rustic X Bench

Submitted by mweir on Thu, 04/12/2012 - 18:29

My first real project from your site. This was my first time to use my pocket hole jig. Wow did it work great. The video was great made it very easy to follow the plans

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$20.00
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Stain and polyurethane one step (2 coats)
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Buffet Changing Table

Submitted by T S on Mon, 01/27/2014 - 09:29

So I altered the Emersen Buffet a little. We needed a changing table and I liked the idea of having the baskets handy for diapers, ect.. I will add the changing pad topper after we get the actual pad.
The door is from a weathered pallet I reclaimed.
I must say this is my first large project of this type. I would have NOT been able to do it without Ana White's site. However, now I feel capable of a lot more.
Thanks so much.
T S

Estimated Cost
Probably less than $80 but even plywood is expensive!
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax - Special Walnut 2 coats, sand lightly, then coat of polyurethane - satin
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner